Selling Your Car - Tips on Taking the Phone Calls
By Graeme Sprigge
Appointments - How to take the phone calls
Now that you have advertised you should soon start to get some
calls as soon as your ad hits the media.
It’s not just a matter of making a time to see the car.
This is a turning point and where you start to locate your buyer.
A lot of the time I can tell that the person is going to buy my
car even before he comes to see it.
Pre-selling
You can look at this step as pre-selling. If you do a good job
here you will have buyers who are warmed to your car before they
arrive.
Which leads me to the purpose of the appointment stage.
Purpose: The purpose of the appointment step is to pre-sell the
customer on the car and yourself
Secondary Purpose: To make a time for him to see the car.
What do I mean by pre-sell? I mean giving the buyer his chance to
pick you out of the bunch as someone he wants to deal with.
You only need to be slightly more friendly, on the ball and
helpful to win him over. You can bet that the average person
selling a car is completely unprepared.
I know because I have bought cars from them. If they are not rude
they are certainly off-putting. You have to drag the information
out of them even if they have a perfectly good vehicle for sale.
The little bit of thought you put into your presentation is time
well spent.
Here is an example of one of my calls
My purpose is only to get the person to come and see my car.
I want him to be qualified – which means that my car is something
he may want – not necessarily that he has enough money. If
someone wants something – they usually find the money.
I don’t want to say anything on the phone that will reduce or
minimize my final selling price.
I want to know his needs and wants and communicate to him that my
car will satisfy them. If you can manage to do this you have
virtually secured an offer (when he comes to see it.)
Here it is:
Ring Ring!
Me: Hi, Graeme speaking.
Inquirer (Bob): Hi, I’m calling about the Ford. Do you still have
it?
Me: Hi Bob. Yes, I do. I’ve only just advertised it. I’ve been
getting a lot of calls. It’s a 98 Ford Falcon Auto. It’s done
40000 miles. The body is perfect. It’s got no rust and 12 months
registration. Does that sound like what you are looking for?
Bob: It could be.
Me: Ok. Is there a particular reason you are looking for a Ford
Falcon?
Bob: Well, yes. It’s big enough for my family. Plus I’ve heard
parts are cheap.
Me: Ok. Yes, I’ve heard that parts are cheap, though I haven’t
needed any, luckily enough. And there is plenty of room for my
kids.
Bob: Sounds all right. When can I take a look at it?
Me: Gee, well – it will have to be 5pm or 7pm because I need to
go out for a bit. Which one suits you best?
Bob: 7pm
Me: Ok, Bob see you then. I’m at (my address). Do you know how to
get there?
Bob: Yes, I know it.
Me: Ok Bob, see you then.
You have acted politely, identified yourself and also found out
why he wants your particular car. You have also made a time and
by choosing the time to suit you, you demonstrate that you are
NOT desperate to sell it but that it is just a routine thing you
are doing while getting on with your life. I have not discussed
price at all. I definitely did not bring it up myself. I closed
the conversation in a friendly manner but with an expectation
that I would see him at a certain time. That is a complete job
and the purpose has been achieved.
It is important to sound completely natural – so if you have to
make a choice between sounding natural and including one of these
techniques, choose being natural every time.
The buyers mind set when he telephones
I will tell you what is going through the buyer’s mind when he
calls you. And this should give you an insight into how to act.
You should never reveal that you know what is going on in his
head because it ruins the whole game and the buyer doesn’t like
it. Just act like a real person but keep in mind what is going on
at this stage.
The buyer has found your car and has some slight hope that this
might be the car that he is looking for. The hope is only very
slight. What you are going to do is increase that hope until he
asks to come and see your car.
Let him ask; and he will if you do this properly.
He is going to telephone you and ask you some questions. He is
mainly not listening to the answers to these questions.
He is listening to you and your tone of voice. He is feeling your
voice and getting an impression of the car through the way you
communicate to him. He is looking for chinks or glitches that
show whether you are:
- Honest / Dishonest
- Open / Cagey
- Responsible / Irresponsible
- Look after your possessions / Treat them badly
- Are desperate to sell / Merely doing a transaction because you
have something better.
He will also be listening to the information you give him but
this is of secondary importance. If he likes the way you conduct
yourself AND he likes your answers then you have almost certainly
found a buyer.
Buyers have a sixth sense
Buyers have a sixth sense – a BS meter – a funny feeling – what
ever you want to call it. I have no trouble at all selling cars.
I don’t really even consider that I sell them. I just people to
buy it by doing everything right. Their sixth sense can work for
you if you are giving them good value. They won’t get into a lot
of detail and will just buy your car. This is beautiful when it
happens. If you are trying to rip them off it can definitely work
against you.
Create a positive impression from the first phone call
Now if you do this well – you will create such an impression in
the mind of the buyer – that he will come and buy your car even
though there is a newer one at a lower price. He won’t trust that
lower priced car – he will trust your car and he may be right –
you will never know.
Be interested in the buyer not his money - When you get a
telephone call be interested and open. It is not the time to
start acting cagily or even think about negotiating. Your purpose
is just to get the person to come and see the car.
Say your name – this makes you more real.
Volunteer information
Don’t wait for the person to drag the information out of you.
Volunteer all the basic information about the vehicle. If you
can’t remember it, have it on a piece of paper. Don’t talk about
price. This shows him that you are open and not cagey. If he has
to pump you for the basic info on your car it looks like you are
hiding something.
If he has any more questions I answer them. The buyer usually
appreciates it. The information may already be in your
advertisement buy by going over it again you are confirming in
his mind that it is real. He may have been looking at other cars
and it will also remind him of your car.
He will appreciate your helpfulness.
Don’t sound desperate for him to see your car – ham it up the
other way.
He will usually ask to make a time to see it. Do not act too
keenly for him to come. I often tell the buyer something like
after 7:30 pm, which is my dinnertime. Or it will have to be
after 5pm because someone is coming to look at it at 4pm. This
makes it seem more desirable and will increase the persons
perception of the value. People rightly or wrongly follow the
pack to some degree.
Never Discuss Price
Avoid discussing price over the phone. Buyers will sometimes ask
you what is your lowest price. Never answer this question. Don’t
be afraid to waste the buyer rather than state a price before he
has seen the car. Instead turn it around and start asking him
about himself and his needs. Is he looking for this type of car?
How has he been going in his search? You will find that he starts
communicating to you information so you can understand what
problems he is trying to solve by purchasing your car. By asking
him open questions his interest may come up and he will want to
see your car.
What if his main focus is money and he never talks about anything
else?
Once you understand his problem then let him know that your car
has this feature that is the answer to his problem – don’t over
sell it – just let him know. He will usually want to come and see
your car. If his problem is money then he is not someone you want
to see your car – he will only be focused on money.
Graeme Sprigge is the webmaster of SellMyCarForCash.Com, a
website dedicated to enlightening you on how to get the most for
your car in a private sale. The site is is constantly expanding
and includes more great articles, some of which are available for
reprinting in your ezine. There is a lack of unbiased information
on the net in this are so this site aims to fill the gap.
For more cool articles, cool car selling tips, car finance tips
visit
http://www.sellmycarforcash.com
Copyright 2005 Graeme Sprigge.
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