Clip from Episode 26: How Car Salesman John Hinkson Sold 1600 Cars in his First 3 Years:

What advice you have for folks who are already established at some level and they’re doing OK but they’re not the best. What do you tell them. I just tell them to you know cherish the customers that they have. I said those are your power base. You know any any of those those are the ones you got to maintain them don’t. There’s nothing worse than you sold a customer a vehicle a year ago and then they walk in and go straight to another salesman. So you didn’t do your job and that’s sort of you know it’s happened to me before. But it’s a bad feeling. You know they didn’t think enough of you. You didn’t make enough impression on them for them to come back to you. And it happens it happens all the time. But I think the follow up is what I try to stress on most of them if they do have a problem don’t avoid them. Don’t avoid it. Take it. Just hit it head on. Take care of it do all that you can do to remedy the situation. Just don’t put it off. That’s the those are the keys in just that service. It always comes back to the service. I mean it’s you have to take care of these customers you’ve got to keep following up.

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Clip from Episode 26: How Car Salesman John Hinkson Sold 1600 Cars in his First 3 Years:

I had to believe in what I was doing. If I didn’t believe and wasn’t committed to the product to the dealership then I wouldn’t be able to sell anything but I believed in them and I buy the products there and I feel it’s important you know I’ve talked to some sales guys that I work with and you know Scott well how do you sell so many new cars. Well you know what I buy those cars. You’re driving a 15 year old car over there that’s not even our brand. How do you expect to sell it. You know if you don’t know them and you don’t believe in your product. So I think that’s huge. You have to be committed to what you’re doing and whole heartedly. If you have any one little doubt in your brain you’re not going to succeed. So you have to be committed and that’s in any any job or career. You have to be committed 100 percent.

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Clip from Episode 26: How Car Salesman John Hinkson Sold 1600 Cars in his First 3 Years:

What is it that the typical car seller does that you think is just nuts? Promise something that you know they’re not going to honor. You know lie to a customer, just say anything to get a sale. You know I’ve had that happen to me in the past when I was on the other side. I think those things are just fabricating stuff you know just saying things that are that are not true. You know I mean just be honest. You know if you don’t know the answer just say hey I don’t know but I’ll find out. I think those are the probably the worst things you could do is just try to make a sale and lie to somebody. I mean you know people aren’t stupid and I feel like it’ll come back on you. I’ve tried to talk people out of buying vehicles before I just heard something in it. You know this one don’t sound good. Maybe we ought to look at something else. You know I think sometimes I cringe when I hear sometimes in sales people you know trying too hard trying to get that sale and maybe overstating over promising what they they can actually honor.

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Clip from Episode 26: How Car Salesman John Hinkson Sold 1600 Cars in his First 3 Years:

What is it that you believe or you do that the typical car sales person would think is crazy? I would think What they would think was crazy. I don’t know. Taking my customers out to dinner sending their kids birthday gifts. Heck I’ve even put down a payment for somebody that was. They just didn’t have the cash. You know I’ve done things like that. To me it’s not about the money. The money will come. I just feel like it’s you got to do the right thing. I don’t think a typical salesman would say here hey I’ll make your first payment. You know they’re having a problem. They don’t have that $300. You know what. Let me help you out. Let me let me do it. I’ll take it out of my pocket. I don’t think anybody would do that. I really honestly. I know when I was buying a car. No I don’t think my salesmen in the past would ever done anything like that. But that’s part of what I think is part of giving back and it’s just not it’s just not the sale. It’s just not about the money it’s affecting people’s lives. And those people in turn give back they know they’ll send people to you. So it pays off you know tenfold when you do things like that.

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Clip from Episode 26: How Car Salesman John Hinkson Sold 1600 Cars in his First 3 Years:

Is there a particular sales philosophy or approach that you subscribe to? I just probably just being of service not worrying so much about the sale of it. I think that’s probably it’s the customer it’s not me it’s not my commissions or whatever like that it’s the service that’s what I think that’s what our culture is in our store. I think that’s why we’re successful. It’s service oriented. I’m trying to create a fan here. I want those people to think of me only when they go get their next car purchase. So you know and people are willing to spend a little extra for the service. I mean that’s the difference between going to McDonald’s and going to a five star restaurant. You want that service and you’re willing to pay for it. And that’s true. That’s what you’re getting. So try to differentiate from that. So it’s service. I believe that’s the key to it all.

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Clip from Episode 26: How Car Salesman John Hinkson Sold 1600 Cars in his First 3 Years:

In order to close somebody they have to it’s got to be able to fit their budget. They have to like all the amenities that come with the car. Is it going to be. Is it going to take care of their problem that they came in there with you know that that’s what you’re solving a problem. They’re not there. They have a problem to fix and I always attack it that way. And I’d say most of it is is just doing that fact finding. I think that’s probably what I do the most. Yeah. So just just that questions and understanding what the customers are looking for on the front end. And usually when you when the time you get down to the numbers and stuff like that you know I’ve done enough fact finding that I know hey they’re trying to be in this price range so I try to get them the most that they can get. You know the best car best deal for what they’re wanting to spend.

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Clip from Episode 26: How Car Salesman John Hinkson Sold 1600 Cars in his First 3 Years:

I came in on a Wednesday a couple of weeks ago and everybody I don’t know what was going on but it’s like everybody I ran into was all I can’t wait to Friday. I can’t wait until Sat. No. Just what about today. You know God gave you that day. What are you going to do today. Why are you worried about Friday and Saturday. You know we got work to do today. Let’s make this the best day. You know. Why is everybody wishing their life away. I just didn’t kind of irritated me.

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Clip from Episode 26: How Car Salesman John Hinkson Sold 1600 Cars in his First 3 Years:

Days are long very long you don’t have to be there as early as I am it’s just me. Most of them you got late days in where you can come in at 11:00 11:30. I usually don’t do that. I’m stuck I’m a man of routine. I got to do these certain steps every day. And I feel like that helps me be successful.

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Clip from Episode 26: How Car Salesman John Hinkson Sold 1600 Cars in his First 3 Years:

Every day you must train every day. I think that’s it’s very important. We’ll go over objections just things to help you help your business. You know basically you’re even though you’re in sales and you work for the dealership you’re still kind of like your own business inside the dealership. So it’s important to train great stuff that we learn everyday and just it helps you build your business. You know how to cold call just a variety of things. You know closing you know objections that people might have and how to overcome them and succeed basically. If you don’t train everyday. I mean look at the top athletes in the world you’re Michael Jordan or LeBron James. They don’t just show up to the basketball game that day they’re out training day in day out they’re doing the extra training that puts them in that elite status. You know they do it every day. It doesn’t matter if it’s Sunday Saturday whatever you’re constantly You need to train so that you’re better. You can’t just be complacent and say hey I hope somebody shows up today. No, you’ve gotta do that work. You’ve got to constantly work train and make yourself the top. So I think it’s very important that anybody that’s in sales they need to they need to learn and you don’t know everything. Things change. Technology changes you always got to be on top of the game. So training is so important. You know reading soaking in knowledge from different things. Even go in and look at other sales people what they’re doing. You get some great ideas like that.

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Clip from Episode 26: How Car Salesman John Hinkson Sold 1600 Cars in his First 3 Years:

My goal everyday as I want to sell 5 cars a day. You know do I hit it everyday? No. but if he if I say I’m going to sell one. I mean what kind of goal is that? So always shoot it high and you know if I sell three that day I’m not disappointed. But I want that vibe. You know just if you say set your goals too low then you achieve them. What did you achieve. You really didn’t you know doesn’t push you hard enough so you always got to push yourself. Set those goals high.

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