Lock up every opportunity with TRUST. I stressed the importance of trust in Chapter 10,
“Tell the Truth.” In my opinion, if there’s one thing a person wants more than anything else from another, it’s trust. Yes, trust. If you have a relationship with a foundation based on trust, it can grow into respect and love. Without it, though, love and respect don’t stand a
chance. Our divorce rate is proof positive as to why marriage doesn’t work without trust.
Learn to build those bridges of trust with your customers and special people in your life.
Don’t be afraid to encourage them to open up to you (or you to them for that matter). Just
Keep building those bridges. Believe it or not, very few people want to do this. They’re afraid to get “too close” to someone. They like things an “arm’s length” away. That was fine with me. My approach was different. I didn’t mind getting close at all because my goal never changed. I wanted my prospects to “walk in and drive out.”
Don’t ever take your customers for granted. Lock up every opportunity you have with them to build lasting relationships. Begin with trust and continue with outstanding service. If it’s your family, never let go.
One of the things I used to do to build trust with my customers was something we called
“spot deliveries.” Insurance companies do this sort of thing all the time when they give you a temporary insurance binder until the real paperwork comes along in a few days. The important thing is you’re insured immediately. In my business, if a customer wasn’t sure they wanted to purchase the vehicle we had been discussing, I simply told them to take it home right then and there—right now! As long as they signed an agreement to bring it back in the same brand new condition they got it in, I gave them the keys and told them to take it home for a day or two. The fact that I trusted them that much said a lot to them.
I remember one customer in particular who was “on the fence” about committing to purchase. As he started to get up to leave my office, he said, “Joe, I’ll give this some thought. But I need to go home and discuss it with the wife.” Before he got two steps toward my door, I said, “Bob, I know it’s a difficult decision. There’s a fair amount of money involved. Let me take the pressure off.” I handed him the keys to the car he just test drove as I said, “Here.” He looked at me somewhat amazed. I continued, “Take it home for a couple of days. Let Noreen (I knew her name from the profile sheet) take it for a drive. Enjoy it together so you’ll both be comfortable with your decision. Just bring it back the way you got it.” I told him I’d take good care of the car he drove up in and have it washed for him in case he decided not to purchase the vehicle. He was not expecting this kind of treatment at all. He thanked me and happily drove the car home.
What was I doing? I was actually giving him and his wife “instant ownership.” I was building trust and at the same time giving the customer an opportunity to reinforce his decision to buy and take ownership of the vehicle on his own. I wanted to put him at ease without any pressure. I knew that self-confidence generated decisiveness. Bob called the following afternoon and said they both loved the car and were looking forward to coming in to sign the papers to buy it (which they did).
The last thing I wanted was a case of “buyer’s remorse.” I was there to lock ’em up! I wanted my prospects to BELIEVE that, although the paperwork hadn’t yet been completed on the vehicle, he or she already “owned” it. They were already Joe Girard customers, and now they were morally obligated to go through with the purchase. It was a mind game I almost always won because prospects in that situation were usually only at odds with themselves about closing the deal—they already loved the car and, almost always, me too. I was there to help keep the ship on course, safely steering it into Girard’s “harbor” in case things got a little stormy.
HERE’S THE KEY LESSON: If you want someone to be persuaded that your advice or recommendation is best for them (whether it’s buying something from you or embracing an idea you have), make accepting the outcome their idea, not yours. Get them to believe that you didn’t sell them anything; what really happened is they bought something. It’s not as confusing as it may sound. What I did do better than anyone else is persuade people that they should consider making a decision to buy a product from me. But it was always their decision. And the record shows that several of them agreed and said “yes”—13,001 to be exact. And I complimented every one of them on their decision. Congratulate the people you do business with on their choice. Be sincere and mean it. They trust you. Don’t let them down.
I can honestly say that I had maybe one case in 15 years (if that) of someone actually returning a vehicle to me without agreeing to purchase it—one in 13,001 sales. Now there’s a top-of-the-line track record with unbelievable odds stacked in my favor.
I knew the dealer wasn’t too crazy about the idea of a customer driving off with one of his cars without a commitment to buy, but the fact was, IT WORKED.
Quite frankly, I was used to the idea that the dealership management wouldn’t go for some of my leading-edge thinking on how to take care of customers. Why did they go along with it? Simple—I brought more sales and profits into that dealership than all the other salespeople combined, and they knew it. They also knew that the customers who bought from Joe Girard were MY customers, not just people who purchased something from their dealership. I was the link to their success, and they never forgot that. My numbers spoke loudly to them—I held the trump card every time they objected.
It was that narrow-minded thinking that prevented many dealers and salespeople alike from really becoming successful. Once again, Girard was way ahead of the curve and looking down the road at a relationship-building opportunity, not just a one-time sale.
Even if you don’t have a big following at first, don’t be discouraged by not getting the support of the management in your company. Learn your business thoroughly. Demonstrate your techniques and approaches, and show the leadership in your company how your methods are helping grow their business and making them more profitable. When they see that positive vibes about the company are beginning to spread whenever you are handling their customers’ needs, you will most assuredly be recognized for this. By the way, if that doesn’t happen and you are essentially told to get in step with the old company ways, dust
off your resumé immediately. You know what you are doing, and others will surely want you on their team. Be patient, though. I didn’t achieve what I did overnight.
I also went out of my way to build the trust of women, many of whom had difficulty getting credit, partly because of the low wages paid women back then. I felt for them and their situation. I know what it’s like not to have anything. I’ve stood in that pair of shoes before.
It’s a miserable feeling. Still, most guys in our sales department wouldn’t touch a deal like that. They always thought dealing with single women customers and trying to get credit for them was a complete waste of time. Not me; I found a way to help them and myself at the same time.
I remember helping out a recently divorced young lady who needed help establishing credit. I contacted one of the banks I did a lot of business with and asked them to get me the names of some reputable firms who dealt in the business of buying diamonds and jewelry.
I passed these names onto my prospect and showed her how to turn her diamond rings and other jewelry into credit to be able to afford the vehicle she wanted. I could see my encouragement all over her bright smile (which I reflected back to her). We were able to put a deal together in a few days with her credit so she could get her life rolling again (and in a new Chevrolet from Joe Girard).
If there was any way at all to get ladies credit, you could bet that I knew how to do it better than anyone else in the business. I had a reputation for that. They trusted me, and I made it happen. I was connected to banks, and banks were connected to me. Those women never forgot me. Many of them became repeat customers of mine till the day I retired. The only losers were all those jealous people in the sales department who ignored them.