Posted on 10/23/2018 4:25:54 AM PDT by Kaslin
This past week, I went to five car dealers in an upper-middle-class suburb of Los Angeles to see what SUV I'd like to lease. I wanted to patronize local car dealers because I want them to stay in business.
In each case, I experienced the following: I was greeted pleasantly upon entering the dealership. A young salesperson asked if he or she could help me. I told the salesperson the model I was interested in. He or she made a copy of my driver's license and returned with a key to the car, and off we went.
In every instance, the salesperson was sweet, unenthusiastic and largely ignorant of the car in which I was interested.
All of them answered most of my questions -- such as "Is this SUV available in all-wheel-drive?" -- with some version of "l'll look it up."
I began car shopping many decades ago but have rarely gone to dealerships in the last 25 years (I generally drove the cars of advertisers on my radio show). My recollection of my experience in earlier days is that car salespeople (especially those of foreign cars) were car enthusiasts. They were passionate about cars in general and very knowledgeable about the particular cars they were selling.
But in every instance this past week, I felt I knew more about the car, from doing some research on the internet, than the salesperson did.
It seemed to both my wife and me that these car dealerships hired any decent young person who applied for a job, and that these young people regarded selling cars as no different from selling shoes: It's a job. It requires you to show up on time, be polite, accompany potential buyers on a test drive, look up answers to questions on your smartphone and go home at the end of the day. Their interest in cars was not necessarily greater than drug store employees' interest in hair brushes. Selling cars is just a way -- one of many others to come -- to pay the bills.
My wife saw in the answer "I'll look it up" one possible key to the problem: If the young people we interacted with this past week are representative of their generation, many do not feel the need to know much, because all the information they need in life can be found via Google.
I focused on another issue: While these young salespeople were unfailingly pleasant, none of them evinced passion.
I remember young (and old) car salesmen who loved cars. Sure, they would exaggerate a car's qualities, but they knew all about it -- inside and out. But this past week, not one of the salespeople said anything about the car during the test drive. Unless I asked questions, their only words were "Make a right at the next corner."
It makes me wonder what young people are passionate about in our time: favorite TV shows and actors? Music? Video games? Sports? Global warming?
If a 65-year-old salesman seems to be doing little more than going through the motions, we understand that perhaps we have met a modern-day Willy Loman. But a passionless 25-year-old? That's just sad.
Do the car dealerships know this? Do they care? At one time, the general critique of car dealers was they were too pushy. If my experience is at all typical, I can assure readers that pushiness is no longer a problem. The only thing any of the dealers pushed was free bottled water.
I am aware that every generation laments "In my time ..." But that doesn't necessarily invalidate what follows.
In my time, young guys -- I can speak with greater knowledge about men -- had hobbies/passions. And ambition.
If I were 25 years old and had a job selling cars, even if I had other aspirations for my life, I would still aim to be the best car salesman in America. That's what we refer to as ambition.
I would learn everything I could about the cars I sold. I would learn how to advocate for the cars without being pushy. During the test drives, I would say a lot more than where the customer should next turn. In addition to talking about the car, I would ask customers about themselves.
I detected little ambition in the sex previously known for professional ambition -- men. But no one should be surprised. Many young men have been coddled by parents and by society. If you receive a trophy just for playing, why try to win? If self-esteem is given to you without having to earn it, why try to earn it? If the government will take care of you, why work hard? Anyway, ambition in men is probably now considered a form of "toxic masculinity."
Perhaps most importantly, young men have been given the message that women have no need for the support of a man. Women, they have been told all their lives, are perfectly capable of taking care of themselves and any children they might have.
So, then, if the government will take care of you and your income is not necessary to support a family, why be ambitious? Why push yourself to succeed?
Talk to the young men in your life and ask them if they are ambitious. Don't be surprised if they answer "I'll look it up."
Purchased a Porsche Cayenne last year from a dealership here in Colorado. The salesman, probably about 30, was very knowledgeable about every vehicle in their inventory. Spent well over an hour going over all aspects of the vehicle when we took delivery. Following up a few days later with a phone call asking if we had any questions & encouraging us to call or stop by if anything came up that we needed further instruction on.
There are a lot of bells and whistles on these vehicles that take time adjusting to in order to optimize the driving experience. This salesperson wanted to make sure we were completely comfortable with the operation of our new vehicle.
Its not just cars, its pretty much EVERYTHING....
When is the last time you were truly “SOLD” something?
Not, I went and found someone to sell it to me, I mean TRULY sold something... with a salesperson who knew, the product and human nature well enough to help convince you to buy it?
I don’t know. The market has changed. Back in the day dealers sold cars from one company, sales people had no more than a dozen models to learn about. Now most dealers sell from 3 or 4 companies, there’s dozens of models to learn about. Plus the buyers are different. Most do a ton of research. When I bought my car a few years ago I came in with a printout from their website, complete with the VIN. I wanted to drive THAT car and see how it felt, everything Dennis probably asked about I already knew, the only question left was fit and feel. The salesman even commented on how the business has changed, most buyers come in like me now, only looking for a reason to change an already made decision.
“Purchased a Porsche”
That is the key phrase. Porsche dealerships get the better salesman because you will make more money selling a Porsche than you do selling a your average car.
Been this way for over 20 years.
Stereo component salesmen are the same way now. 40 years ago they knew the product. Today they work for Bestest Buys and try to push unnecessary ‘extended warranty’ offers.
And young waiters (expecting tips) say “no problem” when you ask for a drink refill the have been negligent about filling.
>>It seemed to both my wife and me that these car dealerships hired any decent young person who applied for a job, and that these young people regarded selling cars as no different from selling shoes: It’s a job.
I’ve seen the same lack of care from college students who can’t decide between becoming a doctor or a lawyer. If you don’t know, don’t cut on me just so you can get steady cash.
That is something I wish I had known starting out. To be honest the young guys know this, and seek the deck stacked against them
>>Perhaps most importantly, young men have been given the message that women have no need for the support of a man. Women, they have been told all their lives, are perfectly capable of taking care of themselves and any children they might have.
Men (and women) have been told for 3 generations now (by feminazis) that ‘a woman needs a man like a fish needs a bicycle’ (absolutely worthless and unusable/uncessary).
I know of a luxury car dealership that let their service rep go because they thought he was being paid too much. After a month he was rehired with a big raise...
Who needs experience or knowledge? Just look it up on the iPhag phone. I even have a younger (early 60's) lawyer brother that is constantly asking his iPhag things.
And some millennials wonder why they are held in contempt.
A good example why engineer types can’t sell anything (except in Silicon Valley).
Dunno about that, specifically - but it’s lately been sinking in to me that it’s worth a price premium to go to the local hardware store, even tho it’s no closer than the Home Depot. Good advice and a straight answer is valuable.
When I get one of those idiots on the phone, or they leave rapid fire messages on my voicemail that I have to playback 6 times to get their name and number, I make a point of writing to the CEO and telling him I blame him and whoever he hired who didn’t bother to train these yutzes.
I also make a point of sending writing a thank you / compliment note to the boss of any Customer Service rep who is smart and helpful.
I bet Prager was looking at the most popular consumer models that have minimal profit and poorly paid sales people.
I know people at some big luxury car dealerships and test drive frequently. The lux brands like Mercedes, BMW, Lexus, etc, have people that know those brands pretty well, reciting things like how many inputs per second the AWD computer receives, or how to shut off the various alarms in the car.
Perfecto! A beautiful way to handle the situation.
I can remember classes when we kids were taught etiquette.
The Peter Principle lives!!
Welcome to 'professional' car racing.
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