High Pressure salesmen!

[Blanco1]

My God about a week ago I called Banning discount RV off the 10 Fwy in Southern California & the guy was so desperately trying anything he could to rope me in.
I finally had to hang up.

But today I happen to be driving by on my way from Tucson Az.
I figured why not drop in & see what they have?
Hopefully I wont meet that guy from the phone?

1st off they DO NOT actually hear what your telling them & are trying to figure out how to sell you on something they are showing you!

& then if the 1st guy don't lock you in they send in another guy to see if he has better luck!
But of course he don't listen much to the words coming out of your mouth either!
& they push to make sure they get your name & phone number & e-mail & keep pushing!

Much too aggressive!

Does this actually work on some people?

This is probably the 5th or 6th Dealer I've gone to & the only once that chased me away!

I finally explained that I've been driving all day & need to go pick up my dog from the Boarders & then still had an additional an hour & 45 minutes from there to get home.

So I politely asked for the 2nd salesman's Business card & he said sure let me go get it, I'll be right back.
We went to the car & took off!

I will never deal this place EVER & if anyone ever ask me I will tell them to stay away!

They don't listen & don't take no for an answer!

Does this actually work for them selling RV's?
Ill go back to people that actually listen & don't push!

[Halmfamily]

One thing I learned several years and vehicles ago is to give the dealer 90 minutes to make and close the deal or we walk. Most dealers seem to want to drag the process out for hours. This has worked well for us.

[Expyinflight]

Intimidated by a high pressure salesman?? Not me.

Take control. You simply cannot be afraid to tell them....."leave us alone" and "we will find you if and when we have questions".

There is tons of information out there about any RV. If you have done your homework....YOU will know more about any particular RV than the salesperson does. Don't let them push you around, or give you the I know it all attitude. You don't have to be rude...just be firm.
YOU are the customer.

If they persist.....I have no problem asking the salesperson...."What type of RV do you currently own???" Or, "How many years have you lived or traveled in an RV???"

We 'shopped' for our current motorhome for about 2 years. Dealt with a number of sales personnel. But there was one lady that was always nice, friendly, and respectful. She would chat with us for a bit, ask if we had questions, or needed help, and then she moved on...each time always telling us to just let her know when we were ready to buy.
And that's what we did. She earned our business.

[down_home]

They don't sell they don't get paid or keep the job.
Whatever they have to do to get the rv sold.
Someone else will deal with all the problems and fibs.
It gets to the sales manager, his job is to take care of them, refuse to acknowledge they exist, or you knew it when you bought it.
When they get the units in they make list of things that need repair or replacement etc and send it to the factory which sends them a check to cover it.
When it is sold to you they fix them or they don't,then, and you have to invest time and so forth to get it fixed.
Next time I will arrange for factory pickup and have it gone through and hopefully done.
You could go to the factory and get it spec'd like you want and then call the Dealer or find a Dealer and negotiate a price.
Should be the best deal you could make since the Dealer doesn't have anything invested in it. Just a call from you offering money. What a deal.
Of course get the extended warranty,that the factory will accept.
They don't like fooling with Good Sams as it may take a looong time to get paid and other things.
Take it to the factory for repairs. Cost may be higher or not and under ffactory warranty, none.

[afidel]

Ralph Cramden wrote:

toedtoes wrote:
This has been common for years regardless of the product. It does work. Many people go in and have no idea of what end is up. The salesman can get them into a new 32ft class A instead of the used 19th ft converted van.

Isn't that the truth........Most furniture stores are even worse.......I will not go into one. The wife must go to see what She wants, then I'll find it on the net.

The people who have no idea are who they use the nuclear option on which is the 120 month financing. My next door neighbor just bit on that one with a low end TT. He paid MSRP on something that can be had for $16K all day long, bought into everything the finance guy pushed in front of him from service contracts to discount books, and walked out the door 30K+ in upside down debt. He thinks he negotiated a great deal however.

The only thing worse than the sales staff at most RV dealers is the dealer who keeps all the new rigs locked, or in some fenced in area you can not get to without running the gauntlet.

