Most manufacturers challenge their Dealers to meet a certain level of sales lead follow-up in order to meet standards and qualify for their variable Dealer Margin. However, in the main this is measured against criteria such as:
- Are leads opened within 24 hours?
- Was the lead manually updated by the Dealer as being actioned within 48 hours?
The problem is that there is no evidence that anything has actually happened with the customer. Measurement systems based on manual updates essentially mean that everything is being taken on trust, i.e. the Lead Management System has been updated therefore the Salesperson has completed the follow-up task. Now, call me a cynic, but that isn’t necessarily the case. We know that there are often big discrepancies between what dealer updates to Lead Management Systems tell us and what independent research into follow-up rates tell us.
TrackBack measures what actually happened, and in real-time. As a result, it is easy for our clients across Europe to integrate TrackBack data into their Dealer Standards and incentive programmes. These manufacturers are now using objective call data to remunerate Dealers on the volume, speed and quality of sales calls made, not the speed and quality of their administration or their ability to work around a system.
This works well for both the manufacturer and the Dealers, because if we can measure the sales process effectively and objectively, we can improve it. This means less call reluctance, better follow-up, more appointments and more sales. Equally dealers can prove to their manufacturers that not every lead is easy or even possible to contact. TrackBack distinguishes between call attempts and actual contact to reveal the truth of follow-up efficiency and also about lead quality.
What’s not to like?
By Gareth Thomas – Managing Director