Who Sings Your Praises?
Creating Evangelical Customers Who Spread The Good Word About You

December 17th, 2009

Appearing in 1/10 AutoSuccess Magazine

By Tim James
Director of Sales
HomeNet Automotive 

When faced with a problem that only an expert can fix, everyone feels vulnerable if we don’t know a trustworthy expert to call upon, someone responsive, experienced, and reliable who we know will give us a fair price in exchange for quality service that they stand behind. Without such an expert in our phone directory, a small matter can become a big source of worry.

Let’s say your family doctor says you need a knee replacement. Unless it’s an emergency, it’s not likely that you would drive to the local hospital and ask for the next available orthopedic surgeon. You would probably spend a few months getting mentally ready, unsure how to research surgery options, surgeons, and facilities. Feel the anxiety?

Many people feel the same way when buying a car.

Now, suppose a colleague had a knee replaced last summer. She can’t stop telling people about how wonderful her new knee feels. She talks about her doctor like he’s a god (regardless of the actual qualifications of the surgeon). She tells you about how the physical therapy facility sent a van, so her husband didn’t have to take off from work three times a week to drive her. And, when you share that you need your knee replaced, your colleague earnestly responds, "You need a knee replacement? I’ve got a guy who’ll fix you right up. Just look at me! I’m walking three miles a day! You really need to call my guy. Here’s the number. Call him now."

Ah, you're saved!   Someone’s got a guy! 

They’re everywhere, these "guys." You need concrete poured? I’ve got a guy. Need your pants taken in? I’ve got a guy for that, too.

I’m sure you know a "guy" in the car business, too, the industry veteran who seems to have a lock on your local community. Everybody in town, maybe even your uncle, buys their car from this guy. He knows everyone by name, their kids, too. Forget "taking ups" or prospecting using the CRM, he has a large book of customers that he sends birthday cards to and always seems to have people referring him business. Yeah, you know the guy.

Wouldn’t you LOVE to be the "guy" to your customers?

What does the guy know that you don’t? What every guy knows how to do is create what marketers call an evangelical client, a customer who enthusiastically promotes their "guy’s" business, product, or service through word-of-mouth without solicitation. Evangelical customers feel great reward from helping both the person in need and the business they are promoting. They enjoy the fact that because of them others are having the same successful experience they did. They believe in a better world and this is one way they actively contribute to it; in essence, they feel their community worth is enhanced with every "convert."

An evangelical client is the ideal customer for several key reasons:

1. He genuinely likes you and wants you to do well.

2. He is willing to pay more because you offer the whole package (decent product, fair price, you’re here to stay, and that certain "guy"-ness).

3. He wants to help others, and that motivates him to tell others about you (that also makes him credible).

4. He is a not just a happy, repeat customer, he is a walking testimonial, working for you without compensation.

5. He refers "softened" customers to you, meaning they’re already sold on essential intangibles like trust, reputation, and fairness before they walk into the showroom.

6. He offers you solid suggestions on how to improve your business.

7. He sends you more business than your brother-in-law.

Priceless, right?  You bet.  We should all be so lucky… and we can.

How do you create evangelical clients?

1. Be trustworthy. Even if you have fierce sales skills, if your mentality is that every deal is a notch on your quota bedpost, customers’ radar will go up, and they will get a sense that they mean nothing more to you than cash. The only customers you will attract in that case are the ones looking for the best deal… in other words, they’ll be using you, too. Worse, without solid referrals to carry you through times of lean advertising budgets, you’ll go hungry. You also won’t last long in any one dealership, which makes it impossible to build an evangelical client base. Voluntarily ensuring transparent, win-win transactions will build trust and pay out far more in the long run.

2. Treat every customer right. Listen, put yourself in their shoes, and do whatever you can to meet their needs. Every once in a while, exceed their expectations, like the van that shuttled your colleague to physical therapy appointments.

3. Care about your customers. Keep notes on every one of them, including the names of their spouse and kids, birthday, anniversary, hobbies, etc. Take a photo of them with their new car and create a scrapbook with their testimonials for prospects to flip through on your desk.

