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Smart Shopper Stories from the Sales Frontlines
47834 messages, Last post on Nov 22, 2009 at 3:03 PM
You are in the Smart Shopper Forum. Your Hosts are kirstie_h & tidester
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Replying to: alejandrom (Nov 28, 2008 1:54 pm) Here is the deal with the Lexus. It's a 2006 400h with 39,000 miles and we are selling it for $31,991. The customer didn't know that it was a hybrid. Of course, when he dismissed me with his hand gesture I wasn't about to go chase him down and reveal that information to him. He was one of those guys that you are better off letting go. He was the classic case of an old guy whose wife kicked him out of the house the day after Thanksgiving. He was with his son and he had no where else to go...so he thought he would head down to the car dealer and annoy everyone down there. This is the type of guy who drags his son along so he can show him how to really shop for a car. "Watch me bully these car salesmen and show you how it's done Junior...." Whatever.
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Oh, and thanks for the replies about how to greet customers but..... I've tried all of the cheesy greetings that they have you do when they find a new sales DVD they want you to watch. "Whose the lucky one...?" "Are you here for the big sale today?" Yadda yadda yadda. Really really corny stuff. I've found that "How can I assist you today" is simple, to the point, and usually elicits a positive response. If I ask..."How can I help you"....what is the customer going to say? Either...."No" or "I'm just looking". I'm sure Edmunds and of the other car buying outlets out there for customers teaches the customer to say that.
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Replying to: dino001 (Dec 01, 2008 6:49 am) The way I look at it, if it weren't for people overpaying, it would be alot harder for the "educated consumer" to get great deals. I can get quotes from contractors for the same job that span 5-10K swings. I don't get angry, I just compare the line items and tell them no-thanks.
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Replying to: golic (Dec 01, 2008 8:06 am) And, BTW I don't get angry at ADMs, either. Amused sometimes.
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Replying to: traindriver (Nov 30, 2008 12:06 pm) That's not true at all. This guy didn't even know it was a hybrid Lexus 400h but that's besides the point. He was such an a-hole that I wouldn't want to try and bridge the gap with him and get him interested in it. Some customers ain't worth it. I am OVER THE TOP courteous to people in retail or service oriented fields. Almost to the point that I think it's to much. I'm not playing this up or going overboard on this response but this is how I would have done it: "Hey, I don't want to waste you time today...my son and I are out kicking tires and I was just wondering if you could give some info on that Lexus over there?" At that point I know what I'm dealing with and I can help this guy out and get him on his way. I don't mind helping people out and letting them drive cars to help them make an informed decision. But it's the 90% of the people out there who have absolutely no regard for what you do for a living. I don't mind if you don't buy form me but when I call you 5 times and refuse to answer cause you don't have the common courtesy to tell a car salesman that you bought somewhere else it gets frustrating. Why are people so afraid of telling a salesman that they bought something else? Sometimes when I know the customer is dodging me I use another salesman's cell phone to call the customer. And when they answer right away and I nail them it always makes for a good laugh....for me.....not them. And what's the deal with these people who come in and use 5 different salesmen to drive 10 different cars? Does anyone have any loyalty these days? Does anyone have any common courtesy? You really see how the retail world is evolving. They demand the best but they don't want to pay for it.
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Let me tell you how our pricing is set up on our used car lot. We overprice our vehicles by 3-4K on EVERY SINGLE UNIT. Of course, when no one cracks the door on our vehicle for 45 days we reduce the hell out of it but that's beside the point... Then we see if we can rope some dope into buying it at that price. It's up to the customer to try and get a price that makes sense. We nail some people on the sticker prices, especially if it's a CPO and we can justify it with the warranty. But the point is that the prices on the windows are for the people who come in blind and want to buy now. We even print out these corny Kelly Blue Books from the 90210 area code to present a false market price that is more in line with what we want to get for the car. |
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Replying to: alejandrom (Dec 01, 2008 8:23 am) We overprice our vehicles by 3-4K on EVERY SINGLE UNIT. Of course, when no one cracks the door on our vehicle for 45 days we reduce the hell out of it but that's beside the point... Then we see if we can rope some dope into buying it at that price. It's up to the customer to try and get a price that makes sense. We nail some people on the sticker prices, especially if it's a CPO and we can justify it with the warranty. But the point is that the prices on the windows are for the people who come in blind and want to buy now. We even print out these corny Kelly Blue Books from the 90210 area code to present a false market price that is more in line with what we want to get for the car. I.....ummmm.....I....ummmm....WOW! I really don't know how to respond to that. Well, yes I do, but I'll keep it to myself. |
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Replying to: alejandrom (Dec 01, 2008 7:51 am) You are absolutely correct. It is the worst form of body language and one of the worst insulting techniques. Waving me off with your hand is just as bad as giving me the finger. Neither one elicits a positive response. Richard |
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Replying to: alejandrom (Dec 01, 2008 8:23 am) Is it something you are proud of? Wow... Now I really know I would not shop in your place. Putting high stickers is one thing (everybody does that - customers too, when they want to trade their car - all harm in too high asking price is that nobody will buy it), but false reports?   If I caught a store doing that, even twenty thosand dollar discount would not help. Once a liar...
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but false reports It's not a false report. It's the value of the car in the 90210 zip code. The thing is...it does not say what zip code is being used on the KBB report. So if you print one out using a 90210 zip code the value of the car will be higher then if you printed it our with a local Chicago zip code. Tricks of the trade. They also use a Manhattan zip code to see if the KBB value is higher there then Beverly Hills. Shady huh? And no, I'm not proud of it. It's not my sandbox...I'm just playing in it. I would rather price our cars with a 2K mark-up and sell them without any hassle. We mark-up cars at least 3-4K over what they should be. To give you an example we were asking $17,900 for a 2006 Camry LE with 41,000 miles. I think it's an outrageous price. I could probably pick up a similar car for about $13,900. But we put that $17.900 out there to try and reel in a whale.
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