We can sell GAP again. However, I know some dealers aren’t going to offer it, but others will because they believe in the product.
Surely, we need to let customers know about it and then let them be the judge!
In this episode we discuss when to talk about the product, how to bring it up and then handle some common objections.
Here are the highlights:
{04:00} When
{06:47} How
{10:59} 2 Car Flippy/Flip
{14:48} Objections
{26:00} Promise me
About Symco Training:
Symco Training was founded in 2000 by Simon Bowkett and it was his belief that the business had to offer its clients something different. That difference was clear to Simon from his days in the dealership when he experienced many sales trainers who had all the answers, but were unable, unwilling or both to actually show the delegate how they could be implemented. It remains the ethos of the business today. You see, Symco only employ trainers that are committed to delivering not only in spiring and insightful training, but are equally as happy to demonstrate these skills and techniques with real customers in your own showroom. We believe in order for sales training to be effective and in Simon’s words ‘real world’, it needs to be tried and tested in the only place it matters the showroom floor. There is no room for theory when your goals are for your team to sell more cars, hours or parts and retain more profit. In dealerships around the world the focus applied by many of the sales executives is to try and sell a deal. Symco specialise in getting your teams to focus on selling themselves, the product and then supporting this with the deal.
To find out more visit
www.symcotraining.co.uk
Welcome to the Selling in the Motor Trade Podcast, an association with Symco Training. This is the weekly podcast where we share best practice tips and ideas on how to sell more cards, improve your service department and generally put more profit into your dealership or dealer group. I'm your host, Simon Bowkett. As some of you probably already know me as skipping, I will start with saying thank you for taking the time to listen to this podcast. Hi and welcome to another episode of Selling in the Motor Trade. Today this is really going to be focusing on UK dealers. So I know we have people in Ireland, Australia, Canada, America around the world following this. In fact, we haven't looked at the numbers the other day. We've got so many people in Brazil and Spain. I hope you can understand this half Australian, half English accent now. But the reason why we're going to focus on UK dealers because it was just announced that we can sell guaranteed asset protection again, GAP. Most people in the UK will know that it was back in February, 2024. There was a pause on GAP where they were analysing, can we sell it or not? And quite frankly, you just weren't allowed to continue with it. It's been analysed. There are some dealer groups out there deciding not to go ahead and sell GAP again. But hey, listen, I say a lot of our clients are saying, you know what, we think it's a good product. The margin might not be in it, what it was before, but we're going to offer it to customers and let them decide which, how do I spell that was the right thing to do? We always say let the customer be the judge if this is good or bad for them. Don't beautise it as a salesperson if it's good or bad. So I just want to refresh some of the ways we can talk about GAP insurance when we should bring it up. Okay, how we should bring it up? What objections we should talk about to deal with this? Because we've got lots of people that may not have done it for the last, what is it, six months or something like that. Okay, so again, please be careful. We have other people listen to this in other countries around the world and America. In the UK, we do have treating customers fairly. We've got the financial contact authority. There's some legislation which we're not going to go into on this that you need to make sure. So if you're a salesperson that stumbled across this in the UK, you must go and speak to your management and find out what your deal group has decided to do. Make sure the regulation in your state, if you're in Queensland, what regulation? There's no way we can know all the relations in Texas what we should do on this. Okay, we're just going to talk about some sales ideas here to introduce this product. Okay, and again, in the UK, talk about how to do this again because there might be some sales managers, some business managers out there that want to send this out to salespeople who started the motor trade after. And, but this is why this come up. We worked with one of our clients last week, I was in there. We were talking about RTI return to invoice. That's what they call it in their particular business or asset protection or gap insurance. And on the poor lads said, sorry, what is that? Okay. And of course, he started after