over the years. These are all priceless acts for communication that you must embrace to own a foundation of customers going forward. You must make them feel appreciated, because only then can you hope to earn their repeat business.
7) Enforcing Internal Training and External Coaching
Consistent training and reinforcement of processes and techniques is not a one-time event. Nor should it be only performed over the course of a weekend with little reinforcement afterward. Training needs to happen internally, by the hands of your own management. We recommend daily check-ins with each salesperson, weekly save-a-deal meetings between manager and salesperson, weekly product/process group trainings, and monthly performance reviews with goal setting. Managers need to do just that. Manage. Ensuring the team is up to date on leveraging the in-store technology, understanding the product benefits, and following a designed process is step one to running a fluid sales organization.
However, coaching should be external. When managers are in-store training, you need to ensure they aren’t just pulling ideology from their own belief system, but are following best practices recommended by outside agencies. Sales managers have time in their day, but not enough to be an accountability task force within the CRM. One of our primary services we see our dealer clients taking advantage of is being that watchful eye within the CRM on their behalf. We gather their sales teams together in front of live, interactive video chats and address their specific needs, tailoring their ongoing education to their store. This two-pronged approach of in-store training coupled with ongoing coaching from outside influencers allow dealer owners to trust their most valuable asset (their people) are being cared for and groomed for future success.
8) Advertising in Social
The old sales adage of “fish where the fish are” has never been truer than with social media advertising of today. With over a billion of users able to be targeted by, not just their area and demographics, but their interests, social media is the giant fish in the giant pond of marketing. Daily user rates continue to increase, as does mobile usage on these sites, and companies big and small are doing everything they can to grow their brand and engage valuable customers on these platforms.
However, it is not just enough to have a FB page and post to it regularly. Right now, advertising on FB is one of the best buys for the advertising dollar and every corporation should have a line-item in their marketing budget dedicated to it. Instagram is now available for businesses, ad space can be purchased within different platforms, Snapchat is reaching a new generation, and every day a new app shows up that can influence a segment of the population. No longer can organizations simply feel that having a presence on these sites is enough to keep them in the game. They must dedicate dollars to advertising their businesses if they hope to reach their intended consumers.
You need to prepare for what lays ahead, both within the industry, and within the economy. While the getting is good, you must batten down the hatches and determine what is influencing your business growth and what is simply spending money without influencing sales. Designing a well thought out game plan for a year of campaigns and ad spends shouldn’t happen quickly, nor should it take place without guidance. Nonetheless, it is a necessity for any business owner hoping to, not just stay the course, but also thrive in the upcoming year. By following the guideline above, with enough planning, your marketing budget can be set for 2017 and you can begin to monitor the return on your investments before the ball drops.