Nick Barber
Active Member
I might get a job at a local dealership as a sales rep. Never done this before so does anyone have any insight as what to look forward to? Good/Bad? Thanks.
Working at a dealership
- Thread starter Nick Barber
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gary s
Well-Known Member
what manufacturer?
that make a huge difference
that make a huge difference
What I have heard is...give EVERYONE the best deal possible and before they catch on, you'll be salesman of the month for so many sales!!!!!
Of course, you'll be looking for another job soon after!!!!!!!!!!
And you will possibly be working where??????????
Of course, you'll be looking for another job soon after!!!!!!!!!!
And you will possibly be working where??????????
George T
Well-Known Member
Yeah i also really want to work at this Ford dealership, like a mile from my house. I hope i can get it and be good at it.
ray moyer
Well-Known Member
my dad works at a ford dealer, its pretty cool but like with all jobs there are the down sides.
but everyone there is real cool for the most part.
sell 6 cars get a bonus, sell 9 get a bigger bonus lol
but everyone there is real cool for the most part.
sell 6 cars get a bonus, sell 9 get a bigger bonus lol
Johnny O
Well-Known Member
A lot depends on what you're selling and how much competition you have. I sold cars in '83-'84, Oldsmobiles in an area where there were three Chevy dealers, two Ford dealers, and FIVE Olds dealers. So by the time I did sell a car I'd be so beat down on price that I didn't make any money. I couldn't really make a decent living at it. After I left, the old guy who owned the place died, the general manager (world class A-hole) bought the dealership and it folded in about a year.
How much you know about cars is not terribly relevant. You need to sell, sell, sell. Most customers don't care about axle ratios and performance suspension options, they care about what they're going to pay and they think you make a lot more than you do. The buyer thinks everything you tell them BEFORE they buy the car is a lie and everything you tell them AFTER they buy it is the gospel truth.
That said, I learned a lot about people and business and sales that served me well in other jobs.
How much you know about cars is not terribly relevant. You need to sell, sell, sell. Most customers don't care about axle ratios and performance suspension options, they care about what they're going to pay and they think you make a lot more than you do. The buyer thinks everything you tell them BEFORE they buy the car is a lie and everything you tell them AFTER they buy it is the gospel truth.
That said, I learned a lot about people and business and sales that served me well in other jobs.
Nick Barber
Active Member
LOL Dave S. It is a Ford dealership and there is one other Ford dealer in town, that has the reputation of giving you the shaft, about 10 minutes away. I've been there a few times to look at the new tracs and actually bought my first car there. Everyone is really nice and dont give the impression of the "scummy salesman". Anyway this will be new to me so ill let you know how it goes.
I sold Fords back about 4 years ago. I found selling cars was not anywhere as difficult as finding customers who could pay for them.
I never had difficulty talking with a customer and getting them interested in a car, but when they applied for the loan they were rejected because they had bad to very bad credit. Now with so many people defaulting on loans and mortgages, I think things will be pretty rough out there in the new/used car sales world.
Wthere will always be people who want to buy a new or used car/truck but less will qualify for the loans. That seems to be the heartbreak of auto sales. You spend a lot of time with a customer answering questions and helping them make that decision, only to find out that they could not even afford to buy the floor mats much less the car.
If you are out of work, then by all means take the job and try to make a go of it. You may do very well, just remember there is a learning curve and it may take a few months to get the hang of it. I'm sure there are good times to be a car salesman, but at times like these, and perhaps the near future, it's not going to give you a very good first impression. But if you can ride out the low spots with enough sales to make a living, then you will probably do very well when cars are in higher demand.
Where I worked, we sold both new and used cars, and by far, Used cars will get you more money than the new ones. Some dealerships separate their new car salesman from the used car salseman. If your dealer does that, try to get in the Used Car sales. You have a better chance of making money in Used cars even when the market is down.
