Need some quick suggestions; Intervw Internet Sale

[Opti]

I know there is that job board but I'd like quick answers and this will be a short lived thread anyway, so...

I have an interview for an Auto Internet Sales position today. If it goes like my last two I will do OK but not get the position. In this case, it will annoy me too but I think it could also be a good information gathering opportunity for me.

So, what questions should I ask? What do you think they might want to know? One of my preferred "career" transistion paths for employment is going into Auto Internet Sales or becoming a Service Advisor at a dealership. I'd prefer to be a Service Advisor because it would pay me enough that I could replace my car or fix the one I have. Internet Sales I understand is relatively low paying but it could be baseline survival money.


If anyone works in a dealership or has been an Internet Sales person I'd love your help. Thanks!

[Waffle]

Sorry, I know nothing about internet auto sales - but I hope it goes (or went) well.

[Opti]

It went OK. Like many of my recent interviews they are interviewing people after me so there is no benefit in trying to "close the deal". I should hear something by this Friday or the following Monday she said. Lower paying than I thought. $10/hr. plus commission depending on whether they actually buy a car or whether they just come into the dealership for an appointment with a salesman. So if I get the job, which is FT 40 hour week I will be applying for Section 8 housing and I'll get to learn the process and how long the wait is for that.

I did learn some interesting things. Per the woman who interviewed me people on average search 6 different dealers for a vehicle they are looking to buy.
(This thread is shorter than I thought it would be. )

[thyme4change]

I didn't really understand the question. You are applying for a Auto Sales Internet position, but your career path would be to work towards being an Auto Sales Internet person?

You want to ask questions that show you know something about the company, the position and the industry. So, we can't give you any stock questions to whip out without them looking like stock questions. When you are going for an interview, do research. Ask around. Talk to people about the biggest challenges and advantages of the company/position/industry. Then, try and work those into tthe conversation.

For example, the 6 dealer thing - now that you know that, you can ask "What does your organization do to encourage people to return here over the other 5 places they will, on average, use to research cars?" And then ask about certain strategies that you may have heard about.

[Opti]

Thyme, I don't know that I really have a career path unless you count my desire to make at least one film and write one or more books.

Internet Sales would not be a "career" path unless I got good enough to be promoted to head the Internet Sales team. It isn't that well-paying from what I have read. It would be a survival job until I got something better and might give me dealership experience so I could transistion into being an Auto Service Advisor which would pay well enough to support myself.

[Tennesseer]

What exactly would be the duties of an Auto Sales Internet person?

[Opti]

Tenn, I think it varies depending on the dealership. In this case they are more like a first wave of sales/customer service. If I am hired there I would get leads and also take calls and emails in a round robin fashion with the rest of the team. Our main purpose in life at that dealership is to convince someone to make an appointment and come into a dealership to talk to a salesperson. They have a CRM, customer relationship management software which will track customer contacts and auto-spawn reminders for us to contact them etc. My understanding is we would be responsible for inputting the initial customer contact info into the system which is used to translate into sales and keeping the dealership and its employees afloat.

I know more about being an auto service advisor having had an interview for a position last year and also in quizzing auto service advisors when I have used a dealership for service on my current car.

Hope that helped.

[Deleted]

Why internet auto sales? You could earn the $10 an hour (plus) working a major retailer like Macy's, etc. There are still sales goals and quotas, but if you got in the right department (think Ralph Lauren for Men, for example), you'd do fine.

What about internet auto sales ATTRACTS you? If it is the cars, why not work for one of those no-haggle places like CarMax? You still have to learn how to close the deal, but I'm sure it would be easier than the Internet thing.

Don't get me wrong. Internet auto sales will be the wave of the future. But right now, people "shop" online and close the deal at a local dealership. I've read about the process. The person faxes what they want to several dealerships and what they want to pay. The process goes on from there. Ultimately, the local salesperson is probably going to get the commission and the credit. They are the closers.

I just wouldn't do this, Optimist, unless you are like Doxie (LOL) and know so much about cars that you can sell the caller immediately. $10 an hour isn't that hard to achieve. Back in the late 1990s, as a college student my son worked a bank service center and earned that .

Forget the film and novelist (second job always). What do you want to do 40 hours a week? If it is sales, find something that you can really be successful in? Is it cars? It wouldn't have been for me. But I could sell jewelry (evern though I don't wear it . . . LOL) and Ralph Lauren Menswear (Ok, it sold itself).

Best of luck!

[milee]

Optimist, this is not meant to be harsh, just some comments from an employer's viewpoint. Employers really want employees who demonstrate they're interested in the job and make it clear what they can do for the company. I know it's probably hard to get excited about a $10 an hour job since you clearly view this as beneath you, but you need to conceal that attitude very well or the potential employer will pick up on it. You may be giving off vibes of "what can this job do for me" versus "here's what I can do to really impress you on this job."

