Kelly’s Korner: Prospecting
Q. Why do I have to prospect; isn’t our advertising enough? After all, I am a salesperson.
A. Everyone in sales should be prospecting. Recently, a salesperson told me that he would not cold call because he felt it was intrusive and made him uncomfortable.
Prospecting can be fun when you make it fun. Start with your current base of customers. Send out thank you notes, birthday cards, and service reminders. Become your customers’ liaison between them and the service department. People like attention and service. Treat your customers as you would treat guests in your home. You would not want your guests roaming about your home unattended, would you? Of course not! Why then would you allow your customers to roam around town looking for a service facility when you have one at your dealership?
Use any reason to get your name in front of your customers. Professionals often use their home computers to generate a personal newsletter for their clients.
Many dealerships subscribe to a newspaper. Check the classifieds for folks selling units. They could be prospects for upgraded units. And they could be selling a unit that would be a great addition to your used inventory. Call and invite them to the dealership. Cold calling is simply a way of finding a friend that you do not know about yet.
A professional salesperson operates in “5’s”: Each day make 5 new friends, send out 5 pieces of mail, and call 5 service customers. Ask everyone you know for people they know who are in the market for an auto or RV.
Remember why you chose sales as a profession. The sales business presents unlimited opportunities. We cannot wait for company advertising to bring in business. We must do our part to increase prospects, customers, and our pay! When I first got into sales some twenty-six years ago, a manager told me that my net worth would be in direct proportion to the number of business cards I collected and took action on. Today, I have 7 Rolodexes and am as busy as I want to be. Do not delay -start building your own foundation of loyal customers.