#JobSearch Tip: What I learned about PERSISTENCE working at a Car Dealership + how it relates to your Job Search

"The most powerful thing you can do is change someone's mind" - Grant Cardone

Note: My intention in sharing this story with you is to demonstrate how as a #JobSeeker you need to stop giving up simply because you face some barrier, or the Recruiter or Hiring Manager not getting back to you or responding with some form of 'No':

"Not looking right now", "Not actively recruiting right now", "No open positions right now", "You're not the right fit"or "We have other candidates to consider" - and any and all other stalls, objections, and rejections you might face. Persist through this professionally and respectfully, and its possible you just might get what you want - if not immediately, over a period of time.

I first understood the importance of persistence while working at a Car Dealership a few years back in 2014-2015. Although it was a short stint, it had a profound effect and influence on my 'style' as a #Recruiter and Sales Professional.

During my first week, my Manager sat me down and told me:

"If a Customer walks in here, knows what they want, and buys with no effort, no objections, no stalls, and no resistance - that's not Sales and that does not make you a Sales Professional. That's Order Taking. All you had to do was show up. But the day a Customer comes in, assures you they don't want to buy anything, say they don't have time, and throws every single objection your way to avoid making a decision they know they need to make - and you're able to influence and guide them through to making a confident decision, and they do end up buying or leasing, and feeling happy about it: that's when you'll know you're a true Sales Professional."

This always stood out to me and I thought it to be powerful advice. To this day, this is how I judge myself and others when it comes to Sales and Recruiting.

Anyway - continuing with my story.

When you work at a Car Dealership, especially when you are new, you are mostly dependent on foot traffic - i.e. walk-ins; potential customers who visit the dealership. In most cases, if they leave, they don't come back - and usually buy from another dealership instead, and the Salesperson just ended up wasting a few hours of their time laying down all the groundwork and product knowledge, while the customer decided to go buy elsewhere from another Dealership. And trust me, I knew a lot about that. Very frustrating.

While most of the sales I made during my first few weeks were of the first kind my Manager mentioned above, I was getting toyed by customers left and right in regards to the 2nd type he spoke about.

An important fundamental about Human Beings that I learned during my time at the dealership is that most people do everything possible to avoid making decisions - especially when they are unsure whether its the right decision or they're not confident in you as a Salesperson. This applies to the various Decision Makers/Stakeholders you'll come across in your Job Search as well - so always keep this lesson in mind.

Going back to the story.

I had customers coming up with all kinds of excuses to not buy vehicles they really did need based on my assessment of their needs and motivations.

• "I have to speak to my wife/husband/boyfriend/girlfriend/significant other before making a decision" (Job Search equivalent: "Have to speak with the others on our team before making a final decision")
• "Still just researching and will get back to you" (Job Search equivalent: "We're just meeting candidates at this point and will get back to you")
• "We want to visit a couple of other dealerships to see the best deals" (Job search equivalent: "We like you but have other candidate interviews lined up and will get back after they're over with final feedback")
• "I don't have much time - I just came to pick up a brochure" (Job Search equivalent: "Thank you for reaching out - I'm about to step into a meeting and can't speak right now. Send me your Resume/CV and I'll get back")
• " I'll take a look at the brochure and get back to you!" (Job Search equivalent: "We'll review your Resume/CV and get back to you!")
• "We're kind of weighing our options and seeing which vehicle to go with - we'll get back to you when we decide" (Job Search equivalent: "We're just at the final stages of comparing you with all other candidates we've interviewed and will get back to you with a final decision soon")

You'll notice the objections are very similar to what you'll hear in your job search and I threw in the "Job Search Equivalent" above - because its all Sales at the end of the day even as a Job Seeker yourself, and you'll hear very similar types of rejections, stalls and objections.

And when it comes to stalls, objections and rejections: I've heard them all.

And the worst part: I had customers doing everything possible to throw "dust" in my eyes and avoid making a decision.

I once had a customer sit with me for literally 2 hours giving me relationship advice and advising me on what I should look for in a future wife.

Had a very nice lady once spend around 3 hours telling me about her mistakes in life and how I should not make the same mistakes. And a few days later, she did come back to the dealership - and ended up buying from another Salesperson!

