RIP Direct Mail….. The Does and Don’ts!

When was the last time you had taken advantage of Direct Mail or did you kick it to the curb like a one night stand? Direct Mail is NOT DEAD it’s just not taken in the proper advantage for the best results.

I always observe my mail within my mailbox and the only direct mails from dealerships are for service. Service this and service that but what really turns me off is the unattractiveness & plainness of the mail piece. I am 32 years old, conservative but also am a wife & mother of 2. Why in the world do I just want a mail piece that is black, blue and white?

With this in mind to answer the question above you will see my point from this article. There are many insights on how you can approach Direct Mail and properly market it to your existing or future customers THE RIGHT WAY!

You are an Automotive Dealership with a DMS / CRM that holds all the valuable information you need. Why not take advantage of every piece of data? IT’S THE GOLDEN KEY to your business!  Within that system you have a large range of information to help you take your first step into creating and distributing Direct Mail to the right crowd the right way!

What information does your DMS / CRM hold?

• Name
• Address
• Vehicle Purchased
• Vehicle Traded In
• Service Records
• Gender
• Age
• Etc

*If your business doesn’t update your DMS / CRM, Hire someone to help you keep it maintained & data updated. Accurate data helps a business succeed in marketing!

AGE & GENDER are very important to the list above. Why? The reason why is that age ranges & gender can tell a lot about that specific individual. Hip, Conservative, Traditional, Family, Professional, Business Owner & the list goes on. Every individual is different however you can break it down by category.

A woman wouldn’t want black, red and white colors however what would be more appealing to them is more neutral colors & if they were 20-30 years old they would be more apt to view the Direct Mail piece if it had more pinks, yellows or even pastel colors. Men in their 20-30’s would be more apt to view the Direct Mail piece if it was Black, Red, Green & or blue. I think you get my point.

By looking deeply into this data you can go off on searching for a Direct Mail Company. Once you compile a list of companies you can start by asking them these very important questions!

• How do you retrieve the data? (Always read the fine print!) Make sure your data is secured and will not be distributed to any of your competitors.
• Do they look at the data we discussed at the beginning of this article? This is a good question to be asking them during the demo of which data is being pulled! If they just talk about the name and address you may want to research a few more companies. Never go with the first one and if it is “TOO GOOD TO BE TRUE”….. Then it’s not the right company to go with!  Lots of false promises. Just drill them with questions and get a list of testimonials so you can reach out to them directly. Not just the testimonials get a good list of about 25. Yes 25 seems like a lot however you want to ensure your marketing dollars goes to making a profit.
• How do they target the customers? Many Direct Mail Companies just go off the list by Name & Address! Be careful as you are basically throwing money out the door. Anyone can go off a list that has a name & address! During demos you can tell when they research further into the data and go off the actual customer’s data in depth. Targeting is a great way for business success.  I wouldn’t send a Happy Birthday Card to a Funeral…. (RIP DIRECT MAIL) If there is a more upper class neighborhood you would want to stick with something more eloquent. This goes into my next bullet point.
• Do all the Direct Mail Pieces look the same? Big NO NO! This is where you get shot in the foot and your precious Direct Mail Piece gets tossed in the big bin “THE TRASH CAN”…! Having the same plane old Direct Mail Piece sent out each and every time let alone being sent to the wrong crowd can again be tossed in “THE TRASH CAN”..!
• Does the Direct Mail have personal written notes? *Companies can take your actual handwriting and print it on the card) Taking this step, as it may cost just a bit more, can show the customers you had taken the time to personally write up a message for them! Handwritten cards & letters seem to have alleviated over the course of years as the wild Internet, Email & Social Media has taken over.  
• Do they keep track of the returned Direct Mail or do you? If you do please be sure to have someone within your organization to update the addresses within your DMS / CRM data base. It’s no good if you don’t keep it updated.  Reach out to your BDC Department with the list of returns and call the contact numbers to correct the incorrect mailing address.
• Do they blast the entire list all at once or certain groups at a time? The reason I mention this is I have seen many dealership blast an entire data base with direct mail which flooded the service department causing angered customers & walk outs. Always be sure to do about 50-100 at a time to help alleviate the tension within the service department. Taking this step will help with the Service Manager & their team to ensure the best service visit experience.   Having a great customer service experience helps with your CSI scores!
• Do they offer you a list of which customers the Direct Mail pieces were sent too? This is always good no matter if you have the data at your fingertips but having a small list of each group they send it too can be very helpful for you as a manager / business owner or your Service Manager. Keeping track of that data can be beneficial to see if the Direct Mail Company is worth the cost.

