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Let’s face it, there are some days whenyou fail to recognize which end is up.

You have so many things to accomplishthroughout the day before you even walk intothe dealership, and it seems each and everyone of those things is either urgent or a priority.As a matter of fact, how often does someoneelse’s priority turn into yours?

So what did you actually accomplish?Anything?

Of course you did. Think about it. Duringthe day you checked your email messages andmade sure all the deals that were sold werebeing processed so you can get paid.

You’ve made sure there was enoughcoffee for your customers. You went online tosee what cars you might have the opportunityto purchase, then you made sure the carsyou did purchase are being reconditioned andyou spent a few hours just dealing withreconditioning issues that could possibly costyou more than you originally anticipated.

Your day might also include a fewpersonnel issues, including one in which thelot guy didn’t show up for work today. Oh, let’snot forget you were just informed the vacuum

cleaner no longer works and the keys to theblocker can’t be found.

Thank goodness it’s just about lunchtime. Let’s not even bring up the rest ofthe day.

Well at least the day isn’t a total disaster.A lovely young couple came back to purchasethe vehicle they were looking at yesterday. Youknew they would.

If any of the above sounds more thana little familiar to you, it should becomeextremely obvious by now that you simplydon’t have your priorities in order.

If you get anything at all from this article,let it be this: I implore you to focus on onepriority each and every day. Every dealer andevery salesperson, every day, must be doingsomething to generate prospects.

Every message, every day, must be one ofkeeping the proverbial pipeline of potential cus-tomers flowing. Are you in a positionto honestly say you spend the greatestpercentage of your day focusing on getting cus-tomers to find you when they’re in the marketfor a used vehicle?

If you’re like most dealers, you spendthe greatest percentage of your day “tryingto figure out how to sell more cars.” Focusingon how to sell more cars is completely andtotally different than trying to keep a steadysupply of potentially qualified buyers to sell.

Keeping a pipeline of potential buyers isperhaps the greatest challenge for any dealerin North America.

Keeping a pipeline full of potential buyers isno less important than buying the right vehiclesfor your inventory, because no matter how“right” you purchase vehicles, unless you havepotential buyers lined up ready to buy, all you

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“Contemporary, modern andefficient dealers focus on the

road ahead by viewing the worldthrough their windshields.

The rearview mirror tells dealerswhere they once were. The

windshield allows successfuldealers to see where the road

is taking them.”

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are is a car collector.Just as one spends countless hours

acquiring inventory, countless more hoursmust be dedicated to effectively marketingyour dealership and all you have to offer.

Today’s dealer cannot rely on thesuccesses of the past. All too many companieshave hung their futures on what they thoughtwas a sure bet and a sure formula for success.Why? Because it always worked in the past –whatever that “it” is or was.

Go back a few years. Think about thecellphone you once owned, not that very longago. More than likely the cellphone youowned was a Nokia or a Blackberry, orperhaps a Motorola.

Today, whose name appears on thecellphone in your pocket? Samsung? Apple?

Every day a company disappears and anew company is born. All too often companiesfocus on the images in their rearview mirror.And in the retail auto industry, past performanceis an unreliable indicator of future performance.

For no one reason in particular, manydealers were disappointed this past tax seasonbecause sales were not as robust as in tax

seasons past. Built-up inventory, increasedadvertising expenditures and all too manyunsold vehicles left many dealers wonderingwhat happened.

What happened was their customerschanged their buying habits. Their competitorschanged their selling and marketing habits tomatch the habits of today’s ever-changing,efficient market.

Did you change or did you look in yourrearview mirror of last year’s sales?

Contemporary, modern and efficientdealers focus on the road ahead by viewing

the world through their windshields.The rearview mirror tells dealers where

they once were. The windshield allowssuccessful dealers to see where the road is tak-ing them.

That road is extremely unpredictable andevolving. And it goes without saying that we allknow what happens when you fail to keep youreyes on the road.

Do you know where your road is takingyou? The fact is, many of the roads ahead areunpredictable or haven’t even been built yet.Driving an unknown and unfamiliar road meansthe need for attentiveness is even greater thanever before, and keeping your dealershipdriving machine in tip-top condition is essentialfor the unpredictability of the road ahead.

To keep your dealership in competitivereadiness you’ll need to focus on evaluatingyour business, evaluating your employees and,without question, evaluating your customersand their future needs. Today’s successfuldealer has to anticipate change and be open-minded to change at a moment’s notice.