they were allowed to sell it and it's kind of going back through what it absolutely is. So guaranteed that's protection. We want to kick around some ideas on when to introduce it. So you have to be careful on your provider because your provider might cover different things and different legislation around the world. So that's all my legal stuff out of the way. Firstly, gap. In fact, any value added product, I always have a fundamental concern about when we introduce this product because in a modern car dealership, there's so many value added products we need to offer to a customer. And one of my concerns is we turn around, the customers bought the car and then we turn around and say, do you want the paint and fabric protection? No. Do you want the gap insurance? No. Do you want the smart cover, the cosmetic cover? No. Do you want the tire cover, the alloy cover? No. What about the extended warranty? No, you'll need the service plan. And the customer's like, whoa, I've already, I'll tell you what, taken all out. In fact, how many times do you see a deal where the customer buys all your products or none? In fact, do you have a sales person that the hit rate on the Toyota Prox is they get everything from one customer and nothing from lots of others? If you're a manager, listen to this, I'd be very nervous about how those products are introduced to the customer. Are they just building them all in and seeing if they can get away with it? I don't think that's treating customers failing. At Symco Training, we want to make sure the customer knows what the product is. They see value in the product. Okay. They know what it's going to cost them because that's what selling is. You know what? If a customer's looking at a car that's 35 brand and suddenly in a heartbeat, it's 37,000 and the good news, sir, that's fully protected, is that really selling? I wouldn't think so. That's just building it in. And I know that some sales people out there will say, oh, that's how we used to sell it. 60 years ago, hey, guys, that's probably why we had issues with this. Let's make sure the customers know what it is because we're going to tell you. If a customer knows what it is and how it protects them and let the customer decide, it's a great product for lots of people. There's lots of people who had so much value out of these products there. It's that the customer know what it is. And funny enough, when they do, some people say, yeah, we'll go ahead with that. OK. specifically. There is the trend custom fairly, but when we can offer the product, when the clock starts ticking, if your brand needs the industry, you'll hear this phrase band of the bout. There's got to be two clear business days in between presenting the product and asking customers, do they want to go ahead with it? There's this weird opt out things, again, legislation, speak to management about what you can do. But first bit, let's spread the sale of these products throughout your sales process. So you're not hitting the customer all at once. So let's just take gap. There's so many different ways we can sew the seeds or put some books on gap. Now again, gap insurance, asset protection, return to invoice. There are different levels of gap. There's sometimes people just cover return to invoice. I'll pay you right back up to what you paid for the cards a day. In some of your businesses, they might pay up to a maximum of 30,000, 40,000, but the car's over that. But it's still good value on what the customer spends on it compared to their mode of their insurance. Some gap policies will just cover the gap of what the finance was. Most people in the UK will be selling what's called combined, where it will pay you back right up to what you paid for the car. All the finance, whichever is the greatest, that tends to be the combined product. Now let's talk about how we can put some books in first. First, looking at the customers, trading their product change. We might just as sonptively say, hey, Mr. and Mrs. customer, what level of asset protection do you have? I'm always looking for a, sorry. I have something most our customers have. Has everyone knows that insurance companies, they often love taking the money with the premiums all the time. When it comes to paying out, if the vehicles are total loss, and I want to pay out much money, or I'll drag you through a whole lot of hoops to get any money back. Let me give you a quick example, Mr. and Mrs. customer. What size television do you have at home? And they say, I don't know, 50-inch TV. Could you imagine buying that 50-inch TV from curries, jungles? You take home, you start mounting it to the wall, and you drop the whole thing, that smashes everywhere. How would you feel? You're gutted. Me too. Now you can't pay more warranty because you dropped it. So when you're first crying, you speak to a household insurance company. They say, yeah, no worries. We'll