Does it have to be a fight at the dealership over retail selling and relationship selling? The answer is a big fat no!
The fact is dealers spend a lot of time on retail advertising. Some are better at it than others but every dealership spends more time and money on retail selling.
Lets be very clear on this. Dealers must put out effective retail campaigns every month. I am not suggesting anything different!
But it’s relationship selling that has the greatest impact on a business.
It’s also the biggest opportunity dealers have in front of them.
Relationship selling is all about building a friendship or relationship with your prospects and listening to their needs. Once you’ve built that relationship, shown you care, and earned their trust, you are on the road to making them a customer.
“People buy for emotional reasons and they buy from people they like and trust. It all starts with building relationships” according to Author Bob Urichuck.
Here is the simple equation that appears to be very difficult for dealers to understand.
Relationship Selling = Social Media.
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- The more followers you have the more relationships you can create.
- The more fans you have the more relationships you can create.
- As tweets and posts increase your opportunity to communicate and develop relationships grows.
- The more followers you have the more relationships you can create.
If you believe in Relationship Selling you’re going to love Social Media. But don’t fall for an automotive advertising agency or service provider telling you the biggest relationship selling tool on the planet is just another classified section.
Do you hand out sales flyers at your Country Club?
Do you try and sell every single person you meet at a local High School football game?
Don’t eliminate retail selling but be sure you get into Relationship Selling.
