08 December 2020

PARTNER FEATURE

A Chrysalis best practice case study examines how retention has developed over the decades

For Richard Golsworthy, today’s good times are never an excuse to neglect tomorrow’s business growth. As general sales manager for Mercedes-Benz of Exeter, no matter how busy his team have been in the buoyant trading conditions of recent months he remains heavily focused on customer retention as a key to future growth.

Beginning his career as a trainee Ford sales executive in 2001 he built his own renewals process from scratch, on paper, as a side project. Initially rewarded at each stage of a customer’s journey – from appointment, through test drive, to sale – his sales manager quickly decided to reduce his commission structure by formalising the role. Today he is a passionate advocate of motor retail’s digital future to foster relationships.

He says: “Back then I kept detailed records of every sale and after nine months I’d get back in touch with customers, or when they were due a service. It was all physical files with handwritten notes about every conversation.

“I often say that if there were two tools I could take back to those times one would be Citnow and the other would be Chrysalis Key2Key. It would take 30-40 minutes to stack a deal then but with Key2Key you can set up whole campaigns in a few minutes, identifying niche opportunities for just a few quick sales up to major promotions resulting in 40 or more.”

Retention at the core

His disciplined approach to ensuring the team does not neglect renewals, even during times of strong new business, means retention forms 50% of his site’s retail results. And he is determined to avoid the common industry mistake of setting up tools or processes but then neglecting them.

He says: “In retention I’m drilling into the team that while we are busy with day-to-day sales we must embed retention processes so that when the market hits future problems we are already up to speed while everyone else is working out how to respond.

“For example, service customer prospecting should be habitual, regardless of market conditions. We recently spoke to 229 service customers and sold 15 cars. Through Chrysalis we can see where we are in the renewals process with every service customer. Why would you not go and talk to someone who’s coming in for a service and send them away in a new car instead – or at least talk to them about the next plate change? We even renewed several service customers in September who had previously decided to keep their car beyond the end of their contract.”

Keeping in touch

Richard sees fresh opportunity everywhere, thanks to digital, such as keeping in touch with customers who have left the area. He says: “If we understand them and why they bought from us last time, why can’t we sell to them again? For me it’s about not just paying lip service to the idea of keeping in touch with customers.”

Emotional intelligence matters too. “When a powerful tool like Key2Key reveals 60 leads you risk intimidating your team by handing them over in bulk. They should be distributed in a manageable way which is also easier to monitor. You want your people to see each other doing well so that they are encouraged by each other’s success, rather than feeling overwhelmed. So, feed them out in ones and twos.

“Businesses often adopt tools and processes but then not engage properly with them. They sometimes achieve some limited success, more by chance than discipline. But I’m focused on maximising the benefits of our digital tools with a properly structured approach.”

Tags: Chrysalis, partner feature