I’m Just a Girl…

I’m just a girl, my apologies
What I’ve become is so burdensome
I’m just a girl, lucky me
Twiddle-dum there’s no comparison

No Doubt. Tragic Kingdom. “Just a Girl”

I wonder if Gwen Stefani was trying to buy a car when she wrote those lyrics (if she in fact wrote them).  I spent my day visiting around 10-15 different car dealerships in order to replace my Oldsmobile.  My original hope was that my dad (who is also my trusty mechanic) would be able to accompany me.  He detests cars salespeople as much as I do, so at least we suffer together.  Sadly, his project of adding on to his second garage was keeping him busy, but luckily, Erica was willing to take his place.  I had some concerns about taking her with me, not because she is unable to be helpful or bad to have around, but because two young-ish women walking into a car dealership seems to make the salesmen salivate for an easy sale.  I was not wrong in my concern.

*Disclaimer*:  I have several wonderful male friends who would never dream of treating me differently based on the fact that I’m a girl.  I know they would be helpful and kind if I had questions about anything, but they also know that I am a capable human being.  I want to be sure that the men out there know that any rude and/or sarcastic remarks have an intended audience and are not meant to be directed toward all male humans based only on the fact that they are male (as that would be hypocritical to my entire post).

Customer Service Tip #1:  Give your customers enough room to breathe fresh air

I had one dealership that I wanted to visit based on my weeks (yep, 3 now) of internet searches and research on makes, ratings, and costs.  I grew up around cars; I started helping my dad by age 2.  I know a few things, and I also believe in doing research before any big purchase.  The dealership had a Chevy Malibu that was within my miles range (50,000) and was an acceptable year (2008).  I wanted to see it in person to see if it was worth dragging my dad the hour drive to look at the car for a potential purchase.  There was a salesman at Erica’s car before either of us were able to step out of the door.  I asked if this was the car I had seen online, and the salesman was off and running.  I never had a moment to check out the car.  He ran off to grab a plate for a “test drive” that I never asked for and never took.  He made Erica move her car so he could pull it out for me to look at (um, I wasn’t aware I couldn’t see it in the parking spot).  I was horrified by the interior of the car (a black exterior with a chocolate brown and deep tan interior….really!!!) and quickly noticed a large amount of scratching on the car.  Okay, yes, it is a used car, and that means it’s been driven.  But it’s also been detailed.  There were scratches everywhere.  By this time, a second salesman had also approached (because one isn’t enough?) and was trying to make friends by complimenting Erica’s car.  Finally, I let them both know that I had emailed back and forth with the internet manager, and so they sent him out while I took a quick minute to inspect the car in peace. 

Customer Service Tip #2:  Don’t assume your customer is uneducated

 

When the internet manager arrived, I pointed out the scratches and scrapes.  It also looked like the driver had gotten a little too close to a cement post at some point, scratching the paint so deeply that the salesmen suggested maybe he could replace the bumper.  He kept acting like the scratching wasn’t a big deal.  Hi, I live in Michigan;  I know that the paint job helps to prevent rusting, and giant scratches to the base will affect that.  He also claimed to not have known about the scratches and suggested they were fresh (???).  What he didn’t do was offer to lower the price.  He assured me that the price included the scratched all over the car-which he also didn’t know about???!!!  He pulled up a carfax report for me to see that the car had not been in any accidents even with all the scratches; I let him know I had seen the carfax online already, but apparently I was not to be believed.  He printed the multi-page document out for me and proceeded to teach me how to read it.  Wow, I’m so glad that a car salesman taught me how to read a clearly marked report.  It’s not like I’m getting my masters in literacy or anything.  Arg.

Customer Service Tip #3:  Don’t Assume

So, anyway, I was not impressed with the car and was honest about it, but Mr. Internet Manager was going to save me by finding a car at one of their other 5 dealerships about the state.  He pulled up some program like he was partaking in a little brain surgery.  This was especially entertaining as I tried to explain to him that I had used the company’s online search and knew what was available and where.  Ignoring me, he continued to work to narrow my search.  The shock on his face when I explained that I will not buy a car with less than a V6, because I want the power behind the engine, was amusing.  I’m pretty sure when he asked me what kind of car I was looking for he assumed my answer was going to be a color.  Well, you know what happens when you assume…

Customer Service Tip #4:  Don’t make offers that you can’t follow through on

After making me wait while he “conferred” with his colleagues (um, don’t just shoot the breeze while pretending to work in a room with a giant glass window for one wall), he returned explaining he really wanted to help me find my car given the 3 different makes/models I told him I was interested in and my price range.  He couldn’t find anything, but did offer to replace that bumper and attempt to buff out the other scratches…well right up until I asked for that deal in writing in case I decided to take him up on it at a later time, which is when he let me know that he would have to talk to the “owner”.  At that point I was done, and walked out thanking him (because my mama raised a polite child, mostly).  I took a few quick pictures of the car to show my dad the scratching so that I could hear his thoughts, and Mr. Internet Manager just wanted to run to my rescue once more by offering me his digital camera.  I assured him my cell phone camera was better than his digital, and we left quickly after that, exhausted and tired of people in general.

Customer Service Tip #5:  Don’t Lie

Ironically, I went to one of those other dealerships where he couldn’t find any inventory that matched my requirements.  My dad is going to check out 3 cars there for me tomorrow.  Oh, and the one salesman we met there was polite, handed me a card, and left me to continue checking out the cars within 2 minutes of saying hello (to be fair, the dealership was closed at the time).

Now, I do realize that some of these things would have happened regardless of my gender, but the condescension with which I was treated was asinine.  The whole experience put my guard up for the rest of the day and in general irritated me enough to write this post hours later.  Buying a new car should be exciting and special.  My emotions are more running toward irritated, anxious, and exhausted.  I can’t wait to be done with this whole ordeal.  This new car (wherever it may be) better last a LONG time!