Customize The Bottom Line
Remember when cars were delivered to the dealership without heaters, air conditioners, or even radios? Dealerships made profits by selling these items as add-on products to accessorize the vehicle according to each individual customers’ needs and desires.
Once again, the time has come to focus on how dealerships can individualize a customer’s purchase. Our customers want their vehicles to look special. They want to put their own individual mark on their rides. Bling has arrived!
There are a few precious minutes after the commitment to purchase and before the F&I process that dealerships can use to introduce each customer into the world of lender- approved customization opportunities.
Many dealerships already use special displays to showcase customization options such as wheels and rims. Bling brings profit when dealerships take the initiative to ensure that their customers see the displays, touch the wheels, and visualize the wheels spinning on their new vehicle.
Some dealership sales personnel believe customization items will jeopardize the sale or they omit this step because they are not compensated for the sale of these items. Others are reluctant to walk the customer over to a display because they believe the customer will want the items to be included in the sale price. All of these attitudes can be changed with the right process and the right timing to introduce an opportunity for the customer to choose their own vision of Bling.
The first order of business is to secure a firm commitment to purchase the vehicle at an agreed-upon price and terms. When a customer takes mental ownership of the vehicle, they understand the word options. Options are always extra and come with an extra price. Since it is the customer’s vehicle and the customer’s option list, the additional expenses will be also be theirs.
Lender-approval affords a method of funding the purchase. The sales are only as good as the ability to secure funding. While some customers will want to pay cash for the customization, others will want the options included in the financing.
Some dealerships employ a list of customizing opportunities for each category of vehicles –one for trucks, one for SUVs, and yet another for sedans. The lists include a written price and a todaydiscount, followed by these questions at the bottom of the page: Which of the above options would you like added to your vehicle? How would you like to handle the balance? Cash? Check? Credit Card? Include the amount in your financing? The list concludes with a disclaimer that customization items will be added to the vehicle upon lender approval or customer payment.
The bottom line is that today’s customers want to stand out from the crowd. They want their vehicles to be different and they are willing to pay for it. Why not from you?
Dealer Marketing Magazine, January 2006 Issue, p.34