Tag Archives: Down Payments

Special Finance: Why Your Call Center Matters

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A special finance department is nothing without customers. Great inventory, a perfected pitch, and rigid compliance don’t mean much if people aren’t walking in the door, and the most effective way to get potential customers in the door is by simply picking up the phone.

A call center devoted exclusively to setting appointments is absolutely essential to any special finance department. It isn’t enough to double up the sales team’s responsibilities and put them on the phones for a few hours a day. They need to be working with customers and worrying about selling cars. Besides that, sales people tend to get too in-depth and try to sell the person over the phone.

A good phone rep will leave a sense of mystery and get the customer excited about the appointment instead of going overboard with interest rates, down payments, and other details. This isn’t just our opinion. In a recent article, Special Finance Insider Greg Goebel wrote, “I have proven over and over again that a well-managed call center/BDC will deliver better results with a better ROI.”

With Special Finance Group’s Complete Special Finance Solution, your dealership will get our highly trained call center that will set and track your appointments while instilling a sense of urgency and excitement in the customer. Our call scripts are written by a telemarketing veteran, and every day, we listen to our phone reps and our customers’ feedback to tweak and improve those scripts. Customers will show up to their appointments with all their proper documentation and ready to get a car if they are approved. It streamlines the car buying process, helping your sales team sell more cars.

Want to learn more about the Complete Special Finance Solution? Go to http://www.specialfinancegroup.com, and get the latest news from Special Finance Group by liking us on Facebook, following us on Twitter, and connecting with us on LinkedIn.

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NBC: Auto Industry Is “Little Engine That Could” In Recovering Economy

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Looking at America’s current economic situation, there are many industries that are still struggling for a comeback, but one industry is thriving in 2012 and is literally driving the economy.

2012 has been a good year for the auto industry. Sales are up, delinquencies are down, and auto loans are more accessible than ever. NBC’s Bottom Line praised the auto industry’s success and high sales in the United States despite the challenges facing the industry, and they dubbed the auto industry the “little engine that could” referring to the famous children’s book character. In the book, a long train of cars needs to be pulled over a mountain, and all of the big engines complain and refuse to pull it. When no one steps up, a little engine volunteers for the job, even as everyone around him says he can’t pull the train over the mountain. In the end, he beats the odds, and his mantra “I-think-I-can” turns into “I-thought-I-could.”

While praise is encouraging and can push people to work harder, it is better to be a big dog than an underdog. It is better for people to always expect great things than to be surprised when a dealership posts big profits. Do you want people to look at your dealership and think, I think they can, or do you want them to think, Of course they can? Part of becoming a “big dog” is utilizing a dealership to its fullest potential, and Special Finance Group can help a dealership realize that potential. With the Complete Special Finance Solution, a dealership can move more inventory, serve more customers, and bring in more customers to every other department including parts and service.

To learn more about Special Finance Group and the Complete Special Finance Solution, go to http://www.specialfinancegroup.com. You can also connect with Special Finance Group on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.

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Car Sales Rise as Delinquency Rate Drops

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With car sales improving due to the economy seeing better times, it also translates to people being better about paying their bills on time. According to Transunion, the fourth quarter of 2011 was only the third time in the past 10 years that the national auto delinquency rate did not rise. According to the report, the rate of delinquency rate of borrowers 60 days or more days actually decreased for the ninth consecutive quarter.

Petere Turek, the automotive vice president of Transunion’s finance services said about the decrease, “Except in 2009 where there was no change and in 2003 where there was about a 4% drop, auto delinquency rates have shown upward movements between third and fourth quarters averaging in excess of 5%, ending the year flat is particularly interesting, because the number of new auto loans coming onto the books has consistently increased since the end of the recession, a primary driver of which has been an expansion in lending to consumers in the subprime market.”

 Transunion predicts that the delinquency rate will remain the same between the end of 2011 and 2012. They also predict that the auto industry will see an increase in demand for new and used vehicles. They definitely see that as people start to go back to work, they will be paying their bills.

 This is where Special Finance Group comes in. They work with dealerships to help generate more traffic. People are ready to get into new and used cars and signing up with SFG’s program is the way to make sure they are going to your dealership. Call today at 212-239-7270 or go online for more information. Like them on Facebook as well to see all the latest news.

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Tax Returns = Higher Down Payments = Lower Interest Rates

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Every new year brings with it many new things. Some of these things are resolutions like to get more sleep or to lost some weight. One thing that usually is forgotten from the start is that a new year is also time to do the taxes. Now is the time of the year where people start to send them in and will begin to receive their tax returns. Getting a tax return is also something to try to figure out what to do with.

According to an article in Yahoo Finance, the majority of people will be looking to pay off most of the debts they have accumulated throughout the year and in the holiday shopping season. There are some, however, that are looking for options. Many dealerships are keeping this in mind as they have begun to advertise just what intrepid buyers should do with the bundle of cash, use it for a down payment on a new car.

The lending climate of 2012 is starting to show an upswing. Improvements are starting to be seen as the economy starts to recover. Even with these conditions, however, sub-prime customers will still be expected to pay significant down payments. That’s definitely not a deal breaker at this point, though. The average tax return of 2011 was $2,913. That means that a perspective customer might be walking around with around $3,000. It is a great opportunity for dealerships to take advantage of encouraging a customer to come in to put a larger down payment towards the purchase of a new car. The difference between putting $1,000 down and $3,000 down can be about $50 a month.

The demand for sub-prime loaning is picking up this year. Now is your chance to sign up with Special Finance Group’s Complete Special Finance Solution. You can learn more about this program here and go to http://www.specialfinancegroup.com to find out more. You can also follow us on Facebook.

Image: Arvind Balaraman / FreeDigitalPhotos.net