send you out a new one, direct. Show enough. Two days later, the box turns up. You're all excited. But when you open up inside, was only a 40-inch TV, not the 50, you originally bought it. Now, how would you feel? Now a lot of customers, they almost ripped off. That's exactly what motor vehicle insurance has been doing to people of years. They're paying you back whatever they reckon they could get away with. And what RTI does is it'll pay you right back up to what you paid for the car over the next three years. Now, listen, don't worry about that now. It's just something for you to consider later. That might be one hook that you might be able to put in. Now, we're not selling the product. Okay. We're not going through the whole lot. We're not asking them, do they want to buy it? All we're doing is saying, hold on. If that's what most people have, maybe I need to have a look at it. What I'm always looking to do is open people's minds up to listen to what the presentation is on it before you start talking about it. Now, again, there is a demands and needs. And I keep having on about legislation, speak to management on that one. But that's one hook you might do. Or you might do the two-car flipy flip. Now, I know we use this extensively in dealerships where you can do it because it works really well. The two-car flipy flip is, and Mr and Mrs. Gossner, what level of asset protection have. Now, we might be presenting the new car now. We might be talking about the crumpled zones of the car. You might be talking about the ice-fix child seats. You might be talking about the smart city brake support on that Mazda. You might be talking about at speeds from two kilometers an hour up to 24 kilometers an hour. If you get distracted, okay, buy that pretty boy, that pretty girl walking down the road. You're like, I have to explain to anyone who you're looking at because this car's going to stop for you. In fact, it speeds over that if a crash isn't ever booked. Okay. Whenever you talk about the safety stuff and the crumpled zones and airbags, you might then try it into gap. Now, Mr. Gossner, the speeds over that, if the car is in the collision, well, if most our customers with the RTI will be able to get them into a lot of the new car. I take you have RTI new car, or I take you have asset protection new car. What's that? Now, here's the two-car flipy flip. That's something most our customers have. Let me show you what I mean. We've got two identical cars here at Mr. Gossner. We show them a picture of two cars. One is at 10,000. One's at 10 495. If they're identical in every way, which car would you really defer to? Buy. Now, of course, every customer says, the cheap one. Don't blame you. I'll do exactly the same thing. It's now two to three years down the track. Your vehicle's a total loss. Okay. Now, which car would you prefer to own? Now, of course, the two cars we showed. One is at 10,000. The other one is at 6. Of course, the one at 10. The difference is that one's just got RTI. All return to invoices, they return to right back up to what you paid for the car today over the next three or four years, whatever your policy is. That's something most our customers have. But listen, don't worry about now. It's just something for you to consider later. Again, we believe these are actually important before you get into that full presentation. You've got to open people's minds up to listen to what the presentation is. Okay. So you talk about on their car, presenting the new car. Okay. You might actually, if it's a remote sale, you might be when the people pick the car up. And Mr. Customer, can I ask you a cheeky question? How much are you paying for an insurance? And you love them, you're able to. Now, if they say it's, I don't know, 700 cheeky questions, sir. But if the best quote you could get was 866, a year for insurance, I suppose, at 700, we'll really stop your wanting to own this. I don't know, whatever the car is. We'll really stop your wanting to own that Q5. Not really. Well, listen, that's all we've cost you to protect the price of that car for the next three years with the RTI. Let me show you what I mean. Okay. Always they say, at cheeky question, Mr. Customer, how much are you paying for insurance? Well, it's 70 quid a month. Key questions, sir. But if the best quote you could get for insurance was actually 83 pounds, 86 pence a month. We really stopped you wanting to own that C class. Not really. Why? You know, that's all across here to protect the whole amount of that car for the next three years. Let me show you what I mean. Then you can go into your full presentation. Now, guys, on this podcast, most people listen to podcasts, we can't show you this whole presentation. If you go on our training, our sales fitness program, we'll can show you the videos and how to plan it. There's four different ways you can present gap. We have