When a shop gets busy, it's hard to keep systems in place. In the rush of the day, small details often get omitted. Usually it's the marketing actions that get neglected first. Addresses aren't captured clearly so follow-up and thank-you cards will get to the right place. CSI cards aren't filled in at the end of the job, or mailed out to the customer to get those favorable comments that look so good on the wall or in a newsletter. And customers aren't asked who referred them, or the name of their insurance agent, or the name of a friend who may want to bring his or her car to your shop.

 

All of these actions require looking beyond the immediate job to the possibilities of many more jobs that may be gotten in the future. They require capturing the small details that so easily get omitted. In a sense you could say it's being willing to "look under the hood" to see what makes a marketing system work. 

 

Looking "under the hood" of a referral source

 

Pulling potential referral information out of a customer may be valuable, but it's nothing compared to the importance of "getting under the hood" of a local insurance agent or other referral source. In his excellent book entitled: "How to get people to do things," (written way back in 1979), author Robert Conklin points out that: "People do things for their reasons. Not your reasons." So how do you find out how to get a referral source to send you business? How do you discover "the reasons" that will motivate him or her to do what you want?

You have to get "under their hood!"

Many people tell me they know how important it is to listen. But when I talk with them, I find they really want to do all of the talking. I've found very few people who can tolerate the few moments of silence it takes for someone to answer a question. They feel they must fill that silence with words. When they do that, they cut off the possibility of learning valuable information about what's "under the other person's hood."

If you call on agents, dealerships, or commercial account managers, how much time do you spend talking? And how much time do you spend asking questions and listening? A basic rule of sales says that if you listen long enough, a prospective customer will tell you what it will take to sell him or her your product.

What should you be asking?

Look beyond your sale to their sale

During the years that I sold estimating systems to body shop owners, I found the one approach that got me the most sales was finding out how my product could help that owner get something he or she wanted. Not surprisingly, most shop owners wanted more business, so I emphasized the features in the program that would help generate more business.

Recently, I have been calling on insurance agents for a few shops in my area, and I've found the same rule applies: What they want most is more business. So I've had my shop owner client post the insurance agent cards in his shop where people coming through the shop can pick them up. If one of your customers isn't happy with his or her insurance company, why not refer them to a company that refers business to you?

The same approach may work with a dealership. When you get "under their hood," what do you find most dealerships want? Obviously to sell more cars. If you want work from a dealership, how about letting that dealership do a little advertising in your shop? Or when a customer's car is totaled, referring them to the dealer for a new or used replacement vehicle.

The basic key here is looking beyond what you want, to what your prospect wants. If you can help him or her accomplish that, you should have no problem getting what you want.