Selling a Car on the Test Drive

Selling a car on the test drive is the perfect environment in which to present all the benefits to the customer.

The test drive has become an action that we just do.

Many car sales people lose site of the objectives and fail to adapt to modern car selling techniques.

Take advantage of the unique opportunity that your product offers for you to sell it to the customer.

How many customers know anything about car engines?

On the test drive what are they really interested in?

In days gone by you showed the customer the engine, and let them drive the car, to let them assess the vehicle.

Car owners used to do repairs on their cars. They used to know about engines and had mechanical knowledge.

Those days are gone, keep up, move with the times, and show buyers what they want to see.

The focus has moved away from technical assessment by customers that had some knowledge.

The focus of a test drive now is on what the customer wants from the car.

They don’t need to understand what happens on a technical level, they want benefits not features.

The car and how it meets their personal needs is now important. The dashboard display and the entertainment system can be more important than the transmission.

The objective of the test drive

When selling a car on the test drive what’s your objective?

Maybe you haven’t thought about it for a while.

Your focus should be on the sale and how to make the best use of the test drive environment to sell the car.

This is often overlooked in big dealership car sales training.

As in the car sales training on how to present the benefits do not bore the buyer with your in depth knowledge of all the features of the car.

Stick to the features that will give the buyer the benfits they want.

The car sales process

Selling a car on the test drive is part of the complete car sales process.

The car sales section of this website starts with appointment setting and prospecting, and builds into a car sales training resource for every stage of selling a car.

The complete car sale process
looks like this

A complete car sales guide to how to sell cars using professional car sales techniques.

The car sales process main page

Appointment setting and prospecting for car sales

The introduction and meeting the prospect

Questioning the car buyer’s needs

Presenting the benefits of the car to your customer

Handling their objections, questions, and concerns

Completing the car sales test drive …..This Page

Negotiation techniques and how to sell more cars

Selling cars and closing the deal

Selling techniques to give you sales referrals and recommendations

The test drive car selling techniques

You’re giving the car to the customer, and their family if they are with them.

Dealerships have their own rules about test drives, but wherever possible let the customer drive. If their partner is with them you sit in the back, because you want them to sit where they will when they buy the car.

The test drive is a combination of a lot of solid car sales closing techniques.

You’re giving them the car, if they don’t agree to the sale you are taking this bright shiny new car back from them.

Use assumptive car sales techniques when selling a car on the test drive.

During the test drive, talk in language that assumes they will be taking this car home with them.

Don’t take the keys back at the end of the test drive. Park the car where it easily accessible, not back in the showroom or tucked away in a corner.

If you’re going into the showroom to talk about the sale, park it where they can see their new car, and keep referring to it.

What sells a car on the test drive

A car is many things to many buyers. When you’re selling a car each buyer will be moved positively towards a buying state by something different.

The prestige of others seeing them driving the car
That new car smell, even on a used car
Safety features will do it for some
The in car entertainment

You know the benefits they want from the car because you discovered them all in the Questioning stage of selling a car so sell to those benefits.

Sell to all their senses
Use NLP sales techniques on the test drive

In NLP (Neuro Linguistic Programming) car sales techniques you use words and phrases to bring in all the senses of perception. The test drive is a great place to do that when selling a car.

If you have built rapport with the customer while selling a car they will follow your lead.

As you take a deep breath so will they, and they will take in that great smell that a fresh car has.

When you want to direct them to heir feelings use words like think, sense, feel, consider, thought.

When you know the feelings that are important to them you can check that they are getting them in response to the car.

Prestige, pride, arrogance, security, what is it that is going put them in the buying state. Direct the conversation to the feelings they want.

Talk about how they picture themselves in he car, how others will see them, or can they see the safety features.

Bring in the sense of hearing by using quotes about the car from experts. Ask questions about what others will say when they see the customer’s new car. These car sales techniques all work towards selling a car.

Encourage touching when you demonstrate the controls. Don’t do it for them. Get them to experience the feeling and make a positive attachment.

Consolidate your sales presentation

Revisit the main points of your sales presentation and consolidate the most important benefits for that particular customer.

Show them the features and benefits that answered any objections they raised. These are really effective car sales training skills for selling a car.

