Friday 7 December 2012

Why I Didn’t Bargain On A Car Purchase

I decided to purchase a small second hand car this weekend and I just accepted the seller’s price without bargaining. Before you accuse me of stupidity let me explain.

Price bargaining has been common in car sales for a long time and, of course, it is now a common theme in all areas of retailing. It has become the bane of market traders. Every day in the market you can hear traders crying “Don’t they understand the value of these products?” - “How can I reduce my prices when they are already the lowest in Melbourne?”
The seller of my car was probably a little surprised when I accepted his price but I explained that I had done my homework. I went online and checked out the price of 25 cars around Australia which had mileage within 10% of his car, had the same features, and appeared to be in similar condition. His price was a realistic market expectation. If it hadn’t been realistic I would have bargained with him. I explained that as a QVM Trader, I always look for a sale where the customer is happy and the retailer is happy. Bargaining for the sake of bargaining is not something I support.

I might have been able to get a couple of hundred dollars off if I had told the seller his car wasn’t worth the asking price but personally I got more satisfaction out of recognising the car’s value and ensuring that both buyer and seller were happy. If I expect my customers to accept a fair asking price, I have to do the same when I buy. Now, if I can just convince some of my customers to adopt the same attitude.

COMMENTS:
07/12/2012 18:35:14 Why I didn't bargain....... "Some answers to customers when they choose to ""negotiate""
Q  Is that your best price?
A  No - another $10 would be better

Q  Couldn't I buy this in Bali for $20 less?
A  Probably -  go to Bali.

Q  It says $50 on the ticket - is that the real price?
A  No - I printed all these tickets just for fun."
 Lawny