Good luck,
...Rich
I never had difficulty talking with a customer and getting them interested in a car, but when they applied for the loan they were rejected because they had bad to very bad credit. Now with so many people defaulting on loans and mortgages, I think things will be pretty rough out there in the new/used car sales world.
Wthere will always be people who want to buy a new or used car/truck but less will qualify for the loans. That seems to be the heartbreak of auto sales. You spend a lot of time with a customer answering questions and helping them make that decision, only to find out that they could not even afford to buy the floor mats much less the car.
If you are out of work, then by all means take the job and try to make a go of it. You may do very well, just remember there is a learning curve and it may take a few months to get the hang of it. I'm sure there are good times to be a car salesman, but at times like these, and perhaps the near future, it's not going to give you a very good first impression. But if you can ride out the low spots with enough sales to make a living, then you will probably do very well when cars are in higher demand.
Where I worked, we sold both new and used cars, and by far, Used cars will get you more money than the new ones. Some dealerships separate their new car salesman from the used car salseman. If your dealer does that, try to get in the Used Car sales. You have a better chance of making money in Used cars even when the market is down.
Good luck,
...Rich
above all else be HONEST when selling a vehicle.
i cant tell you how many times i have had salesmen outright
LIE to me when looking for a new/used car.
they lie through their teeth and when you catch them they try to
lie their way out of it.
we ended up buying our 05 escape because after going to 6 stealer's
in a 10 day period 3 years ago i finally met an honest salesman at
Bill Marsh Ford,in Newtown, PA.
the guy was not only honest but knowledgeable about every car/suv
we looked at and had all the right answers, i know because i tested him
with the information that i had gathered before going in.
he was only about 25 years old but obviously took pride
in his job and i have sent him many people from work that were
looking for cars and the ones that bought from him were just as happy.
i cant tell you how many times i have had salesmen outright
LIE to me when looking for a new/used car.
they lie through their teeth and when you catch them they try to
lie their way out of it.
we ended up buying our 05 escape because after going to 6 stealer's
in a 10 day period 3 years ago i finally met an honest salesman at
Bill Marsh Ford,in Newtown, PA.
the guy was not only honest but knowledgeable about every car/suv
we looked at and had all the right answers, i know because i tested him
with the information that i had gathered before going in.
he was only about 25 years old but obviously took pride
in his job and i have sent him many people from work that were
looking for cars and the ones that bought from him were just as happy.
Rich L summed it up pretty good.
To add to what he said, here is something else to know.
There are people out there that do not care what a vehicle costs. They only care about what it costs per month. When she worked at a Ford Dealer, she seen people take a new car from 60 months to 72 months just to pay $15.00/month LESS. Even when the salesman said they should dump the moonroof to save money, they were asking about 84 months to "save" even more per month.
They did not care about how much they were paying for the vehicle itself.
As Rich said, BO HONEST! When I walk into a dealer, I know more about the vehicle than the salesman does. I would be willing to bet I know more than the engineer does about it.
I read everything about it. I have had salesman tell me some off the wall things that were so completely wrong, it isn't funny. When I get those losers, I stand up, call them an idiot and find another salesman. If they are unwilling to give me a new salesman, I leave the dealership.
Fortunatly, I have found one dealer that treats me right and a salesman that does not pull that crap on me. No pressure either.
Tom
To add to what he said, here is something else to know.
There are people out there that do not care what a vehicle costs. They only care about what it costs per month. When she worked at a Ford Dealer, she seen people take a new car from 60 months to 72 months just to pay $15.00/month LESS. Even when the salesman said they should dump the moonroof to save money, they were asking about 84 months to "save" even more per month.
They did not care about how much they were paying for the vehicle itself.
As Rich said, BO HONEST! When I walk into a dealer, I know more about the vehicle than the salesman does. I would be willing to bet I know more than the engineer does about it.
I read everything about it. I have had salesman tell me some off the wall things that were so completely wrong, it isn't funny. When I get those losers, I stand up, call them an idiot and find another salesman. If they are unwilling to give me a new salesman, I leave the dealership.Fortunatly, I have found one dealer that treats me right and a salesman that does not pull that crap on me. No pressure either.
