Does the appearance/vehicle of the salesperson affect your judgement on whether you buy or not?

Posted by Deaquire88@reddit | AskUK | View on Reddit | 54 comments

I've just seen a post about number plates which led onto someone saying people might judge the salesperson more positively if they drove a cheaper car because it's a more sensible financial decision whereas another said that in high end furniture sales they'd be judged negatively if he wasn't driving the flashiest car. I work in sales and I have to go to clients homes, I've often given consideration to what I wear and what car I own when driving out. Some houses are utterly enormous, beautiful places and others are more humble. I don't want to be in the flashiest car because they might think I'm charging too much, likewise if I turn up in a banger they may think I'm not doing very well. I don't like car garages when people in suits jumps on you so I wear unbranded jeans, a branded shirt and some blue Adidas court trainers. My car is a pick up which is, for now, a sensible choice, living rurally and visiting many farms etc. My partner drives a pretty nice car, it's a BMW X5, if I have to use that I park round the corner. Do you care what your salesperson drives/wears when making purchases of several thousand £'s?

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54 Comments

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Dougalface@reddit

IMO: "flashy" confirms sociopathic salescunt stereotype. New / expensive suggests being good at the job (although let's not forget the core goal of said job is to separate customers from their money) or poor life choices underpinned by debt. Old / cheap suggests not doing so well, although I'd prefer this either of the above. Ideally you want something that makes you look savvy and grounded, so something understated, not too pricey and well-regarded by those who know. Of course not everything thinks this way and I'm perpetually shocked how so many fall over themselves to give large sums of money to sales staff who treat them as if they have the intellectual capacity of a mollusc. Finally; only get an X5 if you wish to cement cunt status regardless of context.

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Deaquire88@reddit (OP)

hahahaha cunt status it is! I love driving it, just not to a clients property. General public can think whatever they want of me.

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Temporary-Zebra97@reddit

Beyond the automatic distrust of any salesperson. Having had quotes from a bunch of trades the past year, I would say anecdotally the ones who drive brand new VW vans and pimped up pickup trucks tend to be cunts and don't get the business but that may be my unconscious bias as I have noted that those vehicles tend to be driven either badly or aggressively.

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Deaquire88@reddit (OP)

It seems some people care, others not so much. Very mixed bag. Personally, i'd care. But tbh if a salesperson pulled up in a Ferrari, i'd definitely be intrigued.

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GrimQuim@reddit

Are you selling to farmers? Driving a pickup or a rural workhorse car will give you some credibility. Turning up in a bright green M4 will make you look like a bit of a cunt.

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JimXVX@reddit

To be honest, I always just assume anyone trying to sell me anything is a bit of a cunt until they demonstrate otherwise.

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Deaquire88@reddit (OP)

even if you've approached them and asked them for the quote?

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Shriven@reddit

Why would that change anything?

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Deaquire88@reddit (OP)

He's saying that anyone works in sales is a cunt until proven otherwise. Bit harsh.

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Shriven@reddit

Approaching them or being approached, the sales person goal remains to make a sale. It is fundamentally a pretty dishonest job, with of course a sliding scale to that

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JimXVX@reddit

It was a joke mate, albeit perhaps a shit one. For what it's worth, you don't immediately strike me as a cunt.

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Deaquire88@reddit (OP)

Most people are in sales, one way or another. They have a product or service that they offer for a fee. If i'm a cunt until I prove otherwise then so is just about everyone.

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Affectionate-Cost525@reddit

Think you're overthinking the term "bit of a cunt" or at the very least exaggerating the intention behind the word cunt.

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Deaquire88@reddit (OP)

why dishonest?

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DangerShart@reddit

The Volkswagen Golf used to be the ultimate "stealth wealth" car. Not sure what it's be now as most people drive SUVs and all are expansive and a bit flashy. I suppose something like a Skoda Karoq

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Deaquire88@reddit (OP)

Skoda Superb is supposed to very very nice. Even has an umbrella apparently.

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Happy_Boy_29@reddit

Those who shout loudest stand in the shallowest end of the pool 'cause they can't swin, to swim in deeper waters humble sincerity is the only way, kind of true of all the most successful sales people I have ever known.

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Deaquire88@reddit (OP)

I love the term humble sincerity. Can a humble sincere person lay claim to the title? I want to. I think i'm humble, and I am sincere. And i'm fucking good at my job.

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Happy_Boy_29@reddit

If you were humbly sincere yon wouldn't even copulating trouble yon self to ask, innit ?

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Deaquire88@reddit (OP)

You wouldn't have sex with yourself? What?

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Deaquire88@reddit (OP)

I like to think i'm humble. The only bit i'm not sure on, I have my dads watch, an Omega Seamaster. It's a beautiful watch and I love wearing it. But, it's a 5k watch. I usually take it off when i visit clients, I don't want them thinking the wrong things and I don't want to explain it to every person.

