During his Friday morning session, Brandon Jones of Limitless Leadership, dived into his sales process which taught auto repair shop owners how to increase their close ratios and maximize profits by educating the clients to make the best decisions for their vehicle.
Here are five key takeaways from Jones’s “Unstoppable Sales” session:
No. 1. Sales is About Serving First, About Education—Not Selling. People Plus Processes Equal Profit
There is a lot of misunderstanding in the industry because customers don’t know what you did and why you did it. Take the time to teach your customers. Here’s his recommended process:
- Discovery: Let the customer know what the technician during the vehicle inspection.
- Why: Tell the customer why it broke, explain what that means, and why it’s important to them.
- Guest Value: What’s in it for the guest? What are the benefits?
- Recommendations: Explain to the customer how the technician will fix the problem.
- Commitment: Tell the customer how long the repair will take and what their investment (cost) will be.
- Closing: Let them know how you will communicate with them throughout the process and how they can communicate with the shop.
No. 2 Connect with Your Customer
He encouraged the use of storytelling using commonalities to help customers understand their repair. Talk about the repair using everyday parallels that the customer can relate to and understand from their own lives—don’t speak tech to them.
No. 3 The Sale Doesn’t End At The Transaction
The sale doesn’t end after you hand the customer the keys. There needs to be some form of contact after they’ve left the building. A courtesy call to check on the customer, nothing more. “It’s not a sale call, it’s a service call,” Jones said.
No. 4 Environment is Everything
If your service advisors use a satisfying tone and give good visuals—you’re clean and presentable—you have a professional atmosphere and you’re using DVI, you’re going to get the sale.
No. 5 Get 1% Better Every Day
Constantly challenge yourself and your team to improve. Constantly ask yourself and your team questions that lead to improvement, such as:
- What does our culture look like?
- Is our staff positive, transparent, and fun?
- Is it easy to do business here?
- How do we build trust with our guests?
- Are we consistent (in processes)?
- Are we prepared?
Brandon’s Call Script
Jones offered the attendees this sample script they could use to engage customers.
- Buffer Statement: “Good Morning/Afternoon, this is Brandon from Heath’s Automotive, is Sarah available?”
- Moment to Talk: “Sarah, do you have a moment to talk about your 2016 GMC you dropped off?”
- Ask Guest to Pull Up DVI: “Sarah, are you able to pull up the DVI that I texted/emailed you about 15 minutes ago?”
- Set Expectations for Call: “Sarah, may I walk you through this report and your technician Mike’s recommendations, answer any questions you may have at the end, and share your total investment in detail?
