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China's premium market continues to evolve at a record setting pace, making it difficult for even established automakers to keep up with customer expectations. OEMs can gain insights regarding the latest automotive retail trends in the country by seeking out best practice examples of dealer training, organizational innovations and value creation opportunities all focused on surprising and delighting premium customers.   

China's rapid rise into the world's biggest car market has premium OEMs scrambling to improve their retail network performance. Learn the latest trends in dealer training, sales team design and value-added plays.

China has evolved into the world's largest automotive market with such breathtaking speed that many premium automotive brands are still playing catchup when it comes to providing a great customer experience. What's more, in some cases dealers need to educate shoppers about the brands they are buying and the other complementary goods and pursuits that go along with the lifestyles they seek. Consequently, many premium players are currently focusing on three specific dealer-level drivers of a great customer experience and a profitable retail network: Training, sales team organization, and retail value-added plays.

Assessing sales training programs

In comparing the training programs at three different global premium OEMs selling cars in China, their different approaches become evident. For example, one company organizes the entire dealer-training program and conducts it in a special-developed training center. In this case, its dealers face no mandates for undertaking their own training sessions. A close competitor has designed its training program with far higher levels of dealer participation. They organize most training events and conduct them on a weekly basis; while the OEM offers only a five-day training camp for second-year sales associates [is that what you mean by "2-year sales"?]. The third automaker takes a more balanced approach to training, splitting responsibilities on a 50/50 basis. While the OEM focuses on developing and holding general courses for the entire retail network, each dealership tailors its own content to local market needs.

The three brands also employ different training faculty approaches. Two use third-party trainers while one stipulates that the dealer's sales manager, showroom managers and training specialist take responsibility for developing all associated materials and for creating the training organization itself.  What's more, they have unique sales certification processes. One uses a certified sales consultant and conducts compulsory training for sales staff. Another takes dealer salespeople through two levels of training, while the third offers a three-level training program with gradually increasing depth and scope.

In terms of comprehensiveness, one German OEM provides the greatest coverage. Mirroring its competitors, the company provides insights regarding the brand's history, its product strengths compared to competing models, the sales process, and how sales people can "read" customer behaviors. Taking a step beyond typical practices, it also offers sales associates wide-ranging premium lifestyle training, customer relationship management (CRM) instruction, and special career attitudes coaching.  Its premium lifestyle lessons include courses on premium alcohols and teas, watches and jewelry as well as on fashion, art, yachting and other similar topics. The training also suggests how sales people can integrate this information to convey the automaker's brand values and build an emotional link with the customer.

This automaker also segments potential customers according to four types and provides useful sales strategies for each group. For example, "Decision Makers" tend to make quick and efficient choices and if paired with senior sales managers often become easy sales conquests. "Data analysts," on the other hand, usually represent hard negotiators who look for solid logic and clear-cut arguments as to why they should buy a specific brand and model. To win these sales, staff must have solid product and pricing knowledge of the model under consideration and all of its most important peers. The automaker has actually mapped out each segment's behavior characteristics across the sales process. For instance, Data Analysts often prefer to move through the dealer's showroom models alone and then approach sales people with clear and detailed questions. They ask for a written quotation during price negotiations, and typically hate follow-up calls from the dealership, especially if the caller is unknown to them.   

Organizing the sales team

Dealerships that sell premium and mass-market cars at the same outlets have two options when it comes to setting up their sales teams. Under the first, all sales people sell cars from both segments, which can make it difficult to ensure service quality. Furthermore, premium car sales often require steep incentives. The second choice separates the premium sales team from the mass-market one.  It typically results in higher productivity, since the dedicated team knows how best to sell premium cars. It also allows the dealers to present a better image to high-end customers.

Successful premium car dealerships in China often set up their sales organizations with a focus on three different customer-facing roles:

Reception.  Responsibilities include welcoming and guiding customers into the sales process.

Sales.  Takes care of car purchasing negotiations and delivery, introduces customers to different vehicles of interest and makes recommendations.

Product experts.  Understands customer needs and explains the industry, the brand's history and specific vehicle information. In order to build on the premium-only sales team concept, improve customer experience and increase productivity, one automaker introduced a select number of highly trained sales people. Their main responsibilities included understanding customer needs, sharing knowledge about China's auto industry, the brand's history, traditions, its car models, the purchase process, and aftersales services. The company measured the impact of these specialists in terms of longer customer showroom visits, increased satisfaction levels among 90 of the consumers thus served, and a major increase in shopper knowledge about the brand.   

Capturing value-added business

In order to afford to offer the special handling premium customers increasingly demand, more OEMs have begun to increase their participation in four specific value-added businesses.

• Auto financing: OEMs typically become highly involved in this area, competing with banks and finance companies and subsidizing car loans and leases. Their success depends on offering competitive contract terms such as low interest rates and flexible payments. To stand apart from the mass market, premium automakers often offer greater payment flexibility, better interest rates and bigger leasing subsidies. The higher profit levels on these vehicles make the extra benefits possible. 
• Pre-owned cars: Automakers also maintain strong links to dealer pre-owned car sales, providing special discounts and benefits to buyers. Dealers that do well in this area offer vehicles in good condition at fair prices via a convenient process. Premium automakers differentiate themselves by offering highly professional car certification programs. In addition, most premium car-buyers need to dispose of trade-ins and expect highly levels of professional service from their dealers. Consequently, the best premium brands treat their pre-owned car business as an independent, professional service operated by its self-owned finance company and specific dealers.
• Extended warranty: Offering car buyers warranty coverage that extends beyond the initial factory limits provides consumers with extra peace of mind and can generate solid profits for OEMs and dealers alike. Key success factors include depth of coverage, flexible coverage and price. Premium brands give their customers the opportunity to buy different levels of coverage at different vehicle lifecycle stages, as well as full coverage of all key vehicle systems. 
• Auto insurance: Offered by major insurance companies and sold in dealerships, car insurance sales depend largely on coverage price and the insurer's reputation.