What I learned is that - consciously or subconsciously - these are things people do to avoid confronting the real issue: making a decision AND/OR lack of confidence in the Salesperson.

Because I'd then follow-up with them later on after they left the dealership, only to find out they ended up buying/leasing the vehicle at another dealership with senior Sales professionals who knew how to deal with their stalls, objections, and "smoke screens", and who knew how to "close" and make those Customers feel confident about making a decision.

Meanwhile I was spending hours, only to get "closed" on their story about why they weren't ready to buy or listen to their stories for a few hours thinking I was "building rapport" like everyone kept telling me to - only to have them leave and buy elsewhere or just buy from another Salesperson.

They were all nice people by the way, and great conversations. And I'm sure it wasn't their intention to waste my time. But I've got bills to pay and dreams to fulfill, just like anybody else!

Man was it frustrating. And man was I furious. I was absolutely frustrated and upset. So angry! I was so sick and tired of customers trying to convince me of one thing and telling me all sorts of stories, and then going ahead and making a decision, somewhere else WITH someone else. And I was the one who laid all the groundwork and went through the process of selling them on the vehicles, doing presentations, test drives, etc.

See at first, I wasn't willing to take responsibility for this, and put all the blame on Customers. But the more I thought about it, the more I realized maybe its my fault I'm not persisting past these barriers I was facing. Because in all these various scenarios, the common factor was ME.

They were making the decision to buy/lease - but just not with ME.

Sometimes, when the same things keep happening to you over and over again, you eventually need to start looking at yourself - because you're the common factor. So I took it upon myself to double-down on my study of sales, closing, negotiating, and vowed to quit letting this happen to me and letting customers toy with me.

Then one day at the Dealership, a gentleman walked in and as I greeted him, his first words were: "I'm not here to buy. I'm just looking, and I don't have much time, just so you know."

Nothing out of the ordinary as that is what most people who came in said.

But this time, with all those previous failures playing over and over in my head, I didn't buy it. On the inside, I decided not to believe him until further verified.

I responded with a smile (side note: very important to smile, no matter how others react to you) and said - "Absolutely sir, that's what everybody does. My job is to get you information while you're here, and in as little time as possible. Which vehicle have you been considering?" I asked.

"The Toyota Corolla" he said.

"Excellent - follow me". I took him to the Corolla we had on the showroom floor.

I started asking him what he liked specifically about the Corolla, why the Corolla, and we spoke about his current vehicle as well and why he's not entirely happy with it, that his wife has been telling him to get a new vehicle, and that he's been researching extensively and decided that the Corolla is the vehicle he's looking to get - but just not yet. Based on his needs, I ran him through a presentation of the floor model. I presented features of the outside of the vehicle and then the inside to show him those features - spending most of my time on those aspects which most appealed to his needs/wants. (Side note: This is the type of "Discovery" you need to be doing throughout your interviews as a Job Seeker so you can understand wants/needs)

Next step in the process, we have to run all customers through a test drive so they can get a feel for the vehicle on the road.

"Well like I said, I'm just here to look around. I don't need a test drive. Just give me one of those brochures and I'll let you know when I'm ready to buy", he said in a firm tone.

I recalled the last time I went along with this. In fact, multiple times I went along with this. I gave a customer a brochure, they left the dealership, and when I followed up with them - they'd bought elsewhere. While I was tempted to just give this customer the brochure, I pulled myself together and decided to see if I can keep him in the sales cycle.

"Of course you don't need a test drive sir, and I wouldn't expect you to make a decision today if it didn't make sense. But let me at least show you our demo vehicle while you're here. And let me get you that brochure as well so you can refer to it as I show you this particular model we have."

He agreed. Phew! Good, that wasn't too aggressive I guess.

I brought the demo vehicle around, and gave him a quick tour of it - he seemed to like it.

"Do it - push through, Dean and ask for the Test Drive again!" I told myself. Okay let's go for it, what do I have to lose - I opened the passenger door and gestured for him to get in and handed him the brochure as well.

"Let's take it for a spin - here's the brochure!"

Argh! You're gonna lose him dude, that was way too aggressive and pushy - I remember thinking.

He responded with "Hm - its alright I don't want to bother you and I don't really want to drive".

Oh? Okay. Not bad. He's not upset. He seems cool with it.

