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Dealership Spotlight: HondaWorld
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| Martha Hanson masters the coming age of Internet sales. |
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| Updated |
Mar 17, 2005 19:41:50 |
| Rating |
 130 ( 2 +1.53% ) | | Author | Brian Chee |
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Description:
Report: Online Vehicle Shoppers Save Time, Money
Study shows that buying a vehicle through an Autobytel Inc. website can eliminate factors that increase the price of a new car. Shoppers save up to $420 compared to traditional methods.
Source: Yale-Berkeley report, Consumer Information and Price Discrimination
Dealership Spotlight: HondaWorld, Westminster, CA
Martha Hanson masters the coming age of Internet sales.
Dealership Spotlight: Jennings Chevrolet, Glenview IL
Alain Bondi takes good care of his Internet customers.
Testimonials
People are saying good things when they purchase a vehicle through our websites...
Martha Hanson was an Internet Manager with a fax machine. It was 1995, and she had only a vague idea as to how the whole Internet car sales thing was supposed to work, but a general manager - brother who was asking: "Martha, can you please make this thing work?"
Has she ever. Today, the fax machine is gone and Martha - Internet Sales Manager for Honda World in Southern California - is almost an industry within an industry, generating up to 18% of the total car sales at Honda World in a month.
So how do you go from reading faxes and calling customers to the high tech world of today's online car sales? "That first phone call still counts the most," says Hanson. "That first phone call is critical - people are going to remember you if you speak with them, and it's a good chance to build a relationship. If you're up-front with people, they feel that they can trust you - and you really can't get that over e-mail."
"So, if you want the Civic in blue, we'll have to call around. It may take a few days, but if that's what your heart is set on, let's go ahead and make it happen. Why not take a moment and let me know what you decide?"
There it goes. Another busted sale. All she had to do was convince the buyer to forego "eternal blue".
But wait just a second --- instead of fleeing into the warm embrace of another car dealership, Martha's customers stay, talk about it and - what do you know - go with the green Civic. As it turns out, Hanson knows her customers, and knows, thanks to the Internet, how knowledgeable they are.
"My people have done a lot of research," says Hanson. "They know what they want. And even though sometimes they have the wrong information, we can sit down, sort it out and make it happen for them. People want you to be up-front and honest with them."
Up-front. Honest. Knowledgeable. According to Hanson, the Internet is the new way of selling cars because people feel more at ease. "There's more trust, because they've done their research. Part of my job is to make sure their information is correct, and they know what's out there - especially when it comes to a car in high demand, like the Odyssey." Hanson says that most of the time, families who do their research at Autobytel have fewer questions, know what they want and understand the process better. For Hanson, this makes it easier to meet their needs in a timely fashion - like the family who placed a purchase request for an Odyssey on Friday night, came in on Saturday and finished the purchase in less than an hour.
That may just be a record when it comes to buying a high-demand car like the Odyssey. To reach that standard, it takes a veteran sales person, and Hanson - who first began in 1988 - certainly has the experience. After beginning her career in finance, Hanson turned to sales eventually answering her brother's challenge to get the 'new' Internet department off the ground.
"We have fun with what we do, said Hanson. "Working together with the customers, we get to meet them in a fun and relaxing situation. You know, buying a car ought to be fun. It's a large purchase for people to walk away from upset over not getting a good deal." Hanson's strategy for having fun - fun defined as making sales in a relaxed, friendly environment - begins with hard work. All of the people who come through the Internet Sales Department get a least one phone call. She will also leave a few personal (not auto-reply) e-mail messages, but the critical step toward a happy customer is that very first phone call. "I think getting back to them in a timely manner, that's a very big part of it, then giving them the information they want." Also important is the speed of your information delivery. "Time is money to everybody," said Hanson. "Get all that information to them within the first phone call, and you're well on your way to meeting their needs."
"It's important to be very knowledgeable about your cars - people who research on the Internet generally know a lot more about what they want than someone who walks in off the lot." Mostly, though, Hanson stresses the need to be up-front and candid. "If a person's information is wrong, usually you just have to point out the mistake, and they understand."
"Some dealers don't realize that this is the new way of doing business. That this is the coming age." From a fax machine and a telephone to automated e-mails and a 3-inch mobile, Martha Hanson has come a long way. Five years later, she's ready to take another step into the coming age of new car sales. |
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