Automotive News Canada - October 2020 - v2 - 15

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Launch Each Month With a "What's Changed?" Game Plan
How do we
prepare our
Sales Team to
launch into a new
month?
By JEFF WILLIAMS
President & CEO, Absolute Results

The first week of a new month is crucial
to a dealer's sales success. Within days,
the Sales Team will either engage and
keep up last month's Sales Momentum
going, or the energy and Sales Momentum will fade. If this happens, the dealer
and Sales Team have to push that much
harder to get their daily sales rate back on
track for a successful month.
A lack of Sales Momentum early in the
month also leads to complaints from
Sales Teams that the dealership's pro-

SALES LEADERSHIP
Insights & Selling
Strategies
ing a "What's Changed?" Game Plan,
a powerful 60-minute sales-leadership
exercise that maintains Sales Momentum.
A "What's Changed?" Game Plan starts
with the Sales Manager doing a strategic
business analysis based on three key
"What's Changed?" factors: inventory,
market, and offers. This information is
then used to identify new sales opportunities around which to create a selling
story that Sales Teams can share with
their customers.
Let's break down the three "What's
Changed?" factors to be analysed, beginning with the inventory. A thorough
inventory analysis doesn't just look at the
vehicles on the ground but also reviews
the detailed list of inventory that's been
ordered, what's currently in transit and
what's arriving later in the month. This
analysis examines both the quantity and
the mix of vehicles. Are some volume
models on the way? Are some limited
edition or exclusive models arriving?
Are new or refreshed models expected?
This monthly inventory analysis should

ABSOLUTE
RESU LTS

* Big Life Changes
* Other vehicles in your
household

AND IT'S A
GREAT DAY

TO SELL A CAR

Finally, let's analyze the new offers, as well
as how they enhance upgrade opportunities. Is there an original equipment
manufacturer (OEM) offer, an affiliate
offer, a finance incentive, or a dealer loyalty program that can make an upgrade

"Let me share what's new
about our product."
* Exciting new models

WHAT'S
CHANGED?
CONVERSATION

* How do you use your vehicle?
* Change of lifestyle

* New technology
* New driving trends
* New upgrade opportunities

THE MARKET?

"Let me share why the
market is in your favour."
* Your car is worth more -
we need it!
* Customers just like you
are upgrading more often

"If you could do it All Over Again, would you
buy the exact same model, options, color, or
would you consider something different?"

* Today's offers are very attractive
©2020 Absolute Results

grams, its inventory, and its customers
aren't as good as they were last month,
making it even tougher to bounce back.
To avoid this all-too-common situation,
it's key to build Sales Momentum early in
the month with a consistent rhythm of
Sales Activity.

also look at who in the dealer's portfolio
typically buys such models. Certainly, if
inventory is tight, it's important for Sales
Managers to put a plan in place to sell the
in-transit units, making the lack of inventory a reason for the customers to make,
rather than to delay their purchase.

How does a manager inspire their team
to engage in Sales Activity at the very
beginning of the month? By introduc-

Next, let's analyze the market. Which
used vehicles are in high demand and
might allow the dealers to pay a bit more

Once the analyses of the inventory, the
market, and the offers are complete,
and the new selling opportunities have
been identified, the next step is to create
a "What's Changed?" selling story for
each factor. We need to leverage the two
classic psychological motivators of "hope
for gain" and "fear of loss" with language
and conversation that doesn't seem
manipulative or "old school." Intelligent
Word Tracts™ like "Best for You," "Just
Like You," and
"Courtesy to
You" are of
significant
value as we
teach Sales
Teams how to
engage customers with
the "What's
Changed?"
message as a
reason to book an appointment or close
a sale.

LIFE IS GREAT

YOUR PRODUCT?

YOUR CUSTOMER?

"What's Changed
since you bought your
current vehicle?"

for trades? What are current trends:
which models are your customers migrating towards when they upgrade? Which
models are most popular at this time of
the year? And which of the competitors'
vehicles has
your dealership
been winning on
trades for your
product last
month? These
are all areas
worth turning
into selling
stories because
when customers
hear about who
else is buying their dealer's vehicles, it
affirms their purchase decision.

er's cost of ownership with better fuel
economy, lower servicing intervals, and
more efficient technology.

either more affordable or attractive to the
customer? If the offers haven't changed
much from month to month, is there a
model with a high residual resale value
or that's in great demand that our
team can feature in our upgrade
offers? We also need to keep in
mind that offers and affordability
are about more than just price or
payments. Many new models have
the potential to lower the custom-

There's one more crucial component of a
"What's Changed?" Game Plan that's key
to unlocking your Sales Team's success:
the "What's Changed?" for your customer
conversation. It's important to find each
customer's unique reason to upgrade.
This can be as simple as training your
Sales Team to ask their clients "What's
Changed?" since their last vehicle purchase. Taking time to understand "What's
Changed?" for each customer allows your
Sales Team to connect the dots between
their customer's needs. It helps them to
select the right product and to leverage a
"What's Changed?" Conversation into a
reason to book an appointment or to buy
today.
Best of all, you don't have to create the
Selling Stories on your own. Bring your
"What's Changed?" analysis to your
weekly Sales Meeting to build a list of new
Sales Opportunities and create the Selling
Stories with your Sales Team.
Empower your Sales Team at the beginning of every month with the "What's
Changed?" Game Plan, so they can maintain Sales Momentum by making more
appointments and selling more cars.
To learn more about how to create a
"What's Changed?" Game Plan, scan this
QR code and subscribe to new video
messages and content at www.absoluteresults.com/news.
Download
the free
e-book
now!
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