Martin Chevrolet-Buick-GMC has become an open book. The Texas dealership posts a list of incoming vehicles online so it can turn that inventory faster.
Customers can browse the frequently updated spreadsheet of what’s in transit and in production and then call, text or chat online with the sales team to reserve a vehicle with a refundable $1,000 deposit. From August through December, reserved vehicles accounted for 17 percent of the store’s new-vehicle sales, increased sales team engagement and improved turn rate, said Janet Martin-Clark, vice president of the store in Cleveland, Texas.
At the end of January, the store had 75 in-production vehicles listed, seven of which were reserved or had pending reservations, and 21 in-transit vehicles featured, eight of which were reserved or pending.
The store came up with the strategy in response to the global microchip shortage that has hampered vehicle production industrywide and left dealership lots sparse. During the past year, many dealers have encouraged customers to preorder a vehicle to ensure the right one is available when they want it.
“Customers know that nobody has inventory — not the popular inventory at least,” said Efrain Salazar, the store’s sales manager. “They’re calling our salespeople to know what’s out there. So it’s easier for us and easier for the customer to send them a spreadsheet, let them know what’s available, what’s coming in. And if they want to reserve it, they can do that.”
The spreadsheet has helped the dealership focus on turning incoming inventory as fast as possible rather than relying on the limited number of vehicles in stock, Martin-Clark said. Nearly all of the dealership’s Chevy Tahoe and GMC Yukon large SUVs and heavy-duty Chevy Silverado and GMC Sierra pickups are reserved, and the store has even logged reservations for less popular models, such as the Chevy Spark minicar.
Martin-Clark said she hopes the faster turn rate will help the store earn larger inventory allocations from General Motors long term.
“Maybe it’s helped,” she said. “It’s been hard to get inventory, but we sold more.”
The dealership sold 492 new vehicles in 2021, 76 more than the year before, she said.
If GM lowers inventory from pre-pandemic bloated levels once the chip crisis subsides, “I want to be prepared for that scenario,” Martin-Clark said.
“If you’ve got someone lined up the day it gets there, your turn is one day,” she said.
The new process also has broadened the skill sets of the sales team, Salazar said. It helps sales associates learn “how to work the customers to their needs or wants as opposed to just selling them something that’s here,” he said. They can “help the customer find what they’re really looking for.”
Many dealerships have accepted preorders while inventory has been tight, but the easy access to Martin Chevrolet-Buick-GMC’s spreadsheet sets it apart.
“Since I’ve been here at the store for nearly seven years, Janet has always built this transparency with customers,” Salazar said. “Why not empower our customers and give them that information so they feel more comfortable with the process and actually know we’re trying to help them as opposed to just selling the car?”