Finding a company that can work with data to help target your marketing efforts by Direct Mail is a chore however it will be worth every penny spent!

All views & opinions are solely based upon the author only: Jennifer Schrader

jennifergene@hotmail.com

5 Tall Tale Signs of a BAD BOSS! Reasons not to take the job!

Are you currently seeking employment or plan on doing so in the future? Many of us don’t realize the education a job seeker needs to ensure they are going to land a secure job let alone landing a Bad Boss! You will find some tall tale signs of reading your future boss and how they are going to be if you get the job.

Preparing yourself beforehand can help you achieve a solid career or employment. Bad Boss’s are a nightmare within its own category!

You get the call from the company you have had your hopes up for! You go through the routine of fantasizing how the work place is, putting your game face on, pulling out the finest clothes, double checking your resume for any grammatical errors! YOU’RE READY TO WIN THIS INTERVIEW…..! Until you walk out that door!

But……………! Take a moment and review the 5 Tall Tale Signs of a Bad Boss!

EYE CONTACT: Hello I am over here! This reminds me of speaking with a child and trying to get them to lock eyes with you so you can explain something to them. Having eye contact ensures that the child got the point when told or explained the first time.  Having an adult not make eye contact creates a non-interest in his position, insecure of his/her position, lack of confidence or guilty. You need to ask yourself “If my future employer can’t make eye contact how does his client(s) react to this?” This Tall Tale sign is a red flag for when an issue happens, someone will be hiding in that office and it surely is not going to be you!

FIRE HAPPY: Uh…. Interview please! If the interviewer is Fire Happy this is a major warning sign of how he/she is going to talk about you. I personally experienced this myself.  I walk into the interview and everything is going well, too darn well however I should have noticed the warning sign of the individual getting amped up about “Firing this person” “Firing that person”………! This person was not shy about diminishing their character. I soon realized that anger can take over someone’s judgment; this is why these unfortunate characters including myself, fell victim to a Fire Happy Boss! If they are proud to shout about it, you are not clarified as a value to the company!

DESK EXPLOSION: Is there a body in there? Remember the saying “A first impression is always the best impression”. Yes I know that bosses get busy and caught up with so many things causing an unorganized desk and/or office. If you watch your boss getting caught up with the paperwork on this desk, can’t find anything which causes frustration…. Think “If I need something how will they find it?” This is very scary! Just imagine you sending in a vacation request and it was lost in the pile? Guess you will have to work through your vacation!

PROCRASTINATOR: This was to be done a week ago! I highly doubt you are going to be able to get the honest answer from the interviewer / owner to give you the answer however you can do this: call any of their existing clients and just tell them you are searching the company & you would like to discuss further on their current customer service experience. If they have negative feedback, something can be seriously wrong internally that you may not want to get involved with.  If you constantly hear them say “They always say it will get done but never does”, “We’ve been waiting for weeks”, “There are still a bunch of glitches”, “They never answer their phone”, “Over promised under delivered” etc.  If you have a company that cannot keep up with the clients’ needs, technical issues and such; why in the world would you want to push that product on to future clients or even your clients that follow you? YIKES….! Bad Boss’s love to procrastinate over their company to make it look good, which is how they get their hooks into you! Pushing a bad product is pushing a bad business.

