Top 3 Sales Tips: The Dealer For the People

If you’re in the Louisville area and you’ve tuned into any of the popular radio stations, chances are you’ve heard the bombastic advertisements for Tony Malito, “The Dealer for the People.”

Since Knox Budget Car Sales opened its doors over 20 years ago, it has grown to be the top used car dealership in the Commonwealth of Kentucky. El Toro figured we could learn some of his team’s sales methodology, so we invited Malito to share some of his wisdom with our team.

Here’s Tony Malito’s top tips for optimizing sales and how to apply them to digital advertising:

“We don’t sell cars, we solve transportation problems.”

Being a used car salesman is difficult because of the stereotypes that follow it. Know of any other industry that is similar? That’s right, advertising. Malito explains that every sales lead is in a different situation and has a unique challenge to overcome, but they are in need of one thing: transportation. This means understanding the problems that brought their clients to their doorstep, outfitting them with the vehicle and financing that suits their needs and situation, and eventually following the purchase with excellent service. In advertising, with a plethora of marketing problems to be solved, the right strategy is of utmost importance. Transparent analytics and post-campaign results like El Toro’s Matchback Analysis prove that your campaign solved a marketing problem.

“Take two shots of espresso and a scoop of rainbow ice cream.”

That’s Malito’s preparation routine before recording his signature, high-energy ads. He says sales are 95% mental and place a premium on goal setting and the preparation to meet them. That’s why his sales team is trained to overcome common objections. Given that El Toro is a new, emerging technology, it can sometimes be difficult to prove its value to certain prospects-- even if their product seems perfect to market with El Toro. Understanding that pushback might occur, an in-depth understanding of the product or an alternate plan of approach will always help while pitching a client.

“Diversify and ask for help when you need it.”

No singular tool or process will be the ‘silver bullet’ that will sell everything every time. Different approaches to create leads and handle them allowed the dealership to hone its sales goals. With the great recession wreaking havoc on the auto industry, Malito had to seek out the help of a mastermind group, and out of the ashes, through trial and error, came the radio ads, a robust digital strategy, and a mindset to reinvent the used-car-buying experience. With a multitude of biased narratives in the ad tech world, it would be irresponsible of El Toro to claim itself as the 8th marvel of the modern world. We are perfectly aware that campaigns that use a combination of advertising tools outperform those that do not, so an omni channel marketing approach that is honed over time, provides value, and solves problems is a strategy that works for everyone, not just The Dealer for the People.