I don’t believe in charity. I believe in help and I believe in profit. A sick or dying child may need my help… and I’ll give them everything I can. But an able bodied human being will only get one simple thing from me. A trade. Knowledge, money, work, things, emotions. I’ve traded everything in my life as did my father and grandfather. Horses, mules, cars, houses, fancy foods of every flavor you can imagine. It gave us an education. A family. A “happily ever after”. Everything we ever desired in our lives came true from the pursuit of profit and the willingness to trade… and of course share…
99+% of the car dealers and auctioneers in my business value money above all else. Whether they pretend to be a Christian or fool their customers into believing they have a giving heart, at the end of the day it’s all about the money. For me, money was my absolute number one for my first two years in this business
If my tips as an auctioneer or ringman weren’t more than the pittance I was given from the auto auction, I was pissed off as hell. Every day I worked my ass off to be the absolute best in my work. I didn’t always have the right ingredients. But I constantly took good notes and studied the best auctioneers and ringmen I could find. A nice conversation. A befriending and a lot of practice lead to career and success. I helped them with auctioning in Spanish or investing in good companies (an easy thing in 1999). They helped me with building relationships and finding opportunities. Within six months I had regular weekly gigs at six different auto auctions in four different states. It was a beautiful time.
But it wasn’t enough in the end. Auctioneering is like a merry go round. You get up and go on your horse. Go through all the highs and lows of the ride and when it’s finished… the horses are still there. Sure my horses were cars and it appeared that most of them did actually leave the barn. But they were replaced every week with horses that were exactly alike from Ford, GM, Chrysler, Toyota, Nissan and every other nameplate in this business. It was a nice ride. But I wanted to own the amusement park. Not be an old man stuck in the same rut of ups and downs using the same tricks and selling the same types of cars to the same dealers. So after receiving a $200 cash tip from an old friend who later built his own auction, I went forth in all my youth and arrogance to the green pastures of Duke University.
My father’s boss in agricultural equipment sales was like that in taking trades. He didn’t believe in charity but if all you had was a beat up old Honda motorcycle, he’d figure out a value for it and see what kind of deal he could make you on a used garden tractor. He’d rather see the grass around your trailer cut to give you a little pride.
I owe a debt of gratitude to one of my father friends who said to me at the age of 14; “It doesn’t matter what you do in life, Dan. Just be happy doing it. Don’t worry about the money.”
On topic: “Whether they pretend to be a Christian or fool their customers into believing they have a giving heart, at the end of the day it’s all about the money.” Unfortunately, I’ve met waaay too many folks who pretend to be Christian (or use religion) to suck money out of people’s wallets. Never forget that it’s ALWAYS about the money.
Off topic: I would give an anatomical part to have that ’61 Country Squire. Wow!
Unfortunately, that seems to be true. Whenever I see a business owner outwardly proclaiming their Christianity, I become extra cautious. On the flip side, I’ve come to find many honest businessmen were Christian. They just didn’t advertise it on their shop door, but showed it in the way they conducted their business.
@Lumbergh: My experiences mirror yours.
Anymore, when someone tells me what a good Christian (or whatever else) they are, I usually am trying to find the way out of there.
Truly, actions speak louder than words.
I know of an owner of a “Christian Book & Gift” store who just finished doing six months in jail and is now a registered sex offender. Know them by their deeds, not by their words.
I’ve been there too. The good Christian business people I know don’t advertise it. They live it. I’ve been burned by a contractor that advertised openly that he was a Christian. Not knowing him I took him at his word. His work was barely acceptable. I had to fix many things myself. Drywall, electrical, HVAC, and plumbing all gave trouble. I am gunshy now. If someone feels the need to advertise it I immediately get suspicious.
It ain’t just the fake Christians. Madoff used his Judaism to con his people out of, what, $50 billion?
Al Qaida has young hopeless men believing that they are fighting/dying for Islam, when, indeed, they are dying for Bin Laden’s desire to rule Saudi Arabia.
Good point akitadog.
Wait, did I just complement a typing dog?
Who do I see about a test drive of that tan 61 Country Sedan?
That looks like a 62 Ohio plate on the 61 wagon. If the photo was taken in Ohio, I’m surprised the 58 wagon isn’t showing rustout.
In dealing cars, or almost anything else, it is surprising how often you can come up with a deal to make both the buyer and seller happy.
Lyndon Johnson said it best: “When a man approaches me thumping a Bible, I put my hand over my wallet”.
“Who do I see about a test drive of that tan 61 Country Sedan?”
Go see Doc Brown. But you’ll need to bring some plutonium.
