What’s so important about finding the right car dealer? Aside from helping you score a great price, the right dealer positions you for the best possible experience during and after the sale. But it’s easy to lose sight of all this when we’re reviewing offers. Here are some tips to help you find the right dealer.
Find the right car dealer: Location
You’ll want to select a dealer who is close to you. Traveling 60 miles to save $100 may seem like a good idea when you’re sitting on your couch reviewing offers. But you might want to re-think this strategy, especially if you have a trade-in they’ll need to see, if you aren’t sure of your credit, or if you have other unknowns. If you drive all the way there but you don’t like the dealer’s terms or trade-in value, you might be too invested to say no. It’s a lot easier to walk away when you live close by. Also, don’t forget that you’re likely to service your vehicle with a local dealer – and it’ll be easier to get favors and deals down the line if you’d bought your car there. Think of it this way: Shopping hyper-locally is your service department “ace in the hole.” You may not need it now, but you’ll probably pat yourself on the back in six years when you get a perk you really need.
Find the right car dealer: Responsiveness
Just how responsive are the dealers you’re working with? If one dealer takes 24 hours to answer a question about your car deal and another takes 10 minutes, keep working with the 10-minute dealer. If more questions come up (and they surely will), he’s the guy you’ll want to ask first.
Find the right car dealer: Eagerness
Lots of dealers today still do the bare minimum in supplying quotes and offers. Look for dealers that do something unique and go out of their way to win your deal. Maybe the salesperson sends you a personalized video introduction. Maybe the dealer is running a special social media check-in offer, or the salesperson offers to take the car to your office for a lunchtime test drive. If a salesman is willing to go out of his or her way now, chances are they’ll have your back later.
How to find the right car dealer: Reviews
Previous sales and service customers have often written reviews of their experiences at the dealer. You can find these reviews on CarWoo! as well as DealerRater, Google Reviews, and Yelp. Be sure to look at some of the most recent reviews. Don’t be that guy that starts his review with, “I wish I read the reviews before I spent four hours of my life at the dealership…”
Chances are, you would’ve naturally gravitated towards the dealer that came out strong on all these factors. But the trick is to not lose sight of them as your purchase date arrives. You may be tempted to forget these qualities when a dealer calls you up last-minute and says, “Come on down – we’ll match or beat the lowest offer you’ve gotten.”
Take it from me – It’s best to save your spontaneous sense of adventure for vacations, not car deals.
