It is essential that all of your employees understand how their individual roles tie in with your mission, no matter which department they are in. With well-defined values, the whole company can be focused on the same objectives, leading to more success and ultimately moving more inventory. Without a well defined culture and alignment of goals, your dealership isn’t able to work as efficiently.
This is where a Business Development Center can prove beneficial by supporting the objectives of all other departments.
RVDA 2023 is coming up November 6-10 in Las Vegas and Paige Bouma, Chief Sales Officer of RV Trader, will be delivering a presentation on how these centers can improve your dealership’s culture and success. Here is what you should know ahead of the presentation.
What Is a Business Development Center
It is beneficial to understand the purpose and role of Business Development Centers (BDCs) before delving into their effectiveness. A BDC is a team within an organization that manages various activities related to business growth and customer management. The responsibilities of BDCs can vary depending on your dealership’s need, but they are overall focused on generating and managing leads, nurturing leads, and supporting sales and marketing efforts. This can lead to better communication between departments and ultimately helps to shape an effective business strategy. Now that we have defined what a BDC is, let’s dive into the value they can bring to an organization’s overall culture.
Improved Cross functionality
BDCs are the crucial link between teams, providing better communication and collaboration to meet your overall mission, increased sales and leads for your dealership. Think of the BDC as the middle of the sales funnel. Your marketing team starts the process by capturing in-market customers at the top of the funnel, then the BDC works on these leads to get them ready for the sales team and finally, the sales team closes the sale. By working together, these teams provide a smooth purchase journey for the customer.
Managing Customer Rapport
The BDC team is dedicated to fostering relationships between buyers and your dealership, so that the other teams can concentrate on maximizing profits and sales. From start to finish, this part of your organization will be there to give customers pre-purchase and post-sales support. This will allow the BDC team to assess the quality of the lead and guarantee that your marketing efforts are steering buyers in the right direction. The BDC team will also make sure that the buyer has all the information and resources they need prior to meeting with the sales rep, including a timeslot.
Provide Consumer Insights
By incorporating a BDC into your company, you will be able to take a more consumer-centric approach which will allow you to gain deeper insights into your buyers. The BDC team will not only be responsible for pushing leads through to the sales team, but they will also collect any pre- and post-purchase data to inform your process. Through detailed reports, they will be able to compile all the critical information that will be invaluable to all departments. The data that can be gained from the BDC team will help your teams to be more informed and you will be able to tailor your approach to any buyer, allowing you to make more informed decisions.
Overall, this team will ensure that your departments are aligned to focus on the customer and drive greater results and keep your doors revolving with satisfied buyers. Once you decide to implement a BDC, it’s time to outline how you will build this team. With the following tips, you will be able to build a successful new segment of your company.
Pro Tips for Building a BDC
Determine the Function
To determine the purpose of your BDC, you must consider the areas in your business which could benefit from additional support. Thinking about the objectives of your dealership can help you decide how the BDC team should operate. For instance, it may be advantageous to have the BDC team manage leads from a particular channel to optimize time spent on the sales floor. Alternatively, you may want the BDC to handle re-engaging prospects. Consider the needs of your dealership and then determine the focus of the BDC. From there, you’ll be able to start assigning roles, procedures, and timelines for implementation.
Hire and Retain Team Members
To ensure this team is successful in its integration, you need to recruit the ideal team to achieve your goals. Begin by assessing the experience level each role requires. It may be beneficial to add entry-level positions to bring in new talent that can grow with the BDC. This will be a new team, so you can shape it to reflect your company values and culture. Keep in mind, company culture is a key factor in maintaining new employees. Consider all aspects of your employee benefits, training, onboarding procedures, and other offers when evaluating your team.
Determine KPIs
It is essential to determine performance metrics before beginning to make sure that the BDC’s goals are in line with each department. Leverage your values to observe how the goals of your BDC fit into the company’s greater mission and make sure to explain this to the new staff. Let them know how the KPIs correspond to the bigger purpose. You can track success through sales percentages or even the number of links formed. Start small and observe how the results look, then make changes accordingly.
Once you determine the goals and clearly establish the roles of your sales and BDC teams, you can optimize your marketing efforts and increase profitability with the help of BDCs. With the right strategies in place, you can watch your company flourish.
To learn more, make sure to catch Paige Bouma’s upcoming presentation during RVDA. In the meantime, check out this in-depth guide for more tips and takeaways.
