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Why 30 seconds?

Well as most of you know, this is about the maximum time that you have before the vultures leap on you, lather on the grease, and squeeze you through their doors to negotiate a deal! The key is to evaluate a potential dealership quickly and decide if you even want to look at their cars, much less deal with their employees and manager.

Here is a short list of 5 things you should be aware of before you even out one foot outside the car door:

Are they a good standing member with the (BBB) Better business Bureau?

-Here is a great step you can do before even getting in your car to head to a dealer. Do a quick search on the BBB website to find out if they have a good track record with their previous customers. The BBB can be a fantastic source to find good business, and it is a shame that not more consumers use this free service enough.

Does it have any cars you are interested in?

-This may sound overly simple, but not every dealership has the same cars on inventory. In fact, the better dealership is, the more customers that have bought from them, the better the inventory they will have. A dealership with a poor inventory is usually a danger sign for a dealership who is low on sales numbers for one reason or another… and this means that the pressure that is on them, is going to be transfered to you. Not a fun experience, so you would be best to move on down the road to the next dealership.

Does it have an overabundance of “Deals” advertised on their lot and in the windows?

-Dealerships can use all sorts of deals to get you in the door. The problem with them is they often cloud the real underlining deal with “free gas for the summer,” “0% Interest,” or any other of this sort of jargon. You are there to buy a car, not purchase a $100 gas card, or get approved for a $50,000 car loan. Keep it simple, and go for the dealerships with the same philosophy.

Are there a big group of sales folk hanging outside of the building ready to pounce?

-You would think they would know better by now, but there are still a lot of dealerships with a sales force that stand outside of the door waiting for their next prey. The worst of these is the ones who no sooner you put your foot out the car door, they are already on their way up to greet you. This is when you turn back around, get in your car, and head over to the next dealership. Unless you are in the mood to deal with a pushy salesperson with a bag of tricks Santa’s reindeer would have a hard time pulling, you’d be better off somewhere else.

Are you the only customer there?

-While not always a great indicator (especially in todays economy), an empty lot may be a sign of several folks who perhaps know something that you don’t. If any of the other danger signs are apparent with the addition of no customers, it may very well be worth your time to spend it at a dealership on down the road.