4 Ways To Avoid Killing Your Customer Experience With A Cheap-Suit Sales Approach

I love studying customer experience because companies need so much help, even in the so-called best companies. It’s always interesting to see how these major brands actually train (or don’t train) employees.

I recently had a baby and my husband and I are re-evaluating our current car, a Mercedes five seat sedan we’ve enjoyed for the last few years. We’ve realized how small the car actually is once you add a car seat. With visiting family, two dogs and a baby in this ride we are bursting at the seams.

Let me preface this by telling you car shopping is one of my least favorite activities. In fact it's hated by many--car salesman have such a bad reputation, if someone calls you a "car salesman" it's generally not a compliment. Add the word "used" in there and you are a slimy person, a "used car salesman." But I find the traits of many new car salesman downright bizarre, even at a luxury car dealer. The stuff that happens at the car dealership you can’t make up. From untrained employees to no official sales process to arrogant managers, car shopping today is like one long Seinfeld episode. And these sales issues are easy things to fix. Let’s talk about these quick fixes to a broken sales process and learn from common missteps at the car dealership.

Onboard and Train Your Employees Like Your Business Depends On It

Mercedes-Benz is supposed to be one of the top customer-focused companies. The company rolled out an extensive program at all of their service centers to make the customer experience more customer-focused. They took a close look at their culture. At a Wharton event I saw a presentation from one of the consultants who did this work. It sounded impressive. However my own personal experience as a Mercedes customer is much different than what I heard. My husband and I walked into a dealership recently to learn about new cars we could lease when ours is up. We have a new baby and our car-seat is a tight fit into our current sedan. We walked in and the sales guy who had set up an appointment with us is not there. A young man finally approaches us after fifteen minutes of waiting and asks us for our information regarding our lease. On the paperwork it reads "Daimler Trust." The young salesman looks at us across the desk and asks, "oh Daimler Trust is your trust set up to pay your lease?" My husband and I make eyes at each other. We think "he can't be serious." My husband gently says, "hmm, no--Daimler is the parent-company that owns Mercedes." The employee did not know that Daimler was his employer. The rest of the afternoon was a series of disappointing interactions of sales people not listening and not interested in meeting our needs. They were clearly relying solely on the brand recognition of the name Mercedes with little concern for the customer experience outside of that. The final interaction of the day wasn't much better. The salesman who sold us our first car approached us and told my husband, "you look like you've been working out!" A compliment, a way to warm up a customer and make them feel good--the oldest trick in the book. Unfortunately for Mercedes other brands are coming out with better cars that have more to offer than just the logo. You can never rest on your laurels, even if you're Mercedes. Training and onboarding should always be important, as well as re-training your established staff.

People Skills Cannot Be Overlooked

We thought we'd try car shopping again. On a sunny day in San Leandro, California we started our tour of a handful of dealerships. We started at Lincoln because my husband was interested in their new SUV. Lincoln's celebrity face Matthew McConaughey was not there to greet us at the parking lot. About ten men were standing out front of the dealership like fisherman waiting for a catch. One came up as we got out of the car and introduced himself. He shook my husband’s hand. It was the beginning of our day and I was still optimistic and bright eyed. When he approached me I gave him a good handshake, looked him in the eye and said, “Hi! I’m Blake.” He then said “that’s great,” limply shook my hand and walked us to the car my husband was interested in. I wanted to laugh. Instead of telling me his name, or saying “Nice to meet you Blake,” he was barely present. “That’s great” is the worst thing you can say to someone who introduced themselves to you. Isn’t that sales 101? Be genuine. Be polite. And please don't be the salesman who only addresses the man in the relationship. Women are making most of the purchasing decisions so be smart and speak to her as respectfully as you speak to men. That also means look her in the eye and ask her if she has questions. She will I'm sure.

Technology Must Be Part Of Your Sales Process

Today you cannot have a retail location without some kind of digital element. It must sync with your online offering. The problem today is salespeople want to do as little work as possible unless it’s a sure bet to make a sale; their own sale. As in the case at many dealerships they’ll say to you, “what can we do to earn your business today?” They know that when you walk out that door they’ve lost you to a sea of competition, easily searchable online. As it's set up today at many dealerships these sales people will not get credit if they don’t sell you the car directly at the dealership. As a result they lose interest easily. If you call and ask for them to send you a quote, they want you to do it yourself by searching online. Why don’t salespeople carry iPads with them to assist in the sales process? Why isn't the salesperson rewarded for having any contribution to the customer's experience even if it doesn't result in the sale? It's still an important part of moving the customer along the path. I’m surprised to see how un-thoughtful even some of the most prestigious car brands treat their customers. Brands need to invest in their people, and sales people are not just there to make one individual deal, they are there to fulfill the brand promise. That promise now must consider both technological and human elements. 

Preach Humility

I’m a fan of Jerry Seinfeld's internet sensation "Comedians In Cars Getting Coffee." I am not what you call a "car person" but I love how creative Jerry is identifying classic cars that embody his comedic guest. Another unique aspect, the sponsorship Jerry Seinfeld worked out with Acura on the show. Acura is a brand that's improved a lot since my mom owned a purple Acura Integra in the late 1990s. That said on our way home from the dealerships we stopped in Oakland, California at the Acura sales office. After taking a ride in an MDX, a seven seat SUV the sales guy brought over who I assume was the sales manager. We discussed price with the manager. I immediately noticed his hard-core sales attitude. It was too much. It was overkill.  At one point he asked us what other cars we were testing and we told him. He told us he believed the Acura was comparable to the Mercedes, Audi and other luxury brands. But wait, wasn't it up to me whether I believed Acura was in a tier of luxury cars? If it was so clear why was this sales guy having to sell me on the fact that Acura was at the same level as Mercedes? It seemed arrogant for the sales guy to tell us who their brand was aligned with, almost trying to convince us an Acura was the same as a Mercedes. The entire interaction felt like a cheap suit.

It's not hard for the auto industry to clean up its sales act...and with innovators like Tesla gaining more traction, many of these brands are likely to disappear in the next twenty years. This is an industry waiting to be disrupted. The sales habits reflect that. Don't let this be your company.

For more from Blake Morgan sign up for her newsletter here.