CLIENTS! CLIENTS! Are you done asking? If you repeatedly hear from the interviewer, future boss or manager constantly ask you about your clients…… BEWARE! This is a major red flag! They are more interested in getting their hot fingers on your client list and your contacts. Be cautious on uploading your information as these are clients you worked hard on to build relationships with for your future growth. You know them better than anyone else and you know when to approach them with the product if you take on the position you are interviewing for.  I consider this “Old dogs up to their old tricks again!” I still see this happen more than I would like to see.  For instance I was on an interview with a very well known company recently, once we get further into the call they started getting in their comfort zone and started asking me several times of my connections within the auto industry & dealer groups. After the 3^rd time, I had to get them back on track of my experience and what I can do for them. It never stopped! Just be careful on supplying your customer relationships from the past into future employments as this can place you in a tuff spot when choosing your clients best interest over your Bad Boss’s Bad Habits!

I surely hoped you can take these Tall Tale Signs for Bad Boss’s to your advantage. All that is listed above is from past personal experiences.  Be sure you are educated before you educate them!

All views & opinions are solely based upon the author only: Jennifer Schrader

How to get more results from your website by following these simple steps!

Everywhere we look online we see websites. Full of colors, different varieties of products & information; which can be comparable to 52 Card Pick Up. Too many choices & all of them are waiting for you to click on them. But how do you make the most out of your website and make it work for your personal self or business?

Looking at your website each and every day can be an issue from the start. You know what it looks like and you can be overlooking simple things that you may not be aware of.  Reaching out to friends, family & co-workers can be a benefit to your marketing efforts online. Having an outside view can help with catching spelling errors, lack of information, confusing layout & much more. Don’t be offended by their critical feedback as some can’t handle it very well.  Yes we all know that you worked hard on setting the website up and it is your pride & joy however you can only be looking at the benefits of yourself without the consumer in mind.

The consumer is your main target, you want to provide them with the utmost information, content & have what they are looking for. Here are some questions you will want to ask yourself when reviewing your website.

Why buy from me? Do you have content that offers the reason why they should buy from you? Consumers are interested in learning about you & your business offerings.  It’s human nature. The more the consumer knows of you & about you; the more likely they are going to purchase from you!

Creative colors; are you matching what your wearing? Maybe your business is all about “Going Green” or “Nature Preserves”; would you have Yellow & Red colors dressed up on your website? The consumer will get scared as they are expecting Green, Neutral & Warm Colors not a Fast Food Restaurant. Being relevant with colors to your business will help the consumer be more inclined to view further into your website and not close out the window to move on to another website.

What deals do you have? Depending on your business structure you may provide discounts, special offers and such but where are they? As this is a common mistake for many companies marketing online is not having any offerings posted on their website. Consumers are coming to you for a deal, why isn’t there any around?

Providing your phone number as the largest text item on your header, footer and throughout each and every page can also be a benefit to your consumer for a quick reach of contact to you and your business.  Consumers are different when it comes to online shopping or researching product & having that contact number at their fingertips will be more inclined to reach out to you.

Having quick response time is very helpful for many online consumers. Answering their request via phone or email will show the consumer your credibility and your business is at full attention to their wants and needs. Ensure your contact forms and email are being forwarded to your cell phone as you then can monitor the incoming leads or contact us forms.  Consumers get excited by your quick action. Remember it’s your business and they are the consumer.

Be educational! As mentioned earlier that consumers want to learn and know more about you. By educating them of your process & how you do it they are more inclined to take on your services. Body shops are a great example; consumers will drop their vehicle off to get repaired then return to their vehicle and it looks like brand new! What happens during that process and how did they make it that way? Having photos of before, during & after are a great piece of education for the consumer on what actually goes on behind those doors at the paint booth. Giving them the information on what particular paints are used, tools, processes etc can create a great educational tool for the consumers.

Can they find you? By creating rich content & proper keywords for your website will help with search results within the search engines and help your Search Engine Optimization.  By having the proper keywords that are relevant to your business & products will help you be more recognized to Search Engines.  If you are a flower shop within a specific town you want to use terms that are relevant to your product and location.  You would not want to have the keyword “Tire Repair” for your “Glass Repair” shop.  The content would then be irrelevant and wouldn’t make sense to the consumer and of course the Search Engines.  Having an “About Us” page you want to ensure that all the content is about you or your business along with Service Specials you want to ensure also that the content matches to that specific page.