the balance sheet presentation, where you've got your ears, one, two, and three, or four if you're selling it. We've got a line graph that a lot of people were done. I personally, with a customer, don't do the line graph anymore. The only reason not that I don't like it, it works very effectively for me when I saw my career. It's just been around for a long time. And the customer's bought a car in the last 30 years. As soon as you start doing that, the go, oh, yeah, I've seen that before. No, no, no, I'm fine. I'm safe driver. I've been driving for 30 years. Never had an accident, I won't need it. Okay. There's the bar graphs. A bar graph is a great way to show a customer how the vehicle is actually comes down every year without talking about devaluation. There's a play graph. Again, a person don't like a play graph, but some people swear by it. But you've got to open people's minds up first, and we listen to your presentation on it. Okay. So put one of the hooks in first. Okay. We're going to present the product so people know what it is and how much it's going to cost them. That's what selling is. Okay. Let's now look at some of the objections. When people say, no, no, no, I'll leave that. Okay. And there's so many different ways. Now, my first objection to handling technique, okay, is insurance. I love that one. And it's, I've done it already. Okay. When people say, oh, no, I'll leave that. Okay. Can I ask you a cheeky question? How much are you paying for insurance? Step in, you quit them up. Is the best quote you can get for insurance was 83, 86 a month. Would it really stop you want to turn that car? Not really. Well, that's all you're talking about for the full protection of the next three years, not just a small amount. Insurance company wants off each month. It just gets into people's heads. No. By the way, that 83, 86, that's just a full 99 policy. If you're selling it at $399, if you're selling it higher than that, okay, in different countries around the world, obviously just divide it over the 36 or 48 months. Okay. That's if someone's paying it monthly. That's my first line of offense. Okay. Tense and work well because you use that on handover. You use it early on the process, going through the presentation on another one. Number two that I like to talk about is a mobile phone. So UK based and the customers say, you know what, I'm a safe driver. I've been driving for 30 years, never had an accident or won't be needing that. Okay. Sure, Mr. Customer. I've got couldn't help in her. She's got a mobile phone there. It's like, iPhone is it? Okay. Same thing. Doesn't that mean? Hey, listen, if you had to buy that outright, not on a contract from a, I don't know, a car found warehouse, a place like that, how much do you reckon they'd charge you for that? Invariably, the customer says, I'm not about a thousand pounds. Okay. If you were to take their insurance, how much a month do you reckon they'd charge you? And last, last time I checked, it was $14.99. Let's have a look at that, Mr. Member. It's customer. You got a thousand pound product and they're charging $14.99 to protect it. But over the next 36 months, that works out at $5.39. They're charging $539 for protecting a thousand pound product. Now, listen, you're looking at a 20, 30, 40, 50,000 pound product. And actually, we're just asking the equipment of 13, 86 a month to protect that. If they're charging you're $5.29 to protect a thousand pound product, doesn't make sense to spend 13, 86 months to protect that 20,000 pound product. But listen, it's a great way to get into a customer's mind the value they're getting for it. Now, with that one, be careful. I've had lots of salespeople love the idea of it, but then they say to a customer, oh, I know she's got a phone there. Do you have an insured? Now, if a customer says, no, you're almost knackered. Okay. Because my phone personally is not insured. Okay. So I didn't say as you found insured. I said, if you were to take their insurance. Now, the other thing we talk about there with our clients is get a copy of the evidence of this on your phone. Okay. Photocopies of it, stuff like that. Okay. Well, by the way, when you're presenting this product, I was in Ireland a couple of weeks ago. I love to get the evidence. How many cars are stolen every year? Just type that in car stolen in your town, your state, your community in Ireland. We got this figure and I shot the people on the course. Okay. The number car stolen in the last 12 months went up by 52%. In fact, it's just short of 80 cars are stolen every single week in Ireland. That's why this product is so important to people. Give the evidence and same as the mobile phone one. If you were to take the insurance, how much you reckon the cost to them and here show them that's 14, 99. Over the next 36 months, that is 539. Okay. Oh, another one. Number three. This one leaves me