Duane says everybody has moments and memories that stand out and sometimes redefine themselves. His most proud moment and pinnacle talk of his career came in December when he did a talk with Joe Girard and his son at the Automotive Hall of Fame in Detroit in front of a large audience and his entire family. "It was incredible and surreal to think I was asked by Joe himself to share the stage with him in the same building where he was an inaugarated member. I will never forget it. I'm equally happy to say that I now consider Joe and his family good friends and still get to spend time with him and learn from him. We even enjoyed Christmas dinner with him and his wife Kitty at his house this year." says Duane.
Another exciting opportunity came when Duane was asked by Sinclair Broadcasting Group in Washington to host a 2 hour special about the car business last April, broadcast nationally across the United States, reaching 35 major USA markets.
He now splits up his month conducting his regular Sales and F&I workshops, doing on-site in-dealership training, managing and selling at his family's dealership, growing his real estate investment portfolio and coaching individuals on how to become more in all areas of their lives.. "I like to be busy in business, am very physically active and I love to help others achieve their full potential" says Marino.
He is constantly updating his skill set and materials, while learning from well over 20,000 people he has now trained, consulting at nearly 350 dealerships in Canada and the U.S., and also continues to hone his own sales skills and processes in the real retail environment of car sales in his family's business.
My goal is to teach students how to be flexible, successful and deal with the various types of people that land in their showroom, using the fundamental techniques and belief systems of the top 3-20% of sales people" said Duane Marino, founder of Team RelMark Dealer Services.
Duane teaches how to maintain full control over the sale and still sell the way the consumer wants to buy by starting the selling process at whatever step the customer requires. Marino reminds them the reality is that they will be dealing with people who have done their homework and wind up in their showroom after a long day's work or a few visits to other showrooms. He also points out that walk-in traffic volume has been steadily declining in recent years due to the internet, making phone and email skills paramount; noting however that the quality of the average 'up' has also increased do to the research the customer has done prior to showing up.
"The customer may not be relaxed, easy going or care much about your feelings." says Duane.
To cope with this reality he says he avoids using rigid scripts or droning on about things they are not interested in. In fact, he urges sales people to listen for the customer's words. Use their words, he says, not your own. Be a mirror. And pay close attention to content, context, timing and rapport.
That means sales people have to talk 20 percent of the time and listen 80 percent, he says. Listen and watch, he teaches them.
"In addition to learning the best techniques and ideas on how to handle virtually every situation they will encounter while working with customers, students learn how to understand the body language and thought processes of the buyer and their own ... what signals they send off to the customer and what signals the customer is sending to them. Also, most sales people use the same old questions and word tracks as their competition, some of which are pretty ineffective and have been around for decades, so buyers are usually giving the sales person an automatic, defensive, trained response. Change your language a bit, and watch your results skyrocket!" says Marino.
He keeps attendees on their toes using plenty of role-playing, pace changes, off-the-wall comments, unique exercises, teasing and tough love, he says. Just like sales, the workshops are never dull or predictable.
"If you walk in to one of my classes rigid, uptight or closed minded, you'll soon be dropping your ego and releasing your inhibitions, or else you'll have an awfully hard time. I often laugh to myself when people take things so seriously." says Duane. "My approach can catch a lot of people off-guard. Sometimes you have to speak the unspeakable. A lot of customers are not politically correct, and occasionally in role plays I actually talk like a 'real' customer. But that's the point, they are just words... we have to train ourselves to not take everything personally and deal with things the way they are, not the way we think they are supposed to be."
Marino's diverse work background and personal life equally shaped him. In high school he ran a Canadian Tire lube bay, then on to a local Chrysler store, where he worked in service and did detailing on used cars and various other "lot boy" duties. He showed enough initiative to make his way to the store's showroom/leasing department, where he worked as a "runner or liner." Around the same time he was finishing up university, owned a student landscape business & painting company (which was nominated for the best student business in Ontario), worked construction, patented a novelty item, spent time on the line at a factory and in a fast food restaurant.
"Some of these jobs may have seem unrelated to my future, but they taught me how to work, let me see how unwilling most people are to work, and what type of work I didn't like! I have never been afraid to get my hands dirty and work hard, and have learned lots all the way through." says Duane.
After that he worked for a major car manufacturer and it's finance arm for seven years doing everything from collections to repossessions to lending to sales, his last four of them as their national lease and sales trainer. There, he trained dealers, sales managers, sales people and business managers. "I was really blessed to meet and work with some great people, in a time of my life when I needed the support and vision." he said.
He left corporate life and went on his own in 1996, as a partner in his B.C. based RelMark Relationship Marketing software (the first windows based CRM program in the car business), and a co-trainer at a small private training company in Ontario, all the while helping his family's used car, auto service, detailing and auto glass businesses. In 1999 he became fully independent holding his own training workshops, consulting and also hiring himself out as a Sales Call Closer, Business Manager, Lease Renewal Manager and Showroom Closer.
With a grateful smile he says "We are all a work in progress and I've been shaped more by personal pain then professional gain... Let's just say I used to have a bit of a "Special" attitude, when in my late teens and very early 20's I disengaged from my family, was fired from a couple of jobs, buried two very close friends, was helping my wife through cancer, had a couple of businesses go sour and endured some other lousy personal situations. They were sudden massive wake up calls. I was forced to evolve or dissolve. I am very grateful for those hard times and to those that helped me through that period. After years of soul searching, a few great mentors and lots of studying, I started to improve rapidly, and so did my results. I became addicted to my own continuous improvement and helping others find ways to change on many levels" says Duane.
With regards to sales training, Marino teaches what he calls a "pleasantly persuasive" approach to selling, always striving to keep the customer at ease. "Both the customer and sales person can, must and will win, everytime. There are three clear goals to my processes: sell something, make a profit and make it enjoyable" says Marino.
"Learning to walk, talk, sell and lead from the heart is truly invigorating, passionate and prevents all sorts of problems. Life is too short. Do what you love and love what you do." says Duane.
You can come to Duane or while Marino travels the continent he will come to your dealership for on-site training, to work with your customers or your staff. He can be reached by calling 1-888-735-6275, email info@duanemarino.com or visiting www.duanemarino.com
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