Get What You Want in 2022

Here we are again, another new year. As an eternal optimist I am always looking forward and I don’t spend a lot of time looking back. However, let’s take a look back at 2021. We all had our ups and downs because of Covid-19. We watched businesses open back up and things begin to head back to normal and then with an all-new variant of this crazy virus, we are watching our country go back on lock down.

Then there is the microchip shortage causing a never-before-seen inventory shortage, create a supply and demand situation that we have never seen before, and will most likely never see again. For a lot of salespeople, sales managers, and dealerships they are making more money than ever before. Almost everyone in the automotive sales business is taking advantage of the lowest supply we have seen in over 50 years and using current demand to generate unheard of gross profits and commissions.

If you are one of these salespeople, sales managers, or dealerships that is taking advantage of this phenomenon, CONGRATULATIONS. But what happens when supplies correct themselves and you have to start competing with others again? What happens when customer’s no longer have the extra disposable income that was created for government subsidies and people spending more time at home and they cannot afford the large down payments and larger than normal monthly payments? And what happens when people can no longer trade in their two-year-old vehicle for more than they originally paid for it, and they once again have negative equity. How are you going to continue to make these large commission that you have become used to when these things happen? And don’t disillusion yourself, they are all going to happen and that are most likely going to happen sooner than you think.

Not to worry, it is not all doom and gloom. Things are going to be fine if you are prepared and the right time to get prepared is now. Do not be like most people and wonder if the flashlight has batteries AFTER the power goes out.

Here are 5 ways to be Prepared and Get Exactly What You Want in 2022

1. Know what you want and what it takes to get it – In order to achieve or accomplish any goal you must first know what that goal is. Once you know what your goal is, you must then determine the action required to achieve that goal.
2. Commit to Action – Now that you know what you want to achieve and what it is going to take to get it, you must then commit to putting in the work. This is where most salespeople give up. It’s time to put in the work and they are giving up before they even get started. All I can say is, the people who give up, especially before they get started, just didn’t want it bad enough. Only you can commit to your success. No one else is going to do it for you.

“The difference between good intentions and obtaining the results desired is an effective plan and the discipline to follow through with it.”

3. Commit to the Sales Process – It doesn’t matter if you have a 5-step sales process, a 10-step sales process, or something in between. Every truly effective sales process boils down to this one simple concept:
   • Ask the right questions to determine the problem the customer is looking to solve and the desired outcome the customer is looking for.
   • Present and demonstrate how your product provides this solution, creates the desired outcome, and relieve the pain the customer is feeling from their current situation. Only present and demonstrate the features and benefits that matter most to your customer. This is known as a value-based presentation and demonstration.
   • Negotiate and close the customer based upon this value and not based upon discounts – Stop going right to discounts to try to close a customer. If there is one thing this chip shortage should have taught us all, is that when a customer wants a vehicle bad enough, they will pay all the money for it.
4. Commit to your processes for all phone and internet leads – Stop winging it. Just like you would take a customer through the steps of the sale when you greet them on the lot, you must take each and every phone and internet opportunity through a dedicated process. For more about this process see: INCOMING SALES CALLS – ROAD TO THE APPOINTMENT and INTERNET LEAD – NO CONTACT
5. Ask for help – Turn EVERY customer over to another salesperson or manager as soon as you believe you cannot sell them. Get aggressive in acquiring deals and gross, and recognize that half a deal, half a commission is always better than no deal at all. Leave your EGO at the door and go for more sales. More information on this can be found at: CUSTOMER TURNOVER

Right now, salespeople and sales managers are holding their ground at MSRP or higher on vehicles because they believe that if this customer will not pay the money there is another one right around the corner who will. If you commit to your sales process and believe in the value you are presenting, you will be able to continue to hold the same ground because if you believe in it, the customer will as well.

Determine the goals and actions necessary to achieve those goals, commit to the action needed to meet and exceed those goals and commit to these sales processes with 100% of your customers 100% of the time, and watch your sales and gross continue to grow even when the current supply and demand goes away. You can still get everything you want in 2022, all you need to do is COMMIT!