Leadership & ManagementReviews

– Founder of Petra Automotive Products!  I am so thrilled to debut my new feature in Dealer Marketing Magazine where I get the honor of introducing you to someone in our industry who deserves the spotlight! My first “person you should know” is Arnold Gacita Sr., Founder of Petra Automotive Products! I hope you enjoy reading about him as much as I enjoyed interviewing him. Keep your eyes out for this feature every month!  Arnold, thank you for being my inaugural guest! Tell us a bit about Petra and what you do in the industry?  I've been in the automotive industry for 31 years in aftermarket products. Anything that has to do with automotive chemicals or fluids inside or outside your vehicle, I’ve been a part of for over three decades. During the first portion of my career, I worked for a company that was the largest fluids provider worldwide. I left them to pursue the American dream of owning my own business and I’m happy to report this month will be our 13th year in business. We are the fastest growing chemical company in the US, manufacture products for five OEMs, and are in 38 countries. We have over 1000 people on the ground selling Petra, representing 336 products.  Your growth is astounding. What would you say Petra brings to the industry that helped fuel this success?  A lot of our competitors go into a dealership and talk about the product, the technical aspect of the product, and what that product is going do to the car. And we do that too, but we don't focus on that. We believe that we're partners with our dealers, so we focus on keeping them healthy and profitable.  We develop programs like a lifetime warranty. If a customer comes in and gets one of our services at any dealership, that customer is covered by a lifetime warranty. Customer retention, business development, partnership buying up, making the dealership more gross – these are the things we focus on for success. You have an awesome non-profit called Petra Cares – tell us about it.      We’ve always been heavily involved with charities. We’ve worked with Giving Hope out of New Orleans for a very long time and built an orphanage together in Brazil.  I wanted to open something similar to Giving Hope in Houston. I put together a phenomenal board with some top players in Houston and started talking to chambers of commerce, judges, people in our local politics etc. We found a need here in Houston that nobody was addressing. There’s a program in the US that pays for foster children who attend University, if they qualify. Ninety percent of the kids who exit the foster care system don’t apply. They want out because they've been part of the system for so long. Ninety percent will not accept the money. Of that group, 80% of them are either dead, in jail, or homeless in three years and the average lifespan is 23 years. These kids need to be told they have purpose, there’s something better for them and they can do it. So through Petra Cares, we’re going to go get those 80%, we're going to bring them to Petra through a partnership with Lone Star College. We're going to take 60 students a year and bring them through a six week course to be a level one mechanic, with one week of life skills as well. And after seven weeks, when they graduate, we have dealerships nationwide who have agreed to hire them. They will leave the Petra program hired by one of our dealerships. Now they have a purpose. Now they have an education. Now they have a job.  So not only do we change their life, but all the generations to come after them.  You obviously have a very kind heart and are driven by helping and creating community. What is your why?  My why is to see people become better than myself.   What have you seen as a major industry trend that's coming out over the next year or two?  I think most people are re-thinking trading in their car for another car. Because of the economic situation, the uncertainty, the interest rate going up, they're keeping their cars longer.  The average car ownership stat of 12 years is going to slightly tick up. What does that mean for service departments?  Service and Fixed Ops are going to have to be strong to carry 80% to 100% absorption at that dealership.  Tell us something about yourself that most people don't know? I love to cook, and when I say cook, I mean I love to cook good! Like snapper with white wine garlic sauce and crab meat on top of it. I love to barbecue. I have a barbecue team that used to go into competition and we have never lost on our baby back ribs.  Want to reach out to Arnold and his team for more information? Visit  www.petraautoproducts.com  or  https://petra-cares.org/

