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Need some help with compensation

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NHHarleyguy

NHHarleyguy

Rust & Dust
May 9, 2012
25
2
First Name
John
#1
First of all there seems to be a very similar thread posted almost weekly...

This is what I do. How much should I be paid?

But here is my current situation. I left a career in real estate four years ago to come work at the local Harley-Davidson dealership. I had no experience in the auto industry or retail sales. We are in NH so it is a somewhat seasonal business and after four years I am running the internet department and I am solely responsible for roughly 20% of the total yearly sales. There are three stores in this dealer group and we have a separate bdc (call center) fielding all incoming calls and managing chat. I am the only one in the internet department and I have grown it to the point that I could use some help.

I currently manage online inventory and field all online inquiries etc. I handle the deals from the cradle to the grave and still have to run my deals by the desk. I also manage the social media along with marketing and help with website design, seo, lead providers and crm, chat vendors etc. I have designed a process for all internet leads and have written email scripts, created drip email campaigns for abandoned deals and plenty of other things that I am forgetting.

I have consistently been at a 12% - 14% close ratio with healthy margins both front and back. My total sales have steadily increased over the past three years and I am typically selling 40 - 50 more units than the highest producing floor sales associate. I am making decent money hourly plus commission.

The problem is, I'm not sure how to take the next step. I am looking at a few possibilities for advancement and can't figure out how to design a compensation plan to make it work for me.

Option 1. Remain at this one dealership and be appointed the "Internet Manager" (I a currently operating as such without the manager benefits ie: demo, salary etc) with the ability to hire a dedicated Internet Sales person. The internet department has grown since I have been here and I would need to know how to make sure that I don't lose money by handing over deals to a sales person. I have no prior industry experience and I'm not sure how to design a compensation plan that rewards department performance and will make up for the commissions lost by sharing internet sales.

Option 2. Run the internet department for all three stores in our dealership group with a dedicated internet sales associate at each location. Currently we are the only location with a dedicated internet department. This option presents a few obstacles such as travel to each location weekly and taking pics, videos etc, managing online inventory and again designing a compensation plan that will make it worth my while to take a step back from front line sales.

I am basically looking for a way to operate the internet department like a mini sales department either in one store or across three and make more money than I am currently. I have more to offer than just selling at this point! Any advice would be greatly appreciated!
 
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#4
I was just curious. For me the next intuitive step would be to approach your General Manager and explain your desire to build a True Internet Sales Department Powerhouse. If he gives you the cold shoulder, Walk and do it elsewhere. What I'd really like to know is what you think would be different elsewhere? And do you think you could accomplish same or better results at a different retail location without any fear. I think knowing the answer(s) to these questions may be helpful in better plotting your next move. Good luck! Let us know how it works out
 
#5
Daniel, thanks for the reply. I should make it clear that I have no desire to go elsewhere at this point. I am just looking for a way to further develop the internet department at my current location or dealer group and figure out the next step. I am always looking to grow and advance and I feel as if I have hit a ceiling at this point.
 
#7
I am currently averaging about 70 internet derived leads per month but in season (Memorial Day to Labor Day) 130 is not unusual. I am tracking my close percentage based on incoming leads and not appointments. Currently I am closing 10% of all internet derived leads or inquiries and 18 - 20% of referrals, walk-ins etc. I am also planning on signing up with a lead provider as all the current traffic is directly from the website and social media so the number of leads will likely climb 20 - 30% or so per month.
 
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#9
Wow... Jan 7, 2014... Time flies when you are having fun! I wanted to revive this thread and pose the same question for an entirely new situation. I am currently internet manager for a three store dealer group here in New England. I have one designated sales consultant/bdc rep paid hourly with show/sold spiffs for all appointments. We field all incoming internet leads, chat, 3rd party etc and turn them into door swings. There is a seperate BDC for all other (service, parts etc) calls for the three stores. I have agreed to salary for year one while getting the internet department up and running and Here are my 1st year stats. I am due for my review and would like some insight as far as what to base my pay plan on. We are currently closing 17% of all incoming leads (non-responsive etc I am counting everything). We turn 33% into appointments and of those, 75% show and 55% buy. We hand the deals off to the sales staff when the customer arrives and I am available as a closer if needed for whichever location I happen to be at.
In addition to managing the internet department I am also responsible for creating, implementing and training all sales staff on an organized follow up process as well as our CRM. I have created all templates etc and I am responsible for managing all 3rd party lead providers and vendors as well as online inventory, tracking etc. I have recently dug into our analytics and I am interested in improving our performance as far as conversion rate etc but that is an entirely different discussion!
In short, how should my pay plan be structured and what should I be looking to improve?
 
#10
Before I started my own business I was an eCom dir for a 10 store group with a 25 person centralized BDC. I have seen just about every pay plan setup out during my time prior to and after then and the plan i setup in that role was by far the best in terms of avoiding conflict between me/my team and ownership and rewarding me for the teams efforts. I feel this plan would require you also take ownership of the service/parts team and grow the department.

Here is a quick summary:
  • Base Salary
  • Per unit bonus above agreed to minimum (this is for the entire groups sales - not just from the internet department). Say you set the floor at 300, it would be a specific $ per car above that. So say the per unit is $20 and you sell 350, you get $1000
  • Quarterly CSI - you should receive this as the sales managers do. Since you have 3 stores create a maximum payout and then take the % of the stores that are above their zone. For example max = $1000 and 2 stores are above zone you get $666.67
  • Budget Effectiveness. This is a tricky one because it means they have to give you more control. I don't know you so its hard for me to say if you deserve it...
    • Here is how it works, they set the per unit 'from above' at say 300. They give you a $ amount per unit you can use to pay for your department (personal, digital advertising, training etc.) This also includes your pay btw. So say $50-75 a unit. That gives you a total budget of $22,500. The per unit amount can increase over time as you take on more responsibility. You take the actual sales at the EOM x the agreed upon per unit. The difference is how efficient you were. You agree with mgmt on how much you should retain of the difference or come up with agreed to tiers.
For a multi store Internet Director this is in my opinion the best way compensate. If gives you the freedom to try new products and tweak your staff - aka ownership of your department. It also means you and the dealer have to 100% communicate what is included and whats not in your budget. This must be very clear.
 
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