With these tools in mind, take a step back to review the results and take all and any feedback as a compliment to help you achieve your goals and that is Your Business and the Consumer.

All views & opinions are solely based upon the author only. Jennifer Schrader

(231) 360-0730 jennifergene@hotmail.com

 

Any News is Good News! The advantages of taking negative press on!

As a Freelancing Blogger & Designer, I do get my fair share of negatives involved with some that I feel don’t understand however I don’t take it personal. I tread on it when it happens. The question “Why?” may come up by you & this is my answer! This can be taken full advantage of for yourself & the daily operations of your business regardless of what you do.

As using a mindset that is different, I have found out more positive outcome & business relationships build stronger by doing so.

With myself I am very open minded & will speak freely of what I feel and believe. We all do! It’s just human nature & how we communicate, learn, express & feed off of.  Negative press especially can capture more attention and spread like wildfire through the newsfeeds, social media (more than ever), & receive more involvement from the commentators of our digital world.

Lets’ say that your negative feedback or press is coming back to haunt you. Your blood may be boiling; you can’t stop thinking about it, upset with yourself because you are letting it get to you.

DON’T LET THAT HAPPEN! ON YOUR MARK, GET SET, CHIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIILLLLLLL!

Any news is good news! They are talking about you!

By being involved with what is being said, is go back and see if there is something missing, find out what they are saying, answer any and all questions. Take it offline through other media outlets, email or Skype, and talk about it! Maybe it’s a simple misunderstanding and you never know as you may just find someone like you out there! By rectifying the negative, you may just find yourself to be wrong.

By taking this mindset and using it to the fullest advantage you will see the positive outcome is more newsworthy that what you thought & you may come out to be the SUPERSTAR!

All views & opinions are solely based by the Author Jennifer Schrader.

jennifergene@hotmail.com (231) 360-0730

Demo Glam and Glitter… What to look out for on a product demo!

Demo Glam & Glitter… What to look out for on a product demo!

You gather the team, you organize the efforts to create a meeting with the new vendor(s) of choice, you are exhausted and now the time has come for the vendor-client meeting.

What do you need to look for and how do you think they are going to perform after the initial signing on the dotted line?

Either the vendor is going to come in with amazing screens, laptops, high quality business cards (I have seen metal ones!) high end suits & goodies or you may have a casual wearing, paper business cards, small laptop vendor come in. Regardless of what they wear or what they come in as, what comes out of their mouth during the demonstration of the product is the most important part to pay attention too.

Key Terms to pay attention too:

WE PROMISE: Hearing this is like a broken record similar to a child promising to remember to do their chores on a daily basis, but you find yourself constantly reminding them daily to remember.  

WE GAURANTEE: This is very scary! How can you guarantee traffic, customers, increase and such? It’s impossible to throw that term out unless the vendor has full control of the actual online consumer. Demographics & general location play a major role in this.  Are they at the front door of each and every consumer “MAKING THEM” come to you? I highly doubt it. If your vendor is guaranteeing results it is a term loosely used and a headed direction for failure. (A way to get you to sign faster)

SPECIAL ACCOUNT: I have heard this several times.  “You will be one of our Special Accounts & will have lots of attention”… What about their other clients? Do they get the Special Accounts treatment & do you think the non special accounts would be a bit disturbed if they heard that they weren’t? The proof is in the pudding when you make those calls to clients that are not listed on their testimonials page. This brings me to my next point.  

CALL OUR TESTIMONIALS: Sure thing, this is nice giving the opportunity to do your homework but what about the non testimonials. If they claim they have several hundred accounts, ask for the list and you can have the opportunity to pick and choose who to call that are not on the Testimonials page of their website.  Remember you want to pay for a great product which then entails to great customer service.

WE WILL MAKE IT HAPPEN: If you hear this, have them include it in on the agreement. When this is mentioned in a demo, this is not going to help you one bit because once you sign and throw that request in either the developers or programmers are going to say “Can’t do it”… This will safe guard your request if it is in writing along with the other request you may have.

