With standards of performance, we dealt with what it looks like when it is right. With Best Practices we aim for performance excellence. What is it that the most successful dealers are doing to achieve excellence? This is discussed in detail in this program to allow dealers to see optional approaches to processes and systems. From using the telephone as a sales tool, to inventory turnover; from customer retention, to sales per employee everything is discussed.

We cover all aspects of the processes required in a parts business: from dealer business systems, to telephone systems, to warehousing storage systems. People and system productivity and effectiveness are critical in any business today, but this is especially true within the equipment business where the gross margin on the prime products continue to erode. There are many aspects within a parts business that must be covered that can make a significant difference in either cost or market positioning, and which can make the business more competitive.

Process manuals – electronic or paper – and procedures, as well as training methods to employ become critical to the consistent delivery of excellent customer service. How to measure your success in the area of customer satisfaction as well as all operational processes becomes part of this program. Anyone interested in achieving the best possible level of performance within the parts business will gain insight from this class.

A new reality continues in its approach.  By now everyone has been affected by “telemarketing,” your tele-selling future has gotten off to a successful start, and you have also learned how to handle the objections from the customers. You know all of the mechanics of selling. Now we need to make it easier for you by exposing the “buyer’s needs.”

The needs that the customer has in this transaction can stem from “ego satisfaction,” in other words knowing that they are making the right choice, to feeling that they are treated with respect. The sales person has to be sensitive to all of these various attributes and reasons which can underlie the buyer’s needs. But your customers also need your expertise and knowledge and experience. You are in a difficult position. In order to be able to satisfy the needs of the customer, you have to continue to keep yourself current on the product and Industry trends and competition. There is a lot to do.

This class deals with survey information obtained from the customers. If they are given a chance, customers will tell us what they need and want, and we then have to be in a position to deliver it.

A new reality continues in its approach.  By now everyone has been affected by “telemarketing,” your tele-selling future has gotten off to a successful start, and you have also learned how to handle the objections from the customers. You know all of the mechanics of selling. Now we need to make it easier for you by exposing the “buyer’s needs.”

The needs that the customer has in this transaction can stem from “ego satisfaction,” in other words knowing that they are making the right choice, to feeling that they are treated with respect. The sales person has to be sensitive to all of these various attributes and reasons which can underlie the buyer’s needs. But your customers also need your expertise and knowledge and experience. You are in a difficult position. In order to be able to satisfy the needs of the customer, you have to continue to keep yourself current on the product and Industry trends and competition. There is a lot to do.

This class deals with survey information obtained from the customers. If they are given a chance, customers will tell us what they need and want, and we then have to be in a position to deliver it.

A new reality continues apace. Everyone by now has been affected by “telemarketing” and I trust your tele-selling life has had a successful start. But, even with the sales aspect of the job, it is hard to hold onto a performance edge: to stay motivated and excited. The job, over time, gets to be too much of a routine.

We need to generate excitement and energy in the department. We need to operate with regular campaigns and promotions. Something special needs to be going on all the time. To do this, we need to inject campaigns and promotion planning into our sales forecasts and annual budget plans. Campaigns and promotions have to become an integral part of the life in a parts business.

We provide a structure to the campaign and promotion activities with the use of a Promotion Planning Tree (PPT). The PPT provides a road map of activities, and a check list, to ensure that we get everything right. It allows everyone to be involved in the development of the campaigns and promotions so that there is understanding of what it is we are aiming to do. It allows vigorous debate in the development of the campaigns and promotions so that everyone is involved in the programs. It brings back the excitement to the job.

A new reality continues apace. Everyone by now has been affected by “telemarketing” and I trust your tele-selling life has had a successful start. But, even with the sales aspect of the job, it is hard to hold onto a performance edge: to stay motivated and excited. The job, over time, gets to be too much of a routine.

We need to generate excitement and energy in the department. We need to operate with regular campaigns and promotions. Something special needs to be going on all the time. To do this, we need to inject campaigns and promotion planning into our sales forecasts and annual budget plans. Campaigns and promotions have to become an integral part of the life in a parts business.

We provide a structure to the campaign and promotion activities with the use of a Promotion Planning Tree (PPT). The PPT provides a road map of activities, and a check list, to ensure that we get everything right. It allows everyone to be involved in the development of the campaigns and promotions so that there is understanding of what it is we are aiming to do. It allows vigorous debate in the development of the campaigns and promotions so that everyone is involved in the programs. It brings back the excitement to the job.

