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CRM – Tool or Process
Listen in on Larry Bruce speak of the Motorsports CRM Tool and how it can be a benefit to any powersports dealership. Is it just a tool or a process? Let him explain.
Danny James: We've been working with CRM tools, at least in the automotive industry for the last 30 years.
Larry Bruce: And here we are again talking about it. You would think we would be like done with it by now, right?
Danny James: You would think so. You would think after 30 years we've said all there is to say, but, uh, obviously the power sports industry gives us an entire new, a avenue to take these, uh, these tools. But that's exactly what a CRM system is. It's a tool. It's not a process. It's, um, it's not a central air conditioner that you put in the middle of the store and turned it on and it, and it runs when it needs to it. Uh, it's not that way. Tell me the difference between a CRM tool and a CRM process.
CRM TOOL
Larry Bruce: Well, the CRM, like, uh, like any tool, you have to use it right. So you can't use a screwdriver to do what a hammer would need to do. You can't go using a shovel when you need a rake. Um, you know, you've got the right tool for the right job. And, and that's the, that's the biggest problem that I think that automotive ran into early on and it's um, uh, I guess journey into Motorsports CRM tool is that a lot of dealers thought, well I'll buy this tool, it will become my process and all I need is this tool.
Then we stuck it in and it didn't work. And that was because, it was for two reasons. It was built for the manager. It was built to tattle tale on the sales person for not doing his job. So therefore they fought against it and it was also never, you didn't have a process to use it, you just stuck it inside.
CUSTOMER DATA
Larry Bruce: I want you to use it, I want you to put every customer in it and expecting that, that the system would just run itself. And so what ended up happening is you don't want to, it doesn't work. It's not doing the things you expected to do. The data that's in it is bad and you get frustrated with it. And I've seen many dealers, big dealers, you know, 5, 600 car stores just… I had one good friend of mine, Alan Hall over at Ron Carter Auto land tell me one time, I'm never going to implement a CRM.
It's just not; If you don't… you'll never make it work. They'll never get the sales people to buy in. And it was never my thought that you should get the salespeople to buy in. But that was a whole nother matter. So you know when, when looking at modern CRM, which would I know would call sales automation, sales automation, start from mobile up, not desktop down. Effectively using the motorsports crm tool is powerful.
LOTS OF WORK.. NOT A PROBLEM
Larry Bruce: And that's a big problem because you've got a lot to. A lot of vendors right now invested in very big desktop applications, but it has to start from mobile because it has to be there for the person. It has to make the salesperson's job easier first. If you're not making the salesperson's job easier, they're not going to use it and you're going to get that same hamster wheel where you can. You can't get salespeople to use it. They can't get their buy in. You don't understand why you can't get their buy in there. The reason is it doesn't help me and if it doesn't help me why should I do it.
Danny James: A report that you get at the end of the month, it's about daily activity and it impacts not only a salesperson but also a sales manager's job all throughout the day.
MOBILE APPS AND ADVANTAGES
Larry Bruce: Exactly, and so we had to start from mobile, we looked at it, so start from mobile apps. It's got to start from, Sales Automation has to start from mobile up and then it has to automate processes so that the salesperson's job is easier. For example, you've got sales automation. It means that when it's not natural, when you walk up to a customer to say, hi, my name is Larry Bruce, and you are, and you say, I'm Danny Games and say, welcome to, you know, walk them to Xyz dealership.
What can I show you that that's a natural process. It is not natural for you to stop right there, run into the end of the store and enter their information into a computer. Can I get your driver's license real quick? Right, and we're, we're breaking this natural cycle so and so you know, what you want to see in sales automation is that I want to be able to do what's natural, which is what can I show you while I'm looking for sportsman?
INVENTORY IS POWERFUL
Larry Bruce: 570. Okay, great. Let's start. Let me take a look at my inventory right here, right, right here on my phone and let's make sure we have it built. Now when we can show you and you munge launch into the inventory, when will the system, when you launch into the inventory, the system should ask you are you with the customer? Because there's only a couple of reasons why you're going to be an inventory. Well, yes, I'm with a customer.
Now you've done what you've done with the motorsports CRM tool system. Wanted to wanted, but the manager want to do. I want to know you're with a customer. I don't necessarily need to know who he is yet. Just need to know that you're with the guy and then let that natural progression take a hold. As you talk with that customer and get more information, you go to do the test ride, you get the driver's license, and once you have the drivers license, you're doing it naturally
Danny James: Becomes, the manager, isn't becoming aware that you're with a customer because he's looking out the window and seen you with them.
ALERTS TO MANAGEMENT?
Larry Bruce: Right? He's saying he's getting, he's getting a mobile mobile alert. He's seeing alert come across on his mobile, on his, uh, on his desktop so he knows that, you know, Larry Bruce has with a customer and then you what you want that system to go forward and say, okay, after you know, 10 to 20 minutes if you're with that customer and you haven't collected customer information and you might be in danger of losing that customer.
Now it's the manager's job to kind of slide by, see how he can help. With this feature in the motorsports crm tool can have several advantages to sales, management and most important... customers!
Danny James: Exactly. I had a, I had a dealer one time tell me, I've mentioned that a sales manager's job, a big part of it was to help the salespeople sell. And he looked at me and said, that's their only job.
DESK MANAGERS IN THE KNOW
Larry Bruce: Where we really killed it is when we call them desk managers because then we put them on the desk and they never came off and and so now a sales manager wasn't. There wasn't no longer managing sales. He was managing the desk and and it was literally we just left sales people to their own devices to figure out how to get people to the desk so that the desk manager could desk them. It's a horrible.
We did it to ourselves. It's self, it's completely self inflicted, and it is. It's so bad to watch, but really they should be sales coaches and in order to be sales coaches, you've got to be able to let that, that, that process develop naturally. Be able to know when you need to swing by. You should, as a manager, be introducing yourself early in the conversation, not later when you're coming into quote unquote close because if you're doing it there, you're, you're, you're, you're real.
QUOTE OR UNQUOTE?
Larry Bruce: You're now. The only reason that I'm seeing you was to put the hard close on me. So you know, there, there's a whole lot of reasons why you want to start that clock, when that customer gets quote unquote up and let that progression happen naturally and have the sales manager to weave his process into helping the salesperson get... move that ball down the road, not so much, you know, tattle tale on it and when you win, it's that kind of thing.
When it's helping me do my job, then I'm much more likely to use it. Now it's a tool to help me, right? And I can get that quote unquote buy in if you need it. This is why it is important to have an automated system in your motorsports crm tool.
Learn more on how customer loyalty is important HERE.