careful because this is a bit of a slap to the customer. Okay. I tend to like this one for the older, patronizing man. Okay. Someone says, listen here, son. I've been driving for 30 years and never had an accident. As many years since I've been called son. Okay. But that type of customer. I'll start this from a guy called Pete Smith, actually, a great little technique and he pulls it off brilliantly. Pete will turn and I say, okay, sir, but can I ask you a cheeky question? When you leave here today, are you going to put your seat belts on? Yeah. And Peter will come up and say, why? You never had an accident. No, you put it on just in case. And you know what? I hate to think you have a need for a seat belt and you're just not wearing it. It's the same as this RTI. I'd hate to think you have a need for it. You just haven't got it. A couple of years down the track, we're having an uncomfortable conversation where I'm asking you for a big old chunk of money to get your right back up to where you are today. When we both know you're effectively, just be neither to be choosing the color of your car. Listen, for the sake of 1386 a month. Okay. Now, I said to Pete, oh, yeah, but hold on, Pete, what are the customers? No, no, no. It's the law to put a seat belt on. Okay. No, no, no, Pete, I have to put my seat belt on because otherwise, the car keeps beeping at me. You're right, Mr. Customer. We built that into this Toyota because Toyota would hate to think you had a need for a seat belt. You're just not wearing it. Or you're right. The government in situ are a seat belt to get in protection because they'd hate to think that's what it's the law. They hate to think you had a need for a seat belt. You just haven't got it. Now, the seat belt one, please be careful because it's a proper slap. Okay. And actually, to soften it, I might use the fourth technique. And that is feeling felt bound. Okay. Beel felt bound is a technique that's been around forever. Man called Tom Hopkins really popularized it. And he wrote it in one of his first books there. And I know lots of sales trainers, if you've been on there, talk about Beel felt bound. We always love to tell you where these techniques come from. Okay. I was very fortunate to speak with Tom Hopkins in a conference in Melbourne. I think it was Patrick Tessier, great friend of the show, flew me out to speak at his Australian Automotive Dealers Association. And Tom Hopkins was the guest speaker this year. I didn't realize he was still alive. Okay. But he must be a 78 year old man now. And he really popularized Beel felt bound. And you can use this one really well. Okay. If the customer says, no, no, leave it. This I understand exactly how you feel. Now the customer, Mrs. Casey felt the same as you. But she said, you know what, for the sake of 1386, maybe should, because she said to me, and this is how I found out, she said, you know what, I've never had an accent, but still put a seat belt on. I put it on just in case. So may or I should put this on. So I might blame another customer on that one. Okay. Send how you feel how the customer, Mrs. Casey said, well, she wasn't sure to go with it or not. But she said, you know what, I never had an accent, but still put my seat belt on. I put on just in case. Oh, I have a guy called, oh, forgive me, I believe it was Fraser, a Land Rover dealership, and Stafford, the business manager there. I'm sorry, that's my name. I'm trying to remember his name. Sorry. He turned around and said, Oh, skip, what I like to do is I've divided it into their spare wheel. Okay. So he turns around and says, Mr. Customer. Okay. If I could say you get five in quid, we could do that for taking the spare wheel out and every customer. So, oh, no, no, no, I wouldn't want to take the spare wheel out. When's the last time you had a flat tire on that Land Rover? I've never used that with the customer myself. He was swearing by it there. I suppose my concern with that is more cars now have tire inflation kits, but I suppose the world of Land Rover, he ties it into that one there. Okay. But feel felt found is a great one. Oh, I got Kevin. I stole this from Kevin. Now he swears this story is true. I don't know every time I ask him to happen. He showed some evidence. He gives me half a wink. Please make sure it's true. Customers aren't stupid. I think most people know they are. And if you're only new in the industry, go and use someone else's true story. Don't pass it off as yours. But just say, listen, my colleague had the customer. Let me tell you Kevin's story. Okay. When the customer says, no, no, I'll leave it. Kevin said this answer in exactly how you feel. Hey, the customer here and Mrs. Let's call the case again felt the same way. But she said for the sake of 1386 a month, we might as well go ahead with it. Thank goodness she did. He shows a picture of their car. And he tells a story