The Close
Trial closes are questions designed to determine your readiness to buy ithout corning right out and asking if you're ready to sign the purcase order. Trial close questions might take the form of simple questions such as:

"What do you think of this model?"
"Have you got a particular color in mind?" "How soon will you be needing a car?"
'Does the car have the performance you're looking for?" Or they might be designed to get you into a yes mode:
This is really a smooth riding car, wouldn't you agree?"
"If the price is right, do you think that you might be interested in this one?"
Your answers give the salesperson an idea of how close you are to making a buying decision.

Asking for the Order
For some salespeople, the most difficult part of the sale is asking for the order. And the reason is simple: They don't want to suffer a turndown. On the other hand, some salespeople have developed very effective closing techniques. Here are some that have proven to be most effective.

The Assumptive Close
This closing technique is designed for people who can't make up their minds or seem afraid to make a decision. This method is designed to force you to act or make a decision by default. To put it another way, salespeople simply proceed as though they assume you want to buy the car. What they're doing is giving you the task of stopping them if you don't want to go through with the purchase. Here are several examples of how they might set up the assumptive close:

1. They will begin filling in the order form.
2. If you're interested in leasing, they will offer to introduce you to the leasing manager.
3. They will call the sales manager and have him or her approve the appraisal.
4. They will ask you to fill in some financing, leasing, or credit forms. In each instance they will have created a positive action designed to lead to the close of the sale.

The Direct Close
As the name suggests, this is where the salesperson candidly asks for the order:
"Shall we write up the order?"
"All I need is your signature and the car is ,yours."
Normally, the direct close is used when the salesperson feels confi¬dent that you are ready to buy and there are no obstacles standing in the way of your decision.

Summary Close
Here the objective is to summarize all the reasons why the car satisfies your needs. You'll hear something like:
"Ms. Customer, you told me performance is your number one
priority. Let me remind you of all the performance features in this car. "
At that point they will summarize the key performance features and say:
"Now, let's get the paperwork done so you can start enjoying your new car. "
Some closes are built around time pressure:
`if you buy today, you can get a great discount. " "There is someone else interested in that same car. "

Other Closes
Some salespeople like to begin their close by asking an either/or question. The answer or answers to this type of question will provide them with a signal to write up the order or to keep selling:"Do you want me to register the car in your name or in both your name and your spouse's?" Still others are designed to create sympathy for the poor salesperson: "We're having this contest, and if I can, just, get one more sale, I'll be able to take my poor invalid mother to Hacuaii. " Finally, if all else fails, if the salesperson just can't get you to commit, don't be surprised to hear the salesperson say something like: "You told me you liked the car. You said our price was com¬petitive. Where did I go wrong? Was it me? Was it the dealership? Help me understand. "The intent here is to get you to talk and keep you in the dealership long enough to find some way to convince you to buy ... now!

Working the Deal
There will probably come a time during the negotiation when the salesperson says something to the effect: "Understand, I'm here to work,for you, and I want to see you get the best deal possible. " Right! Unless you're offering full sticker, the moment you announce how much you're willing to pay for the car, salespeople will generally respond by suggesting they can't sell it to you for that price-they probably can, but they're not about to admit it. Then they will proceed to try to resell you on the inherent value of the car and prove it is worth more than you're willing to pay. If you should decide to up your offer slightly, you'll probably witness any variety of pained expressions accompanied by references to the boss-who will never accept the deal-followed by sincere comments like:

"Please understand, I'm on your side. If I dom,'t sell you a car, I don't earn a commission. So I'm working fbr you,. But my boss is a mean s. o. b. and I've got to convince him that he should take your deal. That's why I have to go in there with some numbers that I can defend. So if you could just come up a little. . . "Sometimes, a salesperson will know what the house will take for a given car. More often, the sales manager doesn't want the salespeople to know what the bottom figure is because it will change according to how badly the dealership needs sales, the time of the month, the inventory, and any of a number of other different factors. The sales manager generally wants the salesperson to bring him your offer so that he alone can decide to "take it" or "bump it."

Delivering the Car
In today's market, a good deal of emphasis is being placed on the delivery, thanks to Customer Satisfaction Index surveys. In order to score well, a dealership is supposed to do things like review the owner's manual, introduce you to the service department, provide youWith a  full tank of gas, and any number of other things that a good dealership will do with or without the threat of a survey.Having said that, there are also some dealerships that will simply take your check, have you sign some papers, toss you the key, and wave good-bye.We're going to provide you with some guidelines and suggestions as to what to do in order to be sure that when you take delivery of your new car, you maximize the potential for a satisfactory experience.

Follow-up aad asking for Referrals
Sometime after the sale, a good salesperson will call and ask how you're enjoying your car and if there are any questions they might answer. Again, this follow-up activity is part of the CSI survey. Don't be surprised if salespeople use this opportunity to ask if you know of anyone else who might be in the market for a car. If you've had a good experience and if you're satisfied with the way you've been 'reated, you might be very happy to recommend your friends to the salesperson and the dealership.On the other hand, if you've had a less than satisfactory experince, you might want to make that fact known both to the dealership and to your friends.