Stories from the Sales Frontlines

mackabee · November 2007

Thanks my friend. I looked it up and mine is not on the recall list. I still don't know what to do about the cleanliness of the dishes. We do the same things we did with the whirlpool and it's not the same. Only reason I bought the GE was on the recommendation of my best friend and I gave him the business too. They don't sell Whirlpool at his store so I would have had to go to the competition. Might have pissed him off if I did. I know I would be pissed if he went to another Toyota store to get a car.
:shades:

mackabee · November 2007

That's a classic. I think I first read it on FHM magazine IIRC. Still very funny! Thanks for posting it. I have one that I'm trying to remember about a kid who on his first day on the job sells over 50k in merchandise. There is a car sold on there among the fishing rods and hooks and a boat. I posted it years ago and I'll try to find it so we can enjoy it again.
Mack :shades:

mackabee · November 2007

Oh yeah, we get those all the time.

Customer: "My credit union says my trade is worth xxxx" Me: "Of course they do. They tell you retail value not trade value. They don't want to make you mad and lose you as a customer."

Customer: "My credit union says you have to sell me the car for xxxx."
Me: "Sure they did. I would suggest to have the credit union buy the car from us and you buy it from them. They are non-profit organizations."

mackabee · November 2007

Good lord! 84 months?? Did they give you a Golden Shovel with the check?
:shades:

jmonroe · November 2007

I still don't know what to do about the cleanliness of the dishes.

Stay out of it...that's women's work.

Oops, I think I hear something, gotta go. Talk to you guys later...I hope.

jmonroe

dino001 · November 2007

I wouldn't be so proudly announcing taking 84-month financing on this forum, if I were you.

jescue · November 2007

Look into a Bosch. I got one earlier this year and it does so much better than the GE it replaced. Very quiet too.

fezo · November 2007

I've heard nice things about Bosch. We bought a good old Kenmore just a few years ago at it's great. Funny when you go to shop for one, though. They have different levels of noise reduction, each priced just a little more than the next quietest. You car sales people would really appreciate it.

The one we ended up with isn't that far up the quiet scale and it's still light years ahead of what it replaced. If you wanted to blow a grand on a dishwasher you could get one where you'd be hard pressed to hear that it's running.

Considering it has a time and I always run it in the middle of the night this does not seem a big deal.

laurasdada · November 2007

Ditto the Bosch. Amazingly quiet. When our original dishwasher was dying, I thought, "off to Sears for a Kenmore..." Evil wife thought differently and she remains undefeated. Actually, with the rebate from Bosch, rebate from utilities for being "Energy Star," $100 buyback from the store for our old washer and free delivery/setup/takeaway of the old, the Bosch was really about the same price as a fancy Kenmore/Whirlpool.

roadburner · November 2007

Ditto the Bosch.

Me too, we remodeled our kitchen last summer and now have a Bosch cooktop and dishwasher. For the double oven we went with a Miele. It seems that I've thoroughly corrupted my wife; now she wants German appliances, never mind cars...

jmonroe · November 2007

If you wanted to blow a grand on a dishwasher you could get one where you'd be hard pressed to hear that it's running.

Or you could use the jmonroe method of dishwasher replacement.

If I only knew how to make this sound like car talk, this post might stick. OK, how about this. The following could also be used to quiet your car.

When I installed the replacement GE dishwasher (which, BTW, was supposed to be much quieter than its predecessor but since I never heard it running in the showroom I couldnt be sure until it was ~~installed~~ on the road

), I modified the installation.

When I took the new one out of the box the blanket of insulation was almost paper thin and I wondered why would they even bother with something like that. But since it was supposed to be a pretty quiet one I reasoned that was all that was needed.

Then I pulled out the old one and the blanket of insulation was at least ten times as thick and that unit still wasnt very quiet. Then the light went on, since the new one was so thin I would take the insulation from the old one and put it on top of the new one.

