Car Buying Be-Backs

"I will be back" are four words that salespeople hate to hear.  When a customer says "I will be back", that translates to the salesman as “Thanks, for your time and information, but I will probably buy a car somewhere else”. 

When customers are feeling pressured to buy a car; it is not because salespeople are sharks or vultures, it is that they know when the customer leaves, they are probably not going to return.  The odds are so low, that salesmen refer to waiting for the customers to return as futile as waiting for a magical "Be-Back-Bus". 

Keep in mind that almost all dealerships pay their salesmen entirely on commission. Meaning, the time that the salesperson spends with a customer will either result in a commission or it will be a complete loss. This does not mean that a customer should only talk to a salesman if they are prepared to buy a car. However, it is helpful to be aware of the salesman's mindset.

 

Actually, most customers believe that they will return.  Because buying a car is can be an emotionally charged decision, once the “Ether” is separated from the process, customers will rarely go back to the same dealership before shopping around. 

 

...when the customer “shops around” the next salesperson that the customer meets will probably sell the car. All they will have to do is close the deal.

Keep in mind, the first salesperson that the customer meets may be reason that they buy the car.  They may have answered all of the customer's questions and got them excited about the vehicle.  However, when the customer “shops around” the next salesperson that the customer meets will probably sell the car.  The next salesperson can begin where the previous salesperson left off and usually all they will have to do is close the deal.

 

Plus, customers can get tired of driving around from dealer to dealer and after a while they just want to end the shopping process and buy.   From the salesman’s point of view it is better to be the second or third salesperson that the customer meets

 

The Bubble

 

A trick that salesmen can use to get their customers to come back is to put them on a “bubble”.  This is usually done when the customer is preparing to leave.   A "bubble" is when the salesman creates a motivating reason to get the customer to return.  Most of the time, it is a less than truthful disclosure on price or payment. 

 

For example, if the customer has been looking at car that car costs approximately four hundred dollars per month. The salesman will “put the customer on a bubble" by saying, “Before you spend two hundred dollars a month, come back and see me.”

 

Once the customer is on a "bubble" they will float around from dealer to dealer unable to get a two hundred dollar payment.  Eventually they return to the original salesman and attempt to get the two hundred dollar payment.  Although the salesman won't be able to meet that payment, at least they will have another opportunity to sell a car

 

Salesman will also use this method on a “Phone-Pop”.  Over the phone, they will quote a price they know a competitive dealer will not be able to match.  Most dealerships will instruct their salesman to say what ever it takes to get the customer to come to the dealership.  This is why it is rarely effective to call around from dealer to dealer and to establish the best price. 

 

Kinked