Gain their agreement to the features providing the benefits they are looking for as you sell the car on the test drive.

Make complicated things easy

Complicated controls must be made simple. Many cars have controls for the car, the entertainment system, and the environment, that look complicated. This can be a negative for some buyers.

One car sales technique to turn this into a positive is to train them quickly how to master the controls.

As part of your car sales training practice a routine to teach the customer how to use all controls. The result is a buyer that knows how to use those complicated looking gadgets. Men especially really respond to this when you’re selling to them.

Car entertainment systems sell cars

selling a car

Too many car sales people don’t spend enough time on the in-car entertainment system. To many buyers this is a very important part of what they are buying

Make sure you ask about their needs in the questioning stage and when selling a car, and present the benefits during the test drive.

Music is a great mood and emotion controller.
Choose appropriate music for your buyer and play it on the medium of their choice when you demonstrate the entertainment system. If they have told you they use an ipod show them how it works.

It is worth investing time in preparing your entertainment system presentation for when you’re selling a car.

Have a library of music ready

Top sales performers are the ones that take the extra actions to make the extra sales.

Are you selling the car to someone that will use it as a status symbol or to attract the admiring glances of good looking people. Play something that encourages that feeling while they drive the car.

Is the family with the buyer? Play something appropriate. You will know by know who is going to make or influence the buying decision. Aim the music at them. How do they want to feel? Use music to get them into a buying state.

Think how music can effect your mood and motivation, it does the same for your customers.

What mood are you trying to create?

A fast sexy atmosphere created with music that has a contagious beat. A test drive on a fast road.

A safe environment with music from the past, and a test drive that shows the cars smooth handling.

Let them experience their new car

Don’t over talk on the test drive when selling a car. Lead the conversation with short subtle statements or questions.

Promote an atmosphere that encourages your buyer to experience as much sensory feelings as possible. Use words and phrases that move these external inputs into internal feelings.

Your Questioning earlier will have discovered the feelings the buyer is looking for. Now you want to make sure they get those feelings from your car. This precise targeting approach will sell more cars than a shotgun approach of bombarding the buyer with all the features of the vehicle.

If you know about NLP, and how to use it to communicate with the prospect, then use it on the test drive. If not, don’t worry just follow the ideas above and adapt them for your test drives. The car sales techniques above are based on NLP (Neuro Linguistic Programming).

You are communicating with the buyer by using all their senses externally to create internal words, pictures, and most important of all feelings. Spend time in the car talking after the test drive. Treat it as their car and use language that says that. Questions such as, Will you be comfortable in that seat driving to …a destination personal to the buyer ..?

The car is the perfect environment for selling a car

Why are so many sales people in such a rush to get back into the sales room?

Do your selling in the car. If it’s a sale with no part exchange could you talk finance or price in the car?

The buyer is in the driving seat and still has the great feelings you helped to instil. If they say no to a proposal you make now, they will have to get out of the car and give it back to you.

Involve the partner and children if they are with them. This is their new car. When partners and children talk about the family car they say, It’s our car. They don’t call it their wife’s car, or their husband’s car, unless they have one each. The kids don’t say its Mom or Dad’s car, they say it’s our car. On the test drive sell it to them, and make them feel they already own it.

By creating a sense of ownership you are building massive barriers to a negative response, and putting the buyer into an emotional buying state. More on this when we look at closing the sale.

You are an impartial expert

Create the image of an impartial advisor by being honest about negative features of the car.

No car is perfect or couldn’t be improved. You will project the impression of an impartial expert if you highlight some of the weaker points of the car.

Choose features that don’t impact the features and benefits you discovered the buyer wants during the questioning stage of the sale. There is no need to get too negative about the car, just enough to show you are giving an honest opinion based on your knowledge and experience.

You will be seen as an advisor and this will help with the sales you are making now, plus it will get you repeat and referral business later.

Now see what else there is

Consider the above car sales training. Decide which car sales techniques you like and want to add to your sales skills.

For more help click around the site.

You are in the car sales section, and the sales training in the other sections can all be adapted for selling a car.

You could start with the sales training sales tips home page and click around the links from there.

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