Category: EFG Companies

Categories
Dealership Training EFG Companies Featured

Leasing is Booming. Is Your Team Taking Advantage of It?

Contributing Author: Stephen RoennauAccording to a recent article by the Associated Press, even though interest rates are low, many consumers are still choosing to lease their new car or truck rather than buy.

“Lenders have seen overall stability come back to the market since the recession and leasing has gradually returned as a larger part of many lender strategies,” said Melinda Zabritski, senior director of automotive credit at Experian Automotive.  With leasing on the upswing, the market is predicted to double in the next year.

With OEMs releasing their lease incentives this fall, it’s time to make sure your team is fully prepped for taking advantage of this fast-moving trend and increase future sales opportunities.

While sales business will always remain the backbone of a dealership, you know there is no business Leasing-on-the-rise-Callout lease business, especially with August lease incentives around the corner:

  • Leases keep customers returning to the dealership like clockwork for their service appointments
  • Leases help maintain an inventory of recent-model used cars
  • Leases have the significant opportunity to create customers for life

But, does your team have the knowledge and tools to close a lease?

With over 35 years of insight into the consumer mindset in the auto retail space, EFG’s Transcend Group knows how to train your team to readily position the benefits of leasing while understanding their individual benefits of closing a lease and the bigger picture of dealership profitability.

Find out more about our Lease Training Workshop and register today!

Categories
EFG Companies F&I

Increase Your PRU

Contributing Author: John StephensThe festivities of graduation still linger and families are on the hunt for the perfect used car for their kids leaving the nest. With used cars flying off the lots, you are probably trying to make the most of this ample opportunity to increase F&I profit.

You already know that a vehicle service contract is an excellent way to increase used car sales. It eases parental anxiety and provides their kids with quality coverage on most of the same components as a manufacturer’s warranty. But, you have also had more than your fair share of customers with concerns about the mileage limits, especially on a much older vehicle.

Take for example, an F&I manager presenting a 10-year/100-mile vehicle service contract to a customer looking at a car with 60,000 miles on it. Traditionally, this VSC would only cover the next 40,000 miles and many customers often feel like such a product is not worth their money.

However, with EFG’s Motorist Assistance Plan, dealerships have the opportunity to provide more value to their customers with extra protection from financial risk, leading to higher PRU. With MAP®, customers can add on both miles and time from the time of purchase, taking them well beyond a traditional VSC.

MAP’s add-on miles provides your F&I manager with a significant closing tool. And, if that’s not enough, MAP can be offered with six months complimentary WALKAWAY®, the product behind the award-winning Hyundai Assurance.

WALKAWAY relieves customers of their lease of loan obligations when unforeseen life events occur, such as involuntary unemployment, physical disability, or critical illness.

While providing your customers with this extra protection, MAP and WALKAWAY:

  • strengthen margins and profitability with upsell opportunities;
  • manage risk by adopting a strategy that decreases repossessions and collection costs;
  • drive traffic to your service department;
  • transform potentially frustrating events into loyalty-building opportunities; and,
  • differentiate your offerings, thereby retaining and attracting new customers.

With more than 35 years as an administrator of consumer protection products, EFG Companies knows how to innovate products that build profitable and lasting relationships with your customers. Contact EFG today to learn how products like MAP can increase your PRU.

Categories
EFG Companies F&I

Add Uncle Sam to Your Revenue Stream

With tax season in full force, you’ve probably seen a plethora of articles describing what consumers plan to do with their refunds. The majority of those articles state that consumers plan to use their money from Uncle Sam to shop.

According to a recent survey from PriceGrabber®, a leading online shopping site:

  • 54 percent of consumers expect to receive a tax refund this year;
  • 24 percent expect more money than last year; and,
  • 56 percent plan to splurge and give themselves a break from the constant saving cycle from the recession.

Normally, tax refunds are used for big-ticket items like cars and vacations. However, this year consumers are saying they prefer to spend their money on clothing, household items and electronics. So, how can you incentivize them to use that extra money for the new car they’ve been lusting over?

It’s simple, give them more for their money. Consumers have sat on aging vehicles for four years as they waited out the recession. They want to move on. They are ready to move on. But, they are still wary of the shaky economy.

EFG Companies conducted independent research in 2011 and 2013 to gain further insight into the consumer mindset. The second study showed no change in consumer perception about the economy. Both studies found:

  • 89.9% of consumers surveyed are concerned about the health of our economy
  • 30.9% of consumers surveyed are not confident in their job security

Relieve their stress and get them in the vehicle they want by packaging your loans with consumer protection products that protect their finances from those unforeseen circumstances, such as:

  • Job loss
  • Mechanical break-down
  • Total-loss

It’s time to remind your customers why now is the time to make a smart investment in a new vehicle.

Contact EFG today and we can create an F&I assessment to determine whether your product portfolio meets the needs of your target market and how to better allocate your time and money to generate greater returns.