Career Change.... Whats It Like As Rv Salesperson?

[JAG1]

I've been a contractor all my life (32 yrs.) but changes in the construction/ remodel biz has changed.

 

So I went and got thru my first interview, approved for the next step to go into rv sales.

 

Was wondering if anyone knows anything or had experience with such as it's all terribly and I do mean hugely new to me. With the Good...the Bad and the ugly.... I think I can do pretty well in this biz.

 

What do you guys think? At least it easier than dealing with the heavy work, building Depts. and the politics.

 

Thank you guys for bein' the best around here.

 

Mike

[diesel4life]

I smell a member discount!!

In all seriousness, good luck with the new venture.

[dripley]

You beat me to that one. The only experience I have is on the other side of the desk.

 

I understand your frustration with building. We used to build Taco Bells in 45 days, Burger Kings in 60 days, CFA's used to be 12 to 14 weeks and now they are 16 to 18 weeks. To many rules and bureaucracies to deal with. I spend 30 to 35% of my time dealing with those issues just to complete a job. It aint no fun.

 

Good luck with your endeavor.

[JAG1]

I hear ya' Driply, That one little town called Hubbard did it for me and the client. We were a year and still not done jumping thru all their hoops. Problem was they were broke. Kept adding more and more hoops and charges.

 

They were like this Environmental protection Dept. .........neurotics carried to the extreme. as it were

 

Every time I walked out of there. Felt like I had a Fram filter crammed up my, 'you know what'.for environmental reasons

Edited January 21, 2014 by JAG1

[Ilikeoldfords]

The only things that I could tell ya for sales are these:

-Do your homework and know what you are selling

-Dont get your feelings hurt when customers are upset, sometimes there is no help for them

-Have fun with it!!!

 

I know parts sales might be different than RV sales but the sales part is the same. Just use common sense and you will be good.

 

Good luck and I hope this works out better for ya!!

[hex0rz]

As being a person on the receiving end of buying the RV, I can give you this advice:

 

1. Be as truthful as possible to your customer and do NOT tell even a "white" lie!

 

2. If your customer has a question, do not find out the answer, find more than just the answer!

 

3. Treat the customer as if they were your family.

 

4. When you make a sale, remember their name and don't brush them off to the side!

 

I have gone to waaay to mean dealerships, car lots and have felt VERY uncomfortable with the sales people to even consider buying anything!

 

The lack of professionalism has flown STRAIGHT out the window with so many. I have witnessed sales people cracking a beer open right in front of me drinking it on the job! Not to mention the ones who can't seem to dress seriously and/or even speak without profanity. Its absurd at times!

 

I have also have been called a liar on a few occasions with some things because they had to CYA.

 

I personally think that if you are a man that has high morals and ethics and put your customers first, you may not be the top salesman initially, but I'm willing to bet that you will have customers who will value your quality approach!

 

My salesman who I bought my RV from left such a terrible taste in my mouth after he made the sale, I probably would spit in his face if I ever saw him! He acted like he knew what he was talking about, but after the sale was finalized, I was a nobody to him and he would not even try and help me with anything after that.

 

...yep, it was a bit of a learning curve for me. :banghead:

 

BTW, my father knew a lady from his work and her husband was a car salesman. I bought my 2nd vehicle from that man, and still to this day, if I were to consider a new or newer used vehicle, he would be the FIRST person I would go to! He may be a salesman, in which I tend to lump into the category of politicians and lawyers, but atleast he does a good job at making me feel like I'm walking out a winner!

Edited January 20, 2014 by hex0rz

[YabbaDoo]

Well said Infidel!!! I have been in sales myself and like a sales person with morals and knowledge without being pushy. If a sales person comes off in a manner that is not above board and is trying to blow smoke up my arse.. it's game on (because, now I just want to play with them like a cat plays with a mouse) My Father was one hell of a salesman and was always fair (he did have to make a living), honest and very knowledgeable. You already know what is the best truck to pull any travel trailer and why... Now just do your homework on the rest of the RV models and learn what people are looking for in options that will make RV'ing the most enjoyable for your clients and their needs (meaning don't try to put them in something that is beyond their means as a lot of car/ rv salesman or relators do on a regular basis..) We started with a slide in camper and moved up to a pop up then, my parents traded that for a class C and later on traded that  class C for a class A.  I believe my dad even went to the same dealer  20 years later to trade our class C on the class A..  Good Luck

[JAG1]

 Very sound advice . I now realize there could hardly be any better advice than coming from buyer's side like yourselves.

 

 Points are well taken and I thank all you for that.

 

It's a scary thing making a change like this.

 

The thing that impresses me most is how short these sales people fAll short of being truely grateful, friendly, AND helpful after the sale.

 

It makes them out to be small yet, the big looser.

 

Thanks you guys......

[MoparMom]

Your a smart young lady, YabbaDoo!.  Excellent point....Jag1 you do have the knowledge about the right truck to haul an RV and YabbaDoo was/is so right.  You have half the battle won!  Now go for it.  Thank you Yabba....love ya.  MoparMom

[JAG1]

YabbaDoo I love your post Mopar Mom brought to my attention again. Your right about our trucks being the better haulers.

 

    What I see is the use of midsize to smaller SUV's hauling some some fairly good sized rv trailers. I know the manufacturers set weight limits and towing capacities but, when I notice it seems almost shockingly out of proportion, trailer size to foreign SUV, I wonder and think.... are they exaggerating?