LOOK AT THIS GUY: They may pull out a few customers that are performing amazing with stellar numbers. Grabbing up clients that have demographics, location, products and such can help create a huge performance for those numbers month in and month out. What if you were the guy with a smaller demographic and location, don’t expect those numbers; this is just part of the Glam & Glitter of a product demo to show only the best of the best. What about the smaller guys?

IF YOU SIGN TODAY: Reminds me of the 4-squares & the Sharpie marker when I sold cars! Now what if I don’t sign today! Are you going to pull all these promises and guarantees away from me? You haven’t even done your homework yet, so why in the world would you sign today?

If it sounds too good to be true, then it’s not going to be. Just pay attention and be educated when meeting up with your next vendor.

I may not have covered all of the words to keep an eye & ear out during a product demo. Do you have any that you have heard but were never lived up to?

All views & opinions are solely based by the author Jennifer Schrader

jennifergene@hotmail.com (231) 360-0730

Working internal compared to external? Advantages for both employee and employer!

Being part of working from my satellite office for close to 5 years, I cannot imagine it any different if I went internal. I have been asked several times on how I do it, what I do along with much criticism to that effect.  For example “You must have a lot of time” and such, trust me you will find yourself more busy working from your external office than you would internally.

Yes, working from your satellite office has many perks & many disadvantages too. Usually the disadvantages can dwell heavily unless you are able to deal with them properly and take advantage of them in a positive way.

Here are the advantages & disadvantages for working internal compared to external for both the employee & employer. The new age is taking over virtually so why miss out on the advantages of hiring the best & be part of an amazing company.

TIME                                                                                             

(Employee) if you actually add up the time you spend by driving to work, lunch breaks, mid breaks and such, you can pile up 3-4 hours a day of no work. What could you have completed or done in 3-4 hours a day? You may also find yourself more productive in the afternoon hours or evening. I myself am more into the evening hours as for some reason my brain seems to be a superstar than in the morning. For some reason you have a doctor’s appointment during the week & needed the day off, you can always make up the time on a weekend which then helps you get a head of the upcoming week, weekly planning and creating a list of what needs to be done.

(Employer) having your employee have that additional 3-4 hours of productivity within your workforce can help produce more work flow, completion of tasks and be ahead of the game for your company. As mentioned above, if your employee is unable to work during the week day, they can make it up on the weekend or into the evening hours. Bonus to you!

STRESS

(Employee) I think we all have been here with the manager hanging over your shoulders, breathing down your back and noticing stress levels are higher than normal. Just from the stress can create incomplete deadlines, lack of professional work, creativity & time management. From driving to your employment is stressful.  Working from your home office can help alleviate the tension & stress from overbearing management, driving, deadlines and much more.

(Employer) Having your employee work from their home office can be very stressful to you. Worrying about what they are doing, not being able to see their face, see their progress & attendance. There are many ways to prevent yourself from that unnecessary stress.  With the digital age of communications, Skype, Live Chat & many other resourceful tools can be a benefit for overseeing your employee and their daily activities. You remember the old saying “The proof is in the pudding”…? Just from seeing the outcome of their completed work, tasks, professional outcome & deadline completions can help you with knowing they are working more productively and professionally.

DISTRACTIONS? What distractions?

(Employee) Take a moment to think of your particular work day. Just notice how much time you are taking to answer questions, chatting with a co-worker at the water jug, running to grab a document, running an office errand. With working from your home office you are less distracted with overhearing conversations and such so you can put forth the focus that is needed into the work that is needed to be done.

(Employer) I think you would rather see a productive employee then one that is distracted by phones ringing, chatty co-workers, non direct focus to certain projects that you know need absolute attention and no need for distractions. I think you get the point. Have the ability also to have scheduled times to meet with your team via chat or online can also be less distracting.

MONEY

(Employee) This is surely the added bonus for working from your home office by far. Less fuel to place within your vehicle, great write off’s at the end of the year,  additional clothing to purchase for the office, short cry from your child’s school (in case of emergency) and less missed time due to car failure, snowed in and such.

