There aren’t enough hours in the day to get everything done—from needy employees to demanding customers most dealers just jump from one fire to the next. But many dealers don’t realize these time sucks are stalling their dealership’s growth. Growth starts from the head after all.
So stop holding yourself back from getting more done and achieving your 2023 goals. If you wanna take 2021 by storm, make more money and take no prisoners then you need this list:
1. Hire An Assistant
All jobs in a dealership are important, but that doesn’t mean it’s important that you do all the jobs. Spend less time answering emails and scheduling appointments and spend more time being the leader at your dealership. Hire an assistant.
2. Turn Off Notifications On Your Devices
You should choose when you want to receive information. The true cost of distractions and interruptions caused by incessant notifications and “dings” is staggering. Start predetermining specific times each day that you will check your email and socials.
3. Identify 3 Top Goals At The Start Of Each Week
It’s simple. If you decide what you’re going to accomplish at the beginning of each week, you’ll accomplish more. The alternative is getting banged around like a pinball—constantly busy, but rarely productive.
4. Have One-On-Ones With Each Direct Report, Every Week
If you have time to do only one thing each week, do this. Your people need you. They need your support, encouragement, guidance, direction, opinion, reinforcement, nudging. But they really only need about 30 minutes each week, then they need to get back to work.
5. Start Listening To Audiobooks
Reading and learning is a valuable use of time for pretty much anyone. But most people don’t have time to read. Most people also spend too much time in traffic. Simple opportunity! Start listening to audiobooks during daily commutes.
6. Schedule Thinking Time For Yourself
In today’s world, it seems most people are too busy to take time to think. But as the head of your dealership, you’re also the mastermind—it’s up to you to think about what goals your business can achieve, how you can reach them and what you need to do to keep moving forward. But you’ll never discover these ideas if you don’t dedicate time to think about them.
7. Develop Urgency In Your Marketing By Including Deadlines With Offers
Why would customers take advantage of a great deal today if the same great deal is available next month? By including some deadline-based urgency in your marketing and by adding variety to the type of offers you run, you’ll see a significant increase in daily traffic to your dealership.
8. Create A “Big Idea” For Your Marketing Materials
Customers are hit with literally thousands of advertisements each day. If you want your marketing to stand out, you need to do something that’s going to cut through the clutter and speak to your audience. Giving your marketing a creative “Big Idea” or theme is a great way to do just that.
9. Record And Post Customer Testimonials
A recent study revealed that over 77% of dealerships don’t have customer testimonials on their website or social media pages. But customers trust fellow customers. To them, there’s nothing more powerful than another happy customer’s glowing endorsement. Plus, it’s easy to do—just record customers with a smartphone and upload it when you’re done.
10. Be Brave Enough To Do What Others Won’t And Be Open To Collaboration
Too many dealerships are stuck in an endless cycle of copying each other in order to compete. But just because every other dealership in town is marketing and selling cars the same way doesn’t mean it’s the only way.
Most dealerships focus on competitive pricing or vehicle inventory. Too many dealers are killing themselves trying to compete for the “best” vehicles or for the lowest prices. That’s exactly why we’ve developed a strategy that helps dealers attract customers without losing themselves in the price and inventory war.
This strategy isn’t for the dealer who wants a passive marketing plan. No, this strategy is for the dealer who’s willing to tackle all the changes a sudden surge in leads and growth will cause.
Download our free eBook The Ultimate Guide To Supercharging Your Dealership to discover how our unique marketing strategy would help your dealership grow in 2023.