Dealing with the Uncontrollable Customer

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Everyone wants to talk about the uncontrollable customer - the customer that displays boorish and rude behavior, all in an effort to stay in control of the process. I am sure you have met this guy. He is the customer you see on the lot and as you head toward him, he tries to wave you off. Once you approach him and extend your hand for the handshake, he ignores it and says “give me your best price on this car or I will disappear into a puff of smoke.” There are tons of cute little lines out in the world to address this issue, but few work.

The best line I liked was:

“What besides price is important to you?”

One out of twenty times this line would rock the customer off price and allow me to present value. That means nineteen times it didn't work - but one time IT DID! Remember there are no absolutes in sales - just percentages.

My concern is why everyone seems so focused on this customer. In my experience if you sell three from every ten customers (counting all of them), you did a good job. That means seven customers say “no” for now. Of the seven “no’s” one perhaps two may be uncontrollable.

So you have two of ten and they had no affect on the three buyers, UNLESS YOU LET IT…. My concern comes from watching salespeople approach all ten customers like they might be one of the two uncontrollables. I watch salespeople tip toe on egg shells trying to avoid any possible negative reaction. All control is lost!

One of two outcomes will happen with the uncontrollable:

  1. YOU WILL NOT SELL THE CAR - and emasculate yourself in the process.
  2. YOU WILL SELL THE CAR - and not make any money.

Both of these outcomes suck!

  • Focus on the three buying customers.
  • Treat all of your customers like they are one of these three buyers, willing to pay you a decent profit.
  • Make them prove to you they are not.

If in the process you run into an uncontrollable - MOVE ON - they have been coming in forever and will always come in.

DO NOT paint all of your customers with this uncontrollable brush. Paint them with the BUYER brush and make them prove you wrong.