Tom
Dreman
Well-Known Member
I bought my first new car from a salesman that was just waiting to close down on a slow night, and was willing to sit down with me and price out the options just like I wanted it. After that was done, we talked about some of the odd sales he had made over the years. One of the oddest was an old woman who walked in with ratty old clothes, grey hair out everywhere, and a big paper bag in her hand. He let her wander around looking at the cars for a few minutes, and then politely asked her if she needed assistance. She looked at him, pointed at one of the cars, and said "I want that one". It was another slow day, and he felt like humoring her, so he said "certainly, and how will you be paying?" She handed him the bag, and he found it was stuffed with money! She paid sticker, too. He checked her out, and she was legitimate. She was just extremely frugal. They moved every car in the showroom to get her car out.
ray moyer
Well-Known Member
dreman thats story is pretty cool lol
the salesman you had sounds pretty cool
the salesman you had sounds pretty cool
Nick Smith
Member
This is a pretty interesting article done a few years ago by a writer at Edmunds. He went undercover at a few different dealerships and wrote a long article on it.
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Gypsy me
Well-Known Member
Nick, learn your products really well and don't be too pushy with the customers, be nice but really knowledgeable, be upbeat and exicted (but don't be over excited to the point of coming across fake) With women, on the average, we like looks first of a car, then toys and miledge. And when you see a customer, don't assume. Ask the customer "what do you want in a vehicle? What are "your" needs? Listen to key words like, "I drive x amount of mile every day" "I have x number of *small kids or teens* *this vehicle will be my toy or daily driver" Fit the customer with the right vehicle.
Now, you are going to have pushy customers and customers that know exactly what they want. Keep in mind, customers today do alot of researching for the vehicles..so that is what you want to prepared for. What you want to do is make sure, the customer knows "You care about them and their needs" Keep in mind, you are venturing in to a sales job. The goal is to sell. You don't want to always try to sell the most expensive vehicle, you want to Sell a vehicle, set yourself goals. Maybe a new vehicle a week and 6 used ones a week (just an example)
AND follow up, follow up follow up, with your customers. Don't forget to send thank you notes for their interest and let them know you are there for them. Customer service goes a long long way in a sales position.
I hope that helps you and Good luck to you!
edit...just read everyone else posts Ha! so I pretty much said what they all said... the key is don't assume and GREAT customer service! I agree with all the answers given to you. All very good advise.
good luck to you again!
Now, you are going to have pushy customers and customers that know exactly what they want. Keep in mind, customers today do alot of researching for the vehicles..so that is what you want to prepared for. What you want to do is make sure, the customer knows "You care about them and their needs" Keep in mind, you are venturing in to a sales job. The goal is to sell. You don't want to always try to sell the most expensive vehicle, you want to Sell a vehicle, set yourself goals. Maybe a new vehicle a week and 6 used ones a week (just an example)
AND follow up, follow up follow up, with your customers. Don't forget to send thank you notes for their interest and let them know you are there for them. Customer service goes a long long way in a sales position.
I hope that helps you and Good luck to you!
edit...just read everyone else posts Ha! so I pretty much said what they all said... the key is don't assume and GREAT customer service! I agree with all the answers given to you. All very good advise.
good luck to you again!
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Michael Martin
Active Member
I worked at a CarMax, Ford and a Toyota dealer. CarMax is not your traditional dealership, so you don't have to BS your customer. At a dealership you will BS your customer and the hours are LONG! Bell to Bell - usually 8:30 AM until 9:00 PM. The first thing they will tell you is that you will have 1 or two days a week off and you should take them to re-group yourself. THEN they will tell you that if you take those days off, you will NOT be making money!
Training at most dealerships in non-exsistant. They will stick you with a "seasoned" veteran to learn the ropes. That will be good for a few hours, then you will be cramping his/her style and they will give you some books to go read, so you can learn about your product. This "training" period will normally last 2-3 weeks and you won't be seeing any customers. The dealership will have you on salary until your learning curve is over, then it's straight commission.