It's sales, both in an interview and for this particular job. Good sales people make it all about finding out what the customer (in this case, the prospective employer) wants and giving it to them, not constantly focusing on what it does for you. Even if it is something you view as a stepping stone to something you want, you can't let on that this is the case; you need to convince the dealership that this $10 an hour job is what you really want to be doing.

[Opti]

Sept 5, 2012 19:12:38 GMT -5 milee said:

Optimist, this is not meant to be harsh, just some comments from an employer's viewpoint. Employers really want employees who demonstrate they're interested in the job and make it clear what they can do for the company. I know it's probably hard to get excited about a $10 an hour job since you clearly view this as beneath you, but you need to conceal that attitude very well or the potential employer will pick up on it. You may be giving off vibes of "what can this job do for me" versus "here's what I can do to really impress you on this job."

It's sales, both in an interview and for this particular job. Good sales people make it all about finding out what the customer (in this case, the prospective employer) wants and giving it to them, not constantly focusing on what it does for you. Even if it is something you view as a stepping stone to something you want, you can't let on that this is the case; you need to convince the dealership that this $10 an hour job is what you really want to be doing.

Milee, no offense but the interviewer felt I'd do fine at the job. However she has quite a few interviews still scheduled and is not willing to give up one of her slots to me or anyone right on the spot.
I currently work at a $10/hr per Diem job BTW.



I might ask the mods to lock this thread because my only intention was to solict info that might help me in the interview. I have no desire to discuss why I am applying for the jobs I am, career path, etc.

Versteht?

[milee]

No worries - I'm not offended and hope you aren't either. Just trying to help. Glad it went well.

[Opti]

Southern, I don't want to discuss my career,etc. but I will tell you Macy's by me is not paying $10/hr. The reason I know is because I did work for them FT for a year in the 2000s. I have no desire to stand on my feet for a FT shift nor is it physically good for me to do so.



Mods please lock this thread if you see this.

[Tennesseer]

Optimist-before the thread is locked. I think I understand the job. For example, if I go to a car maker's website to consider models, I may be linked by my IP address to a local dealer. I can then put in my name and address and someone from that local dealership would call me back to discuss my interest(s). Yes?

[Opti]

Tenn, I don't know enough to say yes. Perhaps. I have talked to several dealerships recently about jobs they might have available and some of them don't have special people for internet sales, it goes to the sales team.

My car is old, I have a 3 series, so I have gotten some gift cards and other freebies in the last couple years by going to dealerships for test drives. (i.e sales opportunities. The meanie at Land Rover wouldn't even let me take a test drive because he knew he wouldn't get the sale. He just signed my card and sent me on my way. Gift card still bought groceries though.

[Opti]

Tenn, it can be email or phone too.

[Tennesseer]

Sept 5, 2012 20:18:58 GMT -5 Opti said:

Tenn, it can be email or phone too.

Opt-I should also have said email and phone because I have seen those as means of contact. Good luck. Hope you get the job.

[Opti]

Thanks Tenn, I just want to get a good enough job right now. I really need FT employment paying $20/hr or more to stay here and be able to afford such things like car repairs, healthcare, and replacement clothing, shoes. I prefer to at least be able to tread water in the near future.




***MODS PLEASE LOCK THIS THREAD****

Because I am tired and refuse to stop myself why Macy's is worse than Auto Internet sales even if it did have base pay of $10/hr instead of $8/hr.

1) Macy's FT is not 40 hours. Macy's FT is at best 38 to 39 hours if they love you because the fear of time and a half. In slow season you can go below advertised FT hours of 32/30 hours a week.

2) Macy's is an anchor store for many malls and has crazy ass hours. Auto dealerships generally 9-9 M-F plus hours on Saturday. Macy's 7 days a week and during inventory season you can be scheduled to 1-3AM with a return shift less than 6 hours later.

3) Auto Internet Sales - mostly desk job, easier on the body. Macy's - FT standing on tile or carpet over concrete.

4) Auto Internet Sales - no special dress code required.
Macy's - Suits or skirts for women. (i.e. special non Optimist wardrobe. More money out of pocket for work clothes and shoes.)

5) Auto Internet Sales - limited temptation to spend.
Macy's - Having to watch people buy cool stuff and try not to get into a buying frenzy when the occasional 80% off for 8 hours or whatever it is happens. (Miss it and its back to just 40 or 60% off.) Doesn't help that they give you Macy's bucks as a reward for signing enough people up for their credit card which are only good at ... Macy's ...
yes surprise. (May not still be true but was.)

ETA: Versteht is possibly the mispelled word for Understand in German. Versteht's Du? Do you understand, pseudo slang. Could pronounce it correctly not willing to google for spelling as its late.

[8 Bit WWBG]

At the request of the OP, this thread has been locked.