Why We Hate Salespeople. Sales Process Pt. 2

Presentations and Demonstrations...

Published on April 4, 2004 By Sean Conners aka SConn1 In Consumer Issues

Now that we've been introduced to our sales consultant, and have narrowed in, at least generally, on what we might want from this dealer, The sales process moves to the "selective demonstration" part. Depending on how forthcoming you were with his "interview" questions, whether you spoke on the lot or sat down and let him take some notes to help assist you (which is the best way), will determine how precise he or she can be here. The more they know, the more they can point out things that would appeal to those desires.

The more cynical approach would suggest that telling the salesperson anything will give them ammunition to "up-sell" you or use your words against you. That may be true, at least in part, but keep in mind a couple of things. First, I have seen many customers come in places that I represented that would give me "low ball" numbers either on purpose or because they just didn't understnd the actual cost involved. The other thinking there is usually a poor negotiating tactic by figuring on the salesperson starting high, so they better start way low. The problem with that thinking in today's markets, especially with the internet and other organizations providing so much information and competition that most cars and big ticket products have much less swing than in the old days. There still is some play in many cases, but it isn't as broad as some people would like to think.

By being honest in the numbers you aresuggesting, and if they are reasonable with the market situation, you will save time for now, and money possibly when you sign and be much less frustrated than you would be just wandering a lot looking for a car.

If the salesperson is a good one, and scrupulous, by now, you should have that impression. If they have disrespected your wishes and requests and seem to be trying to just ""slam" you into a car and be done with you, then you will probably be trying to get out of there any way you can. At least you should.

But in either case, your honesty would have nothing to do with the treatment. The good salesperson would be trying to be as nice and professionally courteous as possible,. And the snake in the grass shark would be doing what he does regardless. By being upfront and honest, you save yourself the headaches that happen with miscommunication in this case, not the salesperson.

If you were upfront withthe dealership representative who is assisting you, They will show you things on the car they have available that meets those needs, or as many as possible. They may show you one with a few more options, or a few less if they don't have your exact one handy. And remember, part of this process for you should be a learning process. Just as you learned stuff with whatever research you did before coming on to the lot, use the salesperson's knowledge to your advantage. Many times they can can point out things that don't get seen or mentioned on websites and brochures. Sometimes the dealer can offer custom options and sometimes we as customers just don't know some of the available options that could help make their ownership experience more satisfying.

Remember again, you have the power to say no or to decline any option. For most cars, if it isn't on the lot, they can order it, or they can locate it from another dealer. If they locate it, they will do so with a dealer outside of their market area. Usually no less than 50 miles away. they do this for a couple of reasons, the most predominant one being that competing dealers aren't going to give up a car that this person might come on their lot and buy in a couple more hours. Outside the market, dealers get friendlier and use the system to get back cars in trade that they feel will sell, possibly for higher margins.

But from your perspective, keep in mind the car will have some miles on it. If you insist on a car with under 100 miles on it, most likely a trade will dissapoint you. On the other hand, most people don't realize that a new vehicle takes about 500 miles to "break in." By getting a traded new car from a distant dealer, they do some of the work for you in that. Plus, most bugs in a car will work themselves out in that period, perhaps saving you an early return for service. If something is loose or not right, the driver will most of the time point that out when returning. Most dealers are good enough to take care of the issue before delivery to the customer.

By ordering a car that meets your needs, you can get exactly what you want, sometimes. Sometimes people turn to an ordered car because they can't find exactly what they want. Sometimes what they don't realize is that certain option packages may not be available. Or sometimes certain options may not be available without a package.

Also, the attitude towards ordering varies from dealer to dealer. Some encourage it, some discourage it. The ones who encourage it will usually give the better deal if you do order. The ones who would rather sell from stock, or possibly traded from another dealer, will offer the better price on the one here, now. It will pretty easy to tell which way they lean. And if it is unclear, just ask. The salesperson will tell you which way you'll get the better deal. For most, it will be buying off the lot. Sometimes howver, for the customer, it isn't about price, it is about getting a specific vehicle. For those folks the better price won't mean much, and if possible, they will still order.

After the salesperson is done showing you why this car is perfect for you, or as perfect as available, he will want you to experience that for yourself. he will want you to take a drive in this beautiful new or used car. This is a part where sales managers almost by and large insist on happening before they will talk numbers. They see it as a psychological thing, an emotional thing. The thinking goes, that once driving it, you will begin to envision, at least subconciously, and often conciously, owning the vehicle. One thing I always looked for to see that this was happening was the involuntary movement of the hands on the wheel. The customers would almost inevitably want to appear like a safe driver, especially women for some reason. They would start the drive doing things technically correctly like putting their hands at 10 & 2. It would be like they were taking their driving exam all over.

