Two Sales Approaches

Not too long ago, I mentioned I was about to start shopping for a new vehicle. What I experienced today will make me a stronger recruiter and could be applied to anyone in sales of any type, project management, retail management, or even a board level position.

My first stop was at a well publicized dealership whose owner is a former NFL player for a local team who does his own radio commercials. The price sounded worthy of a visit so my "car experts" and I anxiously pulled into the lot and stepped out of the car. Within about 20 seconds, a somewhat friendly young man approached. I told him what I wanted to see and he ushered us indoors where the car mysteriously was no longer in the showroom. Rather than locate the vehicle I wished to see, he wanted to sit down and do paperwork because cars were flying off the lot and the "sale" ended in just 3 hours! When I informed him I just wanted to go on the lot and look at the type of car I was interested in, he pointed to the door and wandered off! Maybe 90 seconds later, a different fellow approached. I told him we had been approached already and he proclaimed that we were lucky a salesman was free and should take advantage. We hopped in our car and headed away as fast as we could!!

The second stop was also a privately owned place but they almost never advertise yet have a solid reputation. As we meandered on the lot, a gentleman approached, introduced himself and said he would check back in about 10 minutes. When he respected our wishes, we took a car for a drive. Upon returning, he gave us a simple formula of how prices are calculated, handed me a business card and recited his schedule for the week.

Many years ago, a rather uncouth recruiter told me I was too much of a gentleman. Those words rang loudly in my head long after his services were no longer needed by the owner of the firm. No matter what you do for a profession and regardless of what a sales trainer may say, listening to your customer's wishes and acting in an ethical manner are still critical to being successful.