The high pressure tactics do have their bright side and that is all the fun that can be had jacking the salespeople around at an RV show. That's my favorite winter pastime, and why my wife now refuses to go to one with me. I played a guy along last year in Pittsburgh for over half an hour with a Thor Motor Coach, before telling him I was not really interested as I had my heart set on a Prevost, and asked if he could point me to where they were at in the Expo center. I think I almost made him cry.

I guess that's why I've bought both my RV and all my furniture from local stores that have been in business for 2+ generations, come in as an informed consumer looking for a little bit of specific knowledge and they'll be there to supply it without the high pressure sales tactics. I did look at one unit up in the Niagara Falls area where they were laid out like you said, fenced in area where you have to go through a salesmen to look at anything, first question they ask is how much you can afford, lol. I told them I could get financing on anything on their lot but that I was looking at two specific units that they listed as having on their lot. Turns out one was at another location even though the listing specifically said it was at the one I had gone to and the other turned out to be a dud (board for the convertible dinette was cut so short that as soon as my son laid on it in bed form it collapsed). I was very glad that we had been in the area for other reasons because if I had gone up there just to look at the TT I would have been royally pissed at the experience.

[Deb_and_Ed_M]

westernrvparkowner wrote:
With the way everyone apparently feels about vehicle salespeople, why would anyone ever consider it as a career? You would be though of as a sleazeball thief, even if you were not. My experience has thankfully been different.

Ed and I own a used-car lot, and use the typical high-pressure approach to our advantage - we do the *opposite*. We offer a flyer on each vehicle with all the pertinent info to the customer, and if they wish, we'll quote them an out-the-door price. Then we tell them "we understand that smart people will comparison shop, so if we don't have exactly what you want, use our prices to get a good deal from another dealer".

We've had lots of good reviews from our customers (plus repeat sales) - the common theme is "they don't pressure you". One would think other places would notice that?

[DutchmenSport]

Four years ago we were looking for a new travel trailer. We had 4 dealerships we wanted to visit, all in one day. We knew exactly which models we wanted to look at at each dealership. It was our goal to compare them all, then (hopefully) make a decision. We had the dealership arranged in order, 1,2,3,4 as that made the most logical sense driving time and distance.

Something happened, and for whatever reason (I don't remember now), we decided to reverse the order of travel: 4,3,2,1.... So off we went. Shop #4 first.

We walked in the door, greeted by the salesman and had us sit down a talk a little. I was somewhat frustrated, because I just wanted to rush in, look at the 2 campers selected and GET! He insisted and pushed up into a conversation. He then asked us what we were looking for in a camper. We told him the model numbers again, and he said, "No. What are you looking for in a camper!" So my wife and I sat there and rambled off our wish list. All the while, I'm getting more frustrated.

He then said, You don't want those models you've come to see. You want something different. Let's look at what you REALLY want. I think I actually say out loud, "BS" but used the actual words. My wife said, "Be nice deer. Let's just appease him." He said, If you look at the one I'm suggesting first, I promise you to show you the other two also. But only AFTER you see this one first. Well.... that pi$$ed me off even more, but figure I had to go along with the agenda or we'd never get to see what we came for.

So off we went. It was actually in show room and when we stepped inside, I about fell over. It was WONDERFUL. I think we hung out in that camper for over 30 minutes talking and looking at things.

He then said, OK as promised ... let's go look at your models now. So we did. And OMG ... they didn't even hold a candle to what the first one had!

When looking at our second choice, I asked him if we could see (his) selection with all the slides IN. He said of course.

So we went back. He demonstrated retracting the slides. We stayed in that camper for, probably another 30 minutes with the slides in. My wife, by now, was really getting frustrated with me, and said, LETS JUST BUY IT AND QUIT PLAYING AROUND!

An hour later we signed the contract, two days later, we drove it home.

We never made it to the other 3 dealerships.

So you know ... pushy salesmen can get it right sometimes!

We've absolutely loved our Outback. It's now been 4 years and it's still just as wonderful as that first moment we saw it! This was truly a "marriage made in Heaven." Thank-goodness for a "pushy" salesmen .... who knew what he was doing!

