“Think customer.” That’s all Dick Watson has been doing for the last 38 years. It’s a strategy that has won him Lebanon Ford’s salesman of the month award for 448 of the 456 months he has been selling cars. “Thinking customer” means avoiding the classic business mindset that asks, “What can you do for me?” and instead calls for friendship, listening, and knowing the customer’s interest and lifestyle. While Watson thrives in sales, his career in the industry began as a service writer for Volkswagen in his hometown of Richmond, Ind., on January 1, 1972.

Watson stresses loyalty to the dealership a salesman works for, so he has only worked at two dealerships, the latter owned by his brother, Charlie Watson, his boss for 33 years. “He taught me that everybody can climb a mountain, but people forget to enjoy the climb,” Watson says. He also learned that you have to understand who the boss is, even if it happens to be your own brother.

Watson averaged 23 cars per month in 2006, and nearly 18 cars per month in 2009. He has maintained these numbers, with 19 sales in July 2010 and 18 in June 2010, even as he slowed his workweek from six days per week in 2008 to four days a week in 2010. .Lisa Cryder, general manager of Lebanon Ford, said that in his heyday, he was averaging 25 to 35 per month. “My brain is still young, it’s just my legs,” Watson joked.

Watson is filled with lessons he has learned through his experience in the business, and the spirit of good-hearted values motivates him toward the next sale. “Some salespeople talk their way out of a sale, but God gave us two ears, so we are supposed to listen twice as much as we speak,” Watson said. “You have to qualify the customer—don’t just ask how their credit is.”

This salesman is the opposite of a smooth-talker. Instead, he focuses on matchmaking: helping the customer identify what they really want out of a vehicle, what they can afford, and asking the right questions. “Is this car for you or your wife? … Is this a family car? … Do you have any children—how old?”

“If a kid is two years old, you don’t have to worry about size, but if he’s six-foot-eight, they are not going to get a Focus,” Watson explained. At 68 years old, others have remarked to Watson that “his type” of customer has arrived if the person is older. But for Watson, he doesn’t have a type. He just knows his audience, no matter who they are. If they happen to be older, he said you slow things down by walking slower, talking slower, offering a cup of coffee.

And his customer-based strategies work, as he has won every award Ford can offer him, from the Top Hatter (Top 50 salespeople in the country) to the Grand Master (Top 100 Elite salespeople in the country).

Lisa Cryder recognized Watson’s passion above all else. Her dedication to her employees’ happiness keeps Watson going as well, he said.

“Happy people surround themselves with happy people—there’s nothing worse than meeting with someone who hates their job,” Watson said. “Greet people with a smile even if you don’t feel good, especially if they are going to spend $30,000.”

Watson’s sense of fulfillment doesn’t just come from selling cars, but from his personal life as well. After serving for four years in the Marine Corps from 1960 to 1964, he married his wife of 35 years, Linda, and had two children. He and his wife support Ford in their own lives by owning two Ford Fusion SELs. Watson is also a gospel singer on the side, a passion which has taken him to gigs around the country and even a performance at the Grand Ole’ Opry.

“If I could tell the young ones in business, think the way the customer thinks, don’t let the customer lead you but stand beside them, and don’t be tired when you’re here,” Watson says.

Following his brother’s advice, and enjoying the success his 38 years of sales have given him, Watson said, “I’m just enjoying the ride now.”

Congratulations to Dick Watson, sales professional of the month, and thank you to Alexandra Barlow, writer for Lebanon Ford Lincoln Mercury, for nominating and submitting the article about Watson.

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Vol 7, Issue 10