Pub. 8 2019-2020 Issue 1

20 San Diego Dealer What is your industry background? I started in the automobile business in college, and I eventually began selling cars. I worked as a factory representative for General Motors’ Pontiac for about eight years, then fell back into retail. I owned a dealership in a small town in Minnesota for 10 years. When you work in a dealership like that, you wear several hats. I was the general manager for a Cadillac dealership for eight years, worked for Bob Baker selling Infiniti for four or five years, and moved to several dealerships in North San Diego working for two brothers, the Hoehns, for about 10 years. At that point, my wife’s health wasn’t good, so I retired even though I didn’t feel ready to retire otherwise. Why do you think training like this is important? Frankly, customers today are starving for service. Now that we are in the age of the internet and social media, we’ve gotten away from service, and people miss it. When they are in the market for a car, they want to talk to someone who cares about them and listens to them. It’s very important to teach those who work at dealerships, or who plan to work at dealerships, good people skills. They need to understand the importance of service and excellence instead of mediocrity. Selling cars is about building relationships with people, and giving them the experience you would want if you were the buyer. What it comes down to is applying the golden rule. It works. What is your favorite sales topic to teach? Why? I guess my favorite sales topic is teaching students to understand that people buy from people. The sales people are the most important part of the equation because they are the ones who talk the most to customers. They need to ask good questions, listen to what people are saying, and gain an understanding of their issues and why those issues matter. Treat people with enthusiasm and true interest. The buyer has the power to decide to buy a car, so we have to understand their wants and needs. As an example of this, you need to work with people based on their wants and needs more than their budget. Too often sales people assume things about a buyer too soon. Don’t engage them too soon about what you think they can or can’t afford. Hear what they want and need. If it is out of line with their budget then you can make adjustments later in the process to what that budget is. But work with them based on their needs and wants, not what you think they have the ability to pay. Once in a while you will make a mistake, but you can adjust later to whatever that budget turns out to be. Share a bit about the career growth you have seen from some of the students. There have been a number of success stories. The gentlemen who have been interviewed for this issueof themagazinehavebeenexamples of that. • Anthony Benfatti had never sold cars, but then became the general manager of a Hoehn dealership in about six years. He was in one of the first classes. • Chris Boone is a young man who had never sold cars before, either, when he came through the class about three to four years ago. Now he is the new car sales manager at the Lexus San Diego dealership. • WhenMichael Lee took the class, he impressedmewith his incredible work ethic. He is now a finance director at Lexus San Diego. During the weeks when I amnot teaching, I make dealership visits. Every time I make a visit, I see three or more people who came through the course. Not everyone goes into management. Some of them are doing very, very well in sales, which can be a career in itself. One of the greatest satisfactions for me is to walk into a dealership and see people who are succeeding and excelling as sales people or in other roles within the dealership because they understand the importance of customer service. They succeed quickly because of that understanding. Working at a dealership is a great career opportunity, financially and personally. Those who choose to make a career working at a dealership can take pride in serving others. What is the value and importance of industry training as offered through the CSTA? A lot of people offer ongoing training programs throughout the industry that are similar to the CSTA, but the CSTA is particularly outstanding. There is a strong correlation between athletics and selling. Athletes have to hone their skills and practice. It is the same thing in selling. Sales people need to find someone to role play with so they can continually grow and improve their communication skills. That’s why we do role playing in the class. I teach students that making a good first impression is important for making a sale, and then we role play on how to greet a customer properly. Students learn how to be professional and how to give people a good experience. Selling is a process. I am a big believer in process because I’ve seen that knowing what to do next gives people confidence. The idea is to lead people. You don’t tell your way to a sale, you ask. It’s important to ask good questions that give you a direction for what the customer is hoping to achieve with their dollar, and then listen to what they’re telling you. BOB HEINTZ DIRECTOR, CALIFORNIA SALES TRAINING ACADEMY INTERVIEWS