The key is to be prepared and make the F&I portion of the meeting something that the customer looks forward to.

I was speaking with a general manager recently about on going training and development in his dealership. As part of the discussion, weekly sales meetings came up, and I asked him if they have separate training and development meetings or if that is included in the weekly meetings they are currently holding.

He told me that their sales meetings are a combination of information and motivation. He then went on to share that he thinks they could be more productive than they are now – that the topics could be better and they could be more prepared.

Being prepared is the golden rule of training or speaking in front of a group. Knowing what you are going to talk about in advance and taking the time to plan and get organized can make all the difference.

As an F&I manager, you can have a significant impact on the level of professionalism of the sales staff and management team through a willingness to get involved in every training or sales meeting.

To be effective, you need to be prepared. In preparing for your next meeting, ask yourself this: What do I want the participants to know, how do I want them to feel, and what do I want them to do post training?

Once you have figured that out, work backward to create your content. Remember, in a sales meeting or daily training meeting, shorter is better – keep it to about 10 minutes and initially review what you are going to talk about.

When you’re finished, always review the main points you want people to remember. If possible, give them a way to review the information after the meeting if they would like to, using a handout or perhaps sharing a link to a folder with archived overviews of the topics that can be found and consumed.

Knowing what to discuss can be challenging, but avoid the temptation to wing it. If you prepare, the meeting will be more productive, and it will show the people present that you respect their time. Below are topics you may want to consider getting you started:

1 - THE PROPER WAY TO INTRODUCE THE CUSTOMER TO THE F&I OFFICE

First impressions matter, training sales people how to perform a proper turnover to F&I is critical to F&I success.

2 - HOW TO ASK BETTER QUESTIONS IN DISCOVERY

Getting customers talking through open-ended and follow-up questions is a great way to get to know the customer and helps build trust and rapport.

3 - SELLING DOWN PAYMENT

Nothing improves a deal for all stakeholders like cash.

4 - HOW TO HANDLE CUSTOMER CONCERNS

Teaching salespeople how to handle common concerns using the cost/need/urgency matrix can give the salesperson confidence and keep the deal moving forward.

5 - THE EXPRESSED WARRANTY TRAP

Are “as-is vehicles” really as-is? Sometimes the things we say and do can cause compliance issues when trying to serve the customer.

6 - SHORTENING THE WAIT TIME TO GET INTO F&I

This topic could probably be two or three meetings. Let the salespeople know how what they do, or forget to do, can affect deal flow and the time it takes to get into F&I.

7 - BENEFITS OF THE PRODUCT OFFERED IN F&I

Another multiple meeting topic. Start with vehicle service contracts and work your way down the menu, talking about one product at a time and sharing more, where your customers see the value and how the benefits of the products improve their lives.

8 - CAPTURING FINANCING

Teach the salespeople why it is so important to communicate to management and F&I when a customer talks about going to a credit union or outside lending source.

9 - OFFERING CUSTOMERS CHOICES

Teach them how important it is to give customers options.

10 - TEACH THEM WHAT YOU DO IN F&I

Show them the workflow in F&I and let them know how important complete and accurate information is to their deal getting delivered in a timely manner.