Hiring a Title Clerk and Maximizing Potential
For automotive dealerships, an organized and efficient title and registration process is a critical component to profitability. A well-performing title department not only helps to close out the sales process efficiently and effectively but also ensures compliance with state laws and regulations, reduces the risk of fines, and builds loyalty with customers. This starts with hiring a title clerk that can maximize their potential.
The Critical Function of Dealership Title Departments
The title department at an automotive dealership serves a multifaceted purpose. Their primary responsibility is to ensure the dealership follows state laws and regulations for titling and registering of vehicles on behalf of their customers. The secondary responsibility is to quickly process the appropriate paperwork. All with the goal of getting plates on their customer’s cars within the allotted state regulated timeframe. This will eliminate late fee penalties for the dealership. In addition to these activities, the title department interacts with customers regarding the status during and the conclusion of the process, installing their license plates.
Efficient Title Clerks Equal Increased Profitability
A dealership’s main objective is to sell as many cars as possible. Therefore, hiring an experienced title clerk that can facilitate a speedy and efficient title and registration process is important. After all, the faster title and registration is complete and plates get put on cars, the faster dealerships get their money. Hiring managers should look for an experienced, detail-oriented person who can multi-task and communicate clearly. In addition to hiring a title clerk, there are often other title-related staffing needs for a dealership, such as title runners, who are often tasked with transferring documents and license plates between the dealership and county offices.
Role of the Title Clerk
To accomplish this important function, title clerks are tasked with a variety of responsibilities in a dealership’s title department. Processing and filing paperwork on behalf of the dealership and customer is just part of the responsibility list. Other title clerk job responsibilities can include:
Title Clerk Job Description
● Processes all new and used vehicles for registration in the state in which they will be titled.
● Prepares tax and title documents.
● Verifies that funds have been collected and the correct lienholder paid off before processing title applications.
● Checks for accuracy in the application and ensures that all information is complete.
● Prepares payoff checks for new vehicles and trade-ins.
● Bills out all dealer trades and prepares Certificates of Origin.
● Maintains a system to verify out-of-state titles.
● Compiles and maintains a complete list of all outstanding title work. Reports to management on the status of any missing or problem titles and provides a current list of outstanding titles to the comptroller at the end of month.
● Signs over titles for all wholesalers who have paid in full. Prepares a monthly report to management of any funds not collected from wholesalers due to missing or incomplete title work.
● Directs title runner in daily routines.
Title Clerk Education
● Proactively stays abreast of title regulations. Attends seminars held by local licensing bureaus and any available training on title regulations.
● Conducts periodic training sessions for F&I managers and sales personnel regarding title regulations and procedures and issues a written memo to managers and all sales personnel whenever regulations change.
● and much, much more
Automotive Title Clerk Job Experience
To attract qualified title clerks, a job description should clearly illustrate the responsibilities of the position and the knowledge, skill and personality necessary to perform all the role's functions at a high level. The job description should include:
Title Clerk Skills
● Education and/or experience
● Language skills
● Math skills
● Reasoning ability
● Organization skills
Automotive Title Clerk Training
● Expectation of being trustworthy and the ability to keep information confidential
● Current certificates and licenses required
● Physical demands and description of workplace environment
● An expectation of being customer service focused, a team player and a great communicator
● Requirement of a background check
Calculating Title Clerk Salary
How much does a title clerk make? Typically, dealership title clerks receive an hourly wage or salary, depending on the hiring practices of each individual dealership. Many factors go into determining the compensation for the title clerk position. These include:
● The dealership's payroll budget including revenues and expense budgets
● Consideration of local living wages in their area
● Benefits offered to the individual affecting overhead
● The cost to recruit, hire and train the individual
● Dealership monthly and annual sales volume
● The number of dealership roofs (locations) the title clerk will be handling
● Management responsibility of other department employees
Title Clerk Job Benefits
Auto dealership title clerk benefits should also be taken into account. Title clerk benefits might include:
● Employee discounts at the dealership
● Vacation and/or sick days
● Paid holidays
● 401k Stock options/revenue share (for those who qualify)
Although there's no standardized way to incentivize higher performance for a title clerk, individual dealerships may choose to include incentives such as bonuses for error-free work, and/or rewards for high volume output.
Utilizing Technology to Increase Title Department Productivity
Needless to say, the title clerk at an auto dealership has not only an important function to fulfill, but it can also be a very time-consuming and highly stressful position. Dealers of course want the title and registration process to go as accurately and quickly as possible, but there are several reasons why it can become difficult to manage. There may be too many deals to be processed for a single clerk, or there may be a lack of resources necessary to accomplish the tasks. It's possible that the current title clerk simply isn't efficient enough. Or title department processes, procedures and best practices need to be improved. High volume dealerships may be asking themselves, “how do we make our existing title clerks more efficient or should we invest in hiring an additional title clerk to help with this process?” Technology is a great alternative to incurring more labor expense in the title department.
Thinking About Hiring Another Title Clerk?
The Title Girl's proprietary software, known as Registration Impact Portal (RIP) is an ideal solution for dealerships that are at the intersection of hiring additional titling staff to keep up with demand, while also trying to manage operating costs. The Title Girl helps busy dealerships optimize their existing title department staff to accomplish the same task as hiring an additional title clerk.
Registration Impact Portal is specifically designed to help dealerships manage their titling department's workflow. RIP allows for efficient tracking of titles in real-time with simple dashboards and software that easily integrates with both dealer management systems and state title and registration systems. Along with customized reporting features, RIP ensures a faster and more accurate titling process, increased productivity, and reduced overhead and expenses.
Creating Title Clerk Efficiencies
By using Registration Impact Portal integrated with a dealership’s DMS, and if applicable' a state registration system, the title clerk’s efficiency and accuracy increases. Through the integration, the data specific to title and registration is pulled from the DMS to RIP which eliminates data entry mistakes and time.
Reduce Dealership Title Department Costs
Registration Impact Portal provides a solution to dealerships for optimizing their current staff by increasing productivity and reducing costs and dealership late fee expense, without having to incur the expense of hiring additional full-time staff. Whether there is an increase in volume, or your current titling staffing is thin, The Title Girl's RIP platform is a titling-partner solution that never gets sick, never goes on vacation, and never quits.
Collaboration with a Car Dealership Title Department and The Title Girl
The Title Girl's service capability offers the versatility to meet the needs of any dealership. Dealers have the option of partnering with The Title Girl’s experienced titling staff to handle all or part of the dealership's titling requirements.
The Title Girl can be a dealership’s “911” when there is a back-log, or volume is too high for the dealership’s title department to handle. Also if a title clerk leaves unexpectedly, is out of the office for an extended period or if a dealership is experiencing challenges in hiring, The Title Girl will be a consistent and reliable resource.
Outsourcing the Auto Dealership Title Department
The Title Girl also has a fully outsourced model that works directly with the F&I department and handles all aspects of the title and registration process on behalf of the dealership. The Title Girl’s experienced title clerks, an extensive network of title runners, established DMV relationships, and the ability to quickly clean up backlogs is a great resource for auto dealerships.
This flexible and collaborative approach between the dealership and The Title Girl allows dealers to leverage expertise and a strategic partner to assist in managing all aspects of their title and registration needs.