Automotive News - September 23, 2019 - Best Practices Supplement - A28

28 | SEPTEMBER 23, 2019
B O Z A R D F O R D - L I N C O L N , S T. A U G U S T I N E , F L A .

GOOD VIBES BOOST SALES

Psychologist's lessons
help staff connect
with customers

Published in Automotive News April 29, 2019

mdmartinez@crain.com

taff meetings at Bozard Ford-Lincoln in St. Augustine, Fla., tend to
get a little personal.
They're not about how many Escapes or Mustangs each employee has sold
that week. Instead, the team focuses on drama and anything else that could be hindering
their relationships with others - both at
home and at work.
A meeting last month, for example, examined
finances, accountability and other outside influences that could help or hurt their success, using
golfer Tiger Woods' redemption story as an example. It's all part of the teachings of psychologist Harry Cohen, who offers leadership coaching focused on positivity.
Jeff King, the dealership's manager, has
been instilling Cohen's practices, known as
the heliotropic effect, in his showroom for
much of the last decade. He recently handed
out Cohen's latest book, Be the Sun, not the
Salt, to all of his employees. It features
one-liners including "caring is a learn-able
skill," "smile at a stranger and see what happens" and "do the next right thing, now."
At each meeting, staff members go over a
few chapters in depth and apply them to their
own lives. Chapter 7, for example, advises
readers to apologize well. Chapter 14 warns
against unnecessary complexity, while Chapter 19 advocates always taking the high road.
They're simple lessons and often fit on one
or two pages. While there's no direct correlation to the automotive industry, King believes
it ultimately helps the dealership sell more
cars and trucks.
"The basic premise of the practice is that, in
order for customers to be loyal, both they and
the store's employees have to be emotionally
engaged," King told Automotive News. "What
we're trying to do is create positive energizers
within our staff. People want to buy something from somebody they can trust."

Sales growth
King credits Cohen's philosophies for reducing staff turnover and helping sales grow

Employees at Bozard Ford-Lincoln in St. Augustine, Fla., apply lessons from "Be the Sun, not the Salt."

A Florida dealership spends its staff
meetings discussing advice from a
psychologist's book and says it has
helped grow sales from 50 a month
in 2010 to about 400 today.

from about 50 a month in 2010 to an average
of 400 today. The dealership has won Ford's
Triple Crown award each of the past three
years.
This year, DealerRater named Bozard FordLincoln dealer of the year, citing a high number of positive customer reviews.
The book, King said, has taught his staff to focus on the little things that could make big differences to buyers.

Michael Martinez

"The character and chemistry
is something we watch. To us
that's much more important
than putting them in a room,
sales-training them and telling
them how to negotiate."
Jeff King, Bozard Ford-Lincoln

For example, he noted that a customer who
had left a handicapped tag in a vehicle brought
in for service was wowed when a service adviser
drove a few towns away on a Saturday to return
it.
"We feel like we can hire competent people;
they should know what they're doing and be
able to learn their trade," King said. "The character and chemistry is something we watch. To
us that's much more important than putting
them in a room, sales-training them and telling
them how to negotiate."

'We have fun'
To help foster good vibes in the showroom,
King added a pingpong table and encourages
staffers to play - as long as they can win.
"If you're going to do something weird like
that, you have to be really good at it," he joked.
The dealership is amid a $15 million, 7-acre
expansion that will double the number of
service bays. There's an increased focus on
employee amenities, including a day care
center.
And the store is planning to add a Ford's Garage restaurant that will connect to the showroom.
"We run the store completely differently,"
King said. "And we want customers to know
it's different. We have fun." a

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