Digital Dealer - August 2018 - 37

HIGH-PROFIT F&I MANAGERS KNOW THAT TRUE
INFLUENCE ONLY BEGINS WHEN YOU ALIGN WITH
YOUR CUSTOMERS!"
act. In order to change the
trajectory of your month, you
have to make adjustments
when the barrage of deals
isn't firing.
TRAIT #2: POSITION

John C. Maxwell has
been widely recognized
for decades as one of the
world's top teachers and
thinkers on leadership; and
he recently announced,
"Here is what I know: the
effectiveness of your work
will never rise above your
ability to lead and influence
others." High-profit F&I managers know that at the end
of the day, it's all about influence! Consequently, they
take special care to position
themselves as a trusted
advisor as they learn, lead,
and leverage what really
drives their customers. Too
many F&I managers get
stuck by focusing on the
what in their presentations,
whereas high-profit F&I
managers leverage the
personal whys. Face it,
fully explaining the features,
facts, and figures associated with a particular product
or service is not leading,
and it is surely not selling.
On paper, the features,
facts, and figures may be
unique, but customers don't
care. All that matters to your
customers is how you can
change their life... literally!
It's all about them, and not
about you, your product or
service. What is specific and
personal to your customer
is compelling, but the rest is

largely ignored. Therefore,
the most valuable information in the deal will never
be your knowledge of the
products or programs, which
is expected; but rather, the
most valuable information
in the deal is the personal
knowledge you gain about
your customers. If you are
treating everyone the same
in F&I, you are completely
missing the boat, because
each customer is unique.
High-profit F&I managers
know that true influence
only begins when you align
with your customers!

unequipped F&I managers
are left to pressure their
customers by unskillfully
repeating what they had already said again and again.
Conversely, high-profit
F&I managers are able
to continue to ask for the
sale many times without
sounding redundant or their
customers feeling pressured
because they use all five
levels of value and adhere
to the following...
1: They expect resistance and they don't take it
personally.
High-profit F&I managers

HIGH-PROFIT F&I
MANAGERS ARE
UNAPOLOGETICALLY
PERSISTENT!"
TRAIT #3: PERSIST

High-profit F&I managers are unapologetically
persistent! They're excited, they're sold, they're
certain, and it shows. While
always persistent, you will
not find these managers
putting on the pressure.
They don't need to. After
all, sales pressure is really
just a sign of weakness.
It's a tell-tale indicator that
when push comes to shove
the F&I manager has very
little personal knowledge of
the customer, and only is
able to demonstrate one or
two solid reasons why the
customer should buy. After a
couple of "No's," frustration
and desperation set in, and

are very aware that 'No'
comes with the territory.
They understand that customer reluctance is simply
a natural occurrence in the
process. Your customer's
first "No" often has nothing
to do with you or your offering at all.
2: They acknowledge the
implied commitment that
comes with "No."
High-profit F&I managers
know that "No" is many
times nothing more than
a time-out that customers
use to allow themselves the
opportunity to work through
their "instant-replay," if you
will. "No" is just your customer's first step in committing to a purchase.
D I G I TA L D E A L E R . C O M

3: They don't get defensive or argue with their
customers.
High-profit F&I managers
know defensive responses
merely strengthen their customers' original concerns.
Nothing will get your customers feeling better about
their "No" than a defensive
response from you. Stay
cool, calm, and collected.
4: They use resistance to
make the deal bigger, personal and more compelling.
High-profit F&I managers
use "No" to keep the conversation going, ask better
questions, probe deeper,
and get the personal information needed to make the
deal bigger, more personal,
and therefore more compelling to their customers.
F&I profits can vary a lot
from one dealership to the
next. Regardless of if your
store is averaging $700 per
retailed unit, or it is averaging $1700 per retailed unit,
there is certainly an opportunity for more. Level five F&I
managers are committed to
achieving high profitability!
You too can see increased
profits and performance in
F&I by improving how you...
✔Prepare ✔Position &
✔Persist!
MIKE HIRSCHFIELD, CEO of
Cornerstone Dealer Development, is on a mission to empower, equip, and exalt sales
and finance teams everywhere!
Twitter: @FoundationToWin.
EMAIL: MikeFoundationToWin.
com

AUGUST 2018

37
http://www.DIGITALDEALER.COM
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Digital Dealer - August 2018