The ultimate measure of your service to customers is the loyalty that they give you with the business. That can be measured by customer retention. During the 1980’s Harvard Business School did the definitive research on this subject. That work was published in a book called the “Service profit Chain.” This is one of the foundations that is used in this class to show students the “how to” measure customer loyalty.

There is a direct correlation between employee satisfaction and loyalty and customer satisfaction and loyalty. This correlation is explored and explained in this program. Various surveys are exposed to measure employee satisfaction. This information provides recommendations for action.

The Construction Equipment Industry has conducted customer surveys every five years that asks customers about their buying habits. These surveys provided guidance to the dealers on what the percentage of defections would be in the Industry. This class provides a direct linkage that can be used on profitability related to customer retention by the parts business and the service business.

This Customer Loyalty class starts to address the retention measures to use when a customer is assigned to a specific employee. A customer assigned to a Product Support Salesmen has a retention goal, a customer loyalty goal, of 100%. The tools to perform this calculation are provided in this class.

The ultimate measure of your service to customers is the loyalty that they give you with the business. That can be measured by customer retention. During the 1980’s Harvard Business School did the definitive research on this subject. That work was published in a book called the “Service profit Chain.” This is one of the foundations that is used in this class to show students the “how to” measure customer loyalty.

There is a direct correlation between employee satisfaction and loyalty and customer satisfaction and loyalty. This correlation is explored and explained in this program. Various surveys are exposed to measure employee satisfaction. This information provides recommendations for action.

The Construction Equipment Industry has conducted customer surveys every five years that asks customers about their buying habits. These surveys provided guidance to the dealers on what the percentage of defections would be in the Industry. This class provides a direct linkage that can be used on profitability related to customer retention by the parts business and the service business.

This Customer Loyalty class starts to address the retention measures to use when a customer is assigned to a specific employee. A customer assigned to a Product Support Salesmen has a retention goal, a customer loyalty goal, of 100%. The tools to perform this calculation are provided in this class.

All of the training and tooling in service, and the inventories and systems in parts, and all the good work by professional salesmen will be wasted if you cannot keep your customer for life. The Japanese taught us that in the 1970’s, and Harvard Business School did the definitive research in the 1980’s. This class deals with the facts of customer retention and “how to” minimize the number of customers that “defect” from your dealership.

The statistical impact of defection on profitability across differing Industry groups is exposed. It is shocking. In the Industrial Distribution business, if you can increase your customer retention 5%, then you can increase your profitability as a Company by 45%. There is no single element of what we do that has the impact on dealership profitability like customer retention. The tools you should use to minimize customer defection are discussed in detail in this impactful class. Everything that we do in the performance of our jobs is at risk if our responsiveness and convenience are not to the customers’ liking. Don’t miss out on this powerful program.

All of the training and tooling in service, and the inventories and systems in parts, and all the good work by professional salesmen will be wasted if you cannot keep your customer for life. The Japanese taught us that in the 1970’s, and Harvard Business School did the definitive research in the 1980’s. This class deals with the facts of customer retention and “how to” minimize the number of customers that “defect” from your dealership.

The statistical impact of defection on profitability across differing Industry groups is exposed. It is shocking. In the Industrial Distribution business, if you can increase your customer retention 5%, then you can increase your profitability as a Company by 45%. There is no single element of what we do that has the impact on dealership profitability like customer retention. The tools you should use to minimize customer defection are discussed in detail in this impactful class. Everything that we do in the performance of our jobs is at risk if our responsiveness and convenience are not to the customers’ liking. Don’t miss out on this powerful program.

In the parts business we communicate with the marketplace in a variety of methods. With the telephone, with people walking into your store, some customers will send orders by mail, or via a fax, and some use the internet. But the variations of the work don’t stop there: we also have to contend with a variety of “delivery” systems as well. These are not transportation systems. This is a customer service delivery system.

We process sales orders for our customers and we all know that not all customers are created equal. Some customers spend a lot of money with you and deserve to get special treatment. Well, we also have some processes that are cost intensive but also some that are very efficient. These are the customer service delivery systems.

From the customer who does not know the part numbers that they need, to the customer that can order parts from an electronic catalogue on the internet, there are wide ranges of differences. Each of the delivery systems has a different cost component, and that can lead us to provide differentiated services dependent on the delivery system that is chosen by the customer. We explore all aspects of the delivery systems we offer to the market in this important class.