But at some point, they would start to envision owning it, putting themselves in the situation, and their hands would revert, along with whatever other usual driving habits they had, to their normal state. This would be the way they drove normally, everyday, when I wasn't in the car. this represented that they were no longer thinking of this as a car they were testing out, but their car.

Like I mentioned before, this is so stressed in the car business that most salesmanagers won't even gather numbers until they have driven the car. At least any serious ones. The sales manager knows that if the customer is not in an emotional state, he will have to deal withthem on a colder level, which plays to the customer's advantage. If the customer has no attachment to the particular car, then the numbers presented will always be perceived as "high." So why bother dropping their pants to just send you out the door with killer numbers that were meant to close a sale, not be a haggling point.

So, to work everything to your advantage, take the drive. It doesn't have to be long or tedious, in fact, if you just say, "hey, i've driven 2 of these already, and I know we can't talk turkey without doing this, so can we just spin it around the block to satisfy your manager?" This statement, or one like it, will take him or her aback. They will now know that you are aware of how a sale works. You know "the process."

When someone shows that they know something more than the average schmuck who walks in off the street, it always affects the recipient of that information. Some people try to throw it up in the beginning, which is bad negotiating, and like other lies, will be sniffed out by any pro. Then that tactic will be used against you in future negotiations. They will be able to do things like say "of course you know this is how it works, you are in sales." And you, being too prideful to admit your lie, will be forced to go along and concede.

By using my method, you merely plant the impression that you understand and know his game, but you haven't bragged about it. IF he tries to pry out of you how you know so much, any vague reference will usually do. Then like he will when snagged with an unanswerable question, change the subject. Compliment his tie, or find something to move the topic away from your experience. You need to be honest, but you don't need to show all your cards before the draw.

Then, after the demo drive, you will be able to ask for and get some harder numbers on what the car will cost. It is at this point that a good salesperson will go as far as to introduce the manager to you. And a good salesmanager will be available to meet the customer. IF they don't , you will have the opportunity to bring them in by asking to speak with the person who made a decision concerning your purchase. Whether it be a finance rate, a trade number or the price of the new car. At this point, you not only have the power to say no, but you have the power to make accountable those who are sending the salesperson out to convince you that it is a good decision to buy now. At this point, make them work for the sale. You have been honest and upfront, and now it is time to see if you are working with a good company that you can refer to your friends and family.

Most likey, they will resist you telling them to "T.O." or "turn over " a customer. Most salespeople want to close the sale themselves without a manager assisting them. Most managers want to stay as far away from getting humanly and personally involved in the cold hard numbers. Those emotions cost them money.

But if you persist, one of the management team should come by to speak with you about your concerns. Here you will be able to take advantage of the situation by controlling who you negotiate with.

Rules vary in dealerships on when a turn over happens. Most dealers insist on it as a matter of procedure. the manager wants an opportunity to speak with anyone who may be pursuaded to buy a car today. Even if they don't, any smart manager knows that it's good business to keep track of the potential sales on his or her floor. Letting the salespeople walk out customers who are most likely going to buy a car somewhere, possibly the next place they visit. But the manager wants to control that. Indeed, most of the sales process is designed so the consultant and manager can control the action and steer it to the next step of the process and ultimately with a conclusion of another sale. By calling the shots, just as you did with the consultant during the 1st phases of the process, you control the situation more so than if they called when the "closer" manager came "in the box" to get you to "lay down" and buy today.

At this point, at some places, and in the right circumstance, you may get your dream deal. In today's market, it does happen. Even sometimes at times that aren't the end of the month. Sometimes it's a slow day, or week. Sometimes the manager just doesn't want to be "shut out" on a shift, which on any floor that does any volume traditionally is an embarrassment and major point of pride. Some sales managers will brag about a record of never being shut out, or it not happening in a long time. Managers who go a day or any period of having no cars go out on their watch become the subject of teasing and sometimes plays into more serious office politics. Like when it comes to promotion time.

So, you may catch a manager on Tuesday mid month who will give you just the deal you want just to say he sold something on that day. The best way to get that is to again, be honest.

For whatever reason you got the manager involved, or if he did as a matter of procedure they did, they will inevitibly start to "go for the close." We'll cover this part of the sales process and get you closer to your dream deal in the next segment.

Stay tuned...

For more on how to get a great deal on just about anything, check out my continuing "Why We Hate Salespeople" series here...

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