I Had To Sit Down...Lead Follow Up

I was talking with one of my customers (a Ford dealer that’s part of a large organization) and we were discussing internet leads from his different sources. When we got to his eBay leads we looked at a used Escape with 9 leads – I was excited, 9 leads – WOW! When I asked him if he contacted them his reply was “no, most to them are from out of state.” WHAT? Its 2010, you can sell and ship out of state as easy as making Jell-O! Then he adds, “Plus, the bids were kind of low.” I had to sit down. I realized I hadn’t done my job helping him understand how bidding works on eBay, or how your competition is everywhere, all over the U.S. not just next door or across the street. So let’s go over it.

If you every bought anything on eBay you know that you enter a bid for the item just over the current bid. In your mind you have a price that you are willing to pay and that’s where you’ll stop bidding. If you win the bid you’re prepared to buy.

eBay understands people don’t have the time to sit and watch the auctions 24/7 so they offer a service call Automatic Bidding. It works on the above theory. You put in a maximum amount you want to bid on an item, and it takes it from there. It will bid for you – but only increasing your bid each time enough to beat the other bidders.

In a nutshell – you see a car on eBay and decide you’re willing to pay $25K so you set the Automatic Bid at $25K and it enters your first bid at the seller’s starting price (which could be $500). Each time someone else bids, your bid increases incrementally. So here’s the catch; the bidding could go on for days and still only be up to $5K but remember, the bidder is willing to pay $25K and the only way you will know is to call them!

Once you call them and establish their top price you can negotiate from there, or flip them into another vehicle from your inventory. There were 9 people that bid on an Escape; you can find 9 vehicles to put them in right? Of course you can!

And let’s address the “out of state” issue especially on internet and eBay leads. The customer KNOWS where you are located, they looked at your website, they’ve read your reviews, heck, they’ve probably already checked the shipping prices or mapped out a trip to your dealership. Again, the only way you’ll know is to call and talk to them. Shipping is easy, it’s affordable, it’s financeable (line 3) and it can even be a profit center. Don’t lose a deal because of it; you’ve got the technology to handle anything.

I know I’m preaching to the choir but it’s never been more important to call every lead. Technology has made the customers savvier, but it can also open up doors of unlimited opportunity for dealers if they’re willing to walk through them.