[Phone Skills] Close More Deals with Rapport Building

We all in the automotive world know that it costs an average of $150 to generate a single phone call to the dealership. In a best case scenario, the person answering the call in your dealership is your designated “phone ninja.” You may be asking, “What is he talking about?”  I mean someone who is trained on the best practices of handling phone calls in order to move your customers from a phone-up to an appointment.

One of the most important concepts of setting appointments is building rapport over the phone. People are more comfortable working with people they can relate to and simply like. An easy way to begin this process is to simply introduce yourself to the caller in a pleasant manner. People calling in want to know who they are working with, so you MUST let them know your name and direct contact information! If you are not identifying yourself, the chances of your customer remembering anything about you are slim to none. Despite their best intentions, we hear agents identifying themselves only 70% of the time.

Another effective technique to build rapport with callers is to listen to their style and pacing of speech. If you are able to mimic their overall flow and tone, they will feel more at home in the conversation. In other words if the caller is slow and deliberate in their delivery, they will not be receptive if you are talking fast and loud! The more time you take to understand your customer, the more will trust you and move towards the ultimate goal of closing a deal.

Remember to identify yourself in one of the first steps of rapport building! After all, how are they going to call you back if they don’t know who you are.