Someone needs to tell your in-store trainer, your development company, your agent, and anyone else who needs to know that the '90s called. And, well, they want their F&I presentation back.

I realize there are some amazing men and women out there who grab a customer's attention and get results. I'm not talking about them. I'm talking about the trainer who is only reading word-tracks out of a book and practicing role-playing scenarios that don't model real-life transactions. Many of these training models were developed in the 1980s and '90s and were relatively effective back then — despite the impracticality of word-tracks like the "NASCAR close."

It Used to Work

From 1945 to 1965, Americans had the highest standard of living the country had ever seen. Production levels were high and unemployment was low. We made some of the best products on Earth. Of course, much of the rest of the world had been devastated during World War II. We had a robust economy and people had lots of disposable income. Times were good — but nothing lasts forever.

Things changed by the time we reached the '70s. People were fed up and distrustful of American politics and industry. The theme of the decade became Nixon, Vietnam, oil embargoes, and cheaply made Japanese cars. Still, in 1972, General Motors was the largest company in the world — but it was overdue for a reality check.

Professor James O'Toole of the University of Southern California's Marshall School of Business conducted a study of GM when it was at the height of its success. His research team came to ten conclusions that showed the world had changed but GM had not. Among them: foreign automakers would never exceed 15% of the U.S. market, energy would always be cheap, and consumers weren't concerned about quality or social issues.

Stephen Hawking once said, "Intelligence is the ability to adapt to change." GM clearly failed that test. It began a downward spiral that eventually led to Chairman Rick Wagoner begging Congress for bailout money in 2008. Had the company adapted in the 1970s, the story might have ended very differently.

Signs of the Times

The National Consumer Law Center (NCLC) submitted a report to Congress analyzing 1.8 million vehicle transactions and almost three million add-on product sales between September 2009 and June 2015. Their conclusion: inconsistent pricing for the same add-ons leads to pricing discrimination.

Events like finance sources changing reserve income limits and Congress scrutinizing F&I pricing models are indicators of cultural change. The good news is that no one is trying to prevent you from making a profit — not even customers. But they do want to be treated fairly. If your dealership notices this and works toward that goal, you will earn more profit.

I recently spoke with a customer who put it plainly: "I understand making a profit. I just don't want you to make all of it on me." Most people feel exactly the same way. The problem comes when salespeople and F&I managers try to conceal information. Once that happens, say goodbye to a profitable and positive sales experience for all parties. That's when resistance builds — and resistance costs money.

"Getting six 'No's before closing your customer is a problem. We need to behave in a manner that does not create objections in the first place."

Change Happens — Whether You're Ready or Not

Nobody likes change. We seem to be programmed to reject it. Have you ever noticed how many people still listen to the same music they listened to in high school? That's an appropriate metaphor for the F&I box, because most of today's F&I training was designed in the '80s and '90s — also known as the "boom years" among veteran business managers.

We enjoyed robust financial growth and relatively contained military engagements. The culture of America is different than it was in the '90s. People are different. They are sick of the status quo, just like they were in the '70s. And the F&I training from that era has become ineffective and obsolete in many ways.

Getting six "No"s before closing your customer is a problem. In fact, just trying to overcome objections is a problem. We need to behave in a manner that does not create objections in the first place.

Almost every time someone outside the auto industry asks what I do for a living, their response includes a horror story about buying — or not buying — a car somewhere. This week, it was about a Mazda purchase and three different managers doing turn-overs trying to close a vehicle service contract. They failed, and their customer is still telling the story of how she'll never buy from them again.

The Cost of Outdated Training

Bad training has put F&I departments on the chopping block in some stores. The young woman in a widely shared YouTube training video graduated in 2016 and was out of the car business a couple months later. This is what's wrong with many F&I departments: it's unrealistic. Customers don't want to sit through 25 minutes of "Buy it or bad things will happen." If they do sit through it, it's only because they want the car. They'll skip the products — or accept them and cancel within a week.

We now live in a world of 60-second transactions. The old sales method is dying. And in the process of dying, it's also killing our CSI, profits, reputation, and possibly the F&I department altogether. If we don't give people the change they want, they will use the voting power of their wallets to take it by force.

What the Market Is Already Telling You

This is a consumer's market in many ways. Companies like Carvana are trying to model the Amazon experience. Like its sister company DriveTime, the used-vehicle retailer is not selling cars — it's selling an experience. It doesn't haggle over gross; it just makes it easy.

Penske and Sonic have begun implementing sales processes where the customer only interacts with one person from start to finish. Usually these are used-car transactions, but the feedback so far is positive and profits are higher than expected. This proves that changing the F&I model to focus on the customer can be profitable.

It is time for every dealer to abandon the F&I models that aggravate customers. We must embrace the inevitable changes and adopt new behaviors in the F&I office — behaviors modeled around the way people think, act, and buy things today. The '90s were a long time ago. It's past time to leave them there.