Wow, that thing is so quiet when I turned it on for the first time Mrs. jmonroe said, is that thing running? I said, of course, look, the lights are on and if you dont believe them put your ear against the door if youre still not convinced, youll see.

I was a genius for that day.

jmonroe

mrrk47 · November 2007

Hello All,
I'm a seasoned retail profession who is about to make the jump into car sales, this is something I've always wanted to do and I have a passion (really) for new cars. I have offers from a Volvo and Ford store, the draw at Volvo is 3500 while the ford draw is 2000. What can I expect at both stores? thanks in advance

sterlingdog · November 2007

So glad that someone mentioned the Miele product. You should try the Miele vacumn cleaner the next time that you need one. We did the research and tried them all out. The Miele is fabulous. It beats the Orick, Electrolux, etc. Our model cost $900 but if anything happens to it, the company will fix it for FREE. You can change the bag in two seconds and no dust to empty. It picks up like crazy. It is also light weight and easy to move around. We've had them all, and this is the first one that we have really been pleased with.

sterlingdog · November 2007

Just thought that I would mention the refrigerator discussion that you and Mrs. JMonroe are having. My wife wanted the bottom freezer for the same reason---too much trouble to reach in the back of the freezer. Well, we got it and now the complaint is that it is so much trouble bending over to get things out of the freezer compartment. You might want to think about that---if you are over 50.

jescue · November 2007

I would not make my decision based on draw. I took myself off of draw completely. If you dont make your draw they are not going to keep you anyway, and most roll it over to the next month anyway.

lrguy44 · November 2007

Some of the things that are important are:

What is the commission structure?
What are the packs?
What are the average grosses?
How many sales people per units sold?
What kind of training programs?
Do I like the people I met at the store?
Are there long term employees?
What kind of incomes are the current sales people making?

That said, in most cases high end (Volvo) is better money than lower end (Ford). Not always true, but should be considered.

joel0622 · November 2007

Check this thread out.

link title

Your Geographical location is huge to when trying to decide between those two. Do you live in truck country?

lrguy44 · November 2007

One important thing I forgot - who owns the store? Some groups have good reputations and others do not. Check it out.

greanpea68 · November 2007

Does the $20K cover the tools and diagnostic crap the Service Department will need?

From what I hear right now the $20,000's only covers the store certification... It is not clear yet what that entails... :confuse:

I am not sure if the service dept will have to buy any new tools. Maybe a OBD who knows.

As I said before as I get theinfo I'll keep you guys updated

GP

jmonroe · November 2007

Well, we got it and now the complaint is that it is so much trouble bending over to get things out of the freezer compartment. You might want to think about that---if you are over 50.

I've already told her that if she had that style she would be bending over to get everything and she said that's why she has me.

Thanks for confirming my reasoning but don't think for a minute I'm going to show her your post. You know I have a great fear of her seeing anything on this board, so don't try to sucker me with that stuff. :P

jmonroe

greanpea68 · November 2007

Will they build enough of them to make it worth it to the dealers who do pony up the money?

I posted it earlier but I might have mispelled that sentence or mumbled...

Nissan is only building 1500 units this year, thats it

There are 1100 Nissan dealers in the 50 states of the USA.... I confirmed this last week with the regional rep.

As I mentioned before there is a list of criteria the store must meet in order to able to qualify for a GT-R

1) New building look.... like the ones you see on Nissan commercials

2) The franchise has to be have CSI above region right now... I wonder if that will change to district

3) Service department has to be certified... as i mentioned earlier that is the $20,000 from what I am hearing

Think about it... 1500 units and 1100 stores.

Call MSRP $70,000 - What's the mark up in that $10,000... Now I know everyone around here is asking $10,000 over sticker selling them at $80,000

That is a gross profit of $20,000 if you sell one... If every store recieved one that would be 1.3 cars/store

If you are going to pony up $20,000's to get one only to break even it doesn't make sense.

