Three Strikes = No Sale

The last time I sold products for a living was back in 2001. Though I’ve been away from that industry for some time, I still follow trends and it amazes me how easy sales and customer service can be if you just focus on a few simple things. My current auto dealer needs to go back to school on the basics.

Thanks to some hard work over the years, I’m fortunate to drive an Audi every day; a car brand I love to drive and dreamed of as a kid. I add that context because I think for many people the perceived level of service and attentiveness across the board at a luxury car dealership is seen as pretty high. Typically, through other ownership experiences I’ve had, it has been. But my current dealership just doesn’t get it and a recent email offer proves it.

A few months ago I received an email from the account of the dealership's sales manager telling me that they needed quality used cars like mine. Now, I’m not in the market today but I thought, “Why not. Let me ask what they would offer me and if nothing else they’ll know that I may be interested down the road.” So I replied to the offer for a complimentary trade-in quote for my current car.

Within a few days I heard from the dealership. Their internet sales manager called my office and I thought, “Great. Let’s see what he has to say.” I was even a bit excited. But he led off the conversation by saying that he received my inquiry and told me that they have plenty of the new cars I had asked about in inventory. That was followed by asking when I could come in for a test drive. What?! There was no mention of my request for a quote for my trade. It was as if he had no idea what I actually replied to but automatically assumed it was a web query for a new car. I was confused and I laughed into the phone.

I could have just thanked the guy for his call and dusted him off. Instead of doing that I took the time to explain to the guy that I sent back a request for the trade-in value of my current car based upon their offer. I said, “I’m not in the market today but I figured I’d see what you will offer me and it might change my mind.” I went on to tell him that not only might I be convinced to buy now, but I was actually thinking of moving up to a different car in their model lineup. So not only could he turn me into a potential buyer but I might be a potential buyer of a better car than I drive now.

All he needed to do was give me the trade-in value of my current car. He agreed to send me the quote by email that day. I never received anything from him. In fact, I even sent him a follow-up email a few days later asking for the price and still got – yes – NOTHING. Ask me how motivated I am to buy a car with this dealership in the future when they can’t honor a simple request and follow through on their promise.

This wasn’t the first time I experienced this either. This past summer my car’s factory warranty was about to expire so I tried to contact the same dealership to get a price for an extended warranty package. I called. I sent emails. I called again. At least six times I tried to contact the dealer to get someone to talk to me about the warranty. What did I get in return? Well, I didn’t get anyone calling about the warranty but I did receive one phone call and a few emails telling me that they have the new car I want in inventory if I want to come take a look. In the end, I found out how much that warranty cost when I tracked down the right person during a service visit. He was apologetic and blamed the problem on “personnel changes” and “a faulty voicemail system”. Yeah…right. Excuses instead of accountability.

But wait, it gets better yet. I walked over to the dealership recently to kill some time while I was having another car serviced nearby. While inside, a salesman pointed out one of the dealership’s general managers so I walked over and introduced myself. He shook my hand and asked how he could help me. I explained my previous experiences with his staff and the associated shortcomings, telling him that I knew he couldn’t correct and retrain staff if he didn’t know when problems arose. This gentleman said he appreciated my feedback, saying it’s not the way they do business. He then asked if I had a card, which I handed to him. Overall he was kind and apologized for the obvious lack of follow through.

Now, maybe I’m wrong here, but the general manager should have done one more thing after I left. In my book this was a no-brainer, especially after I shared specific instances of bad performance. He could have sent me an email or called and given me a trade-in value for my current car. It was a very easy way for the dealership to earn back my respect and, like I said earlier, could have turned into a sale – on a new car and my used model. Call me crazy but it’s what I would have done. A good salesperson apologizes when things go wrong. A great one looks at the reason why and takes action to make those reasons disappear. Missed opportunity #3 in my book.

So I may buy a new Audi in the next year or two but I can almost guarantee that it won’t be from these people. I’d rather drive a bit farther to another dealership that understands the basics of actually listening or reading and following through on what they say.