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IT’S REALLY NOT SO FAR-FETCHED - Virtual F&I

  • By Rebecca Chernek
  • 05 Aug, 2022

Virtual Dealerships Could Be New Way To Sell, Finance Cars

By Rebecca Chernek

Ward’s Dealer Business, Jan 1, 2010 12:00 PM

Virtual worlds are popping up all over the Internet and it is entirely feasible to sell cars and provide financing options and products to online users.

Already, many of your customers shop the Internet for the best deals before ever stepping foot on a car lot. Many search cyberspace for the best deals on the products usually sold by your finance manager using a menu.

A virtual dealership could provide you with customers who make use of the Internet at night when they have the most time to search for new vehicles.

They like the ease of comparison shopping while in the comfort of their homes. Now is the time for you to take a serious look at how you can change your way of reaching and keeping every customer.

Check out virtual worlds, which is one of the fastest growing free networking communities in the world. Already, sites such as this offer in-world 3-D classroom education through systems from some of the largest and most highly rated universities, including Harvard, Princeton and Stanford.

Several corporations also offer in-world hiring and workshops. Several million individuals from a variety of professions worldwide enter into other worlds with the clear objective of finding new ways to conduct business.

The online experience can be extremely lucrative for the forward-thinking dealer, not only for selling cars, arranging financing and offering a variety of products, but for other services, such as online scheduling of routine vehicle maintenance check-ups.

With a click of a mouse, you would invite each customer to experience a 3-D showing of all the vehicles on your lot. They would be able to chat directly with your sales associate and, at the same time, negotiate the terms of the sale without even driving to your dealership.

The process takes place through your dealer avatar (model/prototype). Once the vehicle selection has taken place, the customer meets your business manager, another avatar who begins to finalize the sale at the online sales desk. The process is no different from the one used if the customer were at the dealership.

The customer is then presented the buyer’s agreement, to ensure the registration information and pertinent buying numbers are correct. The applicable information is viewed on screen by the customer, and each step of the way a checkpoint is set up for proper disclosures.

Once a customer agrees to the vehicle purchase, the business manager reviews and submits the loan application.

The beauty of doing virtual selling is that everything can be time-stamped for process assurance to guarantee the negotiation is compliant.

So, with safeguards in place, your business manager reviews the credit application in its entirety and communicates with the customer to verify all the information for accuracy. If the process includes Dealer Track or Route One, the transaction is easily punched in and an approval is imminent.

If the virtual process is properly set up, your business manager will have no trouble qualifying customers for product sales, after the completion of menu presentation.

A virtual dealership is not a fantasy. It is a very real probability. If you are hesitant or not quite ready to visualize your shop as a virtual world shopping experience for your customers, then I suggest you make every effort to ensure your business manager is tied directly to your Internet manager and customers are given a direct link into the office.

Your business manager must be involved earlier in the sale, especially with Internet customers. Just because the customer is out of the dealership doesn’t mean finance isn’t involved in the transaction.

Internet sales can and will mean big business to dealers who know how to utilize this vast technology.

I remember when we first initiated menu selling. Non-believers said it wouldn’t work. It’s now an industry standard. Virtual selling is here. Welcome it with open arms.

F&I trainer Rebecca Chernek is CEO of Chernek Consulting, LLC. She can be reached at 866-894-1899 and becky@chernekconsulting.com

By Becky Chernek January 15, 2025


Over the last six months, the buzz around improving F&I performance has grown louder. Everyone’s talking about “getting back to basics” as the magic fix for today’s challenges. Sure, it sounds great—but is that enough to stop the ship from sinking?

Let’s be honest: since COVID, selling cars was easy. Customers flooded dealerships, and it didn’t take much to close a deal. A handshake and a smile were often all it took. But now, things have shifted. The market isn’t as forgiving, and many dealerships are struggling to adapt.

Yes, the basics matter, but there’s something deeper at play—a dangerous attitude of indifference. I’ve been in hundreds of dealerships, and what I see today is alarming. It’s like the industry is sleepwalking while the house is burning. Are dealers even paying attention? Are they willing to make the hard changes needed to turn things around?

The Desk: Where Chaos Begins

The desk is the heartbeat of the dealership—the hub where it all starts. But instead of pumping out efficient, profitable deals, it’s often the source of chaos.

Years ago, F&I managers were respected as gatekeepers. They weren’t just handling paperwork; they were protecting the dealership’s assets and managing lender relationships with precision. Fast-forward to today, and much of that responsibility has been dumped on desk managers—all in the name of “speeding up the deal.”

Here’s the catch: no one’s holding these desk managers accountable. Shotgunning deals to lenders without understanding the total cost of sale has become the norm. Sloppy credit applications, careless errors, and a lack of structure are creating a mess that F&I managers are left to clean up.

When deals hit F&I, they’re riddled with issues—missing documents, unchecked details, and no clear process. This disrupts the flow, slows the deal to a crawl, and frustrates customers. It’s a perfect recipe for lost profits and wasted time.

Broken Processes, Broken Performance

Dealers often wonder why F&I performance is lagging, but the answer is staring them in the face: broken processes. When there’s no accountability, every department operates in silos. The result? Indifference creeps into your culture, and mediocrity becomes the standard.

Ask yourself:

  • Are your desk managers partners with F&I, or are they working against them?
  • Are they ensuring every cash deal is turned to F&I?
  • Do they know their lenders, or are they just guessing?
  • Are they sticking to consistent pencils, or throwing out 84-month terms with no money down as a starting point?

If you’re not checking these things regularly, you’re leaving money on the table. A worksheet is no different from a menu—both need to be precise, consistent, and aligned with a process.

How Chernek Consulting Can Help

At Chernek Consulting , we understand these challenges and provide solutions that work. Our services are designed to address the root of the problem: your dealership’s process and culture.

