Promo offers to get cars shifted?

[Mikey360 68]

Just had a random thought and was hoping for some feedback from you guys.

I can't recall any smaller car dealerships offering a cashback promo or a free service or MOT voucher (or anything like that)

Has anybody tried something similar to shift some dead stock? Or even just to get some sales numbers up during dry spells? 

My thinking behind it is a punter could walk away with 2 things (ie cashback, voucher etc and a car) rather than just a car with money knocked off? Would that be more enticing for them?

[metcars 397]

Interesting, a lot of guys on here are pretty rigid with pricing and don't give much away, so i'm interested to see this thread develop?

[BHM 994]

Christ, aren’t times hard enough without giving back money?

Correct me if I’m wrong but I’m fairly sure the cashback wouldn’t be VAT deductable so it’s be a double whammy and imagine if a car came back wouldn’t you be liable to give them the full amount?

Anyhow in the £500-4000 internet market there’s no chance of me starting with pisspoor offers like these. As for MOT vouchers if you think I want a conversation about a customer’s MOT failure list 50 weeks after I sold him a £1295 Focus you must be mad! 

I’ll concentrate on getting the cars safe, priced correctly, sold and (hopefully) never to be seen again.

[Mikey360 68]

8 minutes ago, BHM said:

Christ, aren’t times hard enough without giving back money?

Correct me if I’m wrong but I’m fairly sure the cashback wouldn’t be VAT deductable so it’s be a double whammy and imagine if a car came back wouldn’t you be liable to give them the full amount?

Anyhow in the £500-4000 internet market there’s no chance of me starting with pisspoor offers like these. As for MOT vouchers if you think I want a conversation about a customer’s MOT failure list 50 weeks after I sold him a £1295 Focus you must be mad! 

I’ll concentrate on getting the cars safe, priced correctly, sold and (hopefully) never to be seen again.

Good point on the MOT voucher, can imagine a screamer expecting the MOT to pass at any cost not realising it was just to get the MOT done!

[justina3 518]

I think it’s safe to say we work differently to most folk on here. 

We often use a bribe to sweeten a deal but you have to be very specific to make it work and not cost you money. 

For example we sold a polo last week 2008 black three door 1.4 62k £2795 the farther couldn’t fault it but the son was more worried that he couldn’t play his music through the car radio so we offered him a FREE aux in lead kid was chuffed dad assumed that was an expensive option where as it cost us £38 hardly a huge discount but got the deal done. 

As in everything we all do you have to work out what your selling and who your selling to and see if there is room to bring something in quirky.

After many moons even i have now thrown our hat into the finance market only last week signed up with close brothers, times are definitely changing and imo you can’t stsnd still in business what worked for us 5-10 years ago no longer works. 

[EPV 631]

You could offer the moon on a stick, free with a car, and people would still want to chip you. 

[MGM 11]

So much has changed over the past years. Main dealers used to give a bottle, box of chocs and a bunch of flowers. Our local Vauxhall’s dealer gave a weeks holiday in Spain with every new car. Many decent pitches also gave a little something. I am very much old school, don’t screw every customer, give a little and you will get more back in return. I appreciate times have also changed financially but I am still on the side of offering a little back. It doesn’t have to cost the earth and preferably something unconnected with the car i.e flowers or chocs not an MOT voucher or a dangly air freshener! 

[Mikey360 68]

3 minutes ago, EPV said:

You could offer the moon on a stick, free with a car, and people would still want to chip you. 

Agreed, been in the sales game for years now (sales with a local property developer) and people will always want more and more for less and less

[MGM 11]

5 minutes ago, EPV said:

You could offer the moon on a stick, free with a car, and people would still want to chip you. 

Very true, but if you’ve done your job right you should be able to work a deal. Be honest the margins aren’t that tight and if they are then something is wrong. 