In 2021, The National Automotive Dealers Association committed to deliver a bigger, better, and more innovative convention in 2022 – and that’s exactly what they did. To say that the last two years have offered some significant challenges to our industry would be an understatement.  As we have been forced to change the way we not only do business but how we learn, network, and connect as a community, NADA made a promise to its members to make the 2022 National Automotive Dealers Association Convention the biggest and best experience in the history of the organization. ...and they delivered. Packed with over 100 educational opportunities, 600 exhibitors, and thousands of networking opportunities over the course of four days in sunny Las Vegas, the 2022 NADA Annual Convention sought to deliver an experience that not only made up for lost time caused by the global pandemic but also created an elevated space for industry peers and experts to reconnect and explore the latest tech and innovation in our field. Beyond the staggering number of attendees, exhibitors, and experts participating in the 2022 NADA convention, the organization introduce several new aspects to the conference.  Kicking off the festivities on Thursday, attendees were welcomed into the new home of the Las Vegas Raiders, Allegiant Stadium.  Featuring an electrifying performance from three-time Grammy winners Train, the inspired and energized crowd enjoyed a great night of networking and celebration – setting the stage for the incredible activities, panels, exhibitors, and educational opportunities that laid ahead. Among the most popular new features this year was the addition of the Dealer Learning Lab.  Embracing a TED Talk-style presentation format, topics ranged from variable and fixed ops to leadership and business operations, as well as several conversations centered around the biggest challenges facing the industry today.  Additionally, NADA offered a series of more traditional educational sessions designed to engage and inform our community.  With over 100 workshops and countless other educational opportunities throughout the course of the convention, there were sessions designed to support, inform, and inspire – from industry veterans to first-year members and attendees. From there, the 2022 NADA Annual Convention featured over 600 exhibitors from around the world.  Spread throughout two halls, the 2022 exhibitors delivered more than great conversation, mind-blowing innovation, and a strong showcase of products – they delivered hope, optimism, and a sense of dedication that was unapparelled.   Within each booth was a vendor eager to connect with other industry experts to find powerful solutions to rapidly changing market conditions and advancing technology. And finally, after days of connecting, networking, learning, and exploring, the National Automotive Dealers Association Annual Convention awarded the industry’s most prestigious award, Time Dealer of the Year.  With 47 dealers nominated and recognized for their excellence in business and community service, the Time Dealer of the Year award ceremony truly exemplified the countless ways its members selflessly give back to their communities on a local and national level.  While this award ceremony is always filled with inspirational people and incredible acts, the energy and commitment felt in this year’s event were simply captivating.  The 2022 Time Dealer of the Year was awarded to Bob Giles , owner of Giles Automotive located in Louisiana , of which Mr. Giles accepted the honor with the grace and gratitude one would expect from the recipient of such an incredible award.  In his speech, he challenged everyone in the industry to do their best in making a positive impact in their community through thoughtful, self-less acts of compassion and advocacy.  