Car Evangelism
We went minivan shopping again. Quite the adventure. By the way, thanks for your advice a few weeks back! We got into some serious negotiations. Definitely wanted to drive home in a new minivan, but no such luck.
What a difference between a good salesman and a bad salesman. About the same difference between a good evangelist and a bad evangelist.
The best salesmen aren't trying to sell you anything! They help you make good decisions. You feel like they're on your side. Give me a low pressure salesman who answers questions over a high pressure salesman who asks questions any day of the week!
One salesman told us what we wanted to know--we were his agenda. The other salesman told us what he wanted us to know--his agenda was his agenda. I felt like one salesman just wanted to get through his entire sales pitch! I just wonder if our evangelism comes across as a canned sales pitch when our agenda is our agenda.
Less agenda. More listening.
For what it's worth, Francis Schaeffer was once asked what he'd say if he had ten minutes to share the gospel. He said he'd listen for nine minutes and talk for one minute.
One more thing.
Don't tell me about how much money you're losing offering me the price you're offering me when I'm the one buying the mini-van! I know you're not losing money. You know you're not losing money. Let's stop pretending :)
What a difference between a good salesman and a bad salesman. About the same difference between a good evangelist and a bad evangelist.
The best salesmen aren't trying to sell you anything! They help you make good decisions. You feel like they're on your side. Give me a low pressure salesman who answers questions over a high pressure salesman who asks questions any day of the week!
One salesman told us what we wanted to know--we were his agenda. The other salesman told us what he wanted us to know--his agenda was his agenda. I felt like one salesman just wanted to get through his entire sales pitch! I just wonder if our evangelism comes across as a canned sales pitch when our agenda is our agenda.
Less agenda. More listening.
For what it's worth, Francis Schaeffer was once asked what he'd say if he had ten minutes to share the gospel. He said he'd listen for nine minutes and talk for one minute.
One more thing.
Don't tell me about how much money you're losing offering me the price you're offering me when I'm the one buying the mini-van! I know you're not losing money. You know you're not losing money. Let's stop pretending :)
5 Comments:
I'm actually in the middle of car negotiations as well and I've found that the absolute best way to negotiate is to sit at your computer, look up your local dealers, and email them the price you want.
That way you don't have to waste your time going place to place, you're in the position of power since the salesman doesn't have you in his "home court" and you can easily ignore him if you need.
When the prices and options are all agreed to, all you need to do is show up and sign the paperwork. Done deal.
Good luck!
LOL! I just got done posting on your latest post and worked my way backwards to find that you said the same thing. I just wanted you to know that I wasn't an idiot and missed it. Good luck with the minivan search.
Good Luck, I just went thru weeks of looking at SUV's and minivans after my wife's SUV was totalled when she was hit by an unlicensed, uninsured illegal alien. Lots and lots of bad salesmen. One even pretended to be a Christian when he saw that we were both wearing crosses and wanted to make us a "good deal between Christians". I decided not to buy from him when he deftly evaded the question about what church he actually belonged to for the second time.
After settling on the Toyota minivan, the 0% financing helped, we were looking at one dealership that wanted to sell us what they had in stock rather than what my wife actually wanted. When we decided to go get something to eat they insisted that we take the van they wanted to sell us to dinner, so after eating we drove their van to another dealer, explained that we were looking at that van but it wasn't exactly what my wofe wanted, and we wanted to see if they had what she wanted.
Their salesman, the good one, talked to us and found out exactly what we wanted, and the price the other dealer wanted for the van we were driving. A few minutes later he was showing us vans with exactly the features we wanted in different colors, nothing more and nothing less, and he beat their price even though the vans he was showing us were better equipped than the other one.
Again, good luck.
I think it's unnecessary for daniel to mention certain details in his story. Remember, "I was a stranger, and you took me in."
"And you are to love those who are aliens, for you yourselves were aliens in Egypt." Deuteronomy 10:18-19
Mark,
When we got one of our cars awhile ago I did something a little similar to what Daniel here explained.
I went in and told the salesman I wanted the best deal he could offer me on the car we wanted. I told him I didn't want that amount to change when I got in the back office and started signing papers with the guy in the back. I told him if it did I was gonna walk out and I'd be gone for good.
I told him that I would take the price he gave me and go to another Mazda dealer (we were buying a Mazda) and if he didn't have a better price I promised I'd come back to him.
He didn't like that scenario, cause he said the other guy would underbid him and lose money just to beat him. I told him I was sorry about that but I was poor and I just needed the best deal I could get. :)
I went back and forth a couple times between two dealers in two close cities and would tell each salesman the new quote I got each time the other one would lower their price.
One guy finally said he wouldn't play this game, so I said fine and left.
I ended up getting the car for a really good deal and got some extras thrown in!
Let the dealer fight for you! :)
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