Dealer Advocate with Jim Ziegler |
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Jim is the president of Ziegler Supersystems and a long time columnist with Dealer magazine. His 'pull-no-punches' style and keen insight has made Jim one of the most sought after speakers in the automotive industry. Click Here to contact Jim
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June 22, 2010
How many times a day, how many times an hour, is there some new, unheard of vendor knocking on your door selling you the newest, best, most incredible CRM (Customer Relationship Management) plug-in application?
After you strip away a couple of the bells and whistles you find that what they are really selling is technology-enhanced follow-up police that rats out your sales people who don't call their customers.
Customer Relationship Management is about the people and the way your people relate to them.
So do you really get CRM or do you get a sales department inventing ways to get around the oppressive tattletale system? I think the people that invented these programs were the Hall Monitors reporting the other kids when they were kids in school.
Don't get these CRM people confused with the new Wave of Social Media Marketing Companies.
One phenomenon we've witnessed in recent years is the fact that every "Jack" in the world, every non-performer, every has-been, and every never-was in our industry, every failure in the business who was ever unceremoniously kicked to the curb by the car business...They've all become "Consultants and Trainers."
I am amazed there are so many of them, they're like rats, they've everywhere, and they're all inbred.
No track record in the business -- or worse yet a poor track record -- they throw up a little piss ant website, get themselves a tax number and business license, buy a post office box at the UPS Store, set up office in Mom's spare bedroom, and proclaim they are Social Media Experts. Maybe they have a great grasp of the technology part of it, but "Can they sell?"
AND, most of them are going to tell you it's wrong to hold a profit on the cars and trucks you sell. (Cause they don't know how to do that).
Click here to read more blogs by Jim.
Tom Gorham
Saturday, 26-06-10 16:00
Thanks Jim. I always read your articles in Dealer Magazine. Love them, follow your advice as best I can, and enjoy your great attitude.
"Best Practices" are developed over time. If something is brand new, there really are no "Best Practices". Some things never change. Relationship building will always be a Best Practice, but new ways of doing that can change the game.
Processes get old and out-dated, and must evolve. The new processes are built from assumptions made from combining old best practices with new ideas. They are basically unproven until tested by time and success or failure. Do you agree?
It is easy today to promote oneself as an expert simply because of the Internet and the explosion of information and new ways to communicate with our customers. Many dealers are overwhelmed by it all and almost anyone can sound like an expert. These conditions are ripe for rip-off artists.
Thursday, 24-06-10 11:43
These "CRM Programs" are no more than an automated 3x5 card system used by top salespeople 40 years ago.
A Ford Grand Master Sales Professional.
A J TACITO
Thursday, 24-06-10 11:18
Jim:
Good for you. Somebody finally said it. I too have been in the industry for over 30 years and have witnessed hundreds of these dealership drop-outs profess to be experts in a business where they have not demonstrated enough proficiency to succeed, and or have failed. Many have then picked up a business card and entered my business, the direct mail advertising business, and have as a result totally diminished the product and service
professionals in retail automotive advertising have worked for years at building knowledge and credibility by representing themselves as professed experts in the field. Having conducted over 37,000 direct mail campaigns in my career, it is very disheartening to see these losers lie to dealers and cheat them in more ways than one. Only the estute dealer is wise enough to weed them out, and I hope that more would be more cautious in who they choose to do business with. They should look for the representative that has proven history, or if just starting out, they should require the company they do business with to be a reputable company. NADA endorsed or a Client list that will give it good recommendations. It is a problem that will always prevail in our industry, as it is one that offers a wonderful opportunity to all who choose to make it great. Unfortunately there are some that we allow in this business that have no business in this business and they mark the great industry that it is.
Jim Ziegler
Wednesday, 23-06-10 17:47
I knew this would be a lot of fun when I wrote it.
All of you have made great points. My point remains that there are too many out there evangelizing technology without personality, charisma, and persuasion...the stuff that is the real fabric of sales and marketing.
Personally, I am technologically challenged. Loading a program is a major challenge requiring assistance for me. YET, still I have appeared on national television as an Internet Marketing Expert.
NOT because I am a programmer or an SEO Expert, but rather; because I have the ability to operate the applications. AND, because I have insight into "Finesse and relationship sales and marketing".
The industry has become infected with those who charge dealers vast sums for the privilege of lowering their profits.
How many dealers are scratching their heads trying to figure it all out? When most of these people talk about Customer relationship Management or marketing, they are thinking it's the technology that rounds up the people and closes the deals... Excuse me, personality, finesse, charisma, and persuasion sell cars...processes certainly help, and there must be supervision as opposed to management.
personally, I make more money on Facebook, real deals with real business, into the higher 5 digits monthly, than most of the pretenders ever thought about...and I never try to close anything...it's all "PULL" and concepts they'll never comprehend.
Keith Shetterly
Wednesday, 23-06-10 14:22
"It's not what you have, but what you use, that makes the difference." -- Zig Zigler
I am no expert. I'd say the #1 problem with dealerships today is that their process hasn't changed but the shopper has--or, more accurately, their lack of process hasn't changed. More shoppers become buyers if you apply a consistent and good process, and, when business was great, the poor process issues didn't show as much as when business fell off. No CRM will ever replace the skills of a good salesperson, and no technology will ever save a dealership dying from bad processes. Technology alone is a desperation move from folks who didn't get it anyway--sales still need people. Expecting a CRM to be properly used to help salespeople keep track of, contact, and sell their customers when no attention is made to correcting and improving processes is like hitting yourself in the head with a hammer: It will feel so good when you stop.
OEMs have lost track of the people side of things. Dealerships have lost track of whatever processes they have that work. And, so, shoppers take advantage. As do vendors hawking the latest "Save the Dealership!" tool and/or technology.