Turning a Missed Call into a Teachable Moment: My Encounter with a Car Salesman

Recently, I was helping my daughter buy a car. I researched what we were looking for and called the local Mazda dealership to speak to a salesperson. But the conversation went differently than planned.

Once connected to a salesperson, I said, “Here’s the car I want. Here’s the stock number of the car from your website. I want to make a deal on the car. I am ready to buy.” He replied, “Hey, I have a customer coming in. Can I call you back when I’m done?” I said sure, but I never heard back.

The next day, I called the salesperson back and said, “Hey, you never called back.” He responded by telling me how busy he was and simply forgot to return my call. I took it upon myself to make this a learning opportunity for him.

I asked him, “Are you the top salesperson in the country for Mazda?” He wasn’t; according to him, he wasn’t even close. “Okay, then,” I said. “Can you send me your to-do list? I want to see what’s higher on your list than calling back a prospect who told you he was ready to buy today.”

Of course, I’ve asked MSP leaders this question many times over the years, especially after I noticed something that could make an immediate difference in the business, and it just wasn’t getting done. This concept separates achievers from others.

Most people aren’t lazy. We’re all busy all day long. The difference is what we spend our time on. In the case of the car salesman, he doesn’t have a process to manage how to do the most important things first — do you?