(Employer) If you are looking to save money, this is how you take the first step. Companies can save up to $6,500 annually, per employee, if they worked just 1 day from home a week! Employee retention is another way of savings as your employee’s will stick with your company more than having them based internally. Wouldn’t you like to see your employees be with your long term or pay more for new ones every so often?

LOCATION INDEPENDENCE & HIRING THE BEST!

(Employee) This advantage can be a large hit for yourself when you have the skill level and demanded need to get the job done properly & professionally. You can work from anywhere in the world & different time zones.  You will be able to have the flexibility to communicate with your employment regardless if you are traveling or on vacation when there is a desperate task or deadline to reach.

(Employer) You will be able to hire the best of the best in the world regardless of their location! This again will prevent you having to pay any relocation fees, moving fees and such.  Having this ability to find the best, the options are endless to recruit the best, acquire new ideas, methods & strategies that are beneficial if you are able to grab up the superior candidates that are right at your fingertips.

Working external compared to internally is not an easy task for the employee themselves. It takes the right individuals to take on this particular role.  DISCIPLINE! This is a major must. Yes, it is surely nice to work from your home office however making sure you are in the office at the crack of dawn and plugging away at work throughout the day is habit that needs to be created by yourself. Your time flexibility is great however you may catch yourself in the office into the hours of the night. This disadvantage “You can never leave work at work” is something you need to control also.

I walk right across my hallway to my office and I shut my office door at particular times to prevent myself from going in there to check emails as I will find myself working on the next project that can wait until the next day.  Having that discipline will help you develop the habit of a very productive day for your employer and yourself.

Do you have any objections, insight or suggestions for working internal or external?

All views & opinions are solely based by the author only. Jennifer Schrader

jennifergene@hotmail.com (231)360-0730

Be on top of your content (Images)… You are the one in control!

Have you taken the time to monitor who actually is on top of your content for your website? What I mean is the actual images/ banners that are placed on your website for weekly & monthly advertising / marketing.

Many website vendors nationwide provide the ability now for the dealer / client to control the uploading of the images as to what it was in the past.  Having this ability gives you the option to be creative and helps keep your consumer informed on a daily basis.

I would say, I am confident in saying this figure, 80% of dealers will not upload images weekly let alone monthly. You have the ability; why not take advantage of it? Most of the responses are “I am not creative, I don’t know where to start, I have a hard enough time trying to turn the computer on & such”. Don’t worry; you are focused on selling, closing deals and running a productive team within your dealership.

Here are a few tips to help you take advantage of being creative with your website.

Hiring External or Internal: There are many graphic designers around now since we have went digital. It may be more costly having an internal graphic artist however there are freelance graphic artist / designers that charge just for the job. Having fresh & enticing banners / advertisements can help your online audience be more engaged and informed of your promotions & offerings. Why keep the gate up?

Software: There are cheap & free programs out there that can help you if you want to challenge yourself and be creative the way you want to.  There is a program I have used which is very, very inexpensive and it is called SnagIt. You can go to www.snagit.com and it will even offer you a Free Trial! Very easy to use and fun! Or you can go all out and grab up Adobe Photoshop which I have moved over too and it is a bit more complicated but there are many guides & tutorials online that can help you with creating an effective banner or advertisement for your website.

Be on top of it! That is the tricky part. Keeping consistent with adding different promotions / advertisements weekly or monthly on your website is very effective.  Your Branding / Franchise offers specials each month don’t they? Why not keep your online consumers informed? Be different from the other guy down the street. If you are looking the same each and every day, month in and month out; your competition has their advantage of you already!

Engage with your team: Getting your team involved at meetings and asking for ideas or suggestions is a big help. They will feel they are being involved with marketing for your dealership which will then boost their confidence & they will know what is going on all around.  I see it too many times when the team has no clue of the promotion or advertisement that is being currently ran. Keep them informed & involved. You would be surprised as one of your team members may have those creative skills with graphic design!

Be Creative! It is not hard when you refuse to be creative.  Just think of the items that capture your attention or TV commercials that pop out at you. The human mind is more attracted to, I will say this, Cheesy or Corky advertisements.  They grab our attention more than the corporate look and feel.  Reaching out to those clients in a fun, entertaining, happy way will create more engagement and involvement with your online audience. Just try it, you will be surprised on their reaction.