The powerful ceremony left the audience inspired and ready to make a difference in their own communities, and on behalf of all in attendance, I would like to congratulate the 2022 nominees for their contributions and the powerful example they provide all of us. The 2022 Time Dealer of the Year Nominees Included: Gary Ackerman, President/Owner of Gaudin Ford located in Las Vegas John Billard, Dealer Principal of Hempstead Ford Lincoln located in Hempstead, N.Y. Cary Bosak, Dealer Principal of Bosak Motors Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram located in Merrillville, Indiana Virginia Bowden, Dealer Principal of McClinton Chevrolet located in Parkersburg, West Virginia Steve Brown, President of Brown Motors located in Petoskey, Michigan Gregg R. Ciocca, President of Ciocca Ford of Quakertown located in Allentown, Pennsylvania Jason Courter, Owner of Honda Auto Center of Bellevue located in Bellevue, Washington Wyndi Damato, Principal/General Manager of Fitzgerald Ford located in Fitzgerald, Georgia Erik Day, CFO/Partner of Warren Henry Auto Group CFO/Partner located in Davie, Florida Winfred Dodge, Dealer of Bill Dodge Auto Group located in Westbrook, Maine Wayne Evans, Owner of Prairie Motors located in Stanley, North Dakota Ray Fregia Jr., Owner of Courtesy Ford Lincoln located in Danville, Illinois Robert “Bob” Giles, Chairman/CEO of Giles Automotive located in Lafayette, Louisiana  Terry Gilmore, Principal Owner of Paradise Chevrolet Cadillac located in Temecula, California James Gramm, Dealer Principal of Safford CJDR Springfield located in Springfield, Virginia Bill Griffis, Owner of Griffis Motors in Philadelphia, Mississippi Kelly Hirning, President of Hirning Buick GMC located in Pocatello, Idaho Jason Hoover, Owner/Dealer Principal of Midway Motors located in McPherson, Kansas Jack Kain Sr., Founder of Jack Kain Ford located in Versailles, Kentucky Gregg Kunes, Dealer/President/Owner of Kunes Country Ford-Lincoln located in Delavan, Wisconsin Steven Lillestol, President of Thief River Ford, Inc., located in Thief River Falls, Minnesota Christopher Lindsay, President and CEO of Lindsay Chevrolet located in Woodbridge, Virginia Daniel Luneau, Owner/Dealer of Handy Automotive/Handy Toyota located in St. Albans, Vermont Doug McElveen, Dealer/Owner of McElveen Buick GMC Summerville, South Carolina Pat McGrath, Dealer Principal of Pat McGrath Chevyland located in Cedar Rapids, Iowa David McNeill, CEO/Dealer of McNeill Chevrolet Buick Nissan of Wilkesboro located in Wilkesboro, North Carolina J. Douglas North, President of North Brothers Ford, Inc., located in Westland, Michigan Todd C. Ouellette Sr., Dealer/Owner of Long-Lewis Ford of the Shoals located in Muscle Shoals, Alabama Curtis Pascarella, Owner/President of Phillips Chevrolet located in Frankfort, Illinois Tony Pierce, Dealer Principal of Snowy Mountain Motors located in Lewistown, Montana John Platek, Dealer Principal of Betley Chevrolet, Inc., located in Derry, New Hampshire Daniel Reineke, Dealer Principal of Reineke’s Tiffin Ford Lincoln, Inc., located in Tiffin, Ohio Bob Rogers, President of Bob Rogers Chevrolet located in Paris, Arkansas Michael Schulte, Owner of Schulte Subaru located in Sioux Falls, South Dakota Dennis Schworer, President and Owner of Honda Cars of Bellevue, located in Bellevue, Nebraska Robert Serpentini Jr., President of Serpentini Chevrolet of Strongsville located in Strongsville, Ohio Joseph Shaker, President of Wellesley Mazda located in Wellesley, Massachusetts Robert Sickel, President of Pine Belt Chevrolet located in Lakewood, New Jersey Bob Siracusano, Owner of Sawyer Motors located in Saugerties, New York Brad Sowers, General Manager/Owner of Jim Butler Chevrolet located in Fenton, Missouri Michael Stoebner, General Manager/President of Honda Windward located in Kaneohe, Hawaii Annette Sykora, Partner of Smith South Plains Ford Lincoln located in Levelland, Texas Joseph Thurby Jr., Dealer of Thurby’s Riverside Ford located in Markleysburg, Pennsylvania Tim Urness, Dealer Principal of C. H. Urness Motors located in The Dalles, Oregon S. Mitchell Walters, President of Friendship Ford located in Bristol, Tennessee Chris H. Wilson, Dealer of Wilson Motor Company located in Logan, Utah Phil Winslow, Owner of Winslow BMW of Colorado Springs located in Colorado Springs, Colorado As I close this brief snapshot of the 2022 NADA Annual Conference, I would be remised not to share a quote from the organization’s Outgoing National Automobile Dealers Association Chairman, Paul Walser.  During his address to the convention, Chairman Walser said, “Imagine a workforce where diversity and inclusion are the standard, where we are the industry that encompasses everyone – so much so, that our efforts are respected and celebrated by other industries, government agencies, legislators, and everyday people looking for an opportunity or a career and where there is no shortage of people wanting to be part of it.” I couldn’t have said it better myself and I am proud to call myself a member of this tremendous community of consummate professionals.  

