I see the lack of ambition, but exactly how widespread it is is uncertain.
Mr. Prager notes that necessity is a goad to ambition.
Many young men in America have little of necessity to push for.
I don't think this is all just related to a lack of ambition, either. Prager's observations reflect something that I've observed over the last few years when dealing with people in various industries. It's what I call an "unqualified upward migration" of workers in many industries -- caused by what is basically a serious lack of qualified people in jobs that used to be considered highly respectable in the past.
A perfect example would be the three bank branch managers I've dealt with over the last 18 months for various needs I've had related to my business. None of them was able to help me address something I thought was a relatively simple issue. By the time I dealt with the third one I realized what the problem was: A few decades ago, these people would have been working as clerical staff at a doctor's office or a small local business. Today, they're considered branch manager material in the banking industry.
I think Dennis Prager has been dealing with car salespeople who should be working in the fast food industry.
Cars are now purchased on your I phone from bed while eating bon bons and delivered or picked up from the car vending machine.
The era of information at your fingertips has introduced a new sales paradigm. Many customers have previously researched both the basic and specific details of the item that is being offered, putting the salesman at a disadvantage when it comes to their product.
Comparing the salesmanship of today to yesterday is an apples/oranges thing. Courtesy and organization as well as neatness of appearance are still as important as ever.
Given the rapid changes possible to the market and product designs, I don’t consider it a fault that the sales person has limited knowledge of their product and consider it a plus when they truthfully admit it.
Cars are boring egg shaped front wheeled drive appliances. What’s to get excited about? SUVs are even worse.
Has Dennis considered that internet automobile forums and product websites have given the consumer the power to learn all they like about a vehicle?
I usually show up to buy with more knowledge of the vehicle than the salesperson. All I need from them is a test drive. Even pricing and availability are available online.
And here is the final nail in the coffin of Western Civilization.
Women need men. Children need fathers. There, I said it.
Car dealers do not sell cars. They sell money.
Sales Reps are trained to tell customers “they will look it up” rather than give a wrong answer. The company I work for has product training for all reps, but if you don’t know the answer look out up so you will remember the next time the question is asked by a customer.
I’ve done a lot of work with the retail industry. I’ve known owners whose business strategy was put out inventory, and hire salespeople who know nothing about the product.
For some reason, they’d make money hand over fist.
The financial incentive structure is what has changed in automotive sales. You used to be able to make a lot of money in that job if you were clever and willing to rip people off. The car dealers determined that this was a negative to their business, and removed those incentives, so now rather than attracting sharks it attracts a different less aggressive but more pleasant sort of type, and pays them so poorly they don’t even stay around very long to learn about the cars.
My recollection of my experience in earlier days is that car salespeople (especially those of foreign cars) were car enthusiasts.
Back in the 80s the dealers wanted salesmen, guys who could sell ice to Eskimos. I guess if they were enthusiasts it was ok.
My husband has been in the car business for almost forty years, his brother owns four dealerships. My husband has a loyal, consistent client base he has developed throughout his career, they call him and he gets them exactly what they want at a fair price and no hassle, these people don’t like going into dealerships.. He sees this all the time with the personnel ALL dealerships, including his brothers are hiring. They do NOT want experienced, mature sales people, they are too expensive, too old and can not identify with the younger market. They want “greeters, personable no nothings who turn the customer over to the experienced back office bosses and do not consider car sales anything more than an interim job and are paid minimal commission or just a greeting fee.
It’s the same in Home Depot. I won’t ask anyone under 25 where to find something because these kids went through schools that cancelled wood and metal shop to make way for gender studies and social justics drivel. Consequently, they tend not to know a thing about materials or fabricating anything. Ask them for where the Pex crimper or ramset cartridges are and they’ll stammer and whip out their iphone.
I try to find anyone old-male or female, they always know their stuff.
It’s an old man rant about how terrible and stupid young people are because *reasons*.
You will get the same thing said about the author decades ago. Rinse and repeat, blah blah blah.
And I’m saying this as someone that is middle-aged.
“A young salesperson asked if he or she could help me.”
If this is truly what they said, they were poorly trained.
It should be “HOW” may I help you?”
The obvious response to “CAN” I help you, is NO. You don’t want your conversation to start on a negative basis.
