Are car salesmen reliable?

By chris on July 5, 2010 | Category: 3 month car hire | Tags: car salesman | No Comments

Are car salesmen reliable

Let’s be honest it’s a question that many of us ask ourselves every time we go to buy ourselves a car. From an initial state of excitement over what colour will you get? What engine size? And even what’s the CD player radio going to be like, we quickly move into a state of fear over the dreaded sales process.

‘Will he try and make me buy that horrible little blue one in the corner with the rubbish stereo just because its been sitting there for months’, keeps flying into your mind as you peruse the car lot.

All you want is the car you can see in your mind. The car that you deserve and have worked hard for across the last year. Is it too much to ask to get a BMW 320i with 18 inch alloys and climate control for the figure you have in your head, and not his?

Who’s fault?

But is any of this the car salesman’s fault? Are our expectations too high and is it just that he’s doing his job to place us with the best car we can afford and that he has available.

The answer to these questions will be different across the whole country and vary dependent on each experience.

I’d be prepared to suggest that in the past most of us have had a negative viewpoint of the car sales man. But think about our latest experiences and you’ll be confronted with the following:

•   smiles
•   coffee
•   cakes
•   warm surroundings
•   open spaces
•   wide desks

…etc etc

All of this is a great experience and makes us feel comfortable. We are gerrymandered into a comfort zone and a place where the deal can be done. This where the question really comes into play.

Are Car Sales Men Reliable?

I don’t believe they’re any different to anyone else. They have targets and goals to hit month-on-month. They are pressured by their bosses to perform every day. But it can’t be in their interests to get us to drive away in a vehicle which isn’t in excellent condition because our channels of complaint and recourse are now huge. Writing a letter of complaint or simply just going back to the dealership or garage are now just the beginning of the process, and in the past could have been easily dismissed and handled by the sales team.

Now things are different. You can also use:

•   websites
•   email
•   twitter
•   Facebook
•   flickr
•   linkedIn

…and very quickly affect a reputation of a company. Now more than ever the sales team has to be reliable when selling to us. They have to ensure that they’ve exceeded our expectations and that there is no room for error. Of course mistakes will happen but if the first thing the salesman is thinking about is our happiness then this will be a rare event .

Oh how times change!

What do you think? What are you experiences of car salesmen?

Bling v MPG: Which is most important?

By admin on July 1, 2010 | Category: 3 month car hire,the lighter side of cars | Tags: Car extras, Fuel economy, MPG | No Comments

Not just any day – new car day

The day has arrived. Your new car is will be with you within the next few hours. All those decisions have been made about which alloys to have, whether to have plain old air conditioning or go for climate control – as you’ve worked hard this year and deserve it.

Admit it! The excitement levels about the car are all set around the aesthetics and the extras. You’re much more interested in how it looks for your own self worth and for your family, friends and colleagues to see than anything else.

How many of you on this wondrous day consider miles per gallon, CO² emissions, how safe the vehicle is, what will the service costs be or how many miles you’ll drive over the agreed limit? So the question is what’s more important the bling and the flashy little extras or the environment, the fuel economy & the small print?

Excitement

The reality is that we can’t separate the excitement of getting a new vehicle for some time after initial delivery. It’s my thinking that this takes at least until it’s full of rubbish, is dirty, loses that new smell or if something goes wrong.

Until then some of the important issues just don’t come in play. Who cares that it can go to Newcastle-Upon-Tyne and back on one tank of petrol…or that it’s the most carbon efficient vehicle for 30 miles. This type of approach will never change as long as we stay obsessed with gadgets and accessories in these ever changing and technology focused times.

We feel more value in the short term when we surround ourselves with little things that bring immediate return and pleasure. Turning the climate control to 19 degrees Celsius on the digital dashboard makes us feel like that we worked hard for that little switch and it’s important to get the temperature just right. The reality is that it’s inconsequential to any big picture.

Honeymoon over

Perhaps it’s worth trying to remember or note the first time you think to yourself ‘blimey, this car’s fuel economy is amazing’. My bet is that it certainly isn’t during the honeymoon period. More likely that it’s after your first fight with your beloved “new car” and it let you down. It’s at this point both of you in this relationship may be blowing a gasket.

What are your thoughts?

Do you agree with me or am I being too harsh on UK car drivers? Once budget has been agreed what’s the main factor when you buy, contract hire or lease a car? I’d also love to know when your car changes from being new and exciting to just a mode of transport that gets you from A to B.

Drop me your comments below.

Welcome…to the ‘emotional’ world of cars!

By admin on June 22, 2010 | Category: 3 month car hire,legislation,the lighter side of cars | Tags: 3 month car hire, about this blog, welcome | 2 Comments

Welcome

Let’s face it cars bring out gallons of emotion is us. We may not think it while we meander along the M50 at a steady 70 miles an hour on a cold and wet January afternoon but when it comes to the day you can have a new one – Bingo!

What colour & engine size does it have? Will it be a leather interior? Does it have air conditioning and those fabulous heated seats?

All of a sudden you’ve gone from hating the fact that petrol has gone up so much, to being completely fixated by their beauty and power – after all it has to be better than that guys BMW down the road doesn’t it?

Before you know it you’re down the showroom and spending the early hours of the morning flicking through the pages to make sure you get the right tyre or stereo fitted and that climate control is standard.

Why

This blog has been created to share those emotions and to take a closer look at the processes we go through when choosing a new car. I’m particularly interested in looking at those who need a car quickly for their business. Maybe someone’s started a new job or you’re current contract is over and are unsure about the next one.

Across the weeks, we’ll explore the lighter side of car leasing but also some of the important issues your business faces when trying to decide where to go for your business car needs.

Coming soon

We’ll post on everything from ‘vehicle policy checks’ to ‘the funniest names people have given their cars’. Posts will be called ‘does size matter’ to ‘Do you manage your cars or do they manage you?’.

So just like the gear shift of emotion from the car being a mundane and expensive piece of metal to a wonderful and beautiful piece of precision engineering, I want you to stay with this blog while it cruises in 6th gear and keeps you on the the right road when making your company vehicle choices.

Stuart Fraser

Are car salesmen reliable?

Bling v MPG: Which is most important?

Welcome…to the ‘emotional’ world of cars!

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