[It's me 615]

Ive always been against extras as an incentive,back in the days pre immobilisor/ fiestas /astras /novas used to get twocked all the time so i bought in a load of steering locks and tried to upsell at pos i asked probably 15 nicker for them from a boy to a man every customer said i should throw it in free ,so i dont do anything like that except to remind them that im established been here longer than the man in the moon im always here to help and offer them a fixed price for their mot and service a year from now.Thats it ,i also always thank them for the sale once completed usually with a handshake,i only deal with customers i like mind.

[BHM 994]

4 minutes ago, MGM said:

Very true, but if you’ve done your job right you should be able to work a deal. Be honest the margins aren’t that tight and if they are then something is wrong. 

The deal I’m looking to do is the advertised deal  

I’m with EPV on this. This week I don’t know how many emails I’ve had from the ‘last price’ brigade - you can’t work a deal with these people unless you want to slit your own throat. Half of them haven’t even got the money they’re talking about & the other half are fussy/cheeky bastards who’d come & take the piss anyway.

[EPV 631]

53 minutes ago, Mikey360 said:

Agreed, been in the sales game for years now (sales with a local property developer) and people will always want more and more for less and less

Which to be fair, isn't altogether surprising. Some of the whining from a few on here, none on this thread incidentally, about how people expect new cars for used money and want discounts etc etc, is at times, cringe worthy. As if any of us never try to negotiate something that is already cheap, to be cheaper.It's just what we do. 

The solution to it is either accept it as part of the game or, fix the price, make it clear before people travel and terminate the conversation if anyone ignores what you've made plainly clear. 

I'll discount a car in the unlikely event that someone finds something I haven't seen, usually when someone is very keen to see a car and I've probably not been round it with a magnifying glass as usual because I don't want to stop a punter who must have the car ASAP. But 99% of the time the price is fixed, discussed on the phone and not revisited until it's time to write them up an invoice.

Back to the point, I can't personally see how any promotion offers will really help. If I reduce the price of the car I'll make that clear, like "£500 off, Sale on!" etc but whatever you offer, people will think there's more to be had. 

[MGM 11]

There is a big difference between a £500 off sale, or free pair of boxer shorts with every car sold this weekend offer to a nice courteous bunch of flowers thrown in at handover day. I am saying £20 worth of chocs, flowers or something unexpected on handover will pay you back tenfold. 

[EPV 631]

29 minutes ago, MGM said:

There is a big difference between a £500 off sale, or free pair of boxer shorts with every car sold this weekend offer to a nice courteous bunch of flowers thrown in at handover day. I am saying £20 worth of chocs, flowers or something unexpected on handover will pay you back tenfold. 

On handover is one thing, the OP was talking about a promo, not a handover gift. 

[BHM 994]

Didn’t the days of handover gifts die 25 years ago?

As for them being a benefit, possibly for a pitch but I doubt it. As for my cars I guarantee a bunch of flowers or a box of chocolates wouldn’t be appreciated by the sort of penny pinching twat shopping via the internet nowadays.

Cars ain’t special nowadays, they’re almost a disposable item and are looked upon as such by 95% of the population. I’ve had a few repeat customers but I don’t kid myself why, it’s nowt to do with my brand of charm, it’s only because my cars are competitively priced and I know the buyers looked elsewhere. Loyalty in retail is something for the history books.

[David Horgan 564]

I set out to sell bolt on's not give money off via Promotions 

Upgrade my own 6 month  warranty £199 Best added into finance quotes as you get a commission on the £199 then too  

Paint sealant £199 Its very shiny now , bet you want to keep it that way don't you  

Upholstery protection £99 stops the kids devaluing your seats  

Windscreen Water repellent  £79 all plus vat saves lots of money on wipers  

Screen price and get 6 month warranty engine , gearbox, warranty free but you can upgrade it to £199 to cover these extra  parts too .

25 cars a month with average 60% taking £280 of extras = £4200 x 12 =50k 80% mark up a year and that's not counting Finance commissions on top gives us a good profit .

