Making the Appointment to Close the Car Deal

Once the calculations have been completed, you must close the deal with the car dealer. 

 

You can try to accomplish the “close” over the phone.  However, most dealers will require that the customer finalize the negotiations at the dealership.  This is because they believe a "deal isn’t a deal" until the customer is driving off the lot in their new car. 

 

Basically, dealers are afraid that if they agree to a deal over the phone, the customer will then call another store to improve upon the price.   Rarely will you receive legitimate discount pricing over the phone.

 

Salesman will generally handle phone negotiations two ways. The first technique is they will explain to customer that if they would like a discount, it is required for them to be present at the dealership (to show the management that they are serious).

 

The second technique is they will “Bubble” the customer and agree to sell the car at an unrealistically low price over the phone to prevent the customer from “shopping”. This will increase the probability that the customer will eventually come to the showroom.  Of course, more often than not, the price will change once the customer arrives.

 

In a nutshell, for a dealer to commit to a price, the customer must first commit to buying and driving the car away. In their opinion, this can only accomplished when the customer is at the dealership ready to sign papers.