10 Best Practices for Selling Aftermarket Products

August 25, 2023

Are you thinking about updating your process for your protection products?  Some dealerships consider adding a menu to their sales toolbelt. Who doesn't like checking out the menu at the restaurant? Sometimes you go in thinking you're just going to have a plain burger, but the pictures and the descriptions entice you to add on the works like fries and dessert. 

The same could be said if you use a menu in your dealership's F&I department – maybe you don't have savory pictures of the delicious tire and wheel protection you want to offer your customers. Still, with the right menu software, you can create presentations unique to each buyer and showcase all of your products in a better light. 

Another way to update your workflow is to create a routine or best practices that your entire dealership can follow to help successfully engage your customers and sell more products.  Read about ten best practices to consider when selling your aftermarket products, in no particular order:
 

    1. Create a Menu Process You'll Use

Any new gadget or software you get requires some adjustment. You might not use it if you have to jump through too many hoops. Many people generally won't follow something too complicated. The same goes for your menu workflow. Remember, a menu is not just a piece of paper with a list of your products but a scalable process. Your menu process should be easy to use with all of your customers, whether you have a busy showroom or not. 

Consider the benefits of interactive and flexible menu software that integrates seamlessly with RouteOne eContracting. You could grow your aftermarket sales and increase the customer experience by adding RouteOne Menu to your sales funnel.

 

    2. Know Your Products

Make sure you know the features and benefits of the products your dealership sells so that you can tailor your presentation to each customer. It's essential to educate your customers and help them realize the value of each product, which is much easier to do when you better understand your product list.

 

    3. Avoid Generic Presentations

Use a customer interview to personalize your presentation. Talking to your buyers about their vehicle needs can help you understand their lifestyle. Learning about a customer goes a long way toward understanding their goals for a successful ownership experience. 

Customer interviews can be a standard process. Buyers receive a personal risk analysis and intelligent product recommendations based on an ever-growing list of key data points. Check out our FLITE® tablet menu for an example of how the interview process works. 
 

    4. Review the Warranty 


Going over the factory warranty with your customer will help illustrate that it does not cover everything - something many consumers mistakenly believe. This educational approach can help your customer understand additional protection products' value – and limitations. Our FLITE tablet menu has a factory warranty tool that automates this process. 

 

    5. Focus on Education and Building Value


Consumers who understand and are more educated on the benefits tend to choose more protection and buy more products. Taking time to build value for specific products will help your customers make better buying decisions, leading to more engagement and potentially higher CSI scores. 

 

    6. Integrate Your Providers for eContracting


You can enjoy workflow benefits when integrating your providers to eContract your aftermarket products. Some providers even support electronic registration and remittance to make your process even more accessible. Reach out to your providers for more details. 

 

    7. Use Accept/Decline Document to Sell More Product 


You know it's important to get customer signatures on the Accept/Decline document for compliance purposes for both buying and declining products. You can also use this step as a "second swing" – an opportunity to sell more products, especially when you add the daily impact of declining the product. 

 

    8. Follow Up On Missed Opportunities


Run some reports at a set time, such as the beginning of the month. Consider sending some communications to a customer to say "thank you for your business" with perhaps a coupon or an incentive to give them another chance to purchase an aftermarket product if they have changed their mind. 

 

    9. Help Get a Better Rate


Don't always accept what your sales managers submit to your F&I department. Consider finding a better lending rate for customers that could give them more funds to work with in terms of buying more protection products. 

 

   10. Standardize pricing and discounting practices


Don't run into trouble with discounts. Make sure you document why you gave a customer a special deal. Consult the NADA Model Dealership Voluntary Protection Products Policy for more information.  


View the RouteOne Menu in Action


Learn how using a menu can enhance your F&I process, help you create an end-to-end workflow, and boost your bottom line. Sign up for a quick, personalized demo today and see what you've been missing.