Do Something Unexpected!

Books have been written about catching people in the act of doing something nice or good. Over the last few months I’ve had the opportunity to catch some of you doing unexpected or surprising things that are over and above your job functions. When I consider the individuals who caught me by surprise, I realize that I should have expected this type of behavior because these individuals give their all plus some to their dealerships and set high expectations for themselves. The reason I have chosen to make this part of a newsletter is twofold: First, it’s easy to go through the motions each day; especially the longer we are in the same position with the same organization. Second, you may get some ideas on how you can surprise someone just by doing some very little thing that changes the way they see you. In one store I caught an F&I Manager doing two things that helped her salespeople, which in turn helped her. First, she went through each used car on the lot and made a list of what they had in the car and what a certain percentage over that would be. This helped the salespeople know which car a subprime customer could buy while still staying within what the subprime lender would accept in a loan to value situation. Then she was asked by her General Manager to come up with a creative way for the salespeople to learn about all of the paperwork that needed completed. She planned a Family Feud game where each team had to name as many parts of a certain form as they could. That was so much better than another boring lecture in a meeting! In another store where a not-too-experienced F&I Manager relocated to another state, I found out that she takes her logs and recaps home after work to review them and find ways that she could have gotten more products sold. She also did this with the state paperwork, when she first started since it was very different from the state in which she use to work. I think even the most experienced of us can learn and benefit from an exercise like this one. In stores with multiple F&I managers I am always surprised to hear that there is little communication between them. But in one organization with multiple rooftops there is an experienced and strong F&I manager who invites his peers from the other stores to stop in or call him with any questions or objections with which they would like help. He even invites them into his office while he is with a customer. I call that leadership. Finally, there is another relatively new F&I manager who wasn’t content to learn in the traditional ways. He reaches out to people from all over the country by way of F&I blogs. He asks questions and also gives feedback on subjects. In addition, he searches the internet for facts and selling tips that improve his performance. It definitely shows in his numbers and in how quickly he ramped up in this new position. Maybe you are also someone who does unexpected things to enhance your value. If you do, I’d love to hear from you. As you can see, no names have been revealed but I’m sure you’ll know who you are. Keep setting great examples!