"Managing 800 and Internet Leads"
Regularly I speak with Dealers and General Managers about how leads from 800 number lead generation services and the Internet are managed. In many cases they know exactly how many leads were received, percentage of deliveries and average gross profit per delivered unit. Why do busy executives responsible for managing million dollar corporations pay attention to this area of our business? 800 number lead generation services and the Internet allow dealers the opportunity to target advertise and measure results in a very cost-effective manner. One dealer told me that in the past 60 days his dealerships have delivered 105 units with an average gross of $3,000.00 from the 800 number they advertise! This particular dealer is not located in one of the top 10 markets; however because so much emphasis is placed on follow up and lead management his return on investment is outstanding. The cost of generating leads via 800 numbers and the Internet are low, which leads me to believe that senior management does not consider the importance when developing sales and marketing strategies.
The following are techniques used by successful dealerships in the area of lead generation.
  • Review the dealerships 800 number script each month. Long scripts with unnecessary questions encourage prospects to hang up prior to completion. The most effective scripts contain 10 to 12 questions.
  • Implement different 800 numbers and scripts for lease and prime credit customers. Lead generators are not for sub-prime customers only!
  • Place successful ads! Advertisements that imply everybody rides should only be used by dealerships who have buy-here-pay-here facilities. Often dealers complain that the leads are no good or cannot qualify. Proper target advertising and script selection prevent this from happening.
  • When reviewing scripts pay close attention to the minimum qualifiers, such as income, that you will accept. If your lenders require an income of $1,300 per month then the script should eliminate customers who do not meet this qualification. A good lead generation service can implement several minimum qualifiers preventing you from receiving or paying for leads that do not meet minimum requirements. On the other hand if a large number of your calls are non-qualifying customers your requirements may be too high. Many customers have additional incomes or long previous job time that can be determined during the interview.
  • A good 800 number lead generation services will allow you to selectively choose which area codes to accept phone calls from. This will eliminate paying for leads that are too far out of the area.
  • Pay close attention to area code changes in your market. When area codes change dealerships must notify the 800 service to ensure calls are not missed from these areas.
  • Study the weekly reports provided by the lead generation service. Effective reports list each call, the media source that generated the call, along with the caller's name and called from number. Often leads are taken off the fax machine or distributed without a procedure in place for follow-up. Weekly reports allow management to hold staff accountable for each prospect and allow management to track advertising results. Numerous times I have received calls from dealers who thought ads were running on television or radio only to find the agency failed to place the ad or the station did not air the commercial!
  • Customers must be contacted immediately after a lead is received. The customer who provides information via 800 numbers or the Internet is shopping and will continue to do so until a professional sales person contacts them and explains the importance of making an appointment to purchase or lease.
  • Be careful of "shotgunning" leads to lenders prior to meeting with the customer. Lenders are quickly changing the rules and terminating dealer agreements when the look-to-book ratio is below standard. Customers are not always 100% truthful and/or omit valuable information. This inaccurate or lack of information may result in a turn down or low qualification if sent in prior to conducting the interview.
  • Make sure your dealership and the lead generation service is FCRA compliant.
  • Designate a person to manage 800 and Internet leads! Accountability is important.

    By utilizing these techniques you will be more satisfied with your service in addition to delivering more vehicles. Dealerships, who have solid procedures, proper advertising and on-going management of leads are consistently successful and continue to increase market share and gross profit.

    Paul Snider is President of VOISYS Systems Corporation specializing in lead generating services including 800 loan by phone and Internet applications.