Having recently bought a car myself, I can attest that one’s experience at a car dealership can make or break everything. No amount of image advertising that ad agencies do can reverse a really bad experience with a dealer who tries to screw with you or a salesman who doesn’t know much about the car you want.
Over at The Truth About Cars, there’s a bit of a “Point-Counterpoint” discussion going on about the current state of auto dealers and salespeople. A Honda dealer and a TTAC contributing writer weigh in, along with plenty of comments from readers.
Car dealers are actually having a rough time of it in general–now that consumers are savvier about the purchase price and using the Net to comparison shop, it’s getting harder and harder for them to make profits. (I’m talking about the dealerships, not the manufacturers.) So many of them still try to find sneaky ways to extract more of your money from you. And no one seems to be in a huge rush to end all of this price haggling. While there are some good dealers and salesmen out there, you just never know what’s in store for you when you walk into a dealership.
At the moment, Hyundai, Jeep, and Volvo are all searching for new agencies. Until the dealer system gets a radical overhaul, it may not matter who does the brand advertising because the consumer experience is what truly needs a makeover.
