In today's rapidly shifting automotive landscape, dealer principals across the board are scratching their heads and posing the same question: What trends are emerging in the marketplace? As a dealer’s trusted income development partner, it falls on us to offer them not just profitable avenues but meaningful ones that stand the test of time.
Let’s Get Back to Basics
What we've observed in the industry corroborates a prediction many of us have held for some time. No, none of us claim to be psychic, but we do recognize the timeless truism: “Hard times create strong men, strong men create good times, good times create weak men, and weak men create hard times.” The cyclical nature of life and business remains as consistent as it ever was.
Over the last few years, complacency has settled in the automotive sales industry. Low inventories and high demand led to inflated profits with minimal effort. The questions of customer service and sales process became almost obsolete and negligible. After all, who needs a polished sales approach when customers are already knocking on your door, willing to pay top dollar for limited inventory? Who needs to worry about customer satisfaction index (CSI) scores when you have the leverage of scarcity?
But times are changing, and the signs are unmistakable. With new vehicle sales clocking in just shy of 16 million through July this year, as compared to last year's 13 million, consumers are demanding more. Importantly, their demand is not for lower prices, but for a heightened experience—more customer service, more attention to detail, more value, and above all, more customer service and care.
This paradigm shift calls for a return to basics, compelling sales teams to re-evaluate and reinvent their approaches. It's no longer enough to coast on the laurels of past successes or highly favorable market conditions. As we navigate this season of change, the emphasis must return to process, accountability, and the psychological framework within which a sale takes place. As the renowned sales trainer Tom Hopkins so aptly puts it, “Love the people and use the money, not use the people and love the money.”
So, is the art of being a true salesperson gone?
Not necessarily. But what is clearly evident is that the craft of salesmanship must evolve. Selling is no longer simply about closing a deal or meeting quotas. It's about engaging in a meaningful and authentic way with customers, offering them not just products, but a positive experience that leaves a lasting impression. It's about genuinely helping people to find what they're looking for, even when they may not be able to exactly articulate it themselves.
If businesses can successfully integrate these fundamental values back into their sales philosophy, they can expect to not only survive but thrive and be highly profitable in this new era. The art of being a true salesperson is actually very much alive; it's just shifting to a more compassionate, more considerate, and more customer-centric authentic model than before.
As we traverse this evolving landscape, one thing becomes clear: It’s not just about selling; it’s about helping people. And in that respect, the art is far from lost—it's merely a matter of being rediscovered.
Contact Olivia Kern-Van Schoonhoven at olivia@intrepidautomotive.com and David Kern at dkern@intrepidautomotive.com today to learn more.
