If you have not had a chance to read habits 1-3 please do so now before moving on to habits 4 and 5. These are shorter so I have put them together
4. Leave no stone unturned….EVER
This habit is an extension of habits 2 and 3. We need to communicate with intention.
With intentional communication from the quarterback, both verbal and non-verbal, he can guide the line to do several things. Just as we, in the drive-thru, can use intentional communication to start guiding the conversation in the direction we want it to go. We can uncover every opportunity, and we must consider it a challenge to do so. No matter what you find, there is almost always “One more thing” that the customer does not yet know about.
Sometimes it is a brake service due to the environment we live in. Or, it might be an extended warranty that they did not know they could still buy. And sometimes there is nothing to “sell” but there is a connection to build that solidifies a relationship with you for the long term. And that is the greatest opportunity of all.
All we need to do is spark up a conversation and then guide that conversation to uncovering a need. That is where we offer a solution or something that satisfies that need. But we must uncover the need first.
Sometimes the customer does not even know they have a need until we gently point it out. You need to master your language and deliver it with intention every time. Communication with purpose is the goal we need to create the habit around.
We do not just blindly start a list of offerings that overwhelms the customer at first sight. It has to make sense to them. Once you stick a needle in the “need” you then offer the solution to that need. But if you have not built the value in satisfying that need, you will not be able to offer a solution to it.
To keep ahead of the game on this, (which also speaks to the “not wasting time” and "focusing on the task at hand" habits) as soon as I write a work order, or when I make an appointment that I did not get the time to review history on, I revisit the work order or appointment later and review the service history. I make a list of short-form notes for myself that will cue me to talk about the missed services when I am either reviewing the work order or writing the work order up when the customer comes in.
If there is a long list, I will start an estimate on the vehicle as well so I do not miss anything.
Here I will visit on the importance of reviewing the tech’s notes when you are building an estimate on a vehicle.
I have done this, so I know it happens all the time. As an advisor, you are busy doing a multitude of things all the time. So when you get an estimate your inclination is to pick up the phone and call the customer to sell whatever is on that estimate. Here is where you need to take a beat. Read the entire work order to see what the tech has actually said about why they submitted the estimate in the first place.
Sometimes, the tech will say things like, “Suspect this vehicle needs repair XYZ, estimate provided.” or “Brakes will need to be replaced next visit, estimate provided.” etc.
The point is, that you should not be calling the customer until you have the full and complete picture of why the technician has submitted that estimate.
When I spend time reviewing the work order, I also find notes in there that the technician has forgotten to estimate. Sometimes it's the wipers streaking, oil leaking here there, and everywhere and needs an engine shampoo to isolate the leak.
Some technicians do not estimate these things because they are menu priced so they don’t think they need to and they take for granted that you are actually reading what they have written.
So take care to review the notes before calling. This is also where it is your time to review the history to see if the tech has missed a fluid service that is overdue or see if there were things deferred on the last visit that the customer has forgotten about.
I cannot tell you how many times I pull up the last visit and there is a note that the brake fluid needs to be changed or something similar. The customer says, “Oh ya! I forgot about that, please get that done.”
5. Stay Focused….ALWAYS
Focused on the customer, the task at hand, and the needs you are trying to satisfy. No matter what is going on around you, behind you, or beside you, you must always be focused on what is in front of you at all times. And that is the customer you are with or the ringing phone in that order. These are the first priorities.
When you are with a customer, you must ignore all other things that are going on, even if it pains you and causes anxiety. Imagine, if you were the customer, how you would feel if mid-sentence, the person helping you picked up the phone and started helping someone else. Or, if the person helping you stopped, spoke to a technician waiting behind them for some reason.
If you think about that, and if you answer that you would feel less important, unappreciated, or cast aside, you would be correct. That can never be how we make the customer feel. If they feel anything less than satisfied, happy and as if their expectations have been exceeded, we are not focusing.
As for the phone, how long would you, as a customer, let the phone ring, without being answered before you gave up and tried somewhere else?
To me, when the phone is ringing, dollar signs should be flashing in front of your eyes. Even if it is someone calling to complain, that can be converted to dollars. You just have to figure out the solution.
To create a habit of focusing on the customer, when you are speaking with someone in person, look them in the eye. Lean forward into the conversation so they know you are focused on them and their issue. Do these things with intention. Listen without interruption and paraphrase what they said to make sure you got it right.
Talk slowly, smile, and control your pitch and tone. Do not rush so that the customer feels you have taken the appropriate amount of time with them. Even if there is a line of 20 cars behind them. This is part of the mastery of your own self. You must slow down to speed up. It is an art form and it must be seen in real-time to understand how to apply it.
Focusing on the phone is similar, the only thing you cannot do is look them in the eye. You must also continue to smile when talking on the phone and pay even more attention to your tone and pitch. You must remain patient, listen and address each point in turn.
I am not saying make it creepy or like the customer should be paying you $9.99 per minute, but your conversations need to relay to the customer that you are feeling upbeat, energetic, and like you WANT to help them.
This last point is important when on the phone because we do not have the benefit of body language communication when we are on the phone.
If you think you would benefit from some one-on-one coaching, real-time in your own environment message me at:
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