As for the rest of the stats, I know 1st hand that a little improvement in all areas of the sales process make all the difference…and let’s face it, if someone is on your showroom floor they ARE looking to buy a car. 

Car buying is an emotional purchase.  It’s the 2nd largest investment that most people make.  So if you’re in denial and think that customer experience has no relevance to a purchase, think again guys!

Follow-ups and customer relationship building should be a department in itself, given the specialized way that these proceedures should be handled and the time and dedication needed to do it right! 

In actuality they were a collection of statistics that had been pounded into my head over the years from: Jackie Cooper, Joe Verde, Grant Cardone, John Traver, Al De’Sarro, and countless other speakers, trainers, sales managers, etc…

I WOULD like to know what the real numbers were, and how they’ve changed over the years. It would also be nice to be telling the truth when I’m quoting them to people who are paying me to.

Alan

Sorry…just my opinion based on 1000′s of surveys of new car customers who say that 70 to 80% of the time the salesperson who sold them their car follow-up with them by phone. If the statement had not said “sold or not” … no problem.

So what’s wrong with properly citing sources if possible? Who is the author of the article?

Aimsmith

I’ve had exposure to these statistics as well and probably in the same context as you. Industry trainers cite NADA as their source and if you dig a little you’ll find that Chris Carey, then CEO of Stronghold Technologies, used the stat you’re questioning in a press release about a workshop he did at the 2003 NADA convention entitled “Turning Be-Backs into Buyers”.

I quote: “Cars dealers typically ‘capture’ or record information on barely half of the customers who come into the showroom. This poor capture rate severely affects the dealer’s ability to follow up with prospective customers and generate return visits to the dealership. In addition, according to NADA statistics, only 10% of prospective car buyers are contacted by dealer personnel. There is an opportunity for a dealership to improve the processes for capturing prospect information and for contacting these prospects, setting appointments, getting customers back into the showroom, and closing once they return to the dealership.”

Yup, the 90% stat is at least five and a half years old, but as was probably said when you first heard it, “If the number’s too high, cut it in half.” Bring the stat back to life by mystery shopping a few showrooms in your area. If you play informed consumer, not lay-down, you’ll find the challenges Carey cited, while possibly diminishing over the last few years, still exist.

This is great information and even if they are off by 10-20%, as you say, they do provide a huge opportunity. Can you share the actual publications of where you retrieved this information so we can all better digest it? I am particularly interested in the context as well.

It’s a never-ending fight to get salespeople to follow-up.

Most of mine will tell you they perform better when I have my foot up their butts the most. Every time I ease off, the phone calls and ultimately sales, dwindle.

I, for one, will say it’s at least 80%.

I agree with you. The 90% does seem a little high and maybe if this statistic is a few years old it could be off. But by how much really?

What if it’s 80%?
Or even 70%,
Heck, lets says it’s 60%.

Would that really make it any better?

The post was not to point out the exact percentages as a some stringent guideline, but merely to show that there is a huge opportunity to shine as a professional. Even if everyone of these statistics fluctuated by 10-20%, there is STILL huge opportunity to improve, a huge opportunity to stick out from the crown and build a book of business.

I’m sure you can agree with that?

“Here are some general showroom statistics compiled from Nada studies and a few other sources/studies over the last several years.”

Huh? The only comment appropriate here is that the stats are either very very old, when the carbiz was booming, or “massaged” in some way. Like this one: “90% of sales people DO NOT do any follow-up whether the customer purchases or not.” Total nonsense, period.

Aimsmith

The stat that jumped out at me was the first one. 72% of customers tell their salesperson they are “just looking” at the initial greeting.

A constant challenge and opportunity for discussion with my clients occurs around tracking. It seems crazy to me that so many dealerships are asking “what brought you in today” to a customer that is “only looking” and basing $100k ad spends around their answer. I’d say they aren’t “only looking” any more than “they just drove by.”