I went out to enjoy a beautiful fall day here in Vancouver. I took the 95 as it's insurance runs out Nov.1 (storage insurance for a few months of winter, still drive the 97). Absolutely stunning day, ~60F, bright sunshine, and my 95 C2 enjoying an end of season drive. So as I ended up downtown, I thought I'd take the opportunity to check out the new 09 997. I parked my car in front of the dealer (note this is NOT the same dealer I bought my three Porsches from but the OPC for Vancouver) and walked inside. There were two salesman and that was it, no customers at all, they weren't even on the phone. I poked around the new car for 5-10 minutes and was hoping to chat to someone about the new car. I might as well have been a ghost, neither salesman made a peep and I swear they both avoided eye contact. I left and continued with my drive. Am I wrong to expect some kind of acknowledgement? Was I going to buy a new car today? No, but how would they know and better yet, shouldn't they find out? This is where I think the dealers need to get back to basics and understand that ENTHUSIASTS used to be the only people who bought Porsches and whether they're buying a car at that moment or not, they should take the time to get to know these people as they are potential future customers. They've gotten used to selling everything that comes in the front door without working at it. With this kind of attitude, they're going to have a very hard time selling cars in the future. If they put off the enthusiast buyer, the people who buy Cayennes and the coming Panamera will lose interest. Maybe I'm wrong but this really amazed me today.

Oh well, all the more reason to hang onto my "beater" 993's. Now that the 95 is going into hibernation, it's time to dig into the 97!

 

They're salesmen. If there is a spark of enthusiasm for cars in the heart of any car salesman, it's beaten out of them by their management and compensation system.

Let's see--sell a real Porsche owner who knows more about cars than I do times ten, or schmooze that young lawyer over there that we have a color that goes with his tie and show him how big the nav screen is?

 

That was a really weak response from the dealer but I get that alot. Apparantly they sized you up in their mind and you weren't worth even walking up to and greeting. Lame... Either that, or they were just lazy, tired, or bored that day. You'd think they'd be hungry in this business climate!

You could have been a future sale to them. They blew it.

"Blake: You call yourself a salesman, you son of a b*tch?"

"Shelley Levene: What does that mean? Why would it not... Oh, f**k you. You do not know your job. That's what I'm saying. You do not know your job. That's what I'm saying. A man IS his job and you are f**ked at yours. " from Glengarry Glen Ross


Steve

 

If you go back to that dealership in two or three months, those two won't be there. There is an amazing turnover of staff in the car business, and a large percentage of morons.

Your story reminds me of an event that took place in Palm Springs some years ago. A local dealer had several brands, ranging from Honda to RR. A young man came in wearing cut-offs and flip-flops, and began looking at a new RR Silver Spur. The salesmen all tried to ignore him, not wanting to lose their "up". One finally relented and talked to the guy, who came back the next day and bought the RR for his mom (rock star, drug dealer, who knows?). This example really made the rounds among the car dealerships for a good long time, about how not to try to "qualify" a customer by appearance.

 

Kind of my point. There wasn't anyone other than myself in the place, yet they couldn't even bother to say a simple "hello." That's not just bad business, it's flat out rude! If I'm at home in my front yard and someone walks by, I'll say "hi", why is this so hard.

 

I wish they had video conferencing at the dealerships. I'd just do some 720p HD calls from home into the dealerships and do my shopping in my boxers. Virtual tour, talk to the sales people, work the deal, and then go pick it up--end of story.

My last 2 vehicles I bought on the internet (C4 and Bronco) and the my Explorer I bought without even driving. Im in the process of working on my 4th car(s) without ever seeing or test driving--a Navigator and/or Escalade.

Im a different breed of buyer (many others out there as well) and I make my living in sales. No window shopping or tire kicking--just figure out what I want and buy it.

 

Tim, I will actually offer you that , this is exactly the way I like it... LOL. I really dont like sales people hovering around me like sharks. If I need help I know who to call...
BTW, Peter Wong the Sales Manager is a good guy and a supporter of our club...

 

Had the same experience recently at the same dealer. Come to think of it, the 3 times I've been there over the last 3 years it was the same. Always on Saturdays...maybe the hunters don't work Saturdays. However, as Danny said maybe that's best. Although, it doesn't make me feel good paying the Vancouver premium...just my two cents.

 

If they are useless, they dont' deserve any commission. That's how I see it.

 

At least they didn't look at your shoes and write you off. This happened to me at the Volvo dealer a few years back. This was the sales manager. I'd met him at another dealership before and he is more than snooty. I'm sure that this little inspection was a way of determining if I might be a buyer or not. He was right. I've had 2 BMW's and an Audi since.

 

They thought its credit crunch out there

Jaak,
My SEO

 

That pretty much sums it up!

 

I walk in to car dealers dressed like I usually do and usually they don't give me the time of day. I enjoy being the schmuck. I am who I am and can probably buy and sell half of their high end customers waiting to see if they've been approved for their zero down lease.....most "customers" are only there because they want to be seen driving their Porsche, not really enjoying it.... Long live Air Cooled cars...

 

I came over from Vancouver Island to look at 993 at Weissach prior to purchasing mine. They didn't have a car that really appealed to me. Due to the proximity of the Porsche dealership I stopped by to see if they had any 993's. A salesman approached me and asked if he could help. I enquired as to whether they had any 993's for sale. His response "no we don't" and he just walked away.

 

Bret, that's the kind of attitude that really gets me. I agree with what people have said in that it's nice to not have a salesperson "hovering" around you. I do , however, think there's a world of difference between being low pressure and being rude. These kind of actions lean heavily toward the latter and sure won't help the dealers in difficult times. Like I've said, I think the dealers of "luxury goods" such as Porsches have had great success over the last decade and will need to change their attitude over the next few years.