There are three levels of belief in what we provide for clients in the F&I process: Everyone has an opinion; many believe in a set of purposes for their efforts; and then there is F&I Conviction.

A simple definition of conviction is “a fixed or firmly held belief in a thing or purpose.” We must have an iron-clad and fixed commitment to what we do for our clients. Conviction says that if a client needs a product or package we offer, and they leave without it, we are obligated to examine our process. Did we share compelling evidence with them? What were our efforts to help them see how this product would fill their needs? Conviction demands we are well-researched and well-practiced in our ability to move clients to make positive buying decisions in connection with their vehicle purchases. If we fail to communicate our conviction about what we do and what we offer, we have failed our clients. There are two areas that conviction demands we focus on.

Customer focus is conviction demonstrated. The biggest difference between selling a client and helping them is to focus the entire process on the client, what they need, and what is best for them. We must embrace the concept that “it is not about us; the process must be all about the client.” When we become intimately familiar with the situation of each client, they know we are focusing on them. It is not important that the client understands us, it is critical that they know we understand them! When that happens, the solutions we offer are directly tied to their situation, and their needs are met by the solutions we offer. We know that everyone hates to be sold! It makes you feel as if someone outsmarted you. And in today’s economic climate, when someone feels they are being sold, they take their money and run. They may be running from the very things they need. So, to genuinely help them, we must focus on them. Seek to understand more than to be understood and move them to buy the things that make sense in their situation. That process will always lead to higher profits and satisfied customers!

Strategic preparation is conviction being built. Conviction is the result of intense research and the development of common-sense information that is compelling and trustworthy. One word that defines conviction more than any other is proof! We can no longer just tell a client something and expect them to believe us. Conviction demands that proof be developed and presented to every client. You can’t just tell a customer that vehicle repairs have increased by 20% in the last 12 months. You must show them the research! In grade school we learned that assignments turned in without “showing your work” were considered incomplete, and it led to failure. The same thing happens in the F&I office. Show your work – where did you obtain the information you are sharing? Can you place the evidence in their hands? The minute you place something in the client’s hands, you increase acceptance levels of everything you discuss! 

What are you learning each month, and what new information are you showing clients this month? Specific and compelling answers to these two questions are the key to your conviction level and higher levels of helping each customer. The natural result of all of this is that they see value in the solutions we offer.

Moving from belief to conviction will transform our processes and our results, thereby leading us higher up the trail of peak performance. See you on the way up!

Rick McCormick is national account development manager for Reahard & Associates.