The various predictions this year have us back in the 14 million-unit range on total sales. That number fluctuates, but at the rate we’re going and growing, it’s moving higher, not lower. Most important, this will be our best year in some time.

So who comes out ahead in a recovering market? That's easy: It's the top 20 percent.

That old "80/20" rule everybody talks about is really the "20/60/20" rule when you take a closer look.

Twenty percent of the people (and companies) at the top are go-getters and consistently improve and grow. Twenty percent of the people (and companies) are at the bottom and barely stay in business because some are clueless and some just don’t care. Then you have that middle group: Some of the 60 percent lean toward growth, and some slide further down the ladder.

If you have 15 salespeople, your breakdown is probably consistent with that 20/60/20 rule. You very likely have two to four salespeople who are consistently at the top. You have two to four who are consistently at the bottom, and then you have that larger middle group of eight to 10.

So where’s the greatest potential to turn this into your best year ever in sales?

Your top sales producers can easily improve. If you have a 15- to 20-car guy, he can easily become a 25- to 30-car guy. He's just waiting for the right training and process to take that next step. And if three did that, you’d see an increase of 15 to 30 units every month, just from that small group.

That’s great, but your highest potential is the middle group of salespeople, partly because of the size of the group, but also because of the individual potential.

When you have salespeople selling eight to 10 units, you have an easy 20-plus car guy in waiting who just needs training, processes and more effective daily management to get them there.

Those salespeople need the full set of selling, negotiation and business development skills, great daily management, and that positive attitude that comes from becoming high achievers.

That means you have 10 of your 15 people who can easily sell another 10 units each. That’s 100 more units every month with no expense, except training.

In May, Automotive News reported that General Motors decided to cancel their Facebook advertising because it doesn’t work. If the average dealership really looked at what works and where their potential is, they’d do the same thing.

Your three hottest prospects are (1) the people on your lot now, (2) the people who just left and (3) your own internal database of customers and prospects.

If dealers spent the same amount of time and half the money they’re wasting now trying to develop business with social media, Internet leads etc., and used it to teach and manage their people to take care of those hottest prospects they already have, they’d double sales.

In real life, you can’t double sales with Facebook friends or Internet leads. But with a strong initial training program for both management and your salespeople, and with daily sales training on JVTN, you can keep them on track and continually improving.

This market offers a golden opportunity. The only decision to make is whether you focus on your hottest prospects and double sales, or focus on the Internet and hope.