Good post megger5963. It was frank and a good read.
There has to be a better way to play this game where both the salesperson and the buyer get by with fair deals and the dealership still has its thirst for the blood quenched...
Is your commission tier dependent on customer survey results? Better surveys = higher tier = more commission per unit sold? Or is it more than that?
If I came to the table as a no-nonsense buyer and said, "you get me x deal on a LEAF, I'll get you a perfect survey", (where x deal gets you crap for commission) would that be an acceptable agreement? Could you make money that way? Or what about, "you get us x deal, and we will get you 5 sales in one day and 5 perfect survey" (group lease), would that work for you?
Is it possible to make money on back channel agreements for favorable surveys and volume sales alone? I know it's kind of playing the system that way, but is it doable? Would a Nissan salesperson laugh in my face if I suggested such an offer?
This is pretty much the exact opposite of the point of my OP. But yes. Essentially, you could say, "I want my deal and in exchange I won't screw you on the survey". Sure. This post is meant to say -- don't hold the survey over salesmen's heads. It's the only reason we do it - let's be honest - You're going to get your deal anyway. The survey need not be a factor.
A lot of people are talking about VPP on here. It sounds like there are some dealers out there who aren't honoring VPP.
VPP is a contract between your employer and Nissan. It has to be adhered to if you have proof of your employment there. And the dealer gets paid back a few sheckels for it anyway, so they might as well do it. The problem comes in when people try to negotiate FROM VPP as a starting point. That breaches your employer's contract with Nissan. If we reported all of you, there would be no more VPP.
You mention never needing to pay for maintenance again, but then why are there reports of dealers selling expensive maintenance plans to unsuspecting customers?
So we aren't even allowed to
tryto make money is basically what you are saying? You are a free thinking human being, you can buy what you want. We don't need phone insurance, but we all pay the $10/mo. and forget about it just in case. Same principle.
Regarding emails vs phone, please admit the real reason you are told to communicate over phone is because your only goal in communicating with the customer is to get them in to the dealership. Over the phone, lies can be told then once the customer is in, it is bait and switch time. Over email? Oh look the customer brought a written copy of the email in and now you have to honor your promises.
Any Nissan dealer is REQUIRED to record all incoming and outgoing phone calls with customers. Do I want you to come in? Absolutely. I can't sell you a car over the phone. And bait and switch gets me NOWHERE on the Leaf. You've got three offers in your back pocket for around the same price anyway. Leaf customers have the ultimate buying power. I'm more than happy to communicate over email and put everything I say in writing - after we have discussed it on the phone. It takes me all day to draft emails that ask you what color, features, packages, etc you want on your new Leaf when I could just ask you a few questions on the phone.
All we're trying to do is save you time. If something seems fishy, don't buy there. It's a free market. Pretty simple stuff. It would cost you just a few hundred dollars more to buy from a dealer a little farther away, even if you are remote and they have to transport the car to you. And save you a lot of headache.
My suggestion to you would be to quit your job if you do not like it and apply to work at Tesla. You can avoid all of the garbage you described and help everyone have a more positive car buying experience. I love my LEAF but I hated the process of leasing it. I am much looking forward to my next vehicle, the Tesla Model X.
I love my job. I said that several times. I don't want to work for Tesla. Their business model demotivates salesman and leaves no room for growth. The "positive car buying experience" is a two-way street. We need your help to provide that.
I agree with all of you. 90% of customers have done enough research to know more about the Leaf than I do. Do your homework before, when we ask what you want, just tell us, don't play shopping games. We will try our best to get you the deal you want. We know damn good and well what we are getting into when we sit down with a Leaf customer.
If you have a bad experience, SHOP ELSEWHERE. We respect that. Trust me, we know when we f**k up.