What ever you do, please don't think that you will be selling every car on the showroom floor. It just won't happen. Your first sale will most likely be a MINI-DEAL - and that is only after a week and a half. Mini deals are almost bear minimum profit for the dealership and you will be getting $50-100 for all the time you spent on it. Then you will have to give your mentor 1/2 of it for his expertise he gave you. Other sales people are LYING to you when they say they make $100k a year. It's maybe one out of 500 that make that kind of money and they are NOT working at a domestic dealership, BMW, Audi, Lexus maybe, but at a Ford, Dodge or Chevy store - NO.
Get used to customers treating you like dog crap, because to them, that is what you are. Car dealers rank right down there with lawyers, but the later makes a whole lot more money. Get used to your managers treating you like dog crap, too, because if you are not selling, then you are totally slacking off and not making the dealership any money, thus the manager is not making any money!
Your co-workers are not there to be your friend. They are there to make money, and money only. Make sure you document every single contact you make with a customer, because if not and another sales consultant sells them a car, you are TSOL (Tough Sh*t Outta Luck).
Hope you don't mind smokers and drinkers. Not your customers, but your co-workers. 95% of all sales reps are smokers and drinkers. And you will find some of your co-workers half drunk while they are there.
I could go on and on about the bad parts of being a car sales person, mainly because there are not very many good parts. Again, long hours, disrespect, low pay and no time off. I spent over 5 years in the business and the best day of it all was when I turned in my resignation so I could work in electronics!
I hope this doesn't put a damper on your choice of jobs, but it is not a glamorous or money making job. I know, my best year I made about $35000!
Training at most dealerships in non-exsistant. They will stick you with a "seasoned" veteran to learn the ropes. That will be good for a few hours, then you will be cramping his/her style and they will give you some books to go read, so you can learn about your product. This "training" period will normally last 2-3 weeks and you won't be seeing any customers. The dealership will have you on salary until your learning curve is over, then it's straight commission.
What ever you do, please don't think that you will be selling every car on the showroom floor. It just won't happen. Your first sale will most likely be a MINI-DEAL - and that is only after a week and a half. Mini deals are almost bear minimum profit for the dealership and you will be getting $50-100 for all the time you spent on it. Then you will have to give your mentor 1/2 of it for his expertise he gave you. Other sales people are LYING to you when they say they make $100k a year. It's maybe one out of 500 that make that kind of money and they are NOT working at a domestic dealership, BMW, Audi, Lexus maybe, but at a Ford, Dodge or Chevy store - NO.
Get used to customers treating you like dog crap, because to them, that is what you are. Car dealers rank right down there with lawyers, but the later makes a whole lot more money. Get used to your managers treating you like dog crap, too, because if you are not selling, then you are totally slacking off and not making the dealership any money, thus the manager is not making any money!
Your co-workers are not there to be your friend. They are there to make money, and money only. Make sure you document every single contact you make with a customer, because if not and another sales consultant sells them a car, you are TSOL (Tough Sh*t Outta Luck).
Hope you don't mind smokers and drinkers. Not your customers, but your co-workers. 95% of all sales reps are smokers and drinkers. And you will find some of your co-workers half drunk while they are there.
I could go on and on about the bad parts of being a car sales person, mainly because there are not very many good parts. Again, long hours, disrespect, low pay and no time off. I spent over 5 years in the business and the best day of it all was when I turned in my resignation so I could work in electronics!
I hope this doesn't put a damper on your choice of jobs, but it is not a glamorous or money making job. I know, my best year I made about $35000!