[p220sigman]

In all fairness, most of my dealings have been fine. One of my more recent purchases on a car was mostly done electronically with only a call to finalize everything. Very little back and forth. I inquired about a vehicle and what their out-the-door price would be. They came back with a number. I responded with my bottom number. They agreed and we made the deal. Showed up with the check, signed the papers, and off I went. I wasn't at the dealership more than 30 minutes. Salesman and finance guys didn't try to up-sale or switch anything.

I've even had a similar experience in person. Told the guy right up front I was buying and didn't have a ton of time so if he didn't try to jerk me around, he'd make a sale today. Test drove what I wanted to look at. Liked it. Told the salesman he had one opportunity to tell me their best price out the door. He came back with a number I agreed with and we did the deal. I was in the dealership less than an hour.

[Blanco1]

edatlanta wrote:
I was shopping for a new car a few year back and the dealer asked for the keys to my trade so they could evaluate it (Now I refuse and tell them they can evaluate it right in front where I parked it). After this guy just wouldn't listen or answer any of my questions I old him I wanted my keys back. He ignored that request one time then I interrupted him and told him to get me my keys immediately before he said another word or he would be answering to the police. I stood up and motioned for him to get busy and go get my keys. He did and the sales manager tried to stop me on my way out the door. I just walked around him never to return.

Wow!

[Blanco1]

valhalla360 wrote:
Bottom line: YES it works.

For every customer who walks away, they sell more and at higher prices.

If you go in with the understanding that it's OK to walk away, you hold the power.
If you go in and get intimidated, they hold the power.

Frustrating when you are just looking and trying to decide what you like but when it comes time to buy, you just have to hold firm and be prepared to walk away. Amazing how many times they will chase you out the door with a lower price.

My suggestion just tell them you are looking and not buying today and then don't worry if they get upset because you were honest about your intentions. Otherwise, check out the RV shows where they won't be able to focus on you.

Exactly what I told him.
I'm just trying to see many of the models out there being so many.
I wanna see different floor plans by many & then NEXT year when I'm ready, I choose from my 4 or 5 top favs & look them over again & make my final choice.
We told him we are NOT buying not being we are traveling to Scotland for a month & NOTHING will happen before that.

I also told him I need to sell off a lot of my toys that are taking up space in the space I plan to store the trailer & would be using that money for a larger down Payment!

But he acted as if he never heard any if it.

& then before visiting I told them the same thing on the phone & they said they could store it for me for free for the 1st 4 months until I cleared my space for it.

Push push push! Sell sell sell!
I wonder if their boss threatens to fire them if they don't push hard enough?

[Blanco1]

Ron3rd wrote:

Blanco1 wrote:
The 1st salesman today, Was shocked that I knew more about the Artic Fox than he did!
He did not know they came standard with an AF Clock & folding outdoor seats & throw pillows That we did not see in the rig.

He was shocked that I knew so much about stuff like friction hinge doors & etc....

That's because he was selling toasters the week before.

LOL!
I figured used cars?
But you might be right!

[Grit_dog]

I pretty much don’t buy new vehicles or toys for this reason......and I’m cheap, lol.
But the best one was about 10 years ago, wife and I were killing time one day and stopped to look at trucks.
Got the usual salesman garbage after telling them we’re just window shopping. Then I got a bit more serious when the 3rd or 4th guy wouldn’t leave us alone and shot them a number on a truck they didn’t have on the lot. To our surprise, they came back pretty quick, located one in their train yard, price for agreed to after a short haggle and they were drawing up paperwork!
Cool right? Since I lowballed like $14k off sticker on a very popular model.

Turned out to all be a ruse. Strung us along all day, we left after an hour or so. Calls kept coming and I kept them on the hook as it was a great deal. In the end, they called us back at like 8 pm, located and dealer traded for the truck “we wanted”.
We cruise back over with the check we’d gotten from the bank earlier and pull in to see a shiny new truck idling out front. Sales dork runs out all smiley and asks us to take it for a drive........when I point out it ain’t even the same color!
Turned into a big sht show. They offered the “new” wrong color truck to us for only thousands more than agreed to on the original one and seemed offended when I asked for the deposit back from earileir in the day! Ended bad when I told the mgr I was going to beat his @ss if the deposit check wasn’t in my hands in 30 sec!
BIL was with, he was laughing so hard he could hardly stand up. Wife thought I was going to end up in jail and, well, good times!

