Go Back to Basics – Tips for Car Dealers

Every once in a while, you’ll see a “green pea” (new car salesman) come out of training and come to the sales floor with their new car sales knowledge and start selling cars. This person follows his sales training and car sales advice to the letter and begins to make deals left and right. They are excited and quite proud of his success in his new car sales career. They smile all the time and enthusiastically greet their customers while racking up more sales and commissions.

Then, as time goes by, they start to think that they can shorten their training steps and save some time and energy. They also start to believe that they can get a sure sale at first sight and start to pick and choose their customers. Then, before they realize what hit them, their sales start to drop and so do their commissions. The new car salesman is scratching his head trying to figure out why no one is buying from them. It’s because they need to go back to the basics of their car salesman training and sales tips. So keep reading and you’ll discover the most basic and important car sales tips for being a successful car salesman.

Basic Tip #1 for Car Salesmen: Discovery

The basic meet and greet is the first meeting of the car salesman and the potential car buyer and a very critical step in selling cars. You know what they say about first impressions and it’s no different when it comes to selling cars for a living. Presenting yourself quickly and professionally is the right thing to do, but if you’re underdressed or smell like an ashtray, you have a good chance of making a bad first impression. You need to look, act, dress, and speak like a professional to make a good impression. This car salesman tip will help you get started on the right foot.

#2 Basic tip for car dealers: Selection

This tip for car salesmen may seem obvious, but novice car salesmen often overlook proper selection. It will never sell and the buyer will never buy the wrong car at the right price. Every car buyer would like to have a top of the line car at the price of a basic car. When you spend some time talking and determining their needs you will save yourself a lot of grievances. If you show your customer the full model and they can only afford the base model, you risk embarrassing them. However, if you show them the base model and they can pay more, they will be shocked. It’s easy to bring them up to the nicer models, but it’s very difficult and cumbersome to bring them back down to a model that fits your budget.

Car Salesman Basic Tip #3: Picking Cherries

Cherry picking is the practice of a car salesman who believes he can determine a customer’s creditworthiness or purchasing potential by looking at them. They will then decide if they are going to serve that customer or let another salesperson help them. The downside of selective choice is that clients often dress down and intentionally try to appear less desirable as a defense strategy. They want the seller to think they have no money or credit so they won’t be pressured. I have seen many sellers lose very good commissions for choosing. The bottom line of this car salesman tip is that you can’t tell buyers and onlookers by looking at them. The more people you help, the more you will sell; it’s all about the numbers.

When you find yourself in a car sales slump, go back and read these very basic, but very important tips for car salesmen. You have to look like a professional from the start and know your client and their needs. Talk to as many potential customers as you can, stick to the basics, and your numbers will continue to rise as will your commissions.