Mike Whitty's Sales, Management & Internet Blog

Sales - Accessories for Sale - Or Are They??

mike@rvsalestraining.net — Fri, 13 Mar 2009 21:19:00 GMT

I purchased a 35 ft. motorhome so I could travel around the country providing sales training and selling my products. There is nothing better than doing business out of a motorhome. The salesperson knew what I did for a living and what the motorhome was to be used for. I even had my company name stenciled on both sides of the motorhome with bookcases inside for my products, so the salesperson did qualify me enough to understand what I did for a living.

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Mgmt - A Leadership Blueprint for RV Sales Managers

mike@rvsalestraining.net — Wed, 11 Mar 2009 02:12:00 GMT

If you were to build a house, you would begin with a blueprint. This blueprint proves useful because it contains more than directions on how to build a house. It also describes the finished house.

So, what does this have to do with leadership?

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Sales - Matching Up Against Your Competition

mike@rvsalestraining.net — Sun, 01 Mar 2009 19:59:00 GMT

Are your prospects taking a closer look at what your competitors have to offer? Selling RVs in today's marketplace reminds me of that line from ABC's Wide World of Sports: "The thrill of victory and the agony of defeat." For the salesperson in the dealership, it's winner take all. There are no rewards for second place. This trend of intensifying competition makes selling more interesting - but also much more difficult than it once was. You can't assume you'll remain successful simply by doing the same things that used to work for you. In today's marketplace, good selling isn't going to be enough to make you a success. If you want to stop losing sales to competition and make more money - and we all do - then you've got to sharpen your competitive selling skills.

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Sales - The Meet and Greet

mike@rvsalestraining.net — Tue, 24 Feb 2009 15:59:00 GMT

I have found that those prospects coming to dealerships who do not go through the sales process get bogged down in the very first step - the Meet and Greet. This happens when the salesperson says "can I help you?" or "What can I do for you today?" and the customer responds with, "I'm just looking." Too many times this dialogue ends with the salesperson saying something like, "Ok, if you find anything you are interested in or have any questions let me know - I'll be right over here."

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Mgmt - Splitting Deals

mike@rvsalestraining.net — Wed, 18 Feb 2009 14:48:00 GMT

One of the complaints I consistently get from salespeople is in the area of splitting deals. I think that this has become such a problem in many dealerships because there are no clear cut policies for what constitutes a split deal, and how it should be handled when the issue arises. My rule behind splitting deals is easy - if the other salesperson does 50% of the work, he/she deserves 50% of the commission. But here's what has happened. Some salespeople think that just because they help you deliver an RV, or help your customer on an inventory walk, even though they're just sitting around do nothing, deserves a split deal. I'd hate to think that the only time they'd help another salesperson would be for compensation. But apparently that's where we've come.

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Sales - Dealing With Failure Comes with the Job

mike@rvsalestraining.net — Mon, 09 Feb 2009 23:07:00 GMT

If you could talk to the people you have most admired in life, the biggest successes, the top names, you will find that they also are the biggest failures. They lost more games, struck out more times, lost more money and had more doors slammed in their faces. The difference in their lives is that they never quit.

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Mgmt - Sales Manager Training is a Must!

mike@rvsalestraining.net — Mon, 26 Jan 2009 22:00:00 GMT

Becoming a Sales Manager is an achievement in itself. It shows a certain level of competence and earned trust. It doesn't indicate that there is nothing else to learn.

Training the Sales Manager can be a great boost to dealerships who are keen to improve their bottom-line. Not only are good Sales Managers more productive than their counterparts, but an effective Sales Manager who also shows good leadership skills, can have a major impact on both their department and indeed their salespeople.

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Mgmt - Why are You Leaving?

mike@rvsalestraining.net — Sun, 25 Jan 2009 00:35:00 GMT

I understand and appreciate the challenges that turnover creates. Turnover causes a drop in productivity, lower profits, inconsistent performance, and certainly creates work overload in taking care of customers on the showroom floor. In addition, turnover results in a lack of motivation, a lack of enthusiasm, apathy, and a lack of teamwork. But here’s the question…

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Mgmt - Setting Your Goals To Achieve Sales Success

mike@rvsalestraining.net — Mon, 12 Jan 2009 05:40:00 GMT

When I first began attending seminars and workshops the message that stayed with me the longest was, "If you want to be successful you need to set goals!" Like everyone else, I had a lot of dreams and expectations for myself but I seemed to lack the organization and structure to achieve them. Until then no one ever taught me how to set goals nor how to make a plan to reach my goals. My attempts were haphazard and my successes were purely coincidental. Many of my disappointments were a result of setting unrealistic goals with unrealistic deadlines.

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Internet - Internet Power for RV Salespeople

mike@rvsalestraining.net — Fri, 02 Jan 2009 01:27:00 GMT

How would you like to increase sales and gross profits on today’s informed customers? People are doing their homework and coming into your dealership prepared. In addition to the internet they may have looked in their local paper (at least let’s hope so because you spent $8,000 on that ad), read a consumer magazine, called the local radio talk show consumer advocate or shopped at other dealerships. This creates confusion. Let’s focus today on the customer that has researched their purchase on the Internet and how to turn that prospect into a buyer.

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