A Great Closing Tip

Yesterday I had dinner with Jon Whitman of Jon Whitman Ford in Temperance, Michigan. If you ever want to talk to a brilliant guy, give Jon a call. There’s nothing particularly sophisticated about Jon’s approach to the business other than he is incredibly tuned into the market and activity of the dealership. To speak with Jon is like speaking to a great used car guy and desk manager, and yet he owns the joint. He is truly one of the best used car velocity dealers around. In the economically depressed market of Temperance, Michigan, he turns his inventory about 12-15 times a year, and I might add he’s never had so much fun in the car business.

During our conversation, Jon told me that he often pulls up AutoTrader’s dealer site and shows the customer how many hits (pages views and detail page views) the car in question has received. The talk track goes something like this:

“Take a look at the fact that this particular vehicle has received XXX page views and detail page views on Autotrader in the past several days alone. We actually believe that we priced it much too low. We’re willing to honor this price for you, but we’ll likely raise the price if you take a pass.”

Jon tells me that this approach has a palpable effect on the shopper and often makes the difference in getting the deal closed. Give it a try and let me know if you have similar success.