We offer:

  • Customized In-House Training tailored to your dealership’s unique needs.
  • Virtual Training Programs to ensure ongoing education for your team.
  • AI Champion Roleplay to simulate real-world scenarios and elevate team performance.
  • Comprehensive Process Audits to identify inefficiencies and areas for improvement.
  • Desk and F&I Alignment Programs to create a cohesive, results-driven culture.

When you work with Chernek Consulting, you’re not just improving performance—you’re transforming your dealership into a profit powerhouse.

The Cost of Complacency

Here’s the harsh reality: indifference costs you talent. Why would top performers stick around in a dealership that tolerates chaos? Talented people want to work in an environment with structure, accountability, and a commitment to excellence. If you’re not providing that, they’ll find a dealership that does.

I recently asked my F&I Today group what above-average F&I performance should look like. The consensus? It’s not just about numbers; it’s about alignment. The desk and F&I need to operate as one unit, with shared goals and mutual accountability.

Fix the Process, Fix the Culture

Dealers, if you’re serious about turning things around, it’s time to do more than “get back to basics.” You need to fix the root of the problem: your process. A strong, consistent process doesn’t just improve performance—it transforms your culture.

When everyone is on the same page—desk managers, F&I, and sales—you create a dealership that runs like a well-oiled machine. Customers feel the difference. Deals close faster. Profits grow.

At Chernek Consulting, we specialize in helping dealerships implement these changes effectively. The question isn’t whether you can change—it’s whether you will .

Visit Chernek Consulting for more information or call 866-894-1899 to schedule your consultation today. For F&I beginners be sure to sign up for Chernek Consulting Virtual Pro interactive F&I courseware upgrade to AI Champion Roleplay! Contact Becky to find out more details, available for individual users and dealer group levels.  We also customize all training content to fit your exact requirements. 

 


By Becky Chernek August 19, 2022
According to a recent news story, “A perfect economic storm of inflation, soaring gas prices and the unintended consequences of the federal pandemic relief programs is closing in on many car owners.” And this scenario is affecting prime and subprime customers alike.
By Becky Chernek August 19, 2022

Recently I’ve experienced a strange déjà vu when providing onsite consultations. I’m reminded of a time when I was working with a dealer in Arkansas who purchased a Buick / GMC store. He told me there wasn’t much meat on the bone and not to expect much in F&I performance. Most customers paid cash or had prime credit.

 

“No problem,” I thought. After all, I can positively impact any operation. But I couldn’t help wonder why the dealer didn’t get any tier three or four business. The customers at dealerships up the street seemed to represent a full cross section of buyers. It didn’t make sense.

 

I continued to ask questions until the dealer came up with a brilliant idea (or he got tired of my harping). He decided to spiff the sales people one weekend $40.00 per write-up. “Just come to the desk with whatever write-up, no matter the credit, and you’ll get $40.00.” The following Monday, the dealer called to report he had plenty of tier three and four customers.

 

If you’re reading between the lines, you already know where I’m going. The store didn’t have any subprime lenders – or the F&I manager wasn’t keen on working subprime customers. The salespeople thought, “Why bother selling a customer a car if they said they had slow or derogatory credit history?” So they broomed the customer, sent them packing to the competitor down the street and moved to the next customer who could buy a car.

 

Is this you? Be honest. Because this is exactly what is happening in dealerships throughout the United States today. This is the dark side of the pandemic’s silver lining for auto retail.

 

The front is making big profits on preowned cars today. They don’t have to take the skinny deals or cut profit to swallow a lender fee. Those vehicles aren’t easy to come by, so they’re being saved for the customer who’s going to pay all the profit. Who can blame them?

 

But will it pay off in the long run? Are you sending customers to your competitor, CarMax, Carvana, Vroom or independent dealers who are lining their pockets with the deals you don’t want? The sales manager may not see the value in a lower-tier customer today, but your competition does. Because when you treat a customer with slow pay history right, you have a customer for life.

 

What about the customer who just paid full gross? Will they use your service department? Does it matter? That’s a discussion for another day.

 

You may not realize it, but many of the larger dealer groups have their own in-house financing with internal scoring metrics. They’re not only going to sell more cars; they’ll earn more profit doing it. They will take the market share if you don’t do something about it.

 

Some say, “Ok, let them,” but remember when CarMax offered to put an appraisal on every trade whether the customer was going to buy a car from them or not? Talk about clever! Today, customers go to CarMax to get a trade value even before they step foot in a dealership. In fact, your sales manager likely sends the customer to CarMax to get a trade value! Is that you?

 

Today’s most successful dealers aren’t fixed in their ways. They have a growth mindset and continually adapt to the changing market!

 

This bubble won’t last forever. Do you have the necessary skill-set and processes in place today to meet market conditions tomorrow?

 

Schedule a 15-minute Zoom call today!

 

Unparalleled Experience + Analytics + Gold-Standard Training = IMPACT

 

Chernek Consulting, founded in 2001, offers automotive dealers exceptional experience-based consultation for multipoint, multi-brand automotive groups to significantly impact performance. Rebecca Chernek has worked with industry leaders such as JM&A, AutoNation, NCM Institute, NCM 20 Groups, NADA 20 Groups, Mercedes Benz Financial Services, Sym-Tech Dealers Services and more.

 

Rebecca’s comprehensive analysis identifies operational and team strengths and weaknesses. Her focus is on:

 

1) plugging profit leaks

2) getting the customer on the right car at the get-go

3) cultivating customers for life

4) digitizing processes for maximum efficiency and profit

 

It’s the little things you do that can make a big difference.

CALL BECKY CHERNEK DIRECT AT 866-894-1899 schedule a 15 - minute call today! 

 

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