Ever Wonder What Goes on Behind Closed Doors When the Car Salesman Runs Back and Forth to the Manager's Office During a Car Deal?

In most car dealerships the salesperson has no authority to finalize a car deal without the explicit authorization of the Sales Manager. More importantly, the Sales Manager controls all aspects of the deal. The salesperson is, in essence, a pawn for the Sales Manager to to move as he sees fit.

When the sales person leaves the customer and goes to the manager's office it is to first tell the manager what is going on with the customer. The manager wants to know all of the following:

• What kind of vehicle is the customer is interested in?


• Has the customer test driven the vehicle yet, and if not why?


• Is there is a trade, and if so what it is?


• Does the customer owe any money on the trade, and if so how much is the pay-off?


• What is the customer expecting to get for the trade?


• What is the customer's monthly payment expectation?


• What kind of credit rating does the customer have?


• How much money does the customer have to put down?


• Does the customer have the authority to make a buying decision, or does he or she need their spouse, parent etc. to do so?


• Is the customer prepared to make a deal right now?

The Sales Manager will then analyze this information and formulate a plan of action to turn that prospect into a "Today" buyer. He will instruct the sales person on what to say, what car to show the prospect and so forth. Ideally, the sales person is like a puppet on a string! The Sales Manager pulls on his or her strings and the sales person dances!

As the deal gets going the sales person may need to visit the Sales Manager's office many times for instruction and advice. Eventually, the sales person will go back and forth until he or she either closes the deal or the customer is ready to walk. If the customer is leaving, the manager may personally intervene in an attempt to close the deal, or he may send an assistant in to close the deal. Many dealerships have a "Closer" for this very purpose.

The purpose for all of this control is simply to maximize the number of sales and to maximize the profit per sale. The sales person does not have the authority, or in many cases, the know-how to get the most money out of every deal. That's the Sales Manager's job.

If a sales person lets a customer leave without notifying the sales manager first, he or she could get in big trouble and even get fired! I've gotten myself in trouble for this when I was a salesman, and I've seen numerous sales people fired for this infraction. This is why getting up and walking out is such a potent tool in the customer's arsenal. The sales person will do almost anything to keep the customer from leaving.

For additional information on this topic read: "How The Car Dealership's Selling System Manipulates You Into Buying a Car TODAY!"

Until Next Time...

Tony Iorio