An ancient Greek philosopher namedHeraclitus said the only constant in life is

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“Today, transparency – like aclean windshield – means giving

your potential buyers theopportunity to see as muchinformation as possibleregarding their potential

purchase … while at the sametime creating an atmosphere

of trust and openness.”

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change. In our business, change today meansbeing transparent to your customers.

Today, transparency – like a cleanwindshield – means giving your potentialbuyers the opportunity to see as muchinformation as possible regarding theirpotential purchase. That includes items suchas price, payments and other options.

Contemporary dealers make it easier forconsumers to make financial decisions abouttheir potential purchase. An example oftransparency is posting payment optionsfor a particular unit or units in order forconsumers to make better financial decisionsfor themselves.

I find many dealers posting weekly oreven bi-weekly payment options – fullydisclosed, of course – on hangers suspendedfrom vehicles’ rearview mirrors. With theability of every consumer to calculate avehicle payment on his or her cellphone,wouldn’t it make sense to voluntarily providethat information at your dealership?

Transparency means removing themysteries of car shopping for buyers whileat the same time creating an atmosphere oftrust and openness.

The biggest obstacle in today’s sellingand buying process is the trade-in valuation.The greatest likelihood of failing to make asale occurs when a dealer’s appraisal processisn’t completely transparent to the customer.

Progressive dealers appraise a potentialcustomer’s trade-in as early as possible in theselling process in order to have enough time todetermine as accurate a market value aspossible, as well as enough time to collectenough documentation to present to thecustomer prior to the close.

Establishing your dealership as adealership that takes trade-ins is an extremelyeffective method of keeping your potentialbuyer pipeline full. Let’s face it, most sales arelost because of a lack of consensus as to a

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“Let’s face it, most sales arelost because of a lack of

consensus as to a trade’s marketvalue. Engaging customers in theappraisal process at the earliest

possible point in the sellingprocess has proven to beextremely effective.”

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trade’s market value. Engaging customers in theappraisal process at the earliest possible pointin the selling process has proven to beextremely effective.

You maintain potential buyers in yourcustomer pipeline by letting them know youhave what they’re looking for in their usedvehicle search. You have to use the Internetto let shoppers know your vehicles areequipped with accessories such as Bluetooth,heated seats, keyless entry, navigation andsunroof. Ask your third-party Internet providerwhich options are most often searched for inyour market.

Used vehicle shoppers are also searchingfor unbiased documentation in their searchesfrom sources such as Carfax. Shoppers wantto be assured a vehicle is accident- anddamage-free. They want to know importantinformation such a vehicle’s condition, servicehistory, mileage and even price compared tothe market.

In other words, the more information youopenly provide, the more likely your buyerpipeline stays full.

Remember, you want a full pipeline of

potential buyers at all times, which meansyou need to accept the need for segmentedmarketing efforts. A segmented marketingapproach means you understand you have toappeal to variations in race, gender, age andethnicity, as well as regional differences.

Failing to segment your marketing effortscan lead to a pipeline of potential buyers thatperiodically drip out of the pipe rather thanflow.

It’s important to have a constantly flow-

ing pipeline of potential buyers. That means giv-ing up whatever preconceived ideas you haveof, “I’ve been in business long enough to knowwhat my customers want.”

Today’s shoppers don’t want barbecue,fresh-baked cookies or big-screen TVs. Today’sshoppers want to buy a vehicle in less time.Dealers who have figured out how to deliver avehicle in an hour or less have a tremendouspipeline of potential buyers.

There are lots of potential buyers in themarketplace today. The industry is actuallyheaded toward another record-breaking yearof used vehicle sales.

The challenge is to divert those potentialshoppers to your dealership. Today’s potentialused vehicle shopper flows toward dealers thatare more up-front and more competitivelypriced, dealers that offer a no-pressure salesprocess, exemplary service and a completelyhassle-free overall car-buying experience.

So what’s your priority today? Expect anddemand your employees to do their jobscompletely and accurately so you can focuson the number one profit-building priority ofthe day – every day.

That priority is to determine and implementways to keep your pipeline full.

“Today’s shoppers don’t wantbarbecue, fresh-baked cookies

or big-screen TVs. Today’sshoppers want to buy a vehiclein less time. Dealers who havefigured out how to deliver a

vehicle in an hour or less havea tremendous pipeline of

potential buyers.”

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