New Car Salesperson

Of all the positions at a new car dealership, the salesperson is perhaps the most underrated and under appreciated. But salespeople are a vital part of our business and are highly valued within the dealership.

According to a poll by Maritz Research, Canadian new car buyers increased their reliance on salespersons at dealerships during the past four years despite industry predictions that the power of the Internet would largely displace the traditional top source of information.

The dealership salesperson is a leading source of information for almost 56 per cent of shoppers. That’s up 3.3 percentage points from 2004.

For anyone entering the profession today, however, the job requirements and expectations are much different. Before you are permitted to sell cars, you must pass an Automotive Certification Course. This course covers a range of issues, including the laws, rules and regulations that govern the retail automotive sector.

One of the biggest differences between selling cars today is the consumer. The Internet has made it possible for car buyers to conduct exhaustive research on various makes and models and to compare lease and finance rates.

Buyers’ use of dealer or manufacturer websites rose, too, but not at the pace industry watchers had expected.

Websites are a top source for 21.7 per cent of buyers, still far below salespersons in importance, according to the survey, which was conducted last August among about 40,000 people.

“There was a perception 10 years ago that the Internet would replace the salesperson in a dealership,” said Chris Travell, vice-president of auto research at Maritz.

“Obviously that hasn’t happened.

“There is still a relationship that needs to be developed when someone buys a car and the salesperson fulfils that role,” he added.

“A majority of Canadian shoppers rely on a personal touch.

“To many consumers, buying a car is like a romance.

“It’s difficult to have an intimate relationship with the Internet.”

The survey also indicated that dealer and manufacturer websites have moved up from sixth to fourth spot among top information sources but still fall significantly behind “word-of-mouth” and “consumer guides.” Travell said the Internet has also changed the dynamics among salespeople, dealerships and shoppers. The ability to research autos has increased dramatically and given consumers more power.

“Customers are coming into showrooms armed with more information than they ever have.” Websites such as newcarToronto.com have valuable information such as who to trust when buying a car and new car reviews and reports.

Automakers are using more objective third-party information from the Internet to help salespersons sell autos, Travell noted.

Almost 26 per cent of buyers rated fuel economy as a top reason for choosing a vehicle, the survey showed.

That was up from 21.6 per cent in 2004.

Value for money and reliability remain the top two purchase reasons, according to the survey.

Road handling, ride quality and engine performance have declined in importance because most vehicles perform well in those areas and it is more difficult for a buyer to differentiate between them, Travell said.

Jaguar XJ review

There we have the measure: a trio of Teutons and one Lexus. If their nameplates read S-Class, 7 Series, A8 and LS460 you’re in the headquarters of motorised luxury. They own it, this quartet. They define flagship mobility.

And for a very simple reason: they cover all the bases in the last stop before über-ville, where Bentleys and Rolls-Royces waft along.

Allan Bloom’s book on the failure of higher education, The Closing of the American Mind, has some parallels with what’s happened in the upper echelons of car design. The thinking might be rigorous, but it’s also been channelled, rigged and closed down by the expectations of fashion – de rigueur. Luxury car makers embrace conservatism.

And why not? Differences between entry-level cars, for instance, are minute because parameters are so restrictive. There’s no latitude in terms of size or price. Variety only opens up in the compact and middle classes, mainly because of niche derivatives like estates, coupes, convertibles, MPVs, SUVs and bakkies.

Not in the upper segments. Where cars are expensive and clients few, proliferation grinds to a halt. The adventurous design spirit might balloon around its own girth, but it’s tied down at the top and bottom. In the luxury segment, we’re back to a common design solution, generally expressed in limo shape.

Perfection, after all, can only be embodied by a single vision. Hence requirements have been distilled into an instantly recognisable formula: more is more.

More power, luxury, refinement, equipment and technology . . . which also means more machine, all of it technicised by layers and layers of electronics that depersonalise the interface between driver and car.

Call it a ghost in the machine. And surprise, surprise, ghosts are an empty presence, as EPS (electric power steering) proves.

Enter Porsche’s Panamera and Jaguar’s new XJ. They have their differences, but there’s a spiritual connection: both of them sporty and pure.

Neither car attempts, for instance, to cover all the fancy de rigueur calls of the luxury segment. They don’t boast self-closing door functions. They’re not burdened by iDrive-type menu controllers. In the Porsche, systems are accessed by pushing buttons; in the Jag by touching screen icons. The XJ also eschews all-wheel drive, rear-wheel steering and electronic rollover control. Cruise control doesn’t perform a bouquet of circus tricks and the car’s front rides on steel springs.

It’s possible to argue that most of this is a function of R&D money – or a lack of it. XJ steering column adjustments are still driven by a single motor, which is slower and less-refined than two motors (one for height, one for reach).