Blog

Three Accessory Packages To Support Social Distancing

Posted by Whitney Williams on Jun 18, 2020 2:00:00 PM

As COVID-19 shut down America as we knew it, extroverts all across America found themselves taking refuge in their cars. What started with just taking a drive, turned into eating take-out in the driveway. Before we knew what was happening, kids’ birthday parties morphed into drive-by parades. Campgrounds closed and truck beds became the go-to spot for a night under the stars.

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Topics: Presentation Tools, Improve CSI, Accessory News, Increase Profits, Process Training, Marketing, Customer Success, Dealership, accessories, Showroom, accessory program, seasonal, accessories installations, Educate, success, Accessories sales, creative, Digital Retailing, COVID-19, Social Distancing

2 Ways to Choose an Accessory Champion to Set Up Your Success

Posted by Whitney Williams on Nov 21, 2019 11:00:00 AM

The task of selecting an accessory champion for your dealership can be harrowing. There’s no one-size-fits-all approach and without a compass, dealers may find their accessory program suffering. To begin, management should examine both process and store volume to determine who to lean on as the personalization expert. 

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Topics: Sales Best Practices, Improve CSI, Process Training, Dealership, Vehicle Personalization, accessories, Showroom, staff, sales team, sales, customers, Best Practice, Accessories sales, tips, increase sales, salesman, profit, consulting, customer experience

No Tricks, All Treats This Halloween

Posted by Whitney Williams on Oct 31, 2019 11:00:00 AM

You know what’s terrifying? The amount of high fructose corn syrup America will eat today.

There’s something more horrifying. Dealerships that are still focusing all their efforts on adding profit and neglecting the customer experience.

This Halloween, lavish every customer that darkens your doors with sweet goodness--even the witchy ones.

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Topics: Customer Retention, Presentation Tools, Improve CSI, Customer Success, Dealership, Vehicle Personalization, accessories, Showroom, sales, accessory program, seasonal, customers, creative, increase sales, dealer, profit

Old Dog Young Dog Same Trick

Posted by Jason Ludwig on Feb 22, 2019 2:30:00 PM

As an Insignia VPE, I do a lot of training during my guided visits.  I emphasize the same lesson when training associates with proven success and those who have never presented Vehicle Personalization before: consistency of presentation.  To be victorious you have to show up first.

I don’t care what kind of experience you’ve had with the customer. Make a Vehicle Personalization presentation! According to industry statistics, 9/10 of your customers WILL personalize their vehicle within 90 days of purchasing it with anything from fuzzy dice to a truck cap. Why not offer them all the opportunity to integrate it into their purchase?

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Topics: Sales Best Practices, Customer Retention, Improve CSI, Increase Profits, Customer Success, accessories, Showroom, staff, sales team, sales, Educate, customers, F&I, Best Practice, service, Insignia Group, configurator, increase sales

3 ways to personalize your personalization catalogue

Posted by Whitney Williams on Dec 6, 2018 11:45:00 AM

Our “have it your way” society is hungry for more monogram stickers, a broader array of window tint options, engines that purr in another language, and decoupage. Dealer principals all over America are behind closed doors pouring over staggering statistics about vehicle personalization. Some laugh with delight, others cry at the seemingly insurmountable behemoth.

Whether you find joy or sorrow in the multi-billion dollar “uniquely mine” industry, one thing remains true: this consumer trend isn’t going away. So how can a dealer effectively keep climbing a mountain that’s still growing? Stay active, grasshopper.

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Topics: Accessories System, Sales Best Practices, Improve CSI, Increase Profits, Dealership, Vehicle Personalization, accessories, sales team, Accessories sales, online catalog, increase sales

4 Ways to Profit From Personalization

Posted by Whitney Williams on Nov 5, 2018 1:00:00 PM

Accessorizing at the point of sale taps into a multi-billion dollar industry.

Individualism is growing like kudzu and there’s no place for a well-meaning base model to hide. In our “have it your way” society, there are over 30 shades of white paint selections for your new bathroom, a monogram for everything you own, and one too many shows dedicated to making a consumer’s house “more you.”

