I visited three car dealerships in the last month to investigate replacing my sport utility vehicle. I was dissatisfied with the lack of knowledge on relevant issues possessed by the initial sales person. The consistency of my experience suggests that automobile dealers are using a new tactic to gain sales.
The salespersons had common traits. They were attractive people, very likeable, had an outgoing personality oozing with confidence and an air of optimism. They made an effort to befriend me to gain my confidence. None of them knew very much about the particulars of the vehicles, the applicable interest rates and financing options. The description of one of the sales people on their business card read “guest advisor”. The acronym for guest advisor is “GA”. If you say it out loud, you get an indication of the quality of the information that will be provided by a GA when asked a question.
The GA’s response to a detailed question was often, “I have to see my manager”. An article on the website for Car and Driver states that the purpose of the “ask the manager” process is to make the manager look like the bad guy and to preserve the friendship between the GA and the customer. http://www.caranddriver.com/features/car-shopping-on-the-offensive-8-aggressive-buying-tactics-feature. The GA is there to sell themselves first. Once you invest your confidence in a GA, you are more likely to buy the vehicle. http://www.autonews.com/article/20141208/RETAIL06/312089963/high-salesperson-turnover-getting-worse-study-finds
I told one dealer that I was dissatisfied with the salesperson. They put me in touch with a manager who demonstrated the vehicles that I wanted to see. He possessed much of the knowledge that I required to make a decision. Do your own research before shopping for an automobile. Ask for a knowledgeable salesperson and keep friendship out of it.