I assured him, "Its no bother at all. And if you really don't feel like it, I can drive the entire way".

He agreed and got in, and I commenced the test drive, showing the features, etc.

As I was driving the vehicle he exclaimed how much he liked it and what he liked about it.

As I drove along, I started feeling more confident. Hey, you overcame his objections so far, what do you have to lose by asking him to drive it as well?

I asked him - "I know you said you don't want to drive. But you seem to like the vehicle. Why not get a feel for it yourself? We're already half way through the route anyway."

"Yeah you're right. Might as well." I pulled over, we switched and he drove the vehicle himself - and he had a big smile on his face.

After the test drive - the next step is to run the numbers for the customers on how they can finance/lease the vehicle.

You got him this far, he obviously likes the vehicle. You HAVE to run the numbers now. Do it! Okay - deep breath, and:

"Follow me sir, I'm going to run the numbers for you so you have an idea of what it'll cost you"

Okay, here it comes.....

"Look, I told you - I'm not here to buy". He stopped in his tracks. Now he really did seem agitated and annoyed.

I started remembering all those customers who had told me that, left the dealership, never to return, only to end up getting the vehicle elsewhere from a Salesperson who didn't have to do all the groundwork I'd already setup for them. Countless presentations. Countless test drives. If you've ever experienced the frustration of someone else taking all credit for your hard work, you'll know what that feels like. I wasn't going to let that happen again - if this gentleman decides to finance/lease a vehicle, its going to be with me - and if he decides not to buy, I'm fine with that. At least I took him through the entire Sales process. Pull yourself together and persist dude!

"I understand that sir - but you've already given me 40 minutes of your time, and if you're going to be leaving here, I want you to leave with some figures so you can eventually make a well-informed decision" and I added with a smile and positive attitude "And at least after you give me the opportunity to change your mind!!".

He eased up. Broke into a smile. He then laughed and followed me to the showroom.

I took him to some couches on the showroom floor and confirmed the features, which model he wanted, etc so I can put together some numbers. After noting everything he wanted in the vehicle, I went to my Manager to get the pricing options and then went back to present it to this gentlemen. I forgot to mention earlier, we also got an appraisal done on his current vehicle so the trade-in value, etc was plugged into the numbers as well.

He wasn't too happy with the trade-in value we put on his current vehicle - which is normal. Then there was some back and forth negotiating on the monthly rates - and then a stall:

"Yeah - I appreciate your help and you're a very professional guy. But I'm thinking I should just keep my old car. Its going to depreciate any way - it loses value, its a waste. Maybe it doesn't make sense for me to do this and I should just keep the one I have."

Persist man, persist; you KNOW he and his family needs this new vehicle - don't give up now!

"I agree with you sir, and its 100% true. In fact this vehicle will drop in value the moment you were to drive it out of here. And if all you were going to do with this vehicle were to buy/lease it, drive it home, park it and leave it on your drive-way 24/7, I would advise you against this decision because it wouldn't make sense. But you're not getting a new vehicle just so you can keep it parked on your drive-way to depreciate. Based on what you've told me, you're getting it because it saves you time and you need a new vehicle. Saves you time to work, in driving your family around, running errands, going on road trips - and getting you where you need to be - economically and safely. And given you've had your current vehicle for a while, you said you wanted something new with additional features you like but your current vehicle does not have. What's all that worth to you personally? That's the real return on investment you're making here and that you need to make sense of right now."

Okay - now, shut up Dean and don't say another word until he responds. My heart was pounding at this point, I clearly remember that. This was the first time I was really pushing back on a Customer's objections and stalls.

He was silent a few seconds, but felt like an eternity to me. I resisted the temptation to say anything and kept my mouth shut, because I could see him mentally processing what I just brought to his attention. And then he said:

"You know what man - you're right. Its not going to be just sitting in the drive-way. I work hard and I deserve something new. And I really like it. Let's do this."

I can't remember if he leased or financed but he was very happy and excited. I do remember him telling me this however, and I paraphrase:

"Thank you for helping me make this decision. I've been putting this off for some time, but myself and my family need a new vehicle and I've been procrastinating. My wife is going to be very happy."