4. Be human. Show your personality. Create a photo montage screensaver of your family. Whatever your hobbies, put evidence of them on your desk to help you connect with your customers on a personal level. That emotional connection is imperative for the evangelical customer.

5. Be personal. Today, technology is widening the gap between consumers and the car sales professional by providing all of the information the consumer needs online and removing all personal interaction until the customer finally shows up on the lot after weeks of research. If technology is removing so much communication throughout the buying cycle, how can an auto sales professional become the "guy?" The exact same way the "guy" became the "guy" before all of this wonderful technology. Take the time to truly get to know your prospects and communicate with them (utilizing technology) throughout the buying cycle and beyond, even if they do not buy from you. Let your CRM do the work of the follow up, but know what "work" it is doing. Know what each email says, and follow up with your own personalized emails and phone calls. Get out and become a positive part of your community. If you want to be the "guy," you have to invest the effort necessary to cultivate meaningful interactions with your customers in all stages of their buying cycle.

6. Be grateful. Stop and appreciate what they’re doing for you and actively thank them. Write thank you notes after every referral, whether the deal closes or not. After they’ve sent you a few customers, send them a small but highly meaningful gift, like if your customer likes to fly fish, send them a dozen hand-tied flies. The point is not the expense, it's to show that they mattered enough for you to remember something important to them.

7. Be humble. Ask them how you can improve and listen carefully to their ideas. These people like to feel needed and helpful. They will appreciate the opportunity to better the world. Even if their suggestion is something you already do, don’t dismiss the idea (instead, look at how you can better create consumer awareness around that service since your best customers don’t know about it). Appreciate that they took the time to think of an idea and be honest with you.

8. Be responsive. When an evangelical customer calls, answer the phone. It’s usually important. In fact, it’s usually a lead or a complaint. In either case, it’s important that you’re on top of it. Most amazing about evangelical customers is that they are so loyal, they will excuse the occasional poor experience, even going so far as to rationalize a bad experience had by a convert with a stream of logical reasons ("Maybe their website was down…" "Maybe there was an emergency in the family…" "Maybe it was defective. It happens. Mine still works great. Call my guy, he’ll take care of you," etc.). The evangelical client doesn’t want to be wrong about you.

And you don’t want the evangelical client to be wrong about you.

As passionately as the evangelical client sings your praises, he can also ruin your name in his circle of influence… and do so with that same passion. Remember, he’s out to create a better world, and if that means people should avoid your business, he’ll freely tell them to do so. To him, spreading a cautionary word is just as helpful as a recommendation.

The good news is evangelical customers are naturally forgiving people. Should something happen that causes your customer to slip out of evangelism or flip alliances, go back to #1 and work toward renewing your relationship. They’re worth it. Just ask any guy.

For more information and resources on creating evangelical clients, please check out these sources:

Creating Customer Evangelists: How Loyal Customers Become a Volunteer Sales Force by Ben McConnell and Jackie Huba (Kaplan Business, 2002)

There's a Customer Born Every Minute: P.T. Barnum's Amazing 10 "Rings of Power" for Creating Fame, Fortune, and a Business Empire Today - Guaranteed! by Joe Vitale and Jeffrey Gitomer (Wiley, 2006)

Managing the Customer Experience: Turning Customers Into Advocates By Shaun Smith and Joe Wheeler (FT Press, 2002)

The Brand Who Cried Wolf: Deliver on Your Company's Promise and Create Customers for Life by Scott Deming (Wiley , 2007)

Exceptional Selling: How the Best Connect and Win in High Stakes Sales by Jeff Thull (Wiley, 2006)

HomeNet Autmotive makes Inventory Online (IOL) solution helps automotive dealers sell more cars and save time by converting DMS data into emotional online ads with compelling descriptions, video, SEO display pages, price analysis, automated distribution, and more. Visit HomeNet at www.homenetinc.com.      

 

 

 

 

 

 

  

   

 

Entry Filed under: Uncategorized, Industry, NADA, Employees, Customers, Partners, IOL