Sold a car Sat and he bought paint sealant and warranty upgrade took £398 extra off him added to finance as bolt on's with finance commission at £709 it was £1,107 extra on top of screen price . 

To the starters in this industry my advice is hold your hand out for bolt on's every time , take a little extra as it adds up over a year to huge money . 

Do your sums , knock £100 off each car = 30k DOWN based on 300 a year 

Take extra £200 on half the sold stock is £200 x 150 cars is £37,500 UP , lot of money in a working career over 30 years .

Hit them  with screen price and you get this warranty BUT for this little money extra you get this which is worth more than 100quid  off to you and NO warranty cover as I cant give you both discount and warrant the car can I . Guarantee they will agree with you   

three rules in business my dad said , Profit , profit , profit 

[justina3 518]

Do your sums , knock £100 off each car = 30k DOWN based on 300 a year                  300

[Arfur Dealy 823]

I had a promo on my pink Fiat500 (buyer gets a night of bliss with me, I thought the phone would ring of the hook)..... Anyways, it sat there for 6 months, not one call..... Ended promo, sold said Fiat500 

[EPV 631]

1 hour ago, David Horgan said:

I set out to sell bolt on's not give money off via Promotions 

Upgrade my own 6 month  warranty £199 Best added into finance quotes as you get a commission on the £199 then too  

Paint sealant £199 Its very shiny now , bet you want to keep it that way don't you  

Upholstery protection £99 stops the kids devaluing your seats  

Windscreen Water repellent  £79 all plus vat saves lots of money on wipers  

Screen price and get 6 month warranty engine , gearbox, warranty free but you can upgrade it to £199 to cover these extra  parts too .

25 cars a month with average 60% taking £280 of extras = £4200 x 12 =50k 80% mark up a year and that's not counting Finance commissions on top gives us a good profit .

Sold a car Sat and he bought paint sealant and warranty upgrade took £398 extra off him added to finance as bolt on's with finance commission at £709 it was £1,107 extra on top of screen price . 

To the starters in this industry my advice is hold your hand out for bolt on's every time , take a little extra as it adds up over a year to huge money . 

Do your sums , knock £100 off each car = 30k DOWN based on 300 a year 

Take extra £200 on half the sold stock is £200 x 150 cars is £37,500 UP , lot of money in a working career over 30 years .

Hit them  with screen price and you get this warranty BUT for this little money extra you get this which is worth more than 100quid  off to you and NO warranty cover as I cant give you both discount and warrant the car can I . Guarantee they will agree with you   

three rules in business my dad said , Profit , profit , profit 

That all seems fine for certain stock in certain pitches but I doubt anyone is paying £1000 for bolt ons to a £2995 Car! 

[It's me 615]

1 hour ago, Arfur Dealy said:

I had a promo on my pink Fiat500 (buyer gets a night of bliss with me, I thought the phone would ring of the hook)..... Anyways, it sat there for 6 months, not one call..... Ended promo, sold said Fiat500 

you forgot the tin of rattle black

i hope my cheque went to a good cause

[MGM 11]

4 hours ago, BHM said:

 As for my cars I guarantee a bunch of flowers or a box of chocolates wouldn’t be appreciated by the sort of penny pinching twat shopping via the internet nowadays.

Pmsl!!! I do get it but can’t help some of the old school in me. 

[Area 51 33]

4 minutes ago, MGM said:

Pmsl!!! I do get it but can’t help some of the old school in me. 

+1 Pure comedy classic this one...

[Mikey360 68]

Stuck with the classic "Sale now on! £250 off!" 

Hopefully should shift it before the end of the month, its getting dusty!

[have a word with the wife 299]

mats and flaps 

be lucky to get a air freshener off me 

i usually swap it to another car 1 hour before collection 

[Rory RSC 596]

I have run promo offers now and again.

Usually via facebook free next day nationwide delivery on certain cars.

Next MOT + Service FOC 

Tank of fuel with certain cars facebook special. 

TBH non of them made a blind bit of difference  and I would have sold the cars anyway.