Elmer Leterman, a highly successful insurance broker and author, once wrote, “The average human being in any line of work could double his productive capacity overnight if he began right now to do all the things he knows he should do and stop doing all the things he knows he should not do.”

F&I managers should channel a similar mindset when conducting business, and following a few tried and true practices can better your business.

#1. Project the Right Image

Dress for success. Customers need to know you’re in a position of authority and an expert in your field. You can tell a great deal about the occupant of an office from the arrangement of items on the desk and the level of neatness. Customers will form their first impression of you from the state of your office, so ensure that the impression is positive. Don’t just think you’re a manager be one.

#2. Be Accessible

Make your presence known on the showroom floor by getting involved in the structure of each deal. Early involvement promotes collaboration between the sales and F&I departments in the structuring of deals. Getting involved early and often in the sales process will ease the customer into the financial transition as well as keep you aware of the deals progress.

#3. Eliminate Being Blindsided

Don’t be surprised by the unknown customer who suddenly appears and wants to take delivery of their vehicle. Once an agreement is reached between the customer and the sales staff, the F&I department must get involved to ensure the accuracy of the transaction and make an effort to maximize profits.

#4. Don’t Waste Time

Getting to the customer quickly eases them into the F&I transition as they become less resistant and more receptive to your offerings. Make an introduction that allows for verification of the deal’s information prior to entering the information into your DMS. Making a formal introduction allows for a better transition to the F&I portion of the transaction and helps establish better rapport and credibility.

#5. Make an Introduction

Eliminate the dreaded walk to the finance office. Make an introduction as quickly as possible and where the customer is most relaxed, on the showroom floor. Set their expectations early on by telling them who you are, what you need to do for them, and how long it’s going to take. customers will become less resistant and more receptive to your offerings when greeted promptly. There are two primary advantages when conducting an introduction — it solidifies the transaction and gives you the opportunity to make a proper assessment of your customer. Making the proper assessment puts you on the right track with your customer and creates better communication and a foundation for logical dialog while handling their resistance to your offerings.

#6. Customize Products on Customer Needs, Not Yours

How you ask questions is very important in establishing a basis for good communication. Why, what, how, and when are very powerful words. Use them often to seek — either for yourself or your customer — the answers needed to make a successful presentation. Making the proper assessment of your customer is critical to your success, it allows for better communication and promotes logical dialog while handling their resistance to your offerings.

#7. Sell Based on the Customer’s Criteria Not Your Own

During your introduction use the worksheet or purchase an sales agreement along with the credit application to verify and gather information that will benefit your product and services presentation. Assess how the customer will use the vehicle, ownership length and miles they drive, how they maintain it, and what is most important to them.

#8. Show You Care

Customers who understand that you care about them and their circumstances are more likely to buy from you than those who sense that you are just trying to sell them something. Getting to them quickly and setting their expectations along with asking questions pertaining to their ownership traits shows them you care.

#9. Stop Shotgunning Deals

Show the sales and management staff you know where to go with the deal. Don’t shotgun deals. Know your lenders’ guidelines, always be honest with them, treat them as a partner, and do the bulk of your business with a few preferred lenders. In the banking business, volume allows a more diverse portfolio, giving them more ability to buy the marginal and even potentially bad deals.

#10. Consistently Follow a Specific Effective Process

It all starts with establishing a solid foundation to work from along with a reliable process that delivers great results. It’s through your willingness to consistently operate under it once established that will be the difference. Stop winging it and realize you have a whole lot of chores to accomplish along with a huge responsibility that the sales, sales management, and dealer principal, as well as yourself, rely on.

Gerry Gould is the founder of Gerry Gould & Associates.