from memory where she was driving down the road, a tractor was coming down the side of the road and sideswiped the side of it. All the airbags went off. Okay. She come into Kevin's, Kevin, I've been dealing with those insurance company. And they're often a silly low amount. I can't remember. Did we go ahead with that RTI or not? He said, I'm pretty sure you have. Let me go and check. He went to the archives. She did have it. He comes out with a piece of paper with the evidence. She actually had the RTI. As Kevin relate the story, she burst into tears and said, you know what, Kevin? That piece of paper is worth 11,000 euros to me. As then I realized that all of my customers need to protect the whole car, not just the small amount the insurance company wants to offer every year. So again, can you see how Kevin's using someone else's story? Okay. Now, if you wouldn't brand new into the industry, listen to this or you started before the gap, we were allowed to sell again. Okay. Go and speak to your business manager and say, can you tell me a story about someone who's claimed on it? They'll always tell you about the magic roundabout and Hammel Hempstead and uninsured driver come down there. And this happened that happened. Great news. We'll be able to get them into a new car. It's third party recommendation. Never forget you say gap is a good thing. Because you're going to say that because you just want to say that. But if you turn around and say someone else, and listen, if we say that we're the best sales training company in the motor trade, why are there people saying, Oh, fuck off. Who do you think you are? If I turn around and say that, hold on, whoever it was, the unaccompanied. Okay. You know what Paul Bradley said, Simon, you're the best sales trainer I've ever seen in the motor trade. The second one's got more credibility. Okay. So use third party credibility. Or the last one. I really love this. The last one is promise me. If a customer says, you know what, I'll just leave that. Okay. Hold on. Just it's all about how much money's come out of my pocket. I need to make sure that fits right first. Okay. No problem, Mr. Customer. Listen, would you do me a favor? Even if you don't take out RTI, our returned invoice, would you promise me you protect yourself with some sort of RTI? Because the time I've been in the industry here, I think it's poor people. They drive in the new car. It's a total loss. They need to get the kids to school. They need to get to work. The insurance company has given them a stupid low amount. They take it because they need transportation. And I'm stuck here trying to find a new use car or car of less quality. We would both know because it just been choosing the color of a new car. I think promise me takes it right out of a sales pitch into something that's personal. Now, first I've got to tell you, I have no problem saying that because guess what? I believe in my product. Guess what? My wife, you're just buying a new car. Thank you very much, Sean. Regular listeners to the podcast will know that Sean Kelly has helped us out with a car. We're looking to buy. I had a rant about this recently. Okay. And guess what, Sean? I really want Emma to have on an electric vehicle. I'm sort of RTI. Okay. So promise me comes across as the belief in that product there. Listen, guys, clearly we can't do a full course. At Symco Training, we do one day on a value added products. We spend one day on talking about all the value added products. Listen, come and talk to us. We'll come into your business. We'll talk about all your value added products, how to offer them, went off from, make sure your sales guys know exactly how to do it. That course, you get your money back straight away because if we can move the needle on your value added products, it pays for it. Come and talk to us about that. If you want, there's my sales pitch there. But this one here, let's get back into offering gap if you can. Anyway, that about does it now. And again, thank you everyone that's subscribing. Or hit the follow me button. I don't know if you're doing this on Spotify or Apple. Just hit that follow me button there. And you get a reminder every Thursday, it won't come through. And listen, it really does help the podcast just go from strength to strength and get these messages out to as many people as can because it's all about sharing tips and ideas on how the some more cars, some more parts and service make more profit for the people in the motor trade. Thanks again. That just leaves me to say that all details of this episode and other episodes on the selling in the motor trade can be found on our website simcotraining.co.uk. Go there to get a copy of our book, Words That Sell Cars. Go there to sign up to a free trial of our sales fitness online sales training program. Easiest way to get hold of me is Simon Bowkett, who linked in. Thank you.
