“How’s business?” It’s a question I hear at least once or twice a day. My answer is usually the same: “Great!”, because it’s true…even when car sales are slumping, business is great. The truth is, IF I pick up the phone (or the mouse) and start prospecting, I’m busy…if I don’t, I’m not.  It’s up to me, not the economy. 

The days of making a living from walk-in traffic in the auto industry are over. The Internet has changed all that, and that’s a good thing. For the most part, people are comfortable enough with the Internet to get online and, in a few short minutes, find more cars than was possible in hours of dealer-to-dealer driving a few years ago. Oh, there are still plenty in-person shoppers, but their numbers are dwindling. The trend is toward online shopping first. We see more and more people either calling e-mailing, or coming in with a printout of the vehicle that they want to buy, and that makes our job easier. It’s a win-win situation, and here’s why.

1. The customer wins. He’s already researched the car, knows the features he wants, what the going price should be, and which dealers have it. He just has to call or e-mail a few dealers to get the best price, do a little homework and pick the best deal.

2. The dealer wins. By maintaining the right inventory, and keeping on top of trends, he can be sure that more people than ever before will be viewing his vehicles 24/7! He only has to set a competitive price, and provide superior service (more on that later). By setting up processes that make sure the inventory is posted in the right places online, is up-to-date with plenty of photos and accurate data, people will return again and again. The last time I checked, our website received an average of 54 unique first-time visits per day! For a rural dealer, that’s a bunch of exposure…and we’re constantly looking at ways to improve.

3. The salesman wins. For the most part, he doesn’t have to educate his customer. In many cases, the customer has researched his dream car for months and knows more about the vehicle than I do. He’s read reviews, competitive comparisons, comments left on blogs & BBS services from current owners of the vehicle he wants. We still need to learn all we can about the cars we sell, in order to provide our clients with the answers they need, because (1) not everyone spends months researching this stuff and (2) there’s a lot of bad information out there. Just because somebody posts something online doesn’t make it true, but the printed word carries more weight than the spoken.

Yes, business is great! We live in a great country that promotes free enterprise, and the opportunities are limitless! Let’s not let the naysayers spoil our outlook.

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