Automotive is no exception with vehicle personalization clocking in as a $200 billion dollar industry (plus or minus a few billion, but who’s counting?). In 2018 there’s not a dealership in the country, from corporate mega complex to mama and papa’s discount Ford store, that can afford to ignore personalization and we’re here to help you pull this thing off.

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Topics: Improve CSI, Dealership, Vehicle Personalization, accessories, accessory program, F&I, drive, relationships, Accessories sales, tips, configurator, online catalog, increase sales, we-owe

Best Practice: Eliminating Paper We-Owe

Posted by Whitney Williams on Oct 22, 2018 11:30:00 AM

The we-owe document is a staple of the automotive world. This invaluable document originated out of a need to protect both dealer and customer, but stacks of paper documents leave both parties wanting.

Documentation is the key to professionalism and protection, so why take any risks when it comes to such an important step in the sale? Effectively protecting the dealership’s interest and providing that same comfort for your client saves time and confusion for all involved.

It’s time to bury the paper we-owe for good.

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Topics: Accessories System, Customer Retention, Improve CSI, Process Training, Dealership, Vehicle Personalization, accessories, Educate, customers, eCommerce, Best Practice, success, Accessories sales, configurator, online catalog, increase sales, we-owe

How to Sell Auto Accessories Online

Posted by Jason Lancaster on Sep 26, 2018 1:35:00 PM

*updated August 10, 2021

Thinking about selling auto parts online for the first time? Online parts sales are growing steadily year over year, and this growth is expected to continue for the foreseeable future. Right now consumers are becoming more accustomed to buying parts and accessories online. Fortunately, the tools for selling parts and accessories online have never been better.

Still, while it's a great time to start selling parts and accessories online, it's also difficult for new e-commerce retailers to get established. If this is the first time you’re looking for an auto parts e-commerce platform, there are some things you can do to maximize your odds of success and avoid common mistakes.

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Topics: Accessories System, Improve CSI, Increase Profits, Process Training

Train insane or remain the same

Posted by Whitney Williams on Oct 19, 2017 12:00:00 PM

Imagine walking to the back of your lot and discovering a new vehicle from your inventory, literally picked up and put IN the dumpster. You stare in amazement trying to figure out how one of the most expensive cars on your lot is literally in the trash. Your blood pressure rockets as you realize that’s about $70,000 your dealership is about to write off to salvage...gone.

Now, apply that reaction to watching another sales person quit. According to recent studies, dealerships literally lose $70,000 to $100,000 per year on expenses related to sales staff turnover.

A study conducted by Cox Automotive found employee turnover rate in the showroom is a staggering 67%. The research, published by Auto Remarketing, found dealerships spend an average of $10,000 per new hire, and about 7 out of 10 of those new hires throw in the towel shortly thereafter. With those figures in mind, dealerships with a modest staff of just 10 salespeople torch upwards of $70,000 every year. Auto Remarketing makes the solid point that a lack of training leads to this astonishing turnover rate. We believe there’s a way to stop this runaway train.

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Topics: Customer Retention, Improve CSI, Increase Profits, Customer Success, Dealership, Showroom, staff, sales team, sales, Educate

Top 3 Things Your Millennial Customers Want

Posted by Whitney Williams on Aug 17, 2017 12:00:00 PM

“In the next ten years, 40% of all new vehicles will be sold to millennials, and they’ll be buying cars for the rest of the 21st century” [AutoTrader]

In 2013, AutoTrader conducted an extensive study of the millennials buying motives and power. Fast-forward to present day and we clearly see these findings unfolding as automotive dealerships perform back flips to keep up with consumer demands. There are enough articles about the habits of millennials and the iGeneration to fill a small galaxy. With so much information to sift through, how can a dealership stay up-to-date on the latest trends, technology, and marketing, and still sell cars?

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Topics: Sales Best Practices, Presentation Tools, Improve CSI, Increase Profits, Customer Success, Dealership, Vehicle Personalization, sales, Millenials, Educate, customers