Justify Profit
I had the fortune of working with a sales manager by the name of Craig Carter. He changed the way I thought about profit in cars and that it was okay to ask for a fair profit for the vehicle based on the quality of the vehicle and the service provided.
In April of 2005, he came into the dealership I was working for as the new GSM. At that time, I was with the organization as the Internet Manager for four months and I was good for moving units for no profit at all. I didn't know if I would have a job or not within the first few weeks because I did nothing but butt heads with him regarding, you guessed it, profit! I had a belief that in order for the client to be happy, I had to give the car away, a result of poor training and a lack of confidence in the product and myself.
Being that Craig was the boss, I had two choices, change or leave. So I changed. I remember the day it finally came together. I had a client in front of me that had a quote on the same car from a dealer that was 15 minutes south of me that was $1500 less than my quote. I was vehemently defending the other dealer's price and trying to convince Craig that we have to match or beat the price. Out of left field, he asked me what I paid for my house and when did I buy it. I told him I bought the house in 2001 for $134,950. He then asked me what it was currently worth. I told him $325,000. He asked me if he could by my house for $130,000 right now for cash. Of course I told him no, that's less than what I paid for it and it was worth way more! It was at that moment it clicked! I understood, it didn't matter what we owned the car for or that someone else offered the car for less. I was asking what the car was worth and it was worth more because I was the one serving the client, not someone else. Craig explained to me that my client was aware of the other price and yet he was sitting in front of me. So, needless to say, I closed the deal. I still talk to that client today and have sold him other cars, but that was a big learning experience.
Keep that in mind next time some tells you they have a lower quote elsewhere. There's a reason they are sitting in front of you!
Happy Selling
Dan The Car Man
In April of 2005, he came into the dealership I was working for as the new GSM. At that time, I was with the organization as the Internet Manager for four months and I was good for moving units for no profit at all. I didn't know if I would have a job or not within the first few weeks because I did nothing but butt heads with him regarding, you guessed it, profit! I had a belief that in order for the client to be happy, I had to give the car away, a result of poor training and a lack of confidence in the product and myself.
Being that Craig was the boss, I had two choices, change or leave. So I changed. I remember the day it finally came together. I had a client in front of me that had a quote on the same car from a dealer that was 15 minutes south of me that was $1500 less than my quote. I was vehemently defending the other dealer's price and trying to convince Craig that we have to match or beat the price. Out of left field, he asked me what I paid for my house and when did I buy it. I told him I bought the house in 2001 for $134,950. He then asked me what it was currently worth. I told him $325,000. He asked me if he could by my house for $130,000 right now for cash. Of course I told him no, that's less than what I paid for it and it was worth way more! It was at that moment it clicked! I understood, it didn't matter what we owned the car for or that someone else offered the car for less. I was asking what the car was worth and it was worth more because I was the one serving the client, not someone else. Craig explained to me that my client was aware of the other price and yet he was sitting in front of me. So, needless to say, I closed the deal. I still talk to that client today and have sold him other cars, but that was a big learning experience.
Keep that in mind next time some tells you they have a lower quote elsewhere. There's a reason they are sitting in front of you!
Happy Selling
Dan The Car Man
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Marsh Buice on
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Dan, love the post and will share with my guys next week. Simple and so very clear! Good job
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Permalink Reply by Chris Stamm on
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Great story. I will use it to kick start our Monday sales meeting.
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Permalink Reply by Dan The Car Man on
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Thank you Marsh! And thank you Chris!
marsh buice said:Dan, love the post and will share with my guys next week. Simple and so very clear! Good job
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Permalink Reply by Charles Rogers on
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Great post!! This will help us all.
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