Thats all the info I know right now... I'll keep the updates coming

GP

british_rover · November 2007

I doubt there will be 10,000 dollars of markup from invoice to MSRP on the car. We don't get above 10,000 dollars of markup till the MSRP passes 100,000.

greanpea68 · November 2007

Yeah you are right probrably closser to $6500 - $7000

micosilver · November 2007

I would not work for either.
Ford is in trouble, and it's pulling Volvo with it. We have a Volvo franchise, and we are keeping it for two reasons - we are the oldest franchise in the country, and service brings al ot of money. Volvo sales is a non-profit organization.
Try to get to any other high-end brand - Infiniti or Acura will do for starters

lrguy44 · November 2007

The only thing is it is hard for a green pea to break in on high end

british_rover · November 2007

Ehhh wait a minute I thought my Volvo Franchise was the oldest in the US.

joel0622 · November 2007

According to Google the oldest one is in Wichita

Autos · Gorges & Company Volvo - The oldest existing Volvo Franchise in the United States; New and used car dealers in Wichita, Kansas

joel0622 · November 2007

Ford is in trouble

What happened, did they stay out to late?

If you are going to an established store then don't worry about the Domestic nay sayers. We have guys making big commission checks month in and month out.

Sell a brand you have a passion for. If you don't like or have never owned a Ford then don't bother. If you a Chevy guy sell Chevy's. If you love the imports sell those. But what ever you sell make sure you can look a customer in the eye and tell them that you truly believe you have the best product in its class. I can do it every day.

If I could not work in a Ford store then I would not be in the Biz unless it was in a highline store. You can have a passion for those and have never owned one.

speterson1 · November 2007

I don't doubt the information, but wow, that strikes me as really odd that the oldest Volvo dealership in the U.S. is in Wichita, Kansas. I would have thought it would have been in New York or on the coast somewhere.

joel0622 · November 2007

Its the internet, it has a 50/50 chance of being right, I found another refernce to the same place that said it is the oldest family owned franchise.

I agree with you I would think it would be back east some place.

micosilver · November 2007

I found their website, they say they had it for 46 years - we had it for 50.

british_rover · November 2007

Hmhh the family owned autogroup that we are part of has been around since the early 1920s but not sure how long the Volvo Franchise has been around. I thought it was over 50 years. This is Volvo country after all.

nthe · November 2007

"I do that with Regions Bank all the time"

regions does our floor plan and i too have customers all the time say "im going to my bank to see what rates i can get." regions walk in rates start at 9.99, and since they do our floorplan, we can get to the mid 6%s through the dealership. i love the look on people's faces when they don't believe me, call regions and find out that the bank is just a big business and they really don't care how much money is in your account. I tell people all the time, don't bother with your bank unless it is a credit union, cause we can beat their rates all day long.

Of course all the manufactures that offer 1% financing and such also hurt cause when i tell them our rates start at say 6.99 they want to know why it is so high when ford or honda is offering 1-3%.

nthe · November 2007

"Oh yeah, we get those all the time.

Customer: "My credit union says my trade is worth xxxx" Me: "Of course they do. They tell you retail value not trade value. They don't want to make you mad and lose you as a customer." "

the best response to this is, "well if they say it is worth that much ask them to cut you a check"

thats alsor the response i use when the customer says dealership XYZ said it was worth $XXXX or their buddy said it was such and such.

snakeweasel · November 2007

Really nice new refrigerator but the in the door icemaker was a $1,200 option!

What? I have a real nice stainless steel refrigerator with an indoor ice and water dispenser and it didn't coat $1,200 in total.

mjohnsn · November 2007

Last week I got an ad from the local big Ford store. Had a key and a gold circle to scratch to identify my #. Prizes varied from a 2008 Explorer to a Wal-Mart gift card. Since I had to go out that way and had time I thought, what the heck, let's see what I've won - hey, it said I was a guaranteed winner. So I drive in and park. There is salesman sitting on a golf cart talking on his cell phone. He hang up and asks my how he can help. Now, here is where I made my mistake, I told him I was just there to see what I had won. He shows me the Explorer with the winning # looks at my # and say's sorry. I told him, I didn't expect to win the truck but wanted to know what I did win. He asks me to have a seat in his office , this was mistake #2 but also the best part of the story. I have a seat and he walks over to a desk, there is a car between us so I can't see who he spoke to. I would guess a manager. There conversation goes as follows

