Stand Out From The Crowd; Seven Ways To Separate Yourself From The Crowd

By Rob Christman, VP Of Sales, AutoMatrix Dealer Software

Several years ago, I was staying at the Sheraton Hotel in Boston. Upon check-in, I was told that my room wasn’t ready, but given access to their club room while I waited. 

An hour later, I went back to the busy lobby and was given a room, which was back on the club floor. Upon entering, I immediately noticed that there was an old man in a red robe asleep in my bed! I quickly left and retraced my steps back to the lobby where I found the manager and told him that, “there’s someone sleeping in my bed, and it’s not Goldilocks!” He was very apologetic and quickly found me another room on a lower floor.

When I got off the elevator I made a left turn to go to room 1023. I put the key into the door, and it turned red. I tried again and heard someone come to the door. Once again, someone was already in the room!

Again, I retreated to the lobby; aggravated about the entire situation. I found the manager and told him that once again, there was someone sleeping in my room, and it wasn’t Goldilocks! He took fast action, apologizing, checking his system and walking me back to my assigned room. We exited the elevator and turned RIGHT to room 1032 (yes, the transposed the numbers on my key card).

The following evening, I was preparing to attend an event when I get a knock on the door. It was room service. I told them that I didn’t order anything. They responded by saying it was a gift from management.

I opened to find a tray containing two bottles of Samuel Adams beer, a mug from Cheers, a shot-glass from Cheers and a postcard that I will always remember because it said, “Mr. Christman, I apologize so much for the troubles you had checking in yesterday. It is our mission to provide the best quality service to our guests. If there is anything you need during your stay, please contact me directly. And, the next time I hope that it IS Goldilocks!”

Why do I still remember that note? Simple. It showed me that even through the frustrations that I was being listened to.

By listening to me, and showing me that I was listened to, it turned a bad experience into one that I still talk about in a positive manner years later! It allowed the Sheraton to stand out as a brand of choice to me. It is still the first hotel that I try and book into when business takes me to Boston.

What can you do to stand out for your customers?

Here are a seven ways to stand out from the competition.

1.  Train your frontline sales team the art of rapport building. Treat the customer as if they were close friends or family. The relationship they build becomes your brand.  Become a People First organization and become known as the dealership that customers want to go to!

2.  Manage the Customers That Are On Your Lot Now. We spend a day or two on average between selecting the right vehicle to stock, merchandising it, advertising it and then responding to phone calls, emails and following up in order to bring a customer onto the lot. But when they are on the lot, how are you managing the customers on the lot. I’ve witnessed many times a salesperson on the lot with a customer and never getting them into the building. Once they skate, they’re rarely logged into the CRM. There’s no system in place to manage a T.O. on the lot and how can you get your be back to return? NADA statistics say that the average dealer spends over $600 per sale. That’s a big investment. How are you maximizing it? How are you measuring it? Controlling it? A system that allows you to measure ALL lot ups, to allow for T.O.s on the lot and to gage overall sales performance and to do it in the moment will help you stand out from the crowd.

3.  Be Original. Since customers are routinely bombarded with marketing information, your business should find ways to make its message memorable. Finding a message that resonates with customers is a good way to get them to remember your business. Another tactic is to enlist your customers to market for you. Social media contests can increase your brand awareness while letting current customers speak on your behalf.

4.  Build Customer Loyalty. When customers are being bombarded with information about many businesses in the same industry, your current customers can be your greatest asset, touting your business to family and friends. One way to keep them loyal is to communicate. Set alerts through your CRM to notify you of customer birthdays and anniversaries and call them.

5.  Listen. Take the steps to actively listen to your consumer’s wants and needs. Ask open ended questions designed to explore what it will take to fit the right person with the right vehicle. Don’t assume that you know the answers, just because you’ve heard the same answer 1,000 times before from other customers. This may be the 20th car you’ve sold this month, but in all likelihood, it’s the first vehicle they’ve bought this month (or year)!

6.  Mine Your CRM data and stay in contact with your customers with regular messages. Use templates that send useful information, such as grilling ideas in the summer, interesting tidbits, novelty ideas and the promotion of special sales events at your dealership. Stay in front of your customer with items that are interesting to you.

7.  Use Data and Insights to drive positive customer experiences. Know what YOUR consumers want to buy from you. Find your niche and cater to it. When you know your market and your customer, you can best serve them by stocking the right inventory, the right price point, the right level of service to stand out. Integrate your software providers so that you have a full picture of your lot, your history and your customer. If you have the entire picture, you can cater to it.

To thrive in today’s economic environment you need to stand out from the crowd, to be neon in a gray world. How you treat your customer, how you make them feel and how well you listen to them are some methods you can use to create your own Goldilocks moments day after day!