Shop owners clarifying the distinction between order takers and sales makers can significantly impact the success of their business, a shop coach advised.
Owners should be cultivating a team of those who make sales instead of just taking customer orders, a proactive, customer-focused mindset that can improve a shop’s sales performance and build stronger relationships with their customers, said Bill Haas, president of coaching firm Auto Ignite Management.
Order takers are passive, he explained at the Midwest Auto Care Alliance Hi-Tech Training & Expo in Kansas City.
“They will wait for the phone to ring. They will sit at your counter and scroll through their phone, waiting for somebody to drive onto the lot. They just wait for something to happen,” Haas said.
These individuals provide only what is asked for, without attempting to understand or address the customer’s broader needs.
“They respond to every question with yes or no. They’re the same person that worked at the drive-through fast food drive-through and said, ‘Would you like ketchup with your fries?’ That was the extent of their ability to upsell an order — give away ketchup,” he added.
In contrast, sales makers are proactive and customer-focused.
“They make sure the customer is well taken care of. They make sure they have what they need that makes their life better,” Haas said.
Sales makers understand that customers come to them with problems they cannot solve on their own and they take the initiative to offer solutions.
“We’re solving those problems. We’re selling them the goods and services that are going to solve that problem,” he said of sales makers.
Success for sales makers is measured by sales and profit generated within a specific period. Haas stressed the importance of tracking and rewarding performance.
“‘I want to know what you sold yesterday. How did we measure it? And can you tell me? I want to know how you did last month, sales and gross profit. How did you do?’ We measure it and we reward it,” he said.
These types of advisors don’t wait for opportunities; they create them.
“What do sales makers do when the phone’s not ringing? They make phone calls. They’re calling people to find out if they had a good experience: ‘Was everything OK with the service we performed yesterday or last week?’ They’re reminding them of declined services or deferred work that still needs to be addressed,” Haas explained.
This proactive approach ensures that sales makers are always working to enhance customer satisfaction and drive business growth.
“They don’t wait for things to happen. They make things happen, and they invite people to have an experience,” Haas said.
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