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Back in Sept. 2001 on a Friday I sat down & called all the area Ford dealers to see if they had a Deep Wedgewood Blue Trac in stock, all said no, some took my name & #. About 45 minutes later the phone rang, gentlemen says I don't know who I'm talking to, but you called about a Deep Wedgewood Blue a few minutes ago & one just came in off truck. I asked how long he would be open, he was 30 miles away, my wife wasn't even due home for another hour or so. He says, we'll stay to you get here. They did, well after closing, test drove it that night, picked it up the next day. Oh, when I got there it was the Business Mgr. who'd answered the phone when I intially called & he had a broken arm in a sling, he'd put my phone # in an adding machine or calculator since he couldn't write, he never asked my name!
I must disagree totally with what Mike said about working at a dealership. I don't know how CarMax dealers work, but the one I worked for was nothing like he described.
There was never any BS and the owner did not like anyone who lied to anyone. We received training including about 2 weeks of doing nothing, but watching videos on salesmanship, and classes from the sales manager about the profitability of each vehicle and how our commissions were derived. We never had to pay anyone any part of our commission because they helped or mentored you, besides, everyone worked on their own.
Most dealerships do not operate anthing like the way Mike described. You do have to watch out for other salesman who will attempt to steal customers from you. where I workd, that was frowned upon and the salesmanager would go after anyone who tried to do that.
I got caught up in a situation where a customer had talked to a salesman on the phone but he failed to call them back. When the came in I met them and they said they had talked to somone on the phone, but he nver called them back so they did not what to work with him anymore. They refused to tell me his name, so I acted as their salseman.
They did not buy a car/truck, but later the salesman saw their names in the log book and told the Sales manager that I stole his customer and the salesmanager came after me. I explained what had happened and that they refused to tell me who they had talked to earlier...What was I supposed to do, tell them I could not help them?
He said he understood and later jumped on the other salesman for failing to follow up and loosing a potential customer, and then whining about it saying that I stole his customer.
Anyway, Most dealers are honost, it's the salesman who will cheat and lie to make a sale that cause all the complaints about car salesman. Ower dealership even kept copies of all the notes and numbers scribbled down on pieces of paper to show that any price or trade-in quote was documented and the salesman cannot easily lie or cheat a customer., but it does, and did happen and they were fired.
...Rich
There was never any BS and the owner did not like anyone who lied to anyone. We received training including about 2 weeks of doing nothing, but watching videos on salesmanship, and classes from the sales manager about the profitability of each vehicle and how our commissions were derived. We never had to pay anyone any part of our commission because they helped or mentored you, besides, everyone worked on their own.
Most dealerships do not operate anthing like the way Mike described. You do have to watch out for other salesman who will attempt to steal customers from you. where I workd, that was frowned upon and the salesmanager would go after anyone who tried to do that.
I got caught up in a situation where a customer had talked to a salesman on the phone but he failed to call them back. When the came in I met them and they said they had talked to somone on the phone, but he nver called them back so they did not what to work with him anymore. They refused to tell me his name, so I acted as their salseman.
They did not buy a car/truck, but later the salesman saw their names in the log book and told the Sales manager that I stole his customer and the salesmanager came after me. I explained what had happened and that they refused to tell me who they had talked to earlier...What was I supposed to do, tell them I could not help them?
He said he understood and later jumped on the other salesman for failing to follow up and loosing a potential customer, and then whining about it saying that I stole his customer.
Anyway, Most dealers are honost, it's the salesman who will cheat and lie to make a sale that cause all the complaints about car salesman. Ower dealership even kept copies of all the notes and numbers scribbled down on pieces of paper to show that any price or trade-in quote was documented and the salesman cannot easily lie or cheat a customer., but it does, and did happen and they were fired.
...Rich
TomT
Well-Known Member
I've known a couple of car salesmen. Neither one of them seems to stay at one place for long. I don't know if it was just them or if that's the norm in the business. Kind of like my mechanic friends. None of them seem to stay very long in one place either.
Tom T,
It's the nature of the business. As the vehicle models change, so do the sales figures for various dealerships and the salesman go where they think they can sell more and make more money.