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Shriven@reddit

I asked for a boiler quote and a salesman turned up in a brand new Audi I went elsewhere and the installer turned up in his work van having been at another job. Guess which one was done cheaper, faster, and with actual information about how it would work and what would work best for me....

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KoorbB@reddit

No because it’s just a person. What they are saying is more important, whether they come across trust worthy/full of shit etc. Appearances are too subjective.

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Anxious_wank@reddit

Most flashy cars are on finance, I can't judge a person because they've managed to make x monthly payment, and decided that's an important monthly priority for them. It's meaningless now, everyone who wants to look good has one, years ago having a luxury car was a luxury. Keeping an older car on the road in good condition though? There's some level of respect there due to the upkeep maintaince and care involved in doing that.

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DangerShart@reddit

Never understood this whole, it's on finance nonsense. If someone's paying £900 a month on a car they still have to be pretty well off. I know millionaires who finance/lease cars. Paying cash for a depreciating asset is normally discouraged.

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Deaquire88@reddit (OP)

what's the 07 plate?

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WVA1999@reddit

Does a struggling salesman start turning up on a bicycle? No, he turns up in a newer car - perception, yeah?

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terahurts@reddit

My nan used to say 'Never trust a salesman wearing brown shoes.' I think she might have had a point; just about every estate agent or car salesman I've dealt with who has been wearing brown shoes has turned out to be a lying cunt and/or a grade-A smarmy arsehole.

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BikeProblemGuy@reddit

Ha, this is just coincidence. It used to be the consensus in England that brown shoes were informal, and so men should never wear 'brown in town' i.e. to a city business meeting. Brown shoes were for the evening/weekend when a gentleman would be at his countryside home, to match his tweed suit and felt hat. Other countries have had no such rule; e.g. ask an old Italian man and he will have probably always worn brown shoes in formal contexts without a second thought. Even in the UK the rule is mostly forgotten, only maintained by a few. So wearing brown shoes could mean anything, from someone having a more international or contemporary sense of style, or just being younger, or not knowing about there being a distinction. There are probably better ways to determine if the guy in front of you is worth working with.

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bacon_cake@reddit

I will forever give everyone I encounter the benefit of the doubt but honestly I've not had a single good experience with either an estate agent or car salesman.

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Nine_Eye_Ron@reddit

Most people don’t or won’t care. However this does not excuse the seller from presenting themselves in a suitable and appropriate manner. Like others have said, don’t turn up at a farm dressed in an expensive suit driving an expensive car. You are not dressed for the occasion. Selling from a shop it depends on the shop. Selling a car means you need to be smart but not overtly flashy. Selling a private plane, you can turn up in a helicopter and the buyer won’t even bat an eyelid.

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BikeProblemGuy@reddit

Not normally. If the vehicle looks roadworthy and their clothes are clean I wouldn't think any more about it. It's up to them how they dress and what they drive. It'd be stupid of me to assume that them driving a cheap/expensive car meant anything about what they were selling me. It might not even be their car. Normally in sales the baseline is to match the customer. Flash car and suit for customer in the big mansion. Jeans and basic car for the humble abodes. But that is more about appearing part of their social group than signaling profit margins.

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bduk92@reddit

I think the salesperson should tailor their vehicle according to the customer, and the purpose of their meeting. We had a sales rep arrive to us with his area manager to discuss new pricing. They rolled up in a Porsche and a Maserati, then proceeded to quote tough market conditions as a reason for their price hefty increase. Needless to say their visit went down like a bucket of cold sick.

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Deaquire88@reddit (OP)

Yep, I unfortunately don't have the pleasure of tailoring it entirely, but i do feel like the pick up is a good choice at the moment.

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bduk92@reddit

I agree. A pick up is probably a decent choice in a lot of environments. They're not so flash as to suggest the customer is overpaying you, and they're functional enough to appear smart and professional.

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Deaquire88@reddit (OP)

Bingo! Although i've literally just driven past a persons house, he had a ford ranger (new shape) and the new discovery, discovery has gone and its place is a bloody Bentley 4x4! He hires out plant machinery stuff. I'm undecided how i feel on that

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Wizzpig25@reddit

Probably, subconsciously. I’d imagine the best thing to do is to have a distinctly bang average vehicle. Something like a 5-10 year old Mondeo would raise no eyebrows. A chavved up banger or a brand new Range Rover with personalised plates would both stand out and make you look like a bit of a dick.

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Friendly-Maximum4517@reddit

Agree. Personally, when someone is trying to sell me something and they’ve got expensive branded clothes, watches, cars, Turkey teeth etc, rightly or wrongly there’s no way I’d buy off them. I need to be able to relate a little bit to someone and trust they’re a decent person as there’s way too many salespeople that’ll rip you off and as soon as you’ve got your knock off product or service, they’re nowhere to be found.