(IMPORTANT SIDE NOTE: I did want to mention something very important which I may not have stressed above: Throughout this interaction, I was constantly conducting a "Discovery" - i.e. asking him questions to understand his needs, motivations, etc which allowed me to come to the conclusion that he DOES need this vehicle, which is why I persisted. If there is no need or sense of urgency - then it wouldn't have mattered how much I persisted. Having an understanding of this gentleman's wants/needs is what allowed me to persist using logic. Remember to do the same in your job search)

Now what if I had given up and assumed this gentleman was not a potential customer when he first said "I'm not here to buy"? What if I hadn't persisted past that? What if I hadn't persisted past him not wanting to see a demo vehicle? Not wanting to take the test drive? Showing him the numbers? Making a decision? Each of those stalls, objections, and rejections?

He probably would have left with a brochure and decided to buy/lease from elsewhere. Sound familiar?

I wasn't rude. I wasn't pushy. I wasn't disrespectful. I didn't manipulate. I wasn't unprofessional. I was transparent, logical, and I persisted professionally, politely and respectfully.

And in the end, he thanked me for helping him make the decision.

Most of you give up at the first mention of a "no" during your job search.

• Recruiter doesn't respond to your message: give up
• Hiring Manager doesn't respond to your follow-up message: give up
• No feedback after interview: give up
• No response to your Resume/Application submission: give up
• Any stall, objection, rejection you get: you accept it and give up without persisting

Look, I'm not saying its going to be as simple as just persisting - but you can't expect everything to go your way the first time. Often times you have to push and persist to get what you want. Remember: you're competing against other candidates for the same opportunities.

Here's an interesting statistic from Sales: 80% of Sales are made between the 5th and 12th contact/follow-up.

I believe its similar in the job search because no matter your title, when you're in the job search, you are a Sales Professional. You are selling yourself as a solution to a problem whether you like it or not.

Don't give up at the first "No". See how you can professionally persist.

Take it one step at a time, and deal with every barrier as it comes - that's the important lesson I learned from the above scenario.

I took each stall/objection/rejection as it came. When I was trying to get the customer to see the floor model, I wasn't thinking about the test drive or the "running the numbers" part. I was focused on "How can I persuade him to follow me to see the floor model?". When I was trying to get the customer to take the test drive, I wasn't thinking about how they would respond when I told them it was time to run the numbers, or make a final decision. I wasn't thinking about anything beyond the step of the process I was at and how to overcome whatever current barrier I was facing - step by step I was persisting through the Sales cycle.

I was simply focused on moving him through the sales cycle - and if at the end he would have decided not to do it? Hey - at least I can throw in the towel after I've tried taking him through as much of the sales cycle as possible.

Take the same approach with regards to the barriers you are facing in your job search.

"Yeah but Dean - selling is cars is different!". But is it really? You are still selling a solution to a company in your job search as mentioned earlier. The environment and industry might be different - but the principles remain intact and the same.

So what you need to do is the following in your Job Search based on lessons learned from this story:

1) Do not depend on just one attempt at making something happen. Reach out multiple times and follow-up

2) Do not take rejections/stalls/objections personally. Think of ways to professionally persist through them and "ask again". Always acknowledge whatever the stall/objection/rejection is - you'll I did that as my first step for each of the responses I shared in my story to the gentleman's resistance.

3) Focus on the step of the process you're on. Instead of thinking "I need to get this job", focus on "How do I get them to move me forward from the phone interview?". Or whatever stage of the process you're at. Be there and focus on that particular barrier.

4) Keep applying for other opportunities while continuing your follow-up with existing opportunities you have applied for/interviewed at.

5) Do a thorough assessment of wants & needs at your interviews. This will arm you with the logic to keep persisting. Always use logic - never use force, guilt, or manipulate people into making decisions.

6) Be willing to take a look at yourself. Everybody's willing to point at others and blame the rest of the world for their problems. That's easy. What's difficult is taking a look at whether YOU might be the barrier. Look - if the same thing keeps happening (or not happening) to you over and over again - guess what the common factor is? You. So consider taking a look at your own methodology and how you're approaching your job search.

Persist and don't give up!

Let me know your thoughts and questions in the comments and don't forget to 'Like' and Share!

Dean Kulaweera - IT Recruiter

#DeanKulaweera #JobSearch #Sales #Persistence #DontGiveUp