Some dealers have a lot of salesman and the competition is stiff, especially when there is a sales slump. The dealers can hire all the salesman they want since they are on commission they don't need to pay them anything unless they sell cars. Also, most dealerships offer various sales bonuses for selling X number of cars per month. The dealer knows that if he has a lot of salesman, the sales will be more distributed where it's harder for any one salesman to get that bonus.
Te other reason is some salesmen will click well at one dealership, while other just don't and they will usually move on trying to find where the grass is greener.
...Rich
It's the nature of the business. As the vehicle models change, so do the sales figures for various dealerships and the salesman go where they think they can sell more and make more money.
Some dealers have a lot of salesman and the competition is stiff, especially when there is a sales slump. The dealers can hire all the salesman they want since they are on commission they don't need to pay them anything unless they sell cars. Also, most dealerships offer various sales bonuses for selling X number of cars per month. The dealer knows that if he has a lot of salesman, the sales will be more distributed where it's harder for any one salesman to get that bonus.
Te other reason is some salesmen will click well at one dealership, while other just don't and they will usually move on trying to find where the grass is greener.
...Rich
Michael Martin
Active Member
My comments were NOT directed towards CarMax.
>CarMax is not your traditional dealership, so you don't have to BS your customer. At a dealership you will BS your customer and the hours are LONG! <
CarMax had an excellent training program - as a matter of fact, I was a mentor there (7103). I had several of my mentees become top sales consultants! All my comments were directed towards traditional dealerships!
I worked both at a Ford and Toyota store, and life there sucked. I've got friends who work at other dealerships, and the life for them is the same. Yes, occasionally you will find a "green pea" that doesn't know better, or the old retired fart who is an honest person, but 90% of them will go for every penny they can get from you. Mini-deals will NOT keep food on your table. You NEED to profit about $1500 a week to be able to survive. When sales are slow, the manager will do what it takes to sell (because the owner of the store will fire people if they don't make sales) a vehicle.
Think long and hard about getting into the car business. Yes, CarMax is the way car buying should be, but you get ONLY $150 per car you sell, (up until you get into Directors or Presidents club), $50 for each car you buy, and $50 for each warranty you sell (and your managers EXPECT you to sell a warranty on each car), in order to make $3000 a month, you will have to sell at least 15 cars, 10 warranties and buy 5 cars! At traditional dealers, you make between $50-$1000 per car (depending on how much OVER invoice you can get the customer to pay), a percentage of the back end (this is if you can get them to take the dealers financing, warranties and any other crap that can be added on to the price) and get $0.00 for each car you buy!
Check out this posting at Edmunds for a story on being a car salesman -
>CarMax is not your traditional dealership, so you don't have to BS your customer. At a dealership you will BS your customer and the hours are LONG! <
CarMax had an excellent training program - as a matter of fact, I was a mentor there (7103). I had several of my mentees become top sales consultants! All my comments were directed towards traditional dealerships!
I worked both at a Ford and Toyota store, and life there sucked. I've got friends who work at other dealerships, and the life for them is the same. Yes, occasionally you will find a "green pea" that doesn't know better, or the old retired fart who is an honest person, but 90% of them will go for every penny they can get from you. Mini-deals will NOT keep food on your table. You NEED to profit about $1500 a week to be able to survive. When sales are slow, the manager will do what it takes to sell (because the owner of the store will fire people if they don't make sales) a vehicle.
Think long and hard about getting into the car business. Yes, CarMax is the way car buying should be, but you get ONLY $150 per car you sell, (up until you get into Directors or Presidents club), $50 for each car you buy, and $50 for each warranty you sell (and your managers EXPECT you to sell a warranty on each car), in order to make $3000 a month, you will have to sell at least 15 cars, 10 warranties and buy 5 cars! At traditional dealers, you make between $50-$1000 per car (depending on how much OVER invoice you can get the customer to pay), a percentage of the back end (this is if you can get them to take the dealers financing, warranties and any other crap that can be added on to the price) and get $0.00 for each car you buy!
Check out this posting at Edmunds for a story on being a car salesman -
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