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jordsta95@reddit

The only exception for this is if you too were absolutely minted, and trying to buy something high-end. Looking to buy a yacht, and the person is flexing wealth? They may look like a twat, but you know they're probably more likely to know what they're on about. Looking to buy a cheap fridge? Then you'd probably be wondering just how they have made that much money from selling cheap white goods, and think they're likely to be a bit dodgy.

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Necessary_Driver_831@reddit

Last time I had to do the merry go round of double glazing quotes two of the salesmen turned up in a brand new Range Rover and a brand new Audi SUV. Immediate distaste as clearly based on impression they are warning too much commission on their deals. Ended up going with the battered transit van and paint-covered trousers local company who not only undercut them but delivered sooner too. Fully registered with Certass too.

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Deaquire88@reddit (OP)

Jesus. I wouldn't want to let them in. Local ftw!

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Artales@reddit

Go for a classic car? If it's for sales work, you'll be driving a 'conversation piece' which is also hard to define in economic terms, something like a Jaguar E-Type .

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Deaquire88@reddit (OP)

I actually love this idea, I need a bit more in the bank before I take the plunge but i'd love a Dax Cobra kit car! I think it would make the right impression. And, if I can comfortably afford it, I can afford to upset the occasional person with my choice of car, but i have to be careful with that mindset.

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KindRoc@reddit

I used to know a Safestyle rep. He had two cars a Porsche 911 and Ford Mondeo. He made a fortune selling windows on finance and never once drove his Porsche on appointments as people wouldn’t buy off him. He never wore his fancy watch either. Perception matters in sales.

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bacon_cake@reddit

Absolutely, and sometimes they want to give the opposite impression. I see a rep every now and then for work who's known in the industry as "Mr Phone Numbers" because everybody thinks the figures he quotes are just random numbers. "Sorry I'm late guys, just been over to xyz ltd. *Fifty grand* they've just spent on this new line and I reckon you'll be interested too." Eurgh, spare me!

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KindRoc@reddit

Ha! Yes I’ve met those types too. Billy Bullshitters.

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The_Blip@reddit

Most sales is about selling a 'lifestyle'. If it's not the cheapest version of something people literally need, the best way to market to someone is to make what you're selling seem like part of the lifestyle the person either has or aspires to have. Easiest way to do this is to dress up in a way that people already associate with that lifestyle.

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Omnissiah40K@reddit

A good sales person should have the foresight to mirror their customer base. Selling to farmers, a suitable and practical off road vehicle Selling into corporate or professional services, a modest but high quality vehicle Customers with an environmental outlook, an EV not some 6 litre diesel Footballers or Middle Eastern Royalty, yeah the 2007 Volkswagen Passat isn't going to cut it. You're going to want the gold plated lambo my friend

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Jlaw118@reddit

My last job has changed my overall perspective of this, but yeah I do judge overall standards of vehicles as well as the year but I don’t so much judge the brand. I used to work in transport compliance for a well known company, and the previous CEO used to emphasise that the business itself didn’t advertise on any platforms (TV, Radio, Social Media etc) but the branding on the vans could be seen anywhere, whether it be passers by, or in the background on TV programs. He used to refer to the vans as being billboards for the business and therefore always wanted them to be no more then five years old stickered up with the branding, clean inside and out, and be undamaged. He used to win over huge contracts with this mindset, and being in charge of transport compliance for two sites myself, I’d had this drilled into me and still a year after I’ve left. But this has also affected my way of thinking as a customer. I hate seeing poorly kept vehicles that are battered with damages, or 10-15 year old vehicles that are rusting up something rotten. Whilst I appreciate not everyone can afford to change vehicles regularly, I just don’t feel like it advertises and reflect a business as showing attention to detail. But that’s mainly a van mindset. If you were a salesperson in a car, I would personally expect something fairly new and modern, but not brand new out of the factory, nor would I expect something 10+ years old. It’s damage and how you’d look after the car that I’d focus more on

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LumpyCamera1826@reddit

Don't think I would even know or ever notice what car they were driving. I guess their personal appearance would completely depend on what they are selling. For instance if I was having some work done and a builder/joiner/plumber/whatever had come to look at the job, I wouldn't care if he was wearing scruffy workwear. However if it was something in a more professional environment and they looked scruffy, I might be a bit put off.

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zephyrmox@reddit

A lot of this sort of thing is a subconcious judgement, so asking people to conciously answer will not get accurate results.

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Mop_Jockey@reddit

Doesn't really bother me unless it looks barely legal or chavvy.

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RoundDirt5174@reddit

The people who tend to care the most are the people with the least money but the highest expectations in my opinion

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