Volvo Fam!

Last week I had to do something that is…

Worse than a trip to the dentist, more painful than lying down and dropping your phone on your face, more uncomfortable than last week’s heat, and more mysteriously aching than a brain freeze. (Seriously why does drinking something cold quickly cause so much pain?)

I had to go car shopping. 

Now.. I know what you're probably thinking, “Kai you're a salesperson, it’s probably not so bad for you and you probably know all the tips and tricks to get “the best deal” right away.”

Well, it’s not that much easier for me, and car shopping is worse than I remembered.

To clarify, the car wasn’t for me, but for my girlfriend who had a Honda lease that had ended. It was time for her to get a new car.

She told me she wanted a Honda HRV.

So I called Honda dealerships and asked what they were leasing for. They told me “$580 a month with $2500 down.” Wow.

$580 a month for a Honda HRV?! No way…

I suggested she try Volkswagen. They’re very affordable, VW's inventory supply isn’t as bad as the Asian manufacturers, and they (this is a fact) have one of the best new car smells.

I started calling Volkswagen dealerships, and every one of them, as if they had all conspired together to form some sort of alliance against customer convenience, insisted that we HAD to come into the store to get any sort of basic information.

Their go-to reasoning was that they “had to see the trade.”

I’ve been doing this for a few years so I know this is B.S.…

Dealerships do NOT need to see your trade to give you an appraisal. The VIN number, miles, and pictures of the interior and exterior of the car are all the information that is needed to do an appraisal.

Every dealership uses the same appraisal tool that allows them to see every similar car in a set radius and how much they transact for in real-time, both at dealerships and at auctions.

They can see the most recent auction data and the tools even tell the dealership the historical value and future value and how long on average it takes a similar vehicle to sell.

Simply, a dealership can see EVERYTHING. 

However, they know that consumers don't all know this, so this is their best negotiation tactic to bring a customer to the lot.

And once the customer is on the lot and in their house, then they have all the psychological biases and persuasion tactics in their favor.

But one of the biggest reasons a dealership wants you to come in person is so that they can provide information without worrying that their information will be easily shopped or verified.

Zero Volkswagen stores would give me numbers over the phone out of fear that I’d call the next store to beat the numbers. I even asked a salesperson: “If it’s your only shot at making a deal, will you pass?” “Yes,” she replied. Wow

I sell cars for a living so I get it. But at the end of the day, I believe most customers will return to the salesperson that has made car shopping the most pleasant.

I was getting frustrated..

I had to find a way around these salespeople. It was clear they were all trained to not provide any information over the phone.

I take 1 full day off of work a month and there was no way I was going to use my day off just to go to a different car dealership.

And that’s when I discovered a trick that may help you or someone you know shop for a car in the future.

This trick lets you bypass just about all the bad parts of car shopping.

-The long hours in the showroom.

-The back and forth in negotiations.

-Misinformation and lack of information from knucklehead salespeople.

So here’s the trick:

First, I went to a store's Google reviews, from there I figured out who the new-car sales manager was. Next, I called the store and asked to speak to that manager because someone had personally referred me to him.

Now the manager was eager to speak with me because in his head, the hard part of building rapport was basically done and trust has already been established.

Since I was ‘referred’ to him, he had to work directly with me instead of kicking me to a salesperson. He also could assume there was little chance I would shop his numbers. Now, all he had to do was uphold his made-up reputation and help me. 

And just like magic, the first store I called implementing this trick transferred me straight to the manager.

I told the manager, “Linda referred me to you because you made the process super quick, easy and you gave her a good deal and she said you would do the same for me. I live 2 hours away (this was true, but if it wasn’t I’d still say it) so I’d like to do everything remotely.” 

Naturally, he had to live up to this expectation of being quick and easy. A couple of minutes later we agreed on a number and closed the deal. My GF e-signed the docs, and we had the car delivered and they drove the trade back.

That’s my little car shopping story and trick for you guys today.

Here's a high-five, a fist bump, and a tire-squealing salute to all of you in the Volvo family! You're the cool cats who make the streets look good. Every road is now your runway. You turn heads when you turn your wheels. You're the aficionados who know how to handle our Swedish machines with just the right touch of finesse.

-kai

P.s

Congratulations to Kristin L. Last month's giveaway winner.

P.p.s

Next giveaway:

Radio Controlled XC90

Best of luck to all of you.

Previous Newsletters:

The Moose Test

The Volvo With 3 Million Miles

Have any questions about your car? Call/text or email me!

786-305-5161 [email protected]