For most of us, geographically speaking, the hot summer months are upon us and the daily grind out on the car lot can take its toll on our sales agents.

Looking back on some of the basics in regards to the ”road to the sale” that we all memorized and practiced when we first entered the business and still should be, I see sales agents that continue to take shortcuts and still believe that they will end up with a car deal. Yes, we all know the car deal can still happen but how much money did you leave on the table? It is hot out there and it certainly is easy to make the choice to circumvent the process but it doesn’t have to happen.

What I am leading to is the “needs assessment” once the client has been greeted promptly on the lot by the sales agent and manager. Now is the time to ask the customer to follow you inside so you can get a little bit of information before you get started:

“Mr. / Mrs. Customer, I want to ask you to follow me inside where its much cooler and I can get a little bit of information before we get started so we don’t make a purchasing mistake. Not a mistake on your part but on my part by showing you the wrong car. Fair enough?”

The “needs assessment” will take just a few minutes and allows you to gather so much information that is important in making a car deal happen. Some of the key questions are below:

What type of car are you most interested in?

What features do you absolutely need?

What features would you like to have?

What is your first color choice? second? third? fourth? (if the customer gives you all of them, better the chances to sell from stock right?)

What is the year / make / model of your trade?

Did you purchase it NEW or USED?

Current monthly payment?

How many miles do you drive a year? (they could be a good lease candidate)

On a scale of 0 – 100, what percent will you drive this car? (if it is any less than 100%, are all the decision makers here? if not, lets plan the demo drive to show the other decision makers if possible)

Again, this is very basic stuff but isn’t practiced 100% as it should be in dealerships today. It is a process that needs to be defined, trained on and monitored. In the organization I work for, the sales agents bring a “needs assessment” form to the desk along with the “write up”. It works and prevents the little mistakes of showing too much car in the beginning and then showing the customer what he can actually purchase for his budget in the end. What a let down huh? Let’s do it right from the beginning.

Have fun selling and remember: be consistent.