Have you sold cars?

[ChasingBlueSky 0]

I was curious the good/bad of it. It seems I was offered a chance to be a car salesman (both new/used) at a 5 Star Dodge Dealership. I would have to start in the "bad credit" area where people come in with bancruptcy, etc. Of course the hours seem to suck and I would have to give up my Saturdays.

The good news is that I could get rid of my car and I would be given a dealership car for $30/month for insurance. Every 6000 miles you get a new car.

Any advice?

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you can burn the land and boil the sea, but you can't take the sky from me....
I WILL fly again.....

[PLFKING 3]

Years ago, I had saved enough money to retire for about 18 months, and midway through my retirement took a job selling cars for about 6 months, just because a) a good friend basically lined the job up for me, b) I had always wanted to try it, and c) if I wasn't good at it, I wasn't going to starve.
I mostly enjoyed it....it helps tremendously if you have previous sales experience, because you're really selling yourself as much as the car.....people have to buy cars -- and I think they worry more about getting screwed than they do about getting the best deal possible -- so making them feel good about you is most of the battle. The ONLY reason I quit was because I had to work Saturdays (we got 1 Saturday off every two months ).

1) get on friendly terms with the finance people as soon as possible....they can't break you, but they can make things a lot easier on you, especially in a busy dealership.

2) find out who the top sellers are, and watch which customers they go after......it's like they have a built-in radar that tells them who's ready to buy that day, vs. who is just comparing. Many times I'd spend 3 hours showing one person around, while the pros would spend an hour with someone, get a signature on the dotted line, then hand them over to the finance dept. and go grab another customer.

3) attend ALL the sales meetings....the info you get there (spiffs for the week, which units management wants to move the most) will help you steer customers to the units you can offer the best discounts on.

4) get into used -car sales if you can (or at least have the option to sell both new AND used)....dealerships make more money on used, which means bigger commissions for you).

5) be courteous and respectful to your clients, and follow up with them a few times after they drive off the lot....for a 5-minute investment of your time, this is a terrific way to get referrals from them (older folks seem to refer their friends more than younger ones do), and my friend told me I had people calling and asking for me as long as 4-5 years after I left.

Good luck !

"When in doubt I whip it out,
I got me a rock-and-roll band.
It's a free-for-all."

[wingnut 0]

i sold a chevy elcamino, a bmw 318i and a 84 ford van...... i found the esieste way is to use the newspaper clasified adds or word of mouth...... oh wait, youare talking about it for a job, never mind... just move along here....nothingto see... just a wana bee car salesman.......



p.s. if ya take the job i dare ya to put the cars up on ebay!!!

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"i have no reader's digest version"

[AggieDave 6]

I'd say go for it, but you said "Dodge trucks" so I'm having to seriously question your judgement.

--"When I die, may I be surrounded by scattered chrome and burning gasoline."

[ChasingBlueSky 0]

A lot to think about - esp the pay. Plus, do I leave the job I just started less than two months ago? Also, stuff like Summerfest, WFFC, or any weekend boogie would be impossible to do.

BTW - up here if it can get a B Plate, its a truck to me. Trucks just are not the status symbol like they are in Texas. Besides - my thought is, if you don't use it for work, whats the point.

_________________________________________
you can burn the land and boil the sea, but you can't take the sky from me....
I WILL fly again.....

[AggieDave 6]

Quote

my thought is, if you don't use it for work, whats the point.

I use my truck as a truck reasonably often, hauling, off-roading, whatever. But I also drive it semi-regularly as just a vehicle. Its also really comfy to travel in...nevermind that I'm not worried about getting killed when that piss-ant honda pulls out infront of me.

This still doesn't change the fact that Dodge took a crappy truck (ford), made it worst and charges more for it.




Ok, seriously.


About the job. If you feel like the job will be good for you and you'll be good for the job, then go for it. If you have your doubts, don't. It sounds like to me you have your doubts, although you will probably end up saving a lot of money on car payments and insurance.

--"When I die, may I be surrounded by scattered chrome and burning gasoline."

