Buyers Don’t Trust Ads, but Dealers Say “Some Deception” is Necessary

An overwhelming majority of new car shoppers aren’t buying what dealerships are selling in their advertising claims.

To put it bluntly, 68% of those who responded to a BuyingAdvice.com survey say they don’t trust the content of dealer advertisements, and an even higher number (77%) want those ads more tightly regulated.

“It’s ridiculous,” said Wanda Davis, while standing in the middle of one of the only dealership showrooms that is open on a Saturday in the metro Detroit area.

“Last week I was going to buy a car at another dealership, and was sitting down going over the paperwork when I noticed all the claims he (the salesman) told me the dealer could do for me were actually built back into what I’d be paying over the life of the contract. “I was disgusted. Did they think I couldn’t read? Did they think I wouldn’t read? I couldn’t believe they’d do that.”

Believe it, Ms. Davis.

A story appearing on consumer website Quazen, lists theTop 10 Dealer Advertising Scams, and warns car buyers to beware of ruses just like the one that Davis experienced.

It’s no secret that car dealers have to get creative to move units off the lots, especially considering we are in one of the toughest economic times our country has seen in decades. But do dealerships have the right to operate with a dishonest, “by any means necessary” philosophy?

“Well, that depends on what you call dishonest,” said Wally, sales manager at a large Detroit-area dealership, who preferred we use only his first name and that his employer also remain anonymous.

“Dishonesty is not a part of our equation here, but we do offer customers certain benefits in their contracts that make the burden of a 36-month, 48-month, or even 60-month contract easier to bear,” he said.

Benefits? Like what?

“If they don’t owe a substantial amount of money on existing loans – let’s say no more than $2000 – that’s a figure we (the dealership) might be able to eventually absorb a little at a time (into other deals). “If that number is higher, we’ll have to do some creative ways to build that cost into the loan, but make sure it doesn’t kill your pocketbook,” said Wally.

“Frankly, depending on the (advertising) medium we’re using, our methods vary. We, for instance, reach an entirely different type customer on the internet than we do with walk-ins.”

Whether Wally meant it to come out this way or not, his inference that internet customers are the most intelligent buyers is a topic thrown about the dealership advertising room repeatedly these days. Dealers know that potential customers who traverse the internet for values may be more discriminating, informed buyers and this, naturally, warrants more savvy ads.

As proof, the same BuyingAdvice.com survey showed 36% of new car buyers pay more attention to dealership ads on the internet as opposed to 34% who prefer newspaper or magazine advertising. Another 24% get their automobile advertising info from TV, with a small smattering of the rest using radio as their primary source of finding auto deals.

In an effort to capitalize on the next generation of buyers looming on the horizon, dealers are luring college graduates into their showrooms with a bevy of incentives including 4-figure discounts.

“It’s a lot like college athletic programs recruiting kids now in the 8th, 9th and 10th grades,” said Wally, referencing coaches who begin steering kids to their programs at an early age. “We have to have the foresight to see where that next wave of customers will come from. And we have to realize the language these new customers are speaking.”

The language spoken by college graduates and others who use the internet as a way of life is the language of value. No two ways about it. Buyers want value for their dollars; they seek efficiency and quality in the cars they buy and … oh yeah … great gas mileage, too, as fuel prices skyrocket.

In that regard, Wally’s dealership sees light at the end of the tunnel.

“Our (advertising) focus has changed. It had to,” he said. “In a way, it’s a great thing (the fuel crisis) because we don’t have to come up with a lot of ways to point out various features on vehicles. “People are being forced to change their driving habits, buying habits and lifestyle habits”.

“If we want to we can talk about one thing in our advertising, fuel economy,” said Wally. “From there the vehicles pretty much sell themselves.”