Images? Where? Google Images provides a large variety of images however to have them be royalty free you can get high quality images for very little money (which you can use repeatedly) at www.dreamstime.com I have been using this company for over 2 years & get many of my images as they are a lot let expensive to buy credits there than any other I have come across. 

I hope this information helps with taking advantage of the flexibility you have on your website advertising.  If your website vendor doesn’t provide the ability to change images or banners, you may want to have a little chat with them since you are the ones selling to your audience.

All views & opinions are solely based by the author Jennifer Schrader

jennifergene@hotmail.com (231) 360-0730

Facebook & Mood Posting. What an impact it creates for your fellow friends & followers!

In the office & coffee in hand you hop on to Facebook ready to let everyone know what you are doing right at that moment or most important of all the “Mood” you are in. Facebook has evolved to reaching out and connecting with long lost family, friends, co-workers and opportunities. What Facebook has done also is create a window of mood changes that can affect not just your surrounding FB Friends but also create an outline of who you actually are.

Trust me; I have removed many individuals from my profile due to negative moods. I am a very happy individual that enjoys laughter, fun facts & most important of all, knowing that my connections are happy FB friends.

Out of my entire fun groove of FB family & friends; there has to be that particular group that has nothing good to say, always complaining, gripping about something or just downright not happy at all.

What you post can be very effective to either create a positive or negative impact. Yes, I understand that Mondays do make an impact of unpleasant vibes & post. There is just something about that darn Monday but I surely don’t let it put me down or get in my way.

Just take a moment to think of the negative vibe that you can give off by posting “MONDAY SUCKS”….! Now take in mind the saying “MONDAY RULES & LET’S KNOCK IT DOWN”…  Just the difference you can make with those positive words can help productivity throughout the day to others that are reading your post.  

Posting fun facts, crazy events of your day (spilling coffee, breaking your zipper on your pants, exploding ink pen, etc.) can help give your fellow FB follower a good chuckle for the day and surely get them to engage with you and your post.

Posting negative thoughts, events and such can cause your fellow FB followers to move away from you and before you know it you are removed from their friend list.

Being a positive impact can help not just yourself but also to your entire audience. 

With team performances, creating a negative mood can diminish your team’s expectations & cause a high rate of turnover. Being a positive mood builder can help build a stronger team, low turnover & most important more sales. Why throw the thorn out there for them to step on?

A negative mood can last longer and be spread faster. A positive mood is catchy but takes a bit of time to rub off on the negative. 

Would you want to be in a slump all day and spread your bad mood or would you like to be standing on the top and being a positive impact regardless if it’s to turn a profit or not?

All views & opinions are solely based by the author Jennifer Schrader.

jennifergene@hotmail.com (231) 360-0730

Hiring Smart for Long Term Results…. Tips for hiring right!

With positive results from being on both sides of the fence when it comes to Vendor / Client relationships I am most confident I found the right answer for hiring right.

How many times, as a client, have you called your vendor for an unresolved issue, strategy, etc; and you receive a rep that has no idea on how to really grasp your reasoning of needs?

Does your service reps as a vendor really understand what goes on within a dealership operations, car sales, internal accounting to the Service bay, body shop and internal dealership customer service?

I bet the high chances of 90% they don’t even have the slightest clue!

This large percentage is the result of not “Hiring Smart”. Your candidates that come to work for you as a vendor service provider may know the ins’ & outs’ of the software you are able to provide and so forth; however not having a clue of actually putting their feet in the dealers shoes is another.

What is it that you need to look for when looking for that supreme candidate for hiring smart for long term success?

It’s all ready difficult when you post an ad for employment from your company let alone all the incoming resumes, request, interviews, returned phone calls, references and so forth. Why add another task to your pile when hiring? It’s simple. Here are a few tips & tricks to really take into account when hiring the right person, team or even just revamping your current employees.

