Sell Yourself, The Dealership, Fact Find & Build Rapport
The Universe Made Car Sales People
Just a quick video I think anyone in the car business can appreciate.
Before we get into this, I wanted to mention that especially if it is 120 degrees outside, raining or snowing it might not be a bad idea first to bring your customers inside. Once you are inside, offer them something to drink and sit down with them, grab a piece of paper and go over what their goals are for their next vehicle. Also, this might be a good time to introduce them to your manager to show your customer he or she is not scary and full of high pressure.
Steps 2 & 3 On The Road To The Sale
I have decided to group steps two and three together because they are the only two steps of the sale that can are interchangeable and somewhat blend for me.
The definition of rapport is “a close and harmonious relationship in which the people or groups concerned understand each other's feelings or ideas and communicate well.” Selling yourself, the dealership, fact finding and building rapport are all things that should be established throughout your entire sales process as well as finding common ground with your customers.
Common ground is something that should be sought after in any human interaction we have where we want someone to like us; this is because people like people who are like them or people they aspire to be.
Two questions I have asked religiously after exchanging names are "What are your goals for coming in Today?" & "What are your goals for your next vehicle?"
Some early on objections
Customer: "This is the first place I stopped."
How did we get so lucky to be your first choice?
Customer: "Today is an info gathering day, I have looked at ____ & ____ vehicles so far."
There are so many great choices available today what was your favorite vehicle you have seen so far? What makes it stand out?
Customer: "I am not buying anything today."
No problem, based on the information I have given you so far I wouldn't have assumed you would consider buying anything today.
Back to the sales process
New or pre-owned?
Gas or diesel?
Top 3 color choices?
Reaffirm by listing what they have told you their needs are and ask if there is anything else?
How did you hear about our dealership?
If your customer gives you a real advertising source such as a cars.com it may be valuable to write that down so that you can put it into the CRM and give your company a more solid understanding of where their money is best spent so that they have the data to provide you with more customers.
Have you done business here before?
Have you done business here before is a great introduction to a pitch for your dealership for either the purchase of a new or pre-owned vehicle.
If Yes: "That is great, most of our customers are repeat or referral. Did you buy a new Buick or GMC or is the ___ you drove in from our dealership?
New pitch: I am not sure we do business the same way as when you bought your last vehicle here I know GM (for example) has made some significant changes that make it really easy for customers to get their best deal. In many cases they make us give you a great sale price and rebates up front, and we are not allowed to charge you more. The only hard part is, all of the pricing is VIN specific so all we have to do is pick out the right one and I can make to get you our best price on anything.
Used Pitch: I am not sure we do business the same way as when you bought your last vehicle here, I know our Used Car manager is always trying to improve our inventory. All of our vehicles are hand selected, have been through a full safety and mechanical inspection and are they take great effort to keep all of our vehicles priced competitively in our market, some are even priced only a couple of hundred dollars above & sometimes even a little below cost
If No: "I don't hear that too often, most of the people I speak to are repeat or referral customers. Do you know anything about our dealership?"
Well allow me to tell you a little about us: We are a real family owned dealer, the owners literally work here, and their real last name is on the building (if that is true). We have been in business been in business since ____ , all of our pre-owned inventory has been through a thorough safety & mechanical inspection, and they take effort to keep all of our vehicles priced competitively in our market, some are even priced a little over & sometimes even a little below cost (If new go to new replace with pitch above).
What started your shopping adventure? Birthday, anniversary, or just because you deserve it?
If you are speaking to a couple: who is the lucky one looking to get a new vehicle?
I think everyone who has spent more than a week in the car business has probably had someone tell them to focus on the wife regardless of who the vehicle is for if you are interacting with a couple. Now I don’t necessarily agree with that; I think there is a better way to explain it. The idea is to be a good host, and you probably wouldn’t ignore your friend's wife who came over with him because she doesn’t like basketball. Also, something to consider is if you are out somewhere with your significant other and you are the male in a relationship and your wife tells you that she wants to leave, you are probably going to leave, no questions asked. However, if you reverse the same scenario, in my personal experiences, and the wife replies with "no I want to stay" this is probably the end of you wanting to leave. Happy wife happy life.
Are you planning on replacing the ____ you drove in with?
If Yes: great, if we find the perfect vehicle for you before you go, I will be sure to get you all of the info you need to make an educated decision, even figures on your current vehicle.
What causes the switch? Is there anything about your current vehicle that you would like to change?
If No: Are you planning to sell another vehicle?
If they repeat no: Are you adding to the fleet, or are you planning to sell privately?
If your customer says they are planning to sell privately, you could ask them: If you give you enough for it, can I buy it?
Trade-in can be a scary word and although in many cases, especially in states with a tax credit, you may not get much less or any less at all than you would if you sold your vehicle privately, certainly not if your customer values their time. It is probably good practice to keep words like trade-in out of your vocabulary with customers and use something a little less alarming like "current vehicle."
If your customers are looking at a truck: Are you planning to tow? What are you pulling? How much does it weigh?
If they are not pulling something but looking at a truck, you could easily hurt someone's pride by asking them the above, and it is in our best interest to not to hurt their pride and it might be a good idea to reassure them that trucks are handy in general and look great or something like that.
What do you plan to use your next vehicle for? (Dumb question but you can find out if they have a long commute if it's going to their 2nd home in Arizona, if it is a tool for work or if it is for hauling kids)
Do you have a particular price or payment range you had hoped to stick within?
If they say it is not of something to worry about- 99% of the time it probably does matter to some extent, and I assume people say it out of pride or because they fear if they give us a number that is too high they won't get a good deal. Regardless of what the reason may be, It may be a good idea to let them know that the only reason you are asking was to make sure you didn't show them something that was something lesser than what they could afford or get too crazy and show them something they didn't want to spend that much money on.
If you can't get to the next step TURN
Check out the next post which is the 4th step to the sale, selecting a vehicle.
As with all of our car sales training blog posts, please email or place a comment below if you have any thoughts about changes or additions that you think should be made to this post because the goal is to provide the most value to the readers.