Tag: Business advice

The customer that cannot be pleased.

Posted on | by Tom Hampton Agency

By Tom Hampton

Every business owner has had customers that have issues that sometimes make doing business much more complicated. There is, however, a particular type of customer that cannot and will not be reasoned with or compromise their demands. For those of you experienced enough to have been around the mountain a few times during your career, have found these types of challenging clients get resolved by two general types of outcomes:

1. (Most Frequent Outcome) An unpleasant type of compromise is negotiated between both parties for a final resolution.

2. (Not So Frequent Outcome) The situation becomes unpleasantly distasteful and detrimental to both parties, with no resolutions whatsoever, and the loss of a customer (sometimes several by word of mouth, negative reviews & ratings, etc).

 

Losing an especially upset customer can be infuriating and frustrating (to say the least). Our pride has taken a hit, and our insecurities are rattled. So, what do you do when no resolutions can be met by either party?

 

First, if you have not already done so, examine the instance very closely and ask yourself, Did I do my best in the situation? What lessons can I take away from the situation to make me and my business better. 

 

Personally, when I lose a customer in events such as this, even after 40 years in the business, part of me still mourns. The only way I know how to describe it; It is humbling. I not only feel as though I have let my customer down, but I also feel I have let my team down to lose a customer without resolution. We all strive to serve our customers to the best of our abilities.

 

Secondly, remind yourself and your team that in any business, you can have the BEST customer service on the planet, yet the situation will still inevitability occur at some point.  As the owner, I am usually the one having that final conversation with the customer after my team has exhausted all other avenues. Unfortunately, in a lot of dealerships, the collections agent/manager is the one having these front-line battles. It is imperative you trust the people handling the confrontation before it escalates to you. These team members are much in need of your support, guidance, and sometimes, nurturing. Their frustration levels can bleed over into other interactions with detrimental results (they often do not even realize is happening) when becoming overwhelmed and feeling unsupported.

 

A weekly 20-minute one-on-one meeting with these team members just may help them vent, learn, and grow while meeting these challenges and company expectations. When things get heated, or an appropriate time presents itself, a great start is to have them unplug; Get up, walk around, take a breath, or maybe even a lunch break. The important part is they have a few minutes to clear their head and step away from the confrontation. I also suggest having them provide you with an emotion-free (practice makes perfect), brief, and factual statement about the incident.

 

Finally, before you find yourself neck-deep in a domino effect of fires to put out, provide your team with the training (such as courses, experienced management provided, or practice sessions), support, and guidance to be as successful as possible through these types of situations. Every day, as the owner, it would be best for you to be informed of any customer confrontations; What happened, what was attempted to resolve the situation, what the customer was demanding, and whether those demands can be met or not. These statements can become invaluable training tools.

 

You will always come across demanding customers. It is the price of admittance into the used car business. How we prepare ourselves and our team for these storms is what makes our businesses flourish!

 

As always, Car Guys Agency is here for all your Buy Here Pay Here needs! Contact us anytime to assist with solutions for your business! We have partners we have searched high and low for to provide our dealers with the very best available!

 

Create-A-Great-Day!

Tom Hampton 

5 Effective Ways to Get More out of Your Website

Posted on | by Tom Hampton Agency
Blue Grey Photo Fitness Blog Graphic

By Tom Hampton             

November is upon us my friends! And shortly, so will be the end of 2020. Can anyone honestly say they will be sorry to see the year go? Actually, I can. 2020 has been the BEST year we have seen in the car business for almost 100 years! The playing field got leveled. Not only did the game change, but so did the rules we used to play by!  

Customers have raised the bar on us at least 10 times in just 7 short months. Test drives became delivered, financing went remote, texting and emails going ballistic overnight. The retailers of the world had to re-invent almost every process in their business to survive and start to grow again as the term in-person became obsolete.  

Which brings us to the topic at hand: Your website. Let’s explore 5 foundational tools your website should offer consumers to be truly impressive!  

1. Ease of navigation 

You do not have to spend a lot of money to have a website that navigates easily. Think about why customers are on your site. What are they looking to learn? They want to see specific vehicles and prices, finance options, reviews, and what steps they need to start the process. Can your customer easily contact you with questions? Each area should be easily identified and navigated to easily! This goes double for your mobile platform, especially as research shows nearly 60% of shoppers are on their devices.  

