Henry Ford once said, “Don’t find fault, find a remedy.” When he uttered these famous words, they were directly applicable to his company, the economy, and the rest of the world. It’s all too easy to look for something wrong. And when you find it, it is all too easy to place blame. But that doesn’t fix the problem. For car dealers, this quote can mean a variety of things. Especially when it comes to holding gross, it is critical that you don’t point fingers at technology, employees, or even customers. Instead, consider solutions that provide you the best possible ability to forge ahead in success.
Selling cars isn’t a math equation. However, when the numbers don’t add up, you might find yourself frustrated at the amount of money you are potentially losing on deals. First, let’s point out the obvious. You need to get more money on the cars you sell from your lot. That can’t be denied. At the same time, you need to also be purchasing used cars for the value they are actually worth. It’s the basic principle of buy low, sell high. Simply pointing that out only addresses the fault in the matter. You need the remedy.
For that, you need to best understand the true value of every vehicle that comes across your lot. When a customer brings their car to trade in, they typically have a number set in their mind. This number is easily skewed when you factor in the many discrepancies that exist between the perceived condition of the car and the actual one. For example, the owner of the vehicle might not realize how much work and effort needs to be done in order to properly prepare the car for the lot. This costs time and money, which therefore reduces the trade-in value of the car.
However, this can become a point of contention between you and the customer. That’s why you need to be armed with a remedy instead of pointing fingers at fault. Through a technology solution for trade-ins, you are able to establish a point of trust and transparency between you and the customer. There is an understanding that you as a dealer aren’t trying to lowball them. Rather, you are offering a fair price for the actual value of the vehicle. This protects you from overpaying for the car. At the end of the day, even a few hundred dollars spread across a month adds up to a lot of lost profit.
Moving on from there, you need a remedy for when you purchase vehicles from auction. This is critical as oftentimes it is possible to buy vehicles at a premium and sell them at a lower price than their true value. A customer is going to come in looking to wheel and deal. As of today, there is still a level of mistrust felt by the general public for car dealers and salespeople. Because of that, the customer might not feel that the price you have placed on the car is fair. The key is to not turn this situation into an opportunity to find fault on either side of the ball. A remedy would be to provide a new option for educating the consumer on the true value of the vehicle.
Digital technology and retailing make a remedy extremely attainable. Through deploying a digital showroom, you provide a bridge between information and transparency. It isn’t just a band-aid either. It is a true remedy for streamlining the process of understanding the true value of a car. As a dealer, you can instantly illustrate the packages of a car while arming yourself with advanced descriptions of the vehicle. You can show the customer comparable cars from other local dealerships. There is also the integration of vehicle valuation and real-time pricing to establish a vehicle’s true worth. Eliminate the guessing part of selling a car and you will improve your margins and hold more gross.
Today’s car dealers need practical and tangible solutions to be able to merchandise the best market deal. It isn’t about finding fault in your processes. Make the car the star by employing better data. This invariably will result in better grosses. It sounds simple. And that’s because it is. Get a better deal when buying inventory and sell them for the right price. Your customer will be happy at the increased level of trust and transparency and your sales staff can sell with confidence. After all, every dollar counts, and those dollars can add up to millions a year.
MAX Digital provides advanced solutions for car dealerships across the country. Products range from inventory management to digital retailing. Get superior data on vehicles coming on and off your lot. Schedule a demo today.
