Adding a sales rep to your team

June 26, 2014
Turn to your estimators and repair planners into advocates for your shop and service.

I have the opportunity to conduct several shop owner events across the country every month. When I ask,“How many of you have a sales representative on your staff?” almost none of them raise their hand. In fact, they all do! By definition, a sales representative is a person employed to represent a business and to sell its merchandise.

Collision Repair Business Sales Representative
In a collision repair business, we use titles such as repair planner or estimator for the person who creates and presents the estimate to the vehicle owner. With the changes in estimating systems, management systems, vehicle construction materials and new vehicle technology such as adaptive cruise control and collision avoidance systems, this is a very challenging position that requires expertise in many different areas. In many shops, we tend to overlook that one of the estimator’s major responsibilities is to sell.

Typical Sales Process
Every day, vehicle owners come into a shop and need an estimate. So Bob hands them a form to fill out and disappears outside to look at the car. A little while later, Bob comes back in and enters the visible damage on the vehicle into the computer and then hands the estimate to the vehicle owner. Bob will commonly say “I have completed your estimate,” and then say “call your insurance company and find out what they want to do,” or “call me when you decide if you want to have your vehicle repaired.” Bob never even asked for the keys!

A typical process you would find in any sales environment would have several stages. For example:

  • Lead
  • Opportunity
  • Discovery
  • Presentation
  • Close
  • Overcome objections
  • Communication

A lead is any person or business that needs your services. Leads are generated through your marketing efforts. A lead could be generated by handing someone a business card, by contacts you made at a community event you participated in, by someone’s internet search or visit to your website and social media pages, or through a referral.

In collision repair, an opportunity is created anytime a vehicle owner calls or walks into the shop asking about a service that you offer.

The discovery phase is a time for the estimator to gather information. You should collect information on best contact phone number, insurance company, accident details, frequency and type of communication the customer would prefer (phone, email, text, etc.), and how they selected your shop. During this time, remember that most people that come into the shop do not understand the process. We do it every day and they only need our services every few years. Your staff needs to use this time to discover what their “pain” or needs are. For example, they may need the vehicle to take their children to hockey practice, or they are going on vacation in two weeks. In these examples, you would learn that a rental car is important, and when the vehicle would need to be completed by. Show empathy and build a relationship and trust with the vehicle owner. You can also begin to ask open-ended questions such as “When is the best time for you to have the vehicle repaired?” or “Are you able to bring the vehicle in on Thursday morning?” These types of questions will give you an insight into your potential for closing the sale.

The presentation is a time for you to explain the benefits of selecting your shop. Some will call this your elevator speech, which is a 30-second speech that shows that you care about your customers, why your other customers prefer to have their vehicles repaired at your shop, and the benefits they gain by allowing you to repair their vehicle. Because you may have a direct repair program (DRP) claim, a non-DRP claim or a customer-pay repair, you may need to have a few 30-second elevator speeches. This is also a great time to get the commitment from the owner that they will allow you to repair their vehicle so that you can do a complete teardown before generating an estimate. If you are presenting an initial estimate in this phase, make sure to spend the time to explain it in terms they will understand. While you understand the terms used to describe parts or what the * means, the owner does not.

The close is the hard part for most estimators. Most are former technicians who have little to no sales training. The close is asking for the sale at the end of the presentation process, but the close also needs to be done throughout the entire sales process. If the vehicle needs to be disassembled to generate an accurate repair plan and delivery date, explain the process, the benefits, and ask for permission to perform the disassembly. Some customers will want an initial estimate; but if you can get the sale before you write the estimate, you will be that much more efficient in the repair process. If you have to write one, try to get a confirmation that you will be getting the sale before you write the estimate.

Overcoming objections requires practice. The hard part is to listen closely to everything that vehicle owner is saying. Once you have listened to the objection, then formulate your response. If you listen closely, you are better able to provide a response and educate the vehicle owner.

Communication is critical. If you didn’t close the sale, you need to have a process to follow up, either to schedule the repair or to find out why they did not select your shop. During the repair process, make sure you are communicating with the customer at the frequency they prefer and using their preferred method. If they choose text, make sure that is how you are communicating repair status. If there are delays, make sure to inform them of the update. At the time of delivery, go over the vehicle with them and review the final invoice. Again use terms that they will understand. I also suggest that you have a follow-up process following delivery to make sure they are satisfied with the repair and service you provided.

Measure Your Opportunities and Sales
You should be measuring all of your sales opportunities and closed sales. If you don’t measure it, you don’t know how well you are doing. Measure by estimator and as a business. You may find that Bob needs some training and coaching while Casey is performing at or above the goals you have established.

We have created a great interactive tool to help you calculate the additional revenue you can gain by focusing on your close ratio. Try it free for a limited time by going to www.ationlinetraining.com/abrn1407. It also makes a great tool for training and coaching your staff on how the work they do makes a difference to the business.

Tom McGee is Director of ATI Collision for the Automotive Training Institute, founded in 1974. ATI’s 108 associates train and coach more than 1,150 shop owners across North America to drive profits and dreams home to their families. You can contact Tom at [email protected] and visit ATI’s website at www.autotraining.net. Check out “Profit Matters” for mechanical repair management tips in Motor Age by ATI’s CEO Chris “Chubby” Frederick.

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