 

I'll need to check towing capacities on rigs that come in. Thank you,

 

Mike

[hex0rz]

Thats what urks me about my setup... I did some research on what I could tow and then tried to get advice from the RV dealer. We looked it over and came to the conclusion on how much I could tow. I know part of it IS my fault, but thats still besides the point that they would let me pull off the lot with it, knowing full well that I push the limits. I can't do anything about now as I would be upside down in the trailer until about 7-10 years down the road.

 

Yea, these cummins ARE great trucks, but don't let a guy think he can pull out of the lot with a triple axle using a 3/4 ton...

 

PS

 

I know there is a method on how a dealer receives a trailer and that there is a process to accepting it to be readied on a lot, but IMHO, you as the salesman represent the whole face to the company. I don't mean to put pressure on you, but I can tell you that even things that happen out of your control and legitimately are, will still fall back on you. In which case, you have to be that guy that can take a call from your previous customer at any time to answer a question or concern. I personally would, as I know they ultimately are the ones who paid me and made it possible to put food on my table.

 

What I mean to say by the above, is that for example, and this is all I can use for an example as I've only been the only person in my family to own a trailer; is that when I received my trailer, there were certain things that needed fixing and was overlooked on my trailer. I should have NEVER received it in the condition that it was in. Sure it was all brand new, but when I got a leaking jack, window foam falling out, awning problems, etc. It should have never left the lot!

 

meh, I guess what I'm trying to say is, make sure to take ALOT of pride in your work. I'm sure you have to have something though, as you said you were man of business! Put your heart and soul into this job like you have before and you should do great!

[diesel4life]

I'm sure being a salesman is no easy job. They tend to be the fall guy whenever something goes wrong, and most times it's something that is beyond their control. I have seen lots of threads on this site and others with people asking "can I haul this" or "is this a good buy"? Advice from others is great but should only be that...advice. Ultimately the end user needs to do the leg work and know what they are getting into before they get into it. I do understand that big flashy 5th wheel may be enticing, but is it more than I need and is that smaller TT more along the scope of what fits my usage and what I can safely handle? This is where an honest and knowledgeable salesman will be worth his weight in gold.

[Mopar1973Man]

Like I just returned from the RV site this morning and there is another thread start where a gent wants to pull with a Ford 1/2 Ton Ecoboost and asking for MPG's. The only thing I stated was consider diesel powerplant it will do better more BTU's per gallon. Boy... OP jumped my post for that one.

 

Seriously I don't see what anyone is gaining in getting smaller and smaller tow rigs and wanting larger and larger RV's. Makes no sense. Especially the common place is Ford Ecoboost with a big 5th wheel.

 

I never forget the experience with Camping World. The first thing the dealer did was sit down and look up the specs of my truck GCWR and GAWR front and rear of the truck. Then did a search of all RV on the lot meeting my price range and weight range. Then proceeded to go from RV to RV. Make sure that you keep a system of listing the GVWR of the trailer and forget the dry weight. Way too many get wrapped up with dry weights (this is only for the manufacture for shipping reasons).

 

Another common is any gas power plant vehicle is to cut 10-15% off of the trailer weight allowance to keep from pushing a engine transmission too hard.

 

But that what I can give for advise for now... Good luck on the venture... You know you'll be more than welcome to advertise your new business here too.

[dobienut]

As being a person on the receiving end of buying the RV, I can give you this advice:

 

1. Be as truthful as possible to your customer and do NOT tell even a "white" lie!

 

2. If your customer has a question, do not find out the answer, find more than just the answer!

 

3. Treat the customer as if they were your family.

 

4. When you make a sale, remember their name and don't brush them off to the side!

 

Exactly! First time someone lies to me the trust factor is gone and they can talk all they want but I don't hear them anymore! Even if it means losing a sale, sell as if you are buying, what would you like in a RV. May lose a sale on one, but may gain on another.

[JAG1]

Good advice ... I thank you for taking the time to share your take on this subject. Everyone here literaly pours buckets full of viable things to learn/ remember. It's just  terrific

Edited January 22, 2014 by JAG1

[anoldbiker]

The only sales person I have known recently sold Peterbilts, not to close to RV's. But he said one thing every sales person should be prepared for are the people that will leave you wondering why you wanted to sell. He said most everything mentioned in the above threads and also know that there are people out there, and they are few, that are just plain a$$es. Most people are good polite people that actually helps you make the sale to them, but there will always be ONE, sooner or later that will intentionally try to ruin your day. Just take it as a grain of salt and continue having a good day.

 

As I said, he told me what was mentioned in the prior threads, but he kept a positive attitude and always greeted every customer with a smile in his 40 years of selling those rigs, and had many return customers who only wanted to deal with him. When he passed away, there were customers that filled the chapel and the flowers were by the tons. 

[JAG1]

Great story Jim, bit of a tear jurker ....... If I can make it even half way like this friend of yours... this guy is a hero in my book.....  incorporating all the advice above, I am confident everything will be all right.

 

I'll have fun doing this if I can do it right for those I deal with. It's not about the money, that takes care of itself, it's how you treat others and recommend the best poss. solution.

[hex0rz]

There you go!

 

Job Title: "Professional Problem Solvers"

 

[JAG1]

Or, ''professional family fun peddler''

Edited January 23, 2014 by JAG1