[RedRollingRoadb]

I guess I've been lucky with dealers! My three MH's were pretty much hassle free when buying.

My first one was priced right and worked for us. Talked $$ for a few minuites and bought it.

The second one were we debating on two different ones at a dealer then saw an ad at a second dealer. It was way underpriced decided to go look. Grabbed a salesman and said I wanted to look at this one. As we were walking to the MH he said that they had mis-advertised the price but they would honor it. Drove it, came back and made a deposit, picked up few days later.

My current one we were looking online and talking seriously with the dealer about 400 miles away. Walked into the dealer 15 miles away and took a look at what they had. Third one we looked at DW liked the floor plan, counter space, discovered it had a combo washer/dryer and she said "ohh...do you want to drive it?" It meet my length requirement so we went for a drive. Price was a little more than we wanted but got a few extras tossed in, decent price on the trade, made deposit. Picked up a few days later with it full of fuel and propane.

I have talked to the salesman a few times since, he is just the kind of person I could sit and BS with over a case of beer. He is just a nice person. He did tell me later the full fuel tank was a mistake by the them but they weren't going to pump it out.

[rockhillmanor]

p220sigman wrote:
....I ended up buying the model he was trying to sell me from another dealer. Later, the sales manager from the first dealer followed up with me to see if I was ready to purchase. I explained that

I had purchased from another dealer and primarily because of their sales tactics.

He just kind of mumbled something and hung up....

X2
Just have to share a similar story. I just wished they had smart phones back then to video tape the GM's reaction.

My friend recently widowed (and she and her husband where avid RV'ers and she drove the MH's), She went to look to buy a new MH.

Walked into the dealership and not one of 6 salesmen would show her the MH's on the floor. They ignored her. I guess because they think woman can't possible know anything about MH's let alone buy one? She probably knew more about MH's than all 6 of them combined.

She was so mad. Walked out and went to another dealership where they welcomed her as an RV buyer and showed her all the MH's. She bought a brand new Pace Arrow from them.

BUT, she wasn't done yet. :C

When she picked that MH up,She drove that MH straight up to the front door of the dealership that would not show her MH's and asked for the GM of that store to come outside.

She then showed him what she had bought from his competitor because NONE of his salespeople would assist her in his store!!

Quite a bit of chunk of change you lost there buddy eh?

[rockhillmanor]

RV salesman are the worst.

Buying a car is one thing everyone has driven/owned a car but an RV is a whole different animal AND a big investment for many.

When I went to buy my first MH NOT ONE salesperson at any store had any idea what an RV was let alone try and sell one, and I went to many dealerships. :R

At least I had years under my belt RV'ing with TT's. So the bs they tried to shove at me just made me more mad.

1. Looking for TT's I can't tell you how many of them tried to sell me 38 foot long TT's saying:...."yes your SUV can tow that".

2. I was looking at a high end Class A and when I asked to see all the slides in to see what they would block?

The salesman told me you can not pull the slides in on a MH when it is parked. Yup! That was his answer. So how do you pull the slides in? While you are traveling 55 mph down the road?

I can not imagine what it must be like to a "new" RV buyer trying to purchase their first RV. IMHO very sad for the new RV'er AND very dangerous when it comes to towing a TT/FW.

All I can say is once I looked at RV's at dealerships, I know now what it is like to want to go postal on RV salesmen. I now REFUSE to buy my RV's at dealerships and let these uneducated idiots get a commission off my purchase.

[ljr]

I had an amazing stroke of luck last New Year’s Eve. I had long wanted to replace the 17 year old Jeep I used for local, around town driving but couldn’t stand the thought of talking to a salesman I spec’d out a new vehicle and emailed 3 dealers for a price. Two came back with sales weasel **** but no price. The third response came from a secretary at a dealership nearly deserted due to the holiday.

She actually gave me a price! It wasn’t great but seemed reasonable. Sold!

The Jeep wasn’t worth much so I donated it to charity for a tax deduction.