Tip #1: Past employment in a dealership environment. Having a taste of internal workings of a dealership regardless if it is car sales, desk manager, receptionist or anything related within the dealership setting, this can be a benefit for your services provided to them.  Understanding the ins’ and outs’ of incoming customers to car sales is a bonus to your new team member as they can fully relate to their everyday workings.

Tip #2: Field Trip! Getting your team out in the real world to see what is happening. You remember the field trips in school & the great experience it was to venture into something new for a day! Connect with your clients and simply ask them “Can I bring my team to you?”…! Trust me it would be very hard for them to say no.  Taking your team on a tour throughout their dealership, asking managers how their department works, what they do, what they expect and so forth; this can be a long term retention rate for a more solid client & for your team to relate to the inner workings.

Tip #3: SPEAK ENGLISH….!  What I mean by that is speaking non technical. Getting too warped in the world of technology we tend to start talking like a robot. You are dealing with dealerships! Not technical gurus, no offense. These boys & gals are focused on selling cars, turning metal and making a deal. Speaking to them in plain English can help improve your relationship with your client & give a better understanding to help them open up for additional services and so forth.

Tip #4: Don’t take anything for granted.  Let’s say you are chatting away on the phone & you find yourself doing all the talking.  Did you take the customer / client for granted they know everything you said? I highly doubt that they even caught the beginning of the conversation.  Getting them to react to your conversation tells you that they understand what you are talking about.

All apologies I just got off track!

Tip #5: Interview & what to look for.  You are one step closer to finding the right team member. Keep in mind you can tell a lot about a person by the way to they talk, walk, speak, dress etc.  Pay attention to those certain things as they can tell so much.  Do they appear desperate? Are they too relaxed? Most important of all “Do they make you laugh”? Having a sense of humor can help create an amazing retention rate with your client.  Having a fun voice can also break down a lot of walls when speaking with clients. 

Remember “Your voice is like an Opera Singer….!”

Do you have any tips that you would like to share with me and the social world on what to look for when Hiring Smart?

All views & opinions are solely based by the author Jennifer Schrader.

jennifergene@hotmail.com

Selling emotion over product! What are your thoughts?

Having the opportunity to be on both sides of the fence as a dealer to the actual vendor, I    have heard many pitches, demos, product enhancements to help our (their) dealership progress & more.

Is it just business or vendor client relationships? I have been told several times to not get emotionally involved with a client or vendor. As a firm believer in productive results, someone to rely on & being there when needed, getting emotionally involved is a very strong relationship that is hard to break.

During trainings I would ask, to break the ice, what do they enjoy the most besides work? Like family life, kids etc.  You would be surprised how much of a positive response you will receive as it shows the client, dealership or vendor you are interested in what they do on their off time; it’s not just about selling, it’s about caring.  

There are several clients that have followed me regardless of where I go in the automotive business that can call me up on a weekend, including Sundays, to chat & ask for advice. Do I charge them for that? Absolutely not! The thrill of them reaching out to me makes it well worth it. It’s not worth selling a product, purchasing a product  or running away after signing the dotted line, but for a lifetime relationship within the professional world of sales.

Being successful in yourself and not just warped with “BUY BUY BUY NOW BUY FROM ME” attitude is going to be a overall failure because it is all about you.

What about your client or vendor? They are living human beings and can be very emotional with the buying process as it is claimed to be an emotional process.  Why not be a part of that process for them (you) to have a successful sale & a client for life regardless of where you end up in the near future.

Taking the time to go out of your job responsibilities to help solve a technical issue, billing issue, SEO advice and such, then having to tell them; “Call this number they will help you with your issue”.  Just doing these simple things will have your client rely on you as you are capable of doing wonders for them. 

Why push it off and be just an operator on the phone (That is what I call them). 

What are your thoughts?  Do you just have them sign the dotted line and say see you when you are ready to resign? Or do you keep in contact with them regardless if it is about business or not?

You will be surprised of the results you receive. Keep in mind they are the ones that make your paycheck!

All thoughts & opinions are based solely by the author Jennifer Schrader.

jennifergene@hotmail.com
(231)360-0730