Q&A with Wil Lewis, Experian’s chief diversity, equity, and inclusion officer Like many industries, the automotive industry has seen an increased—and much needed—focus on diversity in recent years. Why much needed? Consider this: Women make up 47% of the total workforce in the U.S., but only 18% of employees at automotive dealers.  While gender diversity is an important part of the diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) conversation, it’s just that—apart. DEI is much more than a single factor. And, it’s mission-critical for your dealership’s success.  To better understand what DEI encompasses, how to intentionally bring the needed focus into your dealership team, and why it’s key for success, I talked with Wil Lewis, Experian’s chief diversity, equity, and inclusion officer, whose responsibility is to ensure Experian’s programs and products reflect the employees, clients, and communities we serve and is a workplace where employees feel comfortable bringing their whole selves to work. Amy Hughes: Thanks for taking the time to chat, Wil! Can you tell us how you define diversity?  Wil Lewis: First, and foremost, we need to look at diversity through a more nuanced lens. Intentionally expanding our circles needs to be about more than just representation and focus on additional topics. When I define diversity, I often use four distinct terms: diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging.  Diversity equals representation. For example, how many women or veterans do we have working for our organization? How many people of color? We actually do need to count the numbers.   Equity is removing systemic barriers that stop any one of those marginalized populations from reaching their greatest success. An example of a barrier could be an assessment test that you have to take to reach a certain position that isn’t accessible to a person with a disability. Equity means ensuring that items like that in our systems and processes are cleared away.  Inclusion is inviting folks to the table. But not just inviting them, ensuring they’re engaged in the conversations happening. Belonging is the underpinning of it all. Once you’ve invited that person to the table, ensuring they have a voice, equal opportunity to speak and to be heard. This means their opinion and feedback is something that is sought after.  AH: What I love about breaking down those terms is that it doesn’t focus on a single underrepresented population, it’s everyone. Why is this important for the business to continue to be profitable and achieve your goals? WL: When we think about why DEI is important, it’s because our society is diverse. Our businesses and dealerships need to be reflective of society as a whole. This will likely impact their revenue and bottom line. Think about sales. If you walk into a dealership as a veteran, and the person you’re talking to also happens to be a veteran, then you can share stories about your time in basic training or other experiences, and that instantly builds a relationship. And that’s ultimately what sales is about: relationships. As we work to build our businesses, dealerships, etc. we want to ensure they have a diverse population so they can relate to their customers. Not having that kind of representation can mean your dealership can lose a competitive edge.  AH: If we recognize that representation is not where it should be in our dealerships, what steps can we take to become more diverse? Often, dealerships pass from generation to generation, so diversity may not be top of mind. WL: Here’s what’s key: The owner will always be the owner, and for some dealerships, the owner may often be a member of the family. I see this in my local dealership. But, that doesn’t mean the leadership team is fixed.  You can ask yourself, who’s your finance manager? Who does your inventory? There’s still an opportunity to diversify your leadership team. And, if you’re really good, you look at who’s on your sales floor, and you pull them up. Look for opportunities to promote from within. Research shows that diversifying leadership is strategic for your bottom line. A study by Gartner found that 75% of companies with diverse and inclusive decision-making teams will exceed their financial targets through 2022. Additionally, gender-diverse and inclusive teams outperformed their less inclusive counterparts by 50%. AH: Once you’ve increased representation, what are ways to increase belonging?   WL: The first step any leader needs to take is self-awareness. If a leader doesn’t realize there is an opportunity to fix it, or that there’s something that can get better, it’ll never change.  Once the awareness is there, the leader needs to talk about it. The people who work in these dealerships are good—and I mean really good—salespeople. Good salespeople are driven by revenue, so talk to them in their language and explain how this impacts the bottom line.  Then, you need to measure the impact. Each organization needs to set its own KPIs, because it depends on the baseline and where they’re starting. But the ultimate question is: are you representative of the community you’re doing business in?  AH: Would you agree that sometimes this means looking beyond just the zip code in which you’re located, and being representative of all the zip codes from which prospective customers may come from? WL : Absolutely. Beyond just sales, think about the marketing impact this could have. Bringing together perspectives that are representative of your potential customers ensures that you’ll be more effective marketing to them, based on your team’s collective experiences and understanding of things like communication preferences.  This really ties back to your first question, because it shows how if we go with the linear definition of diversity and just count numbers, not much will change. But, if you intentionally seek to create a culture where people feel like they belong no matter what their background or experience is, and they know their voice is valued, there can be transformational impacts for your dealership. Your customers will feel the difference when they walk into your showroom.

