Question: Are your incoming sales calls being answered by someone who uses a phone script for each and every call?
Customers who pick up the phone and call a dealership tend to be towards the end of the buying cycle, meaning they are closer to buying than many of your other lead sources. People who pick up the phone and call you directly also tend to me much more educated because they are often in front of a computer (easy access to data) and have more choices of other dealers to call.
The majority of incoming sales calls usually deal with 2 things:
Price (can you beat a price or what is your best price)
Availability (Do you have a specific vehicle in stock)
We all know that these calls need to be handled perfectly and if they are not, than you lose a valuable opportunity. Unfortunately, most salespeople just “wing it” when they answer the phone. Why is this “just wing it” approach so common in our industry?
When you call Gieco for an insurance quote, the customer service rep doesn’t “wing it”. They have a process in place that uses scripts, so that everyone who calls is asked the same questions and treated the same way.
Salespeople need processes. Salespeople need to be trained on what to say and how to properly handle an incoming sales call. Salespeople need to have scripts in front of them so that when they answer the phone they know exactly what to say. Management needs to make sure that the script is being used on every call.
Dealers spend a large amount of time and money trying to get the phone to ring. We challenge every dealer to make sure you have right processes in place that allow you make the most of every opportunity. With all the excitement about new technological innovations that will help us sell more cars, let’s not forget about the phone!
