those damn SALESPEOPLE!

     Following up from my last post, I want to talk about salespeople in general and their public perception.  So many people think salespeople are on the bottom rung of the ladder, but in reality without salespeople your normal 9-5 might not exist.  Do you really think that going to work and getting paid hourly/salary to do your job would occur without a salesperson?  Of course it wouldn't because there has to be someone selling the goods or services which your company provides.  Take almost any industry, look at the company you work for, what is your main product or service?  Ask yourself, what is my role in my company?  Now if your company had no salespeople, do you think they would still need you?
     My point is that it's always easy to point the finger and say there goes another slimy salesperson.  Now take a step back and look at all the salespeople out there doing what needs to be done so that all of the companies in this country can employ everybody else in some capacity.  In the future when thinking negatively about salespeople, be glad they exist, and thank them for a job well done.

It's all about the RELATIONSHIP!

     Many of us are our own worst enemy when it comes do buying anything, especially when we have to deal with a sales person.  I don't know if it's our instincts or it's because we have been programmed to do that by learning from others.   Over our lifetimes we will all buy a lot of goods and services.  Sometimes it will be a car, house, furniture, jewelry, clothes, construction services etc.  It is so much easier to do business with someone that you have a relationship with.  The question is how do we get that relationship?  It starts by being a little more open minded and giving the person TRYING to HELP YOU a chance.
     Most of the sales people out there are good people that are trying to make a living to support their families just like you.  Most of them truly do want to help you in your quest to find whatever it is you are looking for and share their expertise with you.  The greatest thing is once you have built your relationship, you know have a friend in whatever business it is, and they value that relationship even more than you do.  Now there are always a few bad apples out there in any business, so we still have to be aware, but we don't have to have huge walls up and be rude to people.  So next time you are shopping for something and someone asks to help you out, give them a chance you might just be surprised.

what about the PRICE?

It seems like everyone always wants to know how you get the best price.  Between MSN, Yahoo and every other newspaper article or web clip, everything is about getting the lowest price and how to negotiate.  GUESS WHAT???  Price is one of the least important factors when it comes to the actual car buying process.  Of course you should always set a budget for yourself, and you should do some research to figure out what you can afford and what vehicles fit into your budget.  So go out there, figure out a budget either based on what you can afford monthly or what you can pay for in cash, or a combination of both.  Find the top 3 cars that are within your budget that meet all your needs and wants (or most of them), go drive them all and then decide what you want to buy.  Don't worry at some point we'll talk about what a good deal is.

My first blog

Welcome, this is a first for me and hopefully will be helpful to many.  My goal with this blog is to share my thoughts with general sales practices and how to deal with them both from the consumer or buyer and the seller perspective.  My main focus is going to be on the Auto Industry as it is where most of my experience lies as well as where millions of americans make the second largest purhcase of their lifetime.  I welcome all comments and questions and hope that you can share this blog with many.

Thank you for coming, and I hope you enjoy the knowlege I share with you,

Evan Galkin