Salt Lake City — September 7, 2018 — As a lack of ongoing training continues to impact employee retention and overall profitability, dealerships nationwide are hard-pressed to reassess their employee programming strategies. According to a recent Cox Automotive dealership staffing study, only 54 percent of new hires in customer-facing roles said they received enough training to effectively do their jobs. To help dealerships address this enduring training gap, Dealertrack DMS, a Cox Automotive brand, is launching its Lifetime Learning Portal. With access to a variety of support channels, including event-based trainings, peer-to-peer support and online education, the Lifetime Learning Portal enables dealership personnel to tailor their training regimen to their own learning style. “Over the past couple of years, Dealertrack DMS has been honing its dealer-centric approach to ensure dealership personnel receive the superior training and education they need to get the most out of their DMS,” said Matt Hurst, Director of Client Services, Dealertrack DMS. “Want training in person? No problem. Prefer peer-to-peer? Click here. The Lifetime Learning Portal meets dealership personnel where they are and hosts content to fit all learning styles.” In 2017, Dealertrack DMS hosted DMS Edge , its first annual virtual training program, as well as the Dealertrack DMS Controller Conference, its first annual in-person training event. The following year, Dealertrack DMS took it one step further with the launch of DMS 360, the company’s new, peer-to-peer self-service portal where users can easily access support and share best practices across dealerships as well as with Dealertrack DMS team members online. Now, all of these resources, in addition to on-demand webinars, can be accessed in one place online, creating a more seamless learning experience that gives dealership personnel the opportunity to advance their DMS knowledge in a way that works best for them. “Dealertrack has put a focus on the users who rely on the DMS day in and day out,” said Robert Beaslin, Controller of Mark Miller Auto Group in Salt Lake City, Utah. “From peer-to-peer to webinars and virtual and in-person conferences, the brand’s Lifetime Learning programming has enabled our employees to get significantly more out of the existing DMS software, helping them to become more effective and successful in their roles at the dealership.” The next installment of Dealertrack DMS’ Lifetime Learning programming will be DMS Edge 2018, its second annual virtual user event series, running September 18 through September 21, 2018. Over the course of four days and 18 virtual sessions, DMS Edge will bring on-demand training and DMS best practices directly to thousands of dealership personnel online. “DMS Edge gives dealership personnel a chance to get an inside look at the DMS without ever having to leave their desk,” said Randy Kobat, Senior Vice President of Cox Automotive brands vAuto, HomeNet, Rebates & Incentives, and Dealertrack DMS. “Following the first annual DMS Edge series in 2017, which reached 3,500 users, this year’s event promises to take training to the next level to help dealerships maximize the value of the DMS and give them a competitive edge.” Keynote speakers for the event include Dealertrack’s VP of Operations John Grace, Google Automotive Retail Strategist Tim Mueller and tax expert Greg White. For dealership personnel unable to attend DMS Edge or for those with other learning preferences, DMS 360, along with additional trainings and webinars are available to users 24/7/365. For more information about DMS Edge, and to register for the virtual event, please visit here . About Dealertrack Dealertrack provides industry-leading software solutions that give dealerships and lenders the confidence to thrive in an ever-changing automotive market. The company’s integrated suite of powerful but easy-to-use products helps dealerships and their lending partners grow by increasing efficiency and improving decision-making. Dealertrack is part of the Cox Automotive family, a company that is transforming the way the world buys, sells and owns cars. Dealertrack — along with its unmatched network of dealership and lending partners — is improving the car buying experience by embracing the technologies that will shape the future of automotive retail. For more information about Dealertrack, visit www.dealertrack.com . About Cox Automotive Cox Automotive Inc. makes buying, selling and owning cars easier for everyone, while also enabling mobility services. The global company’s 34,000-plus team members and family of brands, including Autotrader®, Clutch Technologies, Dealer.com®, Dealertrack®, Kelley Blue Book®, Manheim®, NextGear Capital®, VinSolutions®, vAuto® and Xtime®, are passionate about helping millions of car shoppers, 40,000 auto dealer clients across five continents and many others throughout the automotive industry thrive for generations to come. Cox Automotive is a subsidiary of Cox Enterprises Inc., a privately-owned, Atlanta-based company with revenues exceeding $20 billion. www.coxautoinc.com Media Contact Alexa Reinfeld, MWWPR, areinfeld@mww.com