Salesman - "He's here to get his prize"
Manager - "Is he buying a car"?
Salesman - "no"
Manager - "Is he interested in a car"?
Salesman - "No, just his prize"

Guess what I "won" - yep - $5 gift card to Wal-Mart. I smiled and thanked him and went on my way. Wonder if I had showed some interest in a car if my prize would have been different? I didn't get the impression they they had a formal way of determining who won the other prizes. Any way I thought it was pretty funny.

snakeweasel · November 2007

You're seriously delusional if you believe the general public thinks buying a car is a fun process.

The general public doesn't like it but there are many that love it. I remember going with my mom when she bought her last car. The salesmen were really patronizing her and she was playing the game when one made a statement like "Nobody likes negotiating a car purchase". My mom looked him straight in the eye and said "Oh I live for this sort of thing". You should have seen the salesmans face. :shades:

snakeweasel · November 2007

Heck, I got dragged kicking and screaming 15 years ago when we built the house and she wanted a new refrigerator in the new house. "there's nothing wrong with the old refrigerator." "It's 70s yellow." "You can paint it." Yeah, that got me far.

Don't you get it? The old fridge goes in the garage and holds all your beer. :shades:

snakeweasel · November 2007

Nothing gets paid until it is burning gas.

Well technically its burning gas once they start it up at the factory and drive it off the assembly room floor.

lrguy44 · November 2007

Burning gas as in over the curb as in a done deal as in finished as in the customers are owners as in paperwork done complete as in tripped. Anymore acronyms?

snakeweasel · November 2007

My bank has a guarantee that that won't happen.

Now that doesn't mean you can't find another bank that will beat it but you won't beat what my bank will give me through my bank.

lrguy44 · November 2007

Snake, I have been doing this for 15 years and EVERY time a customer thinks he can get a better loan direct from a bank I have indirect they have been wrong!

snakeweasel · November 2007

If it's an electrical fire water won't do anything for it. Water is a major conductor of electricity, Rule of thumb an electrical fire gets put out by CO2 NEVER spray water into it.

Well an electrical fire can be put out with water but the problem as you say is that water conducts electricity and has a good chance of electrocuting the one putting out the fire (and/or people nearby).

Same as a grease fire on the stove or oven. NO WATER it only spreads the fire around.

Thats not entirely true. The problem with that is most people use a solid stream of water. That will spread around any fire where the fuel (be it grease, paper or whatever) is portable. In cases like that a stream of water will push the fuel and spread a fire. In such a situation water will work if introduced into the area in a fine spray.

obyone · November 2007

Guess yours doesn't have Wolf or SubZero plastered on it?

snakeweasel · November 2007

I know what you ment, just seemed like a strange way to put it.

snakeweasel · November 2007

Fine, but I have a written guarantee that they will meet anything that a dealer will give me through them.

snakeweasel · November 2007

Sorry I don't pay extra just to have a pricey name on something that is in reality no better than the less expensive good brands out there.

lrguy44 · November 2007

The closest I came to that situation was a small bank that did regional indirect. The minute a local branch tried to meet or beat the indirect department it was reprimanded. The big banks always have been better to dealer - just look at the volumn indirect does with dealers versus direct car loans.

dino001 · November 2007

I think you are confusing buy rate with retail. I find it easy to believe that dealers get lower buy rates than any retail customer, even one with 10 million account. I don't know if it is by 1 point, but hundreds of thousands of dollars/month brought in business are still probably worth much more than millions deposit in superpreferred account.

And by the way - why would anyone with such cash position would take a car loan anyway, even if it is $100K?

lrguy44 · November 2007

In recent years with the low rates, my customers can make more money with their money than the interest on even a $100k car loan, therefore they finance.

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