Our manufacturers and vendors can answer this question easily about their own businesses, but can the dealers? A product is a “thing produced by labor or effort. “A “thing” isn’t always something physically tangible. Before we jump into digital retailing, let’s get down to fundamentals.

What is the product of a car dealership?

This isn’t a question anyone ever answered for me directly. It wasn’t something anyone directly trained me on, as I think it was just assumed I knew it.

The product of a dealership is the dealership.

I must admit, it is quite the duh statement. There really isn’t anything special about it, but once it is stated so plainly it makes all the sense in the world. Was this ever defined for you?

Now that we know our product is our dealership let’s talk about what a quality product is. We also know what that is. It is simply something you want to buy. The level of the quality determines the price.  It is a brand; it is a reputation. A quality product easily creates referrals, it doesn’t have to ask for reviews, and it generates fans.

Look at Apple. They build operating systems, but there are plenty of choices in operating systems. So why do Apple’s customers hang on its every new “thing” and talk about it like they’re part of a cult? Why do they pay more for it over and over and over again?

We can talk about Apple and everything they do all day long, but I’d rather you think about how your dealership is a product.

How is your dealership a quality product?

Is it time you define that for your coworkers and staff?

Originally posted on DealerRefresh