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6 Ways to Beat Declining Car Park

Posted on Aug 31, 2010 - 01:18 PM

For those of you that don’t know what “Car Park” is…it is the term a lot of factory guys use for the amount of cars parked in a dealers primary market area -  in other words, market penetration. With the decline of car sales over the past few years, the Car Park is down for obvious reasons – but the part I want to focus on is the effect car sales has on service traffic, sales and profits.

Now I am not a negative guy…in fact, I am a very positive guy about almost everything I have to deal with. I believe everything happens for a good reason; even when it is bad – so with that being said, don’t think I am talking in circles with this next statement. Car sales drives service traffic and since car sales have been off, service traffic will eventually go down…it has to, unless you do something to avert the disaster. I mean think about it…if there are less cars sold and parked in your area, less cars need service and that results in less traffic, less sales and less profit. But there is a way to avoid it and it really isn’t that difficult – or as I like to say, “It isn’t rocket science.”

Start by taking control of your business and getting a grip on the fact that you have to do something different or your business will go down. A phrase I like to use is – and this is for all of those service managers out there, “Run your store like you own it!” Come on guys, I am as dedicated as the next guy, but when it comes to managing a store versus owning it,  there is a difference if you actually feel like you own it…you just put some extra effort into making the deal work. You know, you focus a little bit more, you watch your people a little closer and you don’t complain about longer hours or other issues that come up. Because when you feel like you own it you can’t quit. So, now that you “own it” let’s talk about a few ways you can insulate your store against the decline in service traffic that is heading your way, OK?

1. Be open more, not less. You should be open all day Saturday and open some simple easy to remember hours like 7 to 7 thru the week. You have to be open to make it easier for customers to say yes and hard to say no.
2. Don’t take so long. Guys, 2 hours is too long to do an oil change, you know that. You wouldn’t take your car somewhere that took that long would you? Get a process in place that gets oil changes done quickly but also includes a good multi point inspection and suggested service up sell plan – the goal is to take care of the customer, advise them of what they need, and sell suggested services all as fast as possible. Some people get confused and just rush the cars thru a quick lane…not the goal.
3. Make sure you are really competitive. Don’t get sidetracked here and think that if your price is the same as the independents or other dealers that you have done all you need to do. Remember, customers think you charge too much already…you have to give them some real incentives to come to your store. You probably aren’t the most convenient (Wal-Mart has a whole store attached to their service department) and customers already perceive you as inconvenient…you have to prove you are a great place to do business.
4. Advertise more – don’t be the best kept secret in town. In the sales department when they need traffic they advertise – so why wouldn’t you. Look, you probably average over 70% gross in service – you can afford to spend some money to get traffic in your store - and besides, how much do you make if the customers go somewhere else, nothing right? But I am not saying to just throw money at it – I am saying advertise smart. Target your lost customers first, be consistent and build brand equity, always advertise well known services like oil changes and tire rotations and make sure they are great deals. People already think you charge too much – don’t waste your money proving them right.
5. Answer the Phone and Think Like a Sales Manager. Yeah, yeah, you heard me…think like a sales manager. Now before any of you old thinkers get all bowed up about being called a sales manager, think about this. Not all sales guys are bad…in fact most are good. A few bad apples shouldn’t make you stereotype all of them and put them in the bad basket. You have to get in the game guys and gals…you have to create and maximize every single opportunity you can. So start thinking like a sales manager with sales goals and realize that if you want to avoid the disaster of fewer cars being sold you have to think a little different. The biggest thing I can tell you to do here is to get out of your office and spend a lot more time on your “service showroom floor” otherwise known as the service drive. You will be able to do some real damage out there by making sure your people answer the phone, greet customers quickly and courteously and follow the procedures you have put in place. Make sure every time your advisors answer the phone they get the customer’s name, talk about the features, benefits and advantages of doing business with you and most importantly, make sure they try to set up an appointment every single time – I call it an invite and most of the time they just don’t do it. You can increase your service traffic immediately if you just answer the phone the right way. And when customers do arrive, make sure they get sold what they need – be a sales manager, negotiate, close deals and let everyone know that you are pushing and out there with them to reach everyone’s goals. You need to help them sell and make more money for themselves and you – so get out of the friggin’ office…offices were made for times when there are no customers – in other words when you are closed. Take a lesson from the restaurant business…you don’t see the manager in his office during the rush hours do you – no he / she is out there running the show – and you should be too!
6. Give customers real reasons to never go anywhere else. This is an easy one. You have changed your thinking about running your store. You are now more convenient, more competitive and more convincing. You have started to advertise smart and committed to spending a lot of time on the drive to get the job done. You have created and maximized every opportunity – now put a system in place to make sure the customers only use your store for future service and vehicle needs with a simple rewards club. Almost every business today has one, so why not you? You need to make a big deal out of it…talk about it every day to every customer and make sure your people know that it is important to the future of the store and to their longevity. Rewards clubs make customers feel special, they make them feel appreciated and they raise the awareness of your store so they don’t forget and go somewhere else. But the key to any rewards club’s success is to keep it simple and understandable for everyone and to make it for the most part automatic. Rewards clubs work,  you probably have one in your wallet right now – so why not have one for your store, for your customers?

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