Kristen Stanton: Thanks for taking the time to speak to our readers, David.  El Dorado is having phenomenal success with your Internet department. How do you do it?

David Underwood: I wouldn’t say we’re uniquely talented. You deliver a quality prospect in our back yard and we’ll sell to them.  Anyone who is big enough to call themselves a sales person is going to have success with a quality prospect. Of course, we have talented people and our response times are good.

KS: You’re being too modest! Your close rates are around 35-38%. You’re doing something right.

DU: In our business development center, there are three people who are dedicated to the Internet.  And they’re very good.  I am not afraid to pay for talent.  That’s true.  Compensation for our Internet sales people is higher.  We also track everything.  And we like to tweak the territories where the leads are from. We need that flexibility.

KS: Does your market area play a role in your success then?

DU: We are in a unique area because people from McKinney like to spend money in McKinney and they’re also very experienced on the Internet.  But let me say this to you, we also have a limited area to pull from.  We’re not an exotic.  We’re not the only Lamborghini dealer around.  There are other guys out there selling Chryslers and Jeeps, so we go after different areas, different territories.    

KS: So your strategy is to get leads from outside your immediate sales territory?

DU: Right.

KS: When measuring your success with your Internet program, what metrics do you track?

DU: Everything. Close ratios. Appointment sets. Appointment shows. Overall cost per lead. Cost per sale.  We also track close rates for each lead provider.

KS: What would you say is your cost per car sold with your Internet leads?

DU: With Dealix leads it’s about $70. That’s what we consider the advertising cost. Of course, there are many other costs associated with that sale, but those are no different from floor sales.  We have a sales office that supports our Internet sales people.

KS: What percent of your dealership’s overall sales would you say come from the Internet?

DU: Well, it varies month-to-month, but I would say about 40-50%, sometimes better.

KS: Looking forward, what role do you see the Internet playing in El Dorado’s overall sales?

DU: Well, I’ll tell you this, if we can continue to keep our close rates up around 35% with our Internet leads, I’m going to buy two tickets to paradise!