How To Set & Sell Owner Marketing Appointments – PART 10

 

How To Set and Sell Owner Marketing Appointments – PART 10

TRANSCRIPT: There are four steps to the perfect appointment and the first step is 100% on you, Mr. Salesperson, or Ms. Salesperson, and that is strong appointment setting. This is the first step to the perfect appointment. Now the goal is an appointment that shows but that takes discipline.

You are going to have people say to you, “Well, hell, I don’t know what time I can get there. How late are you all open?” Take a breath. It takes discipline to say, “Well, we’re open until 9:00 but my last appraisal on Grand Cherokees is at 6:45. Now I have a 6:15 and a 6:45, which of these works better for you?”

Every appointment you set should take place today or tomorrow only, and that takes discipline, because you’re going to have that customer, on a Tuesday, who gets psyched. He can’t wait to trade in his vehicle and he says, “Heck, I can’t be there until Saturday.”

It takes discipline to say, “Ohh, that’s okay, Mr. Jones. We do have an IMMEDIATE need for a Cherokee. Now, I’ve got ten more Cherokee owners on my list to call tonight. If I can’t get one of them to sell me their Cherokee today or tomorrow, I’ll call you on Friday and we will schedule that Saturday appointment.” That takes discipline. It takes guts. See, you think you have a bird in the hand because he says he’ll be there Saturday. Get smart. He’s not showing Saturday. You will NEVER see him Saturday if you set that appointment on a Tuesday. So, all of your appointments must be set for today or tomorrow only.

In order for this to be a strong appointment, to be a firm appointment, to be a true appointment requires three things. It requires a specific date and time, a specific goal and a mental and verbal commitment by the prospect.

Now, specific date and time – tonight 5:15. That’s a specific date and time. Tonight, after 5:00? That’s not. That’s not an appointment. You must have a specific date and a specific time.

Now, you need a specific goal. You might say, “What are you talking about?” I’m saying the customer has got to understand that they are coming in at 5:15 so that we can appraise their Grand Cherokee. That’s the specific goal.

You need to have a mental and a verbal commitment by the prospect. A verbal commitment is when they say, “Yeah, I’ll be there at 5:15.” How we get the mental commitment is by doing what we call the ‘recap’. Now, do not shortcut the recap. Here is how you get the recap: the customer has agreed to come in tonight at 5:15 so that you can appraise their Grand Cherokee. Our goal is not to get off the phone right away and say, “Great, we’ll see you at 5:15. Thanks, bye.” Our goal is an appointment that shows. That has not changed, and, so, I’m going to do a recap that creates that mental commitment for the prospect.

I’m going to say, “Great, Mr. Jones. Just to recap, we’re going to see you tonight at 5:15 so we can appraise your 2012 Jeep Grand Cherokee. Now, Mr. Jones, just so you understand, we’re going to have our appraiser standing by and waiting for you at 5:15, so if there is any reason you cannot make it, I would appreciate it if you would let me know. If for some reason we need to move your appraisal time, we’ll be sure to call you well in advance, so you don’t waste a trip down here. All I ask from you is the same courtesy, so can I count on you for today at 5:15?”

When you say, “Can I count on you for today at 5:15?” and he says, “Yes”, that’s over an 80% show. That becomes an 80%+ show if we can just do that strong appointment setting and do that recap.