ArBee: A related quotation (I can’t recall who said it): “The more he protested his virtue, the faster we counted the silver.”
I gotta say, Steve, you come off pretty harsh there. Your piece isn’t going to help the perception of car salesmen…
Perisoft… huh?
I am also a bit confused. Car salesmen are derided for trying to make a profit, probably more-so than any other businessmen. You wouldn’t go into Publix (or Acme, Safeway, Piggly Wiggly, or whatever your grocery store preference) and try to haggle down the price of salami at the deli counter, nor would you feel ripped off if you bought a turkey and paid more than the store that sold it to you paid for it, so why is it that everyone has an issue with car dealerships and salesmen making a profit?
Car sales, at the end of the day, is a business, and businesses exist to make money. The thing that differentiates car sales from just about anything else is that the competition amongst dealers has allowed everything to become negotiable, from the price of the vehicle to the finance rate to “freebies” like window tint or bed liners.
Yes, a car dealer will try to buy your trade from you for as little as you will let it go for, but you, at the same time, are trying to sell it for the most that you can get for it. In a perfect world you meet somewhere in the middle and both walk away somewhat happy with the transaction.
My doctor isn’t going to give me a free exam or free medicine just because I gave somebody a great deal on a car, nor is B of A going to give me a reduction on my mortgage this month because I hooked someone up with invoice pricing or over-allowed on their trade. Everyone has bills to pay, everyone has expenses, and anyone who doesn’t work for the government or a non-profit has to make money for themselves or their employer to stay afloat. I’m sick and tired of car salesmen getting a bad rap for doing essentially the same thing as everyone else in the business world.
@Nullomodo:
I agree, to a point. I have no problem with a dealer not wanting to sell me a brand new automobile at invoice. They gotta pay their overhead and all. The bad wrap for dealers though I think comes from the used market and usually smaller shops. It comes from actual or perceived misrepresentations about the condition or quality of a used vehicle. salemen will chalk this up to “puffery” and say that anyone attempting to sell something is going to make it sound like the proverbial “best thing since sliced bread.” I recall once hearing a saleaman say, “one of the best thing about this car is that it’s not too flashy.” I was thinking, “so is it plain or just ugly.” but glancing over at the recipient of this puffery, he was staring at the car as if he were considering this to be a selling point. It was all in the delivery, as Mr. Lang explained.
But your average Joe might not think it’s harmless puffery. Especially when it’s not about the subjective beauty of the automobile, but a fact. What happens when the salesman says, “this here civic will easily get you 40 mpg”? He might be close, when traveling downhill with a tailwind and the a/c off. But regular mixed driving we’re probably talking high twenties. That’s what I always got in my ’94 civic hatch. So the poor shlub buys the civic expecting 40 mpgs. When he gets to the pump and does his simple calculations equaling 28.7 mpg he gets pissed, says he was swindled, and spreads the stereotype a little further.
But the blame is not all on the salesman. To me the salesman should be honest about the car, don’t go telling people that there’s barely 10K miles on the tires when you know damn well that there’s 25K on them. Some people will get suckered by your “puffery”, but others who know what they’re talking about will quickly realize that you’re full of the proverbial “crap” and will henceforth disregard every word you say. The bulk of the blae though is on the buyer. A little research goes a long way and in this day, with the availability of info on the net, not doing said research is inexcusable.
I agree: the louder the Bible thumping in business, the faster I run. I recall the first time I watched my folks house when they became snowbirds. My mother gives to certain Catholic charities on a regular basis. These charities, like all charities, sell their lists to other charities. I am guessing that the more a “name” gives, the more the sucker list sells for. Long story short, I found three or four obscure “charities” begging for cash almost every day. Each one was carefully crafted with pictures, Bible quotes, calls to give monthly, etc. I was quite amazed at how they specifically tailored these things to coerce you to give them your hard earned money, all in the name of God. They really worked the older, wealthy(er) people like my mom. Naturally, I threw this crap in the recycle bin. Sad part is that this attempt to sucker older people started with decent quality, legitimate charities looking for extra money who sold the names.
Several years ago, when a subcontractor was bidding on some work on my house, the owner pointed to his truck plastered with decals of a fish and John 3:16 and said, “We’re a Christian company.”
I said, “As a devout Catholic, I’m uncomfortable when the Lord’s name is used in vain. And from the New Testament, remember that Jesus chased the money changers out of the temple.”
I practically had to scrape the guy’s chin off of my driveway. He’s also no longer in business.
Amen. And thanks for my first good laugh of the day.
Contrary to widespread belief, it is not always about the money. For some people, it is all about old Ford station wagons.