If you have gotten a taste of the car sales business by selling cars independently in the past or you have earned experience by working for a dealership, then you may have developed an interest in starting your own car dealership or already have one up and running.
Car dealers are known to order vehicles from the manufacturer based on the belief that they will sell it. The manufacturer and the dealer arrange lines of credit that the dealer uses to purchase these models from the manufacturer and dealers simply pays back those lines of credit.
However, some dealers tend to have serious issues with sales and are unable to make their payments. If this continues for too long, then the terms of the lines of credit are renegotiated. If it becomes a serious problem, the dealership may close.
Note that some of the most important responsibilities of the owner of a car dealership are creating supply contacts, managing inventory and their commercial retail space. While managing the inventory of cars may be as simple as replenishing your inventory of cars, managing parts is a bit trickier.
If you have always dreamed of owning your own business and you have a passion for automobiles, then starting your own car dealership might just be a match made in entrepreneurial heaven.
Considering consumers are always in need of quality new and used cars, owning a car dealership offers an impressive job outlook and plenty of career growth. In order to help you shift gears and become your own boss, here are tips to get dealing with car manufacturers as a new car dealer.
Tips to Get Dealing With Car Manufacturers as a New Car Dealer
When you are looking to deal with car manufacturers as a newbie, note that you will need to formulate a suitable business plan for your future dealership. This is indeed the case if you need to acquire financing. A solid dealership should begin with the vehicles themselves; are you going to sell one brand or multiples?
If selling both new and used cars is a possibility, it is also important to include this in the business plan. Other business plan stipulations include determining business equipment costs, researching manufacturer car costs versus used car prices, calculating employee salaries, lease and sales agreement costs, and planning your advertising budget.
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Know Your Sales Goals
You may say, “My car dealership business indeed has goals and we want to make more money and sell more cars!” That’s not adequate. Your goals should be S.M.A.R.T: specific, measurable, attainable, realistic, and time-based. For example, a S.M.A.R.T. goal could be, “Between May 1 to May 31, increase the number of up sheets completed in April by 10 percent.”
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Know Who is Buying From Your Dealership
Note that it is one thing to understand the broader demographics of the market your dealership is operating in, but you also need to fully understand who the majority of your customers are.
Are your customers more often blue collar or white collar? Single people or families? Younger buyers or older? The people who are currently buying from you can clue you in to the types of vehicles you should sell, the services your dealership should offer, and how you should target these groups in your marketing efforts.
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Build Your Reputation
Nothing convinces manufacturers and customers better than a stellar reputation for good prices and excellent services. When you serve your customers well, you build a reputation that sells more cars. Cultivating your reputation requires a strategic effort. Taking your in-person reputation online is a critical part of generating new customers.
Have it in mind that most manufacturers and consumers research possible business acquaintances online before making a decision. They search for your brand affinity and recommendations before giving you the opportunity you believe you deserve.
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Licensing, Bonding, and Insurance
There are a number of hurdles you have to jump before you can begin selling cars, and one of them is obtaining your dealer’s license. If you want a full-fledged Dealership and want your suppliers to trust you, then you need a dealer’s license that permits you to sell an unlimited number of vehicles a year.
A dealer’s license is also necessary if you want your sales activities to fall within the Consumer Rights and Safety laws. As for bonding, you will want a surety bond for your dealership, which protects you from contract defaults with vendors, vehicle suppliers, and wholesalers.
Surety bonds are an effective way to safeguard transactions that take place between your dealership and any outside party you do business with. Also note that all car dealerships require comprehensive insurance coverage whether they deal with used cars, new cars, or both. Typical car dealership insurance coverage includes general liability, lot coverage, and comprehensive plans that cover everything from property damage to inventory loss.
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Know Your Cars
You can’t convince car manufacturers to work with you if you don’t know what you sell. Make sure your sales and service staff knows every detail about the current and used vehicles you intend to sell. Your sales team needs to know every detail about the latest models. Also ensure your team is familiar with the latest incentives or financing details, too.
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Be Efficient
Establishing processes and efficiencies are some of the best ways to improve your business and increase your bottom line. Speeding up the buying process helps both your suppliers and customers feel like they are working with a well-oiled machine.
In addition, when your sales staff and other employees work in an efficient environment, they feel valued and productive. To ensure your dealership business grows, a well-managed, efficient process becomes more critical. Processes help new employees ramp-up faster. Productive employees help your dealership sell and service more cars.
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Learn the Salesman Trade
Just because you have a love for cars doesn’t necessarily mean you’re an ideal salesman. Retail is a tough nut to crack, and if you don’t want to come off as a sleazy car salesman, then you need to hone your sales skills.
From the condition of the vehicle to following through with specific promises during all business processes, letting your suppliers know exactly what they are getting is the key to success. Other salesman traits include not being too pushy, knowing how to handle the negotiation stage properly, and knowing when to give suppliers some breathing room.
Mastering these tips will help take your dealership business to the next level. The result of your business is to sell cars. However, when you dig deeper, you will find that having a successful dealership is the result of many strategies that support your car dealership business plan.