2. Clear/concise information 

It is really important that your customer can get all the facts from the information you present on your website. Are your photos accurate, good quality, and loading quickly? Is there a condition report posted with each vehicle? Eighty percent of consumers research a product online before purchasing. Providing your customers with both quantity and quality sources of information to make an informed purchase will give your website the advantage over your competitors. It can also really helpful to add a chat box to your website for customer who have questions and want immediate answers from available staff.  

3. Your values 

The values you and your team bring to the used car industry support the vision of your company.  Why should a stranger buy from you? What makes your company stand out? Let your customers know who you and your team are by including short bios, corporate goals and credos, and a commitment to providing an honest, satisfactory experience. Make sure there is a page for feedback from customers. This not only lets your customer feel heard, but also helps you improve the buying experience for future customers.  

4. Easy/Secure access to financing with payment calculator 

The major point to be made here is your customer must become a part of the process and not the subject. Your financing process should be clear, easy to follow, and the steps and required documentation listed. If you aren’t doing your own financing, let your customer know who you do use, with information about their process.   

Consumers nowadays want information about pricing and payments before they take the next step of speaking with a salesman. If you are using WordPress, search for a simple payment calculator plugin to add to your site, so customers can get an idea of what they will be paying.  

5. Transparency  

Transparency boils down to one underlying point…trust. In 2018, The Transparency Imperative Report found that 75% of consumers are more likely to switch to a brand that provided more in-depth product information. The same truth applies today, both to the vehicles you sell and the experience you and your team deliver.  

To conclude, invest the time for a thorough website evaluation. Remember that what you perceive as a value, may not impress your patrons. It is good practice to ask other team members and friends to also evaluate your site periodically and provide feedback of their thoughts and experience. If you are interested in taking your website to the next level, contact us for more information on Auto-Pilot Advertising!  

Create-A-Great-Future…only you can! 

Tom Hampton 

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Re-Birth of an Industry.

Posted on | by Tom Hampton Agency

Honestly, my friends, I did not think that I would live to see the rebirth/reinvention of the used car industry. 

My grandfather was around for its birth, my father for its heyday, and I for the rapid evolution of vehicles. The here and now, we are seeing changes we never could have anticipated, and they won’t stop there.   

In my father’s day, the salesman did it all; Desk the deal, underwrite the paper, go back and get the car made ready, then deliver it. 

Well, it kind of looks like it is 1965 again as our salespeople are granted more independence   from the desk. Our salespeople are taking more initiative to generate their own book of business as they learn to become professionals in all that they do. 

That fact in mind, what are you, the owner, doing to educate/train/inform/practice with your crew? Have you sat down with each one and done a little dream building? 

Do YOU know what your salespeople’s individual strengths are? Do YOU know what motivates them (besides $$$$)? Have you asked them for their ideas on how to improve any or all areas of the business? The way things (business) were run 6 months ago is just that…the past. A way of business we WILL NOT going back to doing. 

Getting that fact into your business model and adjusting actions accordingly is the key to PROSPERING instead of surviving the exponential changes we are all experiencing. Customers LIKE the personal service this crisis has forced dealers into. Customers like the fact of no F&I Dept process to suffer through. Customers like the test drive coming to them and the virtual test drive videos dealers are doing for every unit in stock. Customers like having the perception of having the upper–hand throughout the entire sales/delivery process. 

Customers LOVE the fact that salespeople are having conversations with them and ***MAGIC WORD*** LISTENING to them! Customers are getting what they always have wanted and feared the most…control. 

IF IT SELLS CARS – THE CUSTOMERS MAY HAVE AS MUCH CONTROL AS THEY FEEL THEY NEED. So, WHAT are you doing about that? 

How are you fostering/nurturing those relationships to ease control into the customers hand? How are you making your customer feel more a part of the process and not feel as if they are BEING processed? These are some very serious things to think upon my friends. 

Being in communication with friends/clients in the industry in all corners of this great country has painted a very clear picture of what the smart dealer is doing. They are buckling down and getting it done. In this unprecedented season of reinvention and rebirth, LET your customers, salespeople, bankers, friends, associates, and all others help you, reshape your future. 

If you do not know what your customer wants (expects) then how can you meet those wants/needs/desires? My advice, grab a notebook and pen, have a Zoom meeting with your team, and brainstorm your tails off!  

Now, more than ever, the game of “what if” can be your best tool to grow with the curve of change and not get crushed under it. 

Create A Great Day, 

Tom Hampton