Overcoming objections is quite possibly one aspect of the F&I office that is focused on the most. Classes abound on this topic. Dealers, in tune with their teams, provide one-on-one coaching sessions on this alone. After all, the more successful an F&I manager is at overcoming objections, the better their numbers, resulting in increased profit for the dealer.
I’d posit that many training courses/one-on-one sessions start something like this:
“The vehicle service contract is too expensive. Go.”
Contributing Author: Steve Roennau Vice President Compliance EFG Companies
Q4 is here and that means it’s time to reflect on where your business is today and plan for what lies ahead in 2016. Many dealers not only forecast their future business, but also develop plans to create a cohesive team and workflow between all functional areas of the dealership.
Everyone knows the F&I department is an important driver of profitability – they get deals bought, sell profitable protection products, and ensure the delivery of the vehicle. Successful dealers don’t just think of F&I as a department, rather they adopt a culture of F&I throughout the dealership.
A culture is a way of life of a group of people – the behaviors, beliefs and values that they accept and pass along. As a dealer, do you understand the benefit of having your sales and service teams adopt an F&I culture? Where the employees believe in and accept the value of the F&I process and products as a way of doing business and impart it on everyone in both the showroom and service drive?
It’s obvious for dealers to see the value of training your sales team on F&I products.
Your sales people know many of their customers today work on a tight household budget. With a culture of F&I, they also know how a VSC helps them stay within that budget when their car unexpectedly breaks down. Or, that GAP protection will ensure customers can pay off their vehicle in the event of a total loss.
Leasing continues to gain considerable ground in the automotive space as manufacturers place greater emphasis on lease incentives. Is your team taking advantage of this trend?
According to a recent report from Experian, leasing hit a record of 26.7 percent of U.S. new-vehicle volume in the first quarter of 2015. This represents a 1.1% year-over-year growth and the fourth time in the past five quarters when lease penetration topped 25 percent. With this growing trend, we can expect more manufacturer lease incentives in the second half of this year, meaning now is the time to ensure your sales team can not only close a sale, but also a lease.
Ask yourself, does my team know how to positional leasing versus financing? Not sure? Refresh your team by focusing on the basics.
Help customers understand depreciation. While they probably know that all vehicles depreciate as soon as they leave the lot, they probably don’t make the connection that vehicles depreciate at the same rate whether they lease or buy. The only difference lies in what they pay for. With leasing, customers only pay for the time/miles they drive. However, with buying customers commit to the entire cost of the vehicle, no matter how far they drive it or how long they keep it.
