How do you get a new car salesperson set up on day one?
Get a new car salesperson set up on day one by finishing five things before they touch a lead: connect their mailbox, add an email signature, save their cell number, set the days they take leads, and give them a texting number. Do it in one sitting, in order, not spread across their first two weeks.
What does a new salesperson need before their first lead?
A new salesperson needs five things before their first lead: a connected mailbox so replies are tracked, an email signature so customers know who wrote, a cell number for callbacks, the days they take leads so routing skips their days off, and a number to text from. Without them, early leads get a weaker answer.
None of these are hard. Each one takes a minute or two. The problem is that they live in different places, and a new rep does not know which ones matter. So they do the ones they stumble on and miss the rest.
The cost shows up quietly. A customer gets an email with no name under it. A lead gets assigned on a Sunday the rep never works. A callback goes to the store line instead of the rep's phone.
Why do new reps start selling half set up?
New reps start half set up because setup is scattered across screens, and the only person who knows where everything lives is a sales manager who is busy on the floor. Nobody skips it on purpose. It just never gets a dedicated hour, so it happens in pieces, or not at all.
Most dealership software treats setup as something a person goes looking for. There is a settings page somewhere, and the rep is expected to find it. A new hire on their first Monday is not going to go looking. They are going to sit beside someone and watch a deal.
That is a reasonable choice for them to make. It just means setup needs to come to the rep, not the other way around.
What order should you set up a new salesperson in?
Set up a new salesperson in the order customers will notice: mailbox first, because every email they send after that is tracked; signature second; then their cell number and the days they take leads, so routing and callbacks are right; then a texting number. AI or automation settings come last, once the basics work.
The order matters because some steps depend on others. A signature means little until the mailbox is connected. Working days change which leads the rep gets tomorrow, so they should be set before the first full day on the floor.
Let the rep skip a step they cannot finish yet. A texting number often waits on a manager. Skipping is fine, as long as the step stays visible until it is done.
How does bkd.ai handle new rep setup?
bkd.ai shows any rep with setup left a Finish setup prompt in the top bar, with how many steps are done. It opens a full-screen walkthrough, one step per screen: mailbox, signature, cell number, working days, texting number, and Sidekick if the store uses it. Each step is the same setting the rep would find in Settings.
The walkthrough explains what each step gets the rep before asking for it, so it reads like a reason, not a chore. A rep can go back, skip, or continue. When a step needs a manager, such as a texting number for a non-admin, it says so and does not keep nagging the rep about it.
Once everything required is done, the prompt goes away. The sales manager does not have to check anyone's settings by hand.
Frequently asked questions
How long does it take to set up a new car salesperson?
Setting up a new car salesperson takes about fifteen minutes when it is done in one sitting: connecting a mailbox, adding a signature, saving a cell number, choosing working days and assigning a texting number. It takes weeks when it is left to happen on its own, because each piece waits until someone notices it is missing.
Who should set up a new salesperson, the rep or the manager?
The rep should do most of it, because the mailbox, signature and cell number are theirs. The manager handles store-level pieces, such as assigning a texting number. Good software tells the rep which steps are theirs and which are waiting on a manager, so neither side has to guess.
What happens if a new rep never connects their email?
If a new rep never connects their email, replies they send from their own inbox are not tracked with the customer's record, and the rest of the team cannot see the conversation. A manager looking at the lead later sees silence where there was actually a reply, and may step in when nothing was wrong.