Don’t forget, too, that car dealerships have had generations to fine tune how to shaft the sales people. When the negotiations get hot, there will be a lead person there to step in and take over.
He said, "Don't bother." When I asked why, he said I wasn't the right type of person to work that kind of job and that I would hate it. Again, I asked why. He said, "Look, to be one of those guys, you have to have a certain sleaze factor. You have to be willing to do certain things to make a sale. You have too much integrity for that kind of job. Forget it."
We bought a new Chevy Malibu this summer, we are seniors and wanted the Bells & Whistles to compensate for the changes in our bodies that age brings. Hearing, vision, body stiffness and slower response time, and more comfort. We didn’t chose blindly, we knew what the car was capable of as hubby is a Car Nut and we had googled the Specs of a variety of sedans. But we also knew what we didn’t want or need. Since they’ve gone to ‘packages’ it makes it harder to get the features you want without the Crap you don’t, like a Moon/Sun Roof. We both wear hearing aids, any air leakage from windows drives you nuts. Beyond that unwanted $1,500 moon/sun roof we had a hard time finding a Dealer willing to look for a car with out it. Finally found one. So we got what we wanted sans the sun/moon roof.
Hubby has in his 78 yrs owned a variety of cars of makes, models and cost. Worst was the Carmen Gaia, for me the worse was the Corvette most uncomfortable car we owned; best is this new one as far as safety and comfort goes.
Age means you want comfort and safety to compensate for hearing loss, Side Vision loss due to cataract implants, stiff bodies, slower response time, and those medicines that make you tend to get sleepy and you lane drift. Back Up Camera that does both front and back, and lane assist parking. We got all that this time as this is the last car we hopefully buy. We don’t need SIRIUS radio. We put OUR music on a USB Stick. We can go 8 hrs with out a repeat song and NO commercials.
No CD player, well all our music is on a USB stick anyway. OUR MUSIC. not some stations canned crap with commercials.
He is more into the ‘gadget’ end and as a Electronic’s Prof and 20 yr teacher of it in the Navy picks it up easy, and sets the car up for both of us. I need the safety of the gadgets and I’m not a Nerd. I don’t even turn on the radio, hearing aids have limitations I’d rather hear the on coming Emergency vehicles than music.
Good summation, where the youth know the “Gadgets”, they don’t know a lot about the ‘Nuts & Bolts’ of the car. The young sales man set most of those ‘Gadgets’ up in no time flat. While his spiel went over my head, hubby knew what he was talking about as that is as I said a 40 yr career field.
The older manager knew the ‘Nuts & Bolts’. And was able to locate the car we wanted minus the Moon/Sun roof. Hey, it even has Tubro Boost and both can hear the Turn Signals.
It is actually a tad longer than the 5 yr old Equinox SUV that is the older car we kept. Now the Equinox has window air leaks that drive my hearing aids NUTS. Since that is the hearing Freq he doesn’t hear due to jet engines hearing loss, it doesn’t bother him, he can’t hear the turn signal, I over hear it as my hearing loss is Low Freq. Put a volume control on it please.
Then the haggling began, 10% off as Ret. Military, 10% if we financed through them, which was with a Credit Union, which had CD’s slightly over 2% as a bonus for a yr. And it was on sale as the last day of the sale, and a more off with haggling off the final cost above the sales price. Which meant hubby had to go home and dig up his last DD-214. All in all a good bargain. We paid it off in 4 months so the dealer got his ‘cut’ of the Discount for financing through Chevy. A $35K+ car became a $25K+ car SANS Moon/Sun roof. Manager sent a driver 60 miles to fetch it from another dealer. He went beyond what most managers do today to satisfy a customer who might or might not be a repeat customer. Who knows if we both live long enough and better features come out we just might get another car.
The 8 hr trip to Pigeon Forge to my sister’s was less stressful and we had plenty of room.
Plus hubby and Manager to got to talk CAR Talk while we waited. And we were sent a box of 2 coffee cups and a tin on chocolate chip cookies. Old fashion service.
We just bought a car. Same experience. The sales guy was great at everything but knowledge. He knew little of the car. He got an A+ for trying hard to do what we needed, but it was odd that he knew so little about the cars even though he had worked there for several years.