Hoboken, NJ — August 28, 2018 — No may be a tiny word, but for salespeople, it's the most dreaded word in the English language. Nothing causes your heart to sink quite like an objection from a prospective customer. This is true not just because it presages a negative impact on your income, but also because it's incredibly painful to hear. It's no coincidence that "objection" rhymes with "rejection" — and the latter is one of the deepest, darkest, most primal human fears. Jeb Blount says there's no way to avoid objections. They're going to happen. What you can do is learn how to rise above the emotional disruption they cause and, hopefully, salvage the sale. "There are four types of objections you encounter in the sales process, and they occur at various points in the journey," notes Blount, author of the new book Objections: The Ultimate Guide for Mastering the Art and Science of Getting Past No (Wiley, June 2018, ISBN: 978-1-119-47738-9, $27.00). "They can stop a sale before it ever gets started, derail your efforts in the middle of the conversation, or shut down the deal at the end after weeks, even months, of hard work. "The good news is that when you arm yourself with an arsenal of turnaround frameworks, you can face these roadblocks and get past them so you can move onto the next stage," he adds. Here are the four types of objections salespeople must field, along with a few tactics to help you get in the door, shorten the sales cycle, increase pipeline velocity, avoid stalled deals, and, of course, close the sale. TYPE 1: Prospecting Objections Of all objections, these are the most severe. They're often harsh and cold, and at times, flat-out rejection. People are crazy busy and see little value in spending time with salespeople. Through a combination of reflex responses, brush-offs, and objections (RBOs), they do their best to get rid of you. For this reason, millions of salespeople treat prospecting like the plague and avoid interrupting prospects at any cost. However, if you want success in your sales career, then you've got to interrupt prospects. Know that you are going to get prospecting objections, and they will trigger your disruptive emotions. But it is possible to rise above your emotions and become effective at turning around prospecting objections. For RBOs during prospecting, deploy a simple but powerful three-step framework: Ledge. A ledge is a memorized, automatic response to perceived or real rejection that does not require you to think. Using a ledge gives your logical brain the moment it needs to catch up, rise above disruptive emotions, and gain control. Disrupt. Your prospect has been conditioned from hundreds of prospecting calls and expects you to act like every other salesperson. When they tell you no, they have an expectation for what you will most likely do next. To turn around your prospect's RBO, deliver a statement or question that disrupts this pattern and pulls the prospect toward you. For example, when they say they're busy, instead of arguing with them that you will take only a little bit of their time, disrupt their pattern by agreeing with them: That's exactly why I called; I figured you would be, and I want to find a time that's more convenient for you . Or, when they say, "I'm not interested," respond with: That makes sense. Most people aren't the first time I call, and that's exactly why we should meet. Ask. Here's where most prospecting RBO turnarounds fall apart. Many salespeople are hesitant to ask again. But you must control your emotions and ask again for what you want, without hesitation. When you ask, about half of the time they'll throw out another RBO — one that tends to be closer to the truth. Be prepared to turn it around and ask again. (Just don't fight. It isn't worth it. Once you get two RBOs, graciously move on and come back to them another day.) TYPE 2: Red Herrings A red herring is an irrelevant topic or issue that gets introduced into the conversation by a stakeholder that distracts you from your focus or diverts your attention from the objective of your sales conversation. A stakeholder, typically early in the conversation, will throw out a red herring — sometimes to