Prioritize your time to grow your business

Identify where your talent is best applied and focus your approach.

Dan Peterson | SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT, DEALER SALES AND MARKETING

An independent AMSOIL Dealership can grow into something of significant value, but like any business, that takes time. We continually talk about the need for balance between building a team of Dealers, establishing retail and commercial accounts and selling to Preferred Customers and catalog customers. This kind of balanced approach to building your customer base helps reduce the effects of a downturn in one particular area, just like diversity helps protect your retirement account when the stock market falls.

That said, many Dealers have precious little time to invest in their Dealerships. In fact, our 2017 Dealer survey revealed that most Dealers spend just 10 hours per week on their Dealerships. Not everyone has the time to become proficient selling through multiple sales channels, so I’m going to talk about the benefits of focusing on a couple areas versus all channels at once.

You’ve heard the term “Jack of all trades.” Its usage dates to the 14th Century, when “Jack” was a derivative of the common name “John.” You can find a good example in John Gower’s  Middle-English poem Confessio Amantis from the year 1390, which I’m sure is resting on your nightstand right now. It originally referred to someone who knew something about many things. It was a term of endearment, but somewhere along the way, someone added the phrase “master of none,” giving it a derogatory tone.

In today’s high-tech world, it’s more difficult to be a Jack in all trades Sometimes, having minimal time to invest in your AMSOIL business is to blame. How can you become a lubrication expert, acquire a deep knowledge of AMSOIL products, develop online skills, learn the AMSOIL Retail and Commercial Programs and build a team of successful Dealers in your first few years as a Dealer why raising kids and working another fulltime job? Wow, that is a mouthful. The answer is, you probably can’t, so you have to set priorities and make choices.

We at AMSOIL are tuned into this reality more today. We know that it’s difficult to read everything we send out, complete all the training courses in AU Online, attend on-site events and keep up on all the changes to our policies and programs. In addition, becoming really good at selling to a specific type of customer, like commercial businesses, takes a big time investment and development of your approach. The investment is large, but the prize can be large, too.

So, how should you prioritize your limited time?

Find an area you really like and direct your energy toward areas where you have natural talent. If you love social media and know the ins and outs of Instagram or Facebook, build your digital presence and focus on finding prospects online. If you have a natural inclination for talking face-to-face with people, focus on attending trade shows, car shows and similar events. Learn a lot and ask questions. Watch Dealers who are finding success in your prioritized area. Keep your nose to the grindstone and don’t get discouraged. The point is, develop your talent where it’s best applied and don’t worry about trying to do everything at once or be everything to all people.

We’re taking steps to help Dealers find success despite your limited time. For example, we recently asked Dealers who’ve reached Direct Jobber status and above to complete a survey to determine their future plans. It was designed to provide a glimpse of your goals for your AMSOIL business and where you want to focus your time. Some of the questions purposely allowed for just one answer so that we could find out where you most want to focus your limited time. Since we generate so much information designed to help Dealers be successful, we want to make sure we’re not inundating you with material that is of little interest. On the other hand, we want to create a flow of information in the areas of high interest and get this information to you in a fashion that you can readily consume.

We’re currently reviewing the responses and looking at ways to provide you custom information that interests you. We live in a world overflowing with data. We must pick and choose what information we consume and where we focus our limited time. Look for changes in the way we get information to you about your independent Dealer business in the months ahead.

Find out more from the horses mouth about becoming a dealer in this lucrative business.