by Andrei Smith | Nov 5, 2018 | Car Sales Story Cornerstone, Mastering Sales
In this article, I’m going to answer the query “how to be a good salesman” by looking at the statistics of my store and figuring out what sets the top salespeople apart.
I have taken a deep dive, inspired by watching the salespeople at my dealership and combining my personal experiences.
I believe in the car sales career. This article will take you from zero to hero with my nine keys for success!
There are 14 new car salespeople at our store, and last month they sold between 3 and 16.5 cars. Based on our pay plan, if you sell more 6 or fewer cars, you will make about $250 per car after all bonuses (plus $1000 for showing up). If you sell 14 or more cars, that average is about $400 per car after all bonuses (plus $1000 for showing up). That means that we have salespeople that made ~$1750 last month and we had one salesperson that made ~$7600.
What accounts for the $6k~ of monthly income disparity? What makes one salesperson better than another?
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by Andrei Smith | Oct 30, 2018 | Mastering Sales
Here at Car Sales Story, I’m bringing together high-quality resources for people starting in the car business. The unique environment of the dealership can be confusing for the new salesperson, so I’m here to help guide you. This article “car salesman dress code” is one in a series of articles that provide the foundation of knowledge you will need to start your career on the right foot.
You can check out the follow up article here: Best Dress Shoes for Car Salesman
One of the first questions you may ask yourself when applying for and getting your first car sales job will be what to wear. What exactly is the “car salesman dress code”? Is there a standard attire or does it vary dealer to dealer?
The answer is that although there is some variance dealership to dealership, most dealers conform to a standard dress pattern that varies between hot and cold seasons. The standard car salesman dress code is business casual (button down with tie and slacks) in the colder months, and khakis with a branded polo shirt in the warmer months. Although there are dealers that want you to wear a suit 365 days a year, their numbers are dwindling.
In a recent article on how to look put together and polished, I emphasized the importance of dressing professionally:
The benefits of reading this article (“How to Look Put Together and Polished”) revolves around the way that your customers will see you. If you come to work with your hair neat, your shirt ironed, and your shoes polished, you come across as someone that is at work with a purpose.
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by Andrei Smith | Oct 17, 2018 | BDC Training, Mastering Sales
Most of the articles online about “How To Be a Good BDC Rep” actually focus on the management of the BDC. I wanted to put together a mega-post that any BDC rep, new or old, could reference to develop their career. I’ve developed these ideas over the last few years as I’ve worked in and then managed a BDC.
This article will be seen through the story of Jim and Jane, two competing BDC reps. Both want to make money, but only one has spent the time to learn how to be a good BDC rep.
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by Andrei Smith | Oct 14, 2018 | Mastering Life
This article is a bit of a departure from most of the content on this site, as we won’t be diving into any sales skills or personal finance tips. Instead, in this article, I want to talk with you about the idea of polish. When I did my research on this topic, most of the pieces in the same vein as this one (“how to look put together and polished”) were targeted at fashion, not polish. Although a sense of style can certainly be part of your polish, it is not the central tenet.
Preparation is the key to how to look put together and polished. In this article, we will delve into the three points of focus needed when preparing yourself for your business life.
- Why you should strive to be more polished
- The benefits of being more polished
- How to go about it without wasting all your money
In the context of this article, looking “put together and polished” refers to the apparent quality of someone that comes to work looking prepared and dressed professionally. Most importantly, being put together and polished relates to a frame of mind.
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by Andrei Smith | Oct 4, 2018 | Mastering Sales
I’ve been watching negotiations for years now at the car dealership, and I can safely say that many salespeople routinely drop the ball when trying to close a deal. Watching the repeated fumblings of these crucial steps in the car sales process inspired me to write this article “Car Sales Tips Closing a Car Deal.”
There are a few caveats to this article, as it is focused on a buyer that has no restrictions, other than desire, on being able to buy. If your customer is credit challenged, this checklist isn’t going to save you. Secondly, this is focused on closing the deal with a new customer. There are some key ways in which dealing with a repeat customer is different!
This is what we are going to cover in this article “Car Sales Tips Closing a Car Deal”:
- Mutual Respect
- Demonstrated Desire to Sell
- Agreement On Product
- Back And Forth
- Staying Calm
- A Feeling of Finality and Authority
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by Andrei Smith | Sep 28, 2018 | Mastering Life
We are taught that money is a tool to pay rent, a tool to buy food, and a tool to save for retirement. We are also told that money is the root of evil, that money does not bring happiness, that money corrupts. All of this is true, in a sense. If that is the case, why should you run your life like a business?
Run Your Life Like a Business
The fundamental tenet of this article “Run Your Life Like a Business” is simple. If you ignore your money, your cash flow, and your investments, the money will likely become the greatest challenge of your life. If you concentrate on money just enough, you can eventually safely ignore it.
I need to get all of that out of the way before jumping into this article, my first personal finance article, on Car Sales Story. This article is not about car sales in any way; rather, it is about running your life as a business owner, with focus, direction, and the right tools.
(That being said, the car business is one of the great businesses to work in if you want to make this work!)
My goal is for you to run your life like a business. I want you to be your own “life business owner.”
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by Andrei Smith | Sep 18, 2018 | Mastering Sales
I’ve done your dirty work for you. I’ve read the top “Auto Sales Training” articles that populate Google’s front page.
The truth is, I’m disappointed. Although I have no problem with people selling products and services (obviously), I found that they all provided little value to the readers. Short, basic articles, with little in the way of originality.
I can do better. My site, Car Sales Story, can provide auto sales training that has:
- Strategies, not just motivation
- Game plans, not just ideas
- Guidance*, not just a push
*Go to the end of the article for a bit more explanation on this!
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by Andrei Smith | Sep 10, 2018 | BDC Training, Mastering Sales
What is the best way to compose your internet car sales email templates?
Some of my other articles with email templates:
Follow Up Email #1
Follow Up Email #2
Full Follow Up Script
BDC Templates
How can you capture the attention of your customers and hook them into coming to your dealership?
Here at Car Sales Story, I’ve addressed the need for proper email templates before. I’ve found many dealerships have lackluster templates full of spelling and grammatical errors that can severely damage their first impression with a customer.
In the United States, there are many places where you can still sell cars online without ample internet car sales training.
That is changing. Customers want fast responses, they want professional writing, and they want the price in the email.
Fast, clearly worded, with a transparent price is the bare minimum required.
What if you want to take your sales to the next level? Is there a way you can write emails (internet car sales email templates specifically) that will garner more responses from better customers?
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by Andrei Smith | Sep 8, 2018 | Mastering Life
A few days ago I met with one of my mentors for some one-on-one coaching. My August sales had gone well, with strong volume and happy customers. I carried little intention into the meeting, rather opting to create an open space to receive whatever my coach had on his mind. (In place of my mentors true name, we will be using the pseudonym “George”.)
Lucky for me (and now for you as well), he had some wisdom ready to share.
While I won’t edit heavily what he shared with me, I will extrapolate on the things that he brought to me. In just under 30 minutes we covered a range of topics, from controlling our tendency for autopilot, the danger of distractions, and bedtimes.
Without further ado, let’s jump in.
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by Andrei Smith | Aug 30, 2018 | Mastering Sales
The dream of a sustained book of business is attractive to any salesperson.
A self-filling, income-generating, free-time-enabling pipeline of customers.
Referral customers are the best type of customers. They come in trusting you, wanting to work with you.
Getting them in the first place is the only hard part! If you follow this article (and keep in mind the nine keys to success), you will be on well on your way to grow your network.
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