[WFFC 1]

Get into the fleet sales dept as soon as you can. Averaged selling 75 cars a month with little to no effort.

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~~~Michael

[bertusgeert 1]

sold subarus for a while. Quite fun. First day out on the floor I sold an outback that had 12500 in it for 14900. THat was a sweet day. Eveyone thought I was a madman.

Lesson - simply make people like you. Those customers and me got along very well, he was a pilot, and we chatted. After that I was way uptight and nervous, and it affected my sales a LOT.

Good luck with selling man, its a lot of fun!

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As jy dom is moet jy bloei!

[ChasingBlueSky 0]

I'm in sales now, so I have plenty of training in that area. I think after selling a $40K intangible for the last year, I should be able to sell a car.

Just wondering how thin the first few months would be since I do have bills to pay and then how good of a long term living I could make off of it. The boss sounds cool - an additional $1000 bonus each month you make you quota (12 cars is what they are looking for).

Even thou the people would have bad credit (one guy on Sat had a score of 303) but was still approved for a loan. So it seems pretty simple.

Just wondering on the free time part as well. I figure if I could do this for about 16 months and work my way to the floor, I would be ok with it. Just having a hard time trying to find any stats online about long term job security or burn out factors. Also if it would be career suicide.

Still, if it would help me earn enough money for my long term goals of going back to school (MBA) and picking up a Private Pilot License...it may be worth it.

_________________________________________
you can burn the land and boil the sea, but you can't take the sky from me....
I WILL fly again.....

[airdvr 200]

As a veteran of almost 20 years in the car business doing everything from selling, f & i, and running a dealership I can tell you it's not as easy as it may seem. The hours absolutely suck. Do you have a family? The office politics at a big dealership is horrible. Most dealers will take any warm body they can put on the sales line because it costs them nothing. You need answers to these questions.

1. Is there an "up" system or is it any man for himself. What this means is are new customers to the dealership assigned to a particular salesman or are you just left to fend for yourself. If there isn't it means you'll spend mucho time standing waiting for the next customer who drives on the lot so you'll actually get a chance to talk to him. It feels a bit like being a hooker. Also, if there is no system you'll probably get "skated" by your fellow employees. I've seen it many times where a customer asks for you by name and the unscrupulous salesman says "he's not here right now but its ok, we all work together"

2. Pay plan: is there a base salary or is it a "draw" system where you are advanced a certain $ amount each week, or every other week. Have to remember that any pay you get will actually be deducted from any commissions you receive. I know many people in the business who made lots of money selling cars according to them. Having signed a few paychecks I can tell you that in order to be really good at selling cars you might not like who you have to become.

3. Quota: what happens when you don't make your quota? Many time the car you're given to drive can be revoked for not meeting quota. Remember, 12 sales doesn't seem like much but its roughtly 1 every other day.

4. Sounds as if they'll be starting you in the "credit challenged" area. You say someone with a beacon of 303 got "approved" for a loan. Big difference between being approved and actually getting a vehicle over the curb. Many credit challenged customers are approved with a down payment they can't possibly afford or don't have. Bottom line....lots of "approvals", very few actual sales.

5. Work atmosphere. I don't know if the winters are cold where you live but I can tell you that showing cars on a Thursday night when its 10 degrees outside is not fun. Your co-workers are by far the lowest form of pond scum you'll ever meet. Very few of them would be the type of person you'd want to spend any time without outside of work. Management can be extremely biased against you. Its the mentality of "what have you done for me lately".

6 Stigma: Q. Whats' the difference between a dead skunk in the road and a dead car salesman? A. There's skid marks in front of the skunk.

Do what you want with this info. But I wanted you to take off the rose colored glasses and see reality. The guy whose job it is to recruit new sales people can make it seem very good on the surface.

Please don't dent the planet.

Destinations by Roxanne

[ChasingBlueSky 0]

Thanks! This is the reality I was looking for.

I'll PM you later with some additional questions after I get home from work tonight.

_________________________________________
you can burn the land and boil the sea, but you can't take the sky from me....
I WILL fly again.....