How to Be an Effective Car Salesman

• 1). Evaluate your personal appearance. Make sure you are dressed professionally and are well groomed when approaching customers. Remember, people are walking into the dealership to spend thousands of dollars, and a salesman who looks (or smells) like a hangover poster boy does not inspire consumer confidence.
  
  
• 2). Use a professional greeting such as: "Good morning, welcome to ABC Dealership. My name is John Smith." Remember to smile, shake the customer's hand and give them your business card. Already, you have done far more than many other salespeople, which makes you stand out in a customer's memory.
  
  
• 3). Project a positive image. The worst thing you can do in the car business is adopting the traits of a stereotypical salesperson. Forget the sleazy tactics and tasteless sales pitches. The car business is a service business. People respond to excellent customer service, not cheap sales ploys.
  
  
• 4). Identify the customer's needs. Some people need to haul five kids, and others need to haul five piles of dirt. Ask them why their current vehicle is no longer meeting their needs. If you ask the right questions and listen, the customer will tell you exactly how they want to be treated.
  
  
• 5). Stop being a car salesman and become a car consultant. Consultants are paid to solve people's problems. Focus on helping your client and they will help you with a sale.
  
  
• 6). Explain the vehicle's benefits. In sales, there is an old adage that people do not buy features, they buy benefits. In other words, it is not enough to simply tell the customer about a feature; instead tell them what that feature can do for them. Show them how the folding seats can save them time in the morning when they are rushing the kids off to school. Explain how the trunk can easily fit their musical equipment, groceries, or golf clubs.
  
  
• 7). Ask for referrals. The key to success and longevity in the car business is getting as many referrals as possible. However, a mistreated customer is not going to send her friends and family to see you. Yet, a customer who you helped will go through great lengths to help you.