The disadvantage of a seperate online lead sales team!

Is it a disadvantage to have a separate sales team for online leads? Many dealerships are thinking about designating one person, or even several people, to follow up on warm online leads. That’s something I personally wouldn’t recommend. The salesperson is your best chance at selling a car. If a potential customer raises their hand online and sends out buying signals, it’s important to put this warm lead in contact with a sales specialist as soon as possible.

Separate online lead sales team: Splitting warm and cold leads

Many customers prefer to make an appointment online with the same person who answers their car questions. At CARMEN Automotive BDC, we see that splitting up the two processes can indeed work well if you set it up in the right way with a clear distinction between the follow-up of cold and warm leads. We also see that the very best sellers close the most transactions if they themselves have made the appointment from a warm online lead.

Seduce customer

A good seller knows their job is to provide a potential buyer with information. An excellent salesperson also knows how to entice the customer to come to the showroom for a test drive. This is the BDC seller’s job, too. However, the salesperson has more information about the car than any call agent, and thus the biggest advantage. A seperate online lead sales team is not as professional as a salesperson which is specialized in the automotive!

Connection

The salesperson’s main advantage of calling the customer themselves is the personal connection they can make. A nice and informative conversation with the customer is a valuable first step towards connection. From the first contact, the salesperson can determine what the customer wants and expects, and the salesperson knows what they must deliver. The seller knows that the customer is in the market but is still in the orientation phase. They have to convince the customer that their Toyota (for example) is better than the Kia that the customer is also looking at.

Thoroughly prepared

The salesperson also knows that, potentially, their customer’s partner may accompany them to the showroom and that he or she has a preference for the Kia, while the customer has a preference for the Toyota. All of this information helps prepare the salesperson for the conversations which happen in the showroom. If a warm lead is allowed to come in through another channel, this initial connection is lost, and certain knowledge of the customer is missing.

Annoying surprise

Without this knowledge, the salesperson may be less prepared for the showroom conversation. There could be an assumption that the customer has already made their choice for the Toyota. Then, it is a surprise, that was unplanned for, when the customer divulges in the showroom that they are also thinking about a Kia. In addition, the salesperson is simultaneously trying to build a relationship with the customer from scratch AND make the sale.

Do it yourself

For the highest possible conversion from warm online leads to sales, it is desirable that the salesperson handle lead follow-up. The seller is building a relationship over the telephone, answering the customer’s questions, and selling the showroom appointment. In order to be successful at setting the appointment, the customer must be able to realize some advantage to themselves for visiting the showroom. That’s how the salesperson can make the difference from the BDC by sharing the right information to make that happen. If handled correctly, warm leads can dramatically impact the conversion ratio of the sales team.