challenge you, sometimes because they don't know what else to say, sometimes because it's their habitual behavior pattern, and sometimes because they have a valid concern or question. A red herring might be something like: "We are already in discussions with your competitor," or, "Just so you know, we're not buying anything from you today." Do not take the bait! You must avoid getting drawn in by red herring objections at all costs. When you chase red herrings, you blow up sales calls, skip steps in the sales process, hand control over to stakeholders, and become their puppet. Red herrings, managed poorly, are emotional hijackers that turn sales calls into train wrecks. Moving past red herrings requires massive emotional control, so you need a simple and habitual system that keeps you in control — PAIS: Pause, Acknowledge, Ignore, Save. Push the pause button and collect your emotions. Acknowledge and let the stakeholder know that you heard them. You might say: That makes sense or I get that or This sounds important . Ignore the red herring unless it comes up again, or... Save it and address at a later, more appropriate time. "My default is to ignore the red herring unless it comes up again, because I've learned, over a lifetime in the sales profession, that they almost never do," says Blount. "I acknowledge the concern, and my favorite way to do this is to simply take notes. Writing down what they say lets them know that I think it is important without getting pulled in. Then I ask an unrelated open-ended question that gets my stakeholder talking." TYPE 3: Micro-Commitment Objections Throughout the sales process, you'll ask stakeholders for next steps and micro-commitments. Micro-commitments are a series of low-risk commitments that lead down the path to a final buying commitment. Asking for them and consistently getting to the next step keeps the momentum rolling. You must never, ever leave a conversation with a stakeholder without a firm next step. Here's the problem: The people you are dealing with don't always see the value in spending more time with you, so they hit you with brush-offs to make you go away. The good news is micro-commitment objections are rarely harsh and, unless you totally bombed, are rarely outright rejection. For this reason, the key to getting past these objections is showing poise and confidence and helping your prospect see the value of scheduling the next step. Once you explain the value in a way that they understand, the prospect will agree to the next step. Value, however, is in the eye of the beholder. They want to know What's in it for me? — and you must answer that question. Step into your prospect's shoes and write down why it should matter to them. What is the value trade for investing more time with you? Then craft compelling value statements that articulate this in your stakeholder's language and terms. "Keep it simple," says Blount. "Remember that these are micro-commitments — small steps and low-risk requests. It's easy to get stakeholders to say yes. These value statements don't need to be profound or complex. They should not be pitchy. Avoid jargon that makes you sound like a marketing brochure. You don't need to be perfect — just good enough to get to the next step." TYPE 4: Buying Commitment Objections When you ask people to make buying decisions — sign contracts, hand over credit cards, issue POs, switch vendors, and accept your proposal — you will get objections. Getting past buying commitment objections is often the moment of truth that determines whether or not you will close the deal. The outcome pivots on your ability to gain control over your emotions, guide the conversation, and influence your stakeholder's emotions. Unlike prospecting objections and micro-commitment objections, the number of possible buying commitment objections isn't finite and predictable. They are situational. You'll deal with price and budget objections, timing objections, status quo objections, need to talk it over with my boss or committee objections, spouse objections, buying authority objections, competitor objections, need to think it over objections, need and fit objections, and terms and conditions objections, among others. Dealing with buying commitment objections requires nuance, patience, influence, and situational awareness. The process of getting past no becomes more collaborative and will seamlessly shift from objection to negotiation. The following five-step framework will help you gain emotional control and influence your buyer to say yes: Relate. Acknowledge and relate to the objection. Don't treat them like a number, discount their concern, challenge their point of