Many people look at the rapid transition to electric cars and wonder whether we as a society are ready. We don’t understand many aspects of the transition from gas to electricity. One of these is the car dealerships.
Selling an electric car is challenging for those who have sold gas-powered cars for years. They need to have an auto sales training course for selling electric cars. This is especially true if the salespeople aren’t familiar with the selling points.
Gas cars will continue to be the best-selling vehicles for quite a while, but that’s not all. Tesla recently outsold every European vehicle, but that’s Europe.
We still have a lot to catch up in electric car sales in the US, where electric vehicles make up only 2% of all cars on the roads.
Electrek visited several dealerships to ask the salespeople about the various electric cars. Each representative fell into one or the other of these two categories.
Either they did not know much about electric vehicles or didn’t want to talk about it, or they knew very little about electric cars simply because they were interested. These cars can be sold without training outside what the salespeople already know.
This is a problem because electric cars are fundamentally different from gas cars. Many people wonder about the cost of electric cars. Do you get a shorter range and Longer charge times? These are the biggest drawbacks.
Dealerships won’t be able to sell as many electric cars if they fail to convince the public that these cars are not only better for the environment but also their wallets. Despite this, most electric cars aren’t sold at dealerships.
It may be over. Some people will only go to a dealership to see an electric car. They don’t want to test it. Many can experience the same by asking a friend to test drive their electric car.
A family member has allowed me to drive a Tesla Model 3. That beats signing paperwork and going to a dealership before I get a feel for it.
Tesla has a fixed-price website that is also reflecting in their dealerships. Many people order new electric cars online, such as the Ford Mach-E or F-150 Lightning, and can spec and price them according to their preferences.
These made-to-order cars are more expensive but will be delivered exactly as the customer specced.
The car buying process could change in many ways. If I could control how car dealerships operate, my strategy would make car buying easy and enjoyable.
You’ve probably been to a petting zoo. It’s a great way to get to know and feel all the animals without taking one home. This is what I believe car dealerships should be doing.
Several models are on the lot, so salespeople can test drive them and should have proper car sales training to update themselves. Then they have to convince people to buy the car online. You could also spec it with the dealership online or use a kiosk.
It is practical and feasible for a business to use. It is not. It is transparent and honest, so potential customers can just come in to test the cars without feeling pressure to purchase one.
This could lead to increased sales of electric cars. If I weren’t obligated to buy, I would test drive more cars. It’s not a pleasant experience, but that’s how car dealerships have become.
As electric cars become more popular, dealerships are trying to find their niche in this new market. It is not clear if traditional dealerships and haggling mentalities will disappear. One thing is certain, however: Everything is going to change.
