Car manufacturers and the iPhone generation

599 More

Earning the right to be successful

581 More

Knowledge is power

676 More

Selling cars – it’s all about timing

959 More

Truemag

  • Home
  • About
  • Advertise
  • Archives
  • Contact
  • Subscribe

Some car dealerships maintain a thriving sales prevention department

What is it about some car salespeople? Sometimes you wonder if they really get what car sales is really all about.

They have fantastic training, are equipped with a sales process that is idiot proof and have some fantastic products which often sell themselves, yet still everyday up and down the country potential customers are made to feel like they are a huge inconvenience by having the audacity to go to a car showroom and try to buy a car.

Only the other day my wife came home from work and told me of her colleague who, along with her husband, had decided to change their 4 year old Mercedes for a nice new BMW.

They went to their local showroom, not on a Saturday I might add when there can generally be more people about and sales people have made qualified appointments, no on a weekday.

On arrival they excitedly looked at all the gleaming metal on display outside and had that familiar wave of excitement certain lucky people feel when anticipating a new car. They entered the showroom and approached the reception desk where they asked if they could speak to someone about a new 3 series.

The receptionist asked them to take seat whilst she located a sales person and they settled down in the waiting area to enjoy some gourmet coffee.

During this time they noticed several sales people sitting at desks scattered around the showroom, seemingly idling away their time on their PC’s and not one of them came over to find out as to our friends enquiry.

15 minutes later it was as if time had stood still and they had become invisible; no one acknowledged them and not being confrontational types they sadly got up and left the showroom.

No one had taken any details or even got them to reveal their names.

At times like this a lot of disgruntled car buyers usually feel mystified and then get very angry but these people were just confused and deflated.

They genuinely wanted to buy a new car and be given the star treatment but regrettably met with a robust sales prevention team in all its atmosphere sucking might.

The point is they are so bewildered that two things will now happen, they will tell everyone about that particular dealer and as result many people will get a bad vibe and number 2 when they go somewhere else to buy a car they will be expecting bad service.

We are in times of trouble in the car business and buyers with money to buy new cars are becoming fewer and further between. It is therefore the duty of every car sales person to treat any enquiry seriously and professionally. Many trade people may well say that this story is hardly representative but the truth is we hear of this occurring far too often, and we probably always will. While lots of them can probably be explained, although certainly not excused, by volume of people in a showroom at one time or another, many cannot.

A good proportion may very well be down to either just plain arrogance or that the new breed of sales people are more interested in what demo they are driving and what suit they wear than how much money they earn.

Whatever, all the money invested in systems, processes and customer satisfaction surveys means nothing if the right kinds of personnel are not in place.

Oct 21, 2010In51der
  • Car Buying Crib Sheet
  • The art of converting car buying enquiries into sales
  • The car sales process and the “9 point plan”
  • Get the balance right and more cars will be sold
  • How To Sell Your Car Like A Pro
  • Car dealerships and the high cost of apathetic sales people
  • Government announces £30 billion transport investment amidst cutsCar buyers should not overlook dealer finance
    Comments: 1
    1. micheal
      11 years ago

      I just had to reply to your wonderful post, I am a past sales manager of a BMW dealership and having been so for 20 years, I actually got fed up with this mentality and have set up a thriving based, growing purely on the lack of personal service from BMW and other prestige dealerships. I hear the same story every day. Part of my business is also to supply brand new prestige cars to my customers. On a typical day I may ring one dealer asking to buy 2 or three cars. With one particular dealership I left three messages for someone to call me back, and guess what, I wasn’t making a sales enquiry. Not at all, in fact I was ringing to buy a BMW 5 series for a client, it was a done deal, all they had to do was ring me back confirming the car was in stock and I would have bought it.

    In51der

    Motor Trade Insider - Bridging the gap between the customer and the Motor Trade

    11 years ago Blog, Consumercar sales, consumer advice, customer service, economy, motor trade recession, new car buying, new car sales133
    Most viewed
    Top 100 UK Dealer Groups
    39,482 views
    The car sales process and the “9 point plan”
    11,503 views
    webuyanycar review – They will buy any car but beware of the asterisk
    6,013 views
    Most commented
    Car sales and the power of silence…
    25 Comments
    Car dealers still not prepared to play the “we buy any car” game
    23 Comments
    A Traders Tale – Part Four
    22 Comments
    Win a pre-loaded Ipod Shuffle!
    19 Comments
    Bargain of the Week – StreetKa 1.6i Luxury
    14 Comments
    Bridal Hair Berkshire
    Fox Body to 2018 Mustang Parts
    and Accessories
    About MTI

    Motor Trade Insider
    is written by people working actively in the motor trade for people on the inside and people on the outside.

    Our aims
    Build a bridge between consumers and the trade, create Interesting and informative content, break down barriers and create better understanding, expose bad practices and rip-offs and promote outstanding products and service.
    Have something to say?
    We are always looking for experienced writers who can write good original quality posts on motor-trade-insider.com. Please contact us if you would like us to consider you. Make sure you give us details of your own blog or a link to some articles you have written.
    2017 © Motor Trade Insider
    Truemag theme by StrictThemes