view, judge them, or start an argument. Isolate and clarify. Ask questions to isolate the "real" objection, issue, or concern. Clarify your understanding before addressing it. The key here is to ask open-ended questions that get your buyer talking and expressing their real concerns. Minimize. Remind the stakeholder of their problems, pain, threats, opportunities, and the yesses you've collected. Ask. Ask again and assume the yes. Fall back to an alternative. If you still get a no, offer an alternative commitment with a lower perceived risk. Have your fallback positions planned prior to your closing call. "Practice the worst-case scenarios," says Blount. "Put every potential objection and response on the table and work through the five-step process until you handle them all with ease. I've found practice helps build obstacle immunity, prepares you to manage disruptive emotions, and makes it far easier to think on your feet, in the moment. When you plan and practice in advance, you'll find the actual objections you get at closing are far tamer than what you initially expected." None of the tips Blount offers (and there are many more in the book) are rigid scripts. That's because dealing with objections is more an art than a science. "I prefer to teach turnaround frameworks, not generic scripts, because frameworks make you agile," says Blount. They give you a set of rails to run on that flex to changing context. They help you manage your disruptive emotions and pull your prospect toward you so that it becomes easier for them to say yes — which is, of course, the salesperson's favorite word." About the Author Jeb Blount is the author of nine books and is among the world's most respected thought leaders on sales, leadership, and customer experience. As a sales acceleration specialist, he helps sales organizations reach peak performance fast by optimizing talent, leveraging training to cultivate a high-performance culture, developing leadership and coaching skills, and applying more effective organizational design. Through his global training organization, Sales Gravy, Jeb advises many of the world's leading organizations and their executives on the impact of emotional intelligence and interpersonal skills on customer-facing activities and delivers training to thousands of participants in both public and private forums. His flagship website, SalesGravy.com , is the most visited sales-specific website on the planet. About the Book Objections: The Ultimate Guide for Mastering the Art and Science of Getting Past No (Wiley, June 2018, ISBN: 978-1-119-47738-9, $27.00) is available at bookstores nationwide, from major online booksellers, and direct from the publisher by calling 800-225-5945. In Canada, call 800-567-4797. For more information, please visit the book's page on www.wiley.com . Media Contact Dottie DeHart, DeHart & Company Public Relations, (828) 325-4966

Portland, OR — June 12, 2018 — Compli, the automotive leader in HR and Compliance solutions, has announced their first employee termination webinar with Fisher Phillips was such a success, they will be bringing it back on July 31, 2018 at 11 a.m. Pacific, 2 p.m. Eastern. With the first event almost topping 3,000 registrants, Fisher Phillips’ Regional Managing Partner, Steve Roppolo, and Kynzie Sims, JD, CCEP of Compli, are back again to explore and review best practices for a termination program including before there is an issue when considering a termination, during the termination meeting, and after the termination meeting. “Unfortunately, terminating an employee is something every business has to deal with at some point in time,” said Sims. “The best way to protect yourself from a wrongful termination claim is to be prepared and ensure you follow all procedures to avoid costly fines. We’ll take you through the ins and outs of a termination meeting and give you best practices before, during and after the termination to mitigate your risk.” To reserve your webinar seat, click here. For those not able to attend the webinar, signing up will enable you to receive the recording via email. For additional termination resources from Compli, please click here. About Compli Compli provides a cloud-based solution that manages compliance activities across your workforce. Consolidate all of your compliance initiatives across your organization into one easy-to-use system for your employees and your managers. Deliver defensible proof of compliance to your auditors and executives to keep cool, calm, and compliant. For more information on Compli, please visit www.compli.com . Media Contact Laurie Halter, Charisma! Communications, 503-816-2474, Laurie@charismacommunications.com