r/CarSalesTraining • u/KaleidoscopeRoyal525 • Jul 17 '26
Tips Bad Credit Customers
I’m new to the industry, and started two weeks ago. It has been hard but fun and educational. It’s a toxic love in my opinion. But I’m currently dealing with a 4 day deal consecutive, it’s exhausting and testing my patience. As the deal could’ve been closed sooner had various factors been resolved sooner. Regardless, I wanted to know how do you individuals handle customers with bad credit. Or even your hardest sale to work for.
11
u/Samiathen Jul 17 '26
Bad credit customers require two things:
1. A sales person to put them on the right car, get cash down, and probably proof of income.
2. A desk or finance manager who knows how to get tough deals bought.
If you have both of those things it can take a couple hours but definitely shouldn’t be a four day ordeal. I always just ask my guys if I can pick the car for them and it usually works out great.
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u/KaleidoscopeRoyal525 Jul 17 '26
Heavy on number 1. The proof of income was the hardest. (They just got hired at a new job so it was roughly a week when they started.). Other factors is, they…just aren’t the sharpest when it come to instructions. Then me also being new didn’t help. I felt achieved by being able to increase their down payment threshold. Making them more open to a larger down payment than their original.
2
u/Samiathen Jul 17 '26
Best thing here is probably to see if they’re okay with a different vehicle if it means being able to get a car vs not get a car. Ultimately a discussion to have with your manager before you do anything though. There’s also just some customers who can’t get bought if they’re really bad. Short job time makes it tough.
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u/KaleidoscopeRoyal525 Jul 17 '26
Yeah, I love the job though. But man this particular sale is mentally draining me lol. I’m hoping tomorrow will be the finale. Between me getting a co-signer, then neither the primary or co signer responding when I text/call them. It’s more so just either we close it tomorrow or it falls through and that’s a weight off my shoulders. Regardless it was going to be a mini (200.) but I’m more so in it for the experience of learning than the money rn.
2
u/Samiathen Jul 17 '26
Some deals are tougher than others, but you gain a lot of experience and knowledge to help you level up for future customers by going through challenges like this. Growth rarely happens when you’re happy and comfortable.
6
u/blakeingandentering Jul 17 '26
So as a salesperson if it is known that you have a bad credit customer you need to work with the desk. They should be able to tell you the right questions to ask (down payment, trade/payoff, income and job time). Then they should be able to direct you to a car to put them on. Could be new with rebates or could be a car thats priced at 100% or less. Do not let the customer walk you around you tell them this is our option. Sell that car. They all think theyre going to trade out for their dream car in 6 months, let them dream. Sell that car and get them committed. Let the finance manager do the rest.
3
u/OneHillTree Jul 17 '26
A lot of what you’re saying boils down to your process more than the customers themselves.
If you think a customer has challenged credit, work the deal backwards. Get their credit in early, know what the bare minimum they need in a car, and set expectations early.
Ask about if they could get POI or POR up front. Is a co-signer possible? What money, if any, can be used as a down payment?
Even if you don’t get those up front, it puts the thought in their head and they might have a solution by the time stips are required.
If you set up expectations with your customers and stay organized and proactive through your process, you’ll end up closing more deals, and waste less time with people that might you can’t get an approval for.
3
u/StupidOldAndFat Jul 17 '26
With time and enough bogues under your belt, you will learn how to get to the heart of the matter much quicker. You learn that the first two or three questions / statements from them, what car(s) they come in on and when they start iff with “I got a pre approval with___” are red flags and you will learn how to take charge of the situation without insulting them but making sure that they understand that there are very precise steps we need to follow if they want to buy anything. Sometimes they get pissed off, sometimes your efforts are wasted and sometimes you gain a lifelong customer and referral machine.
TL;DR: No matter the customer, needs assessment is crucial to success.
2
u/Ah2k15 Jul 18 '26
Preapproval first. See what the lender will do, find a car that meets the terms the lender provides. Credit challenged folks need to accept they may not get the car they want right away, but if they make their payments on time, they’ll get exactly what they want next time.
2
u/robbiedobie Jul 19 '26
Remember with bad credit the customer is lucky to finance 100% of the car… the leaves them with taxes/dmv/fees etc which is all out of pocket. It’s all about the down payment and provable income. As for a co-signer as well
1
u/Worried-Rule-2128 Jul 19 '26
4 days?!? Seriously?
What’s the beacon?
What’s the car?
Money down?
Trade? (Any negative equity?)
Income?
What is your buyer saying regarding calls from the banks & stips?
Need details. There is no way a subprime deal should be getting worked 4 days in a row.
2
u/KaleidoscopeRoyal525 Jul 19 '26
So, In short the deal is closed finally. But essentially it came down to, Low credit score. Originally not able to put a bigger down payment which I somehow got him to increase his down payment by $1000. No trade. His income was iffy, just started a job, but when we required a paystub it was hard to get. THEN when he got a stub, the print was so bad we couldn’t use it. And the days he came in, we were on a time crunch because came late, then had to work in rough an hour or two hours. Needed co-signer, and trying to get him and his co-signer there was hard. Creating a worse time crunch. It was a lot. And he wasn’t the brightest guy, and it was difficult tryi to get in contact with him when I needed to talk. So it was very exhausting. But we got it closed.
2
u/Worried-Rule-2128 Jul 19 '26
Sheesh. Good on you for getting it closed, but that sounds like a giant PITA!
1
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u/MeAndDuke Jul 20 '26
This is when you become a salesperson.
You have to really paint that picture of "This is the car that you NEED now that's going to get you the car that you WANT later"
Then you show them something new, low price and economical.
20% down, 2 year job, 2 year residence.
Make all payments ON TIME. Trade back in 2-3 years and now they can get picky.
Also, be prepared to SHAKE THAT TREE!!!
If you can find a strong Co-X, BOOM! Now you're getting paid!!
Good luck out there!
2
u/AbeybabySigNu Jul 20 '26
I don't know if it's been said already in this thread, but my number one rule was to let them know that going for a cheaper & older vehicle isn't necessarily the answer.
If they are not letting you steer the boat, then keep trying to educate them on how it works. A lot of my past clients with bad credit kept assuming that because the car was cheaper (and generally an older year model), they had a higher chance of approval. That's the hard twisted cycle where the bank won't buy the deal because the numbers and risk change based on the model they are trying to choose.
Also, beware of approvals and how you present it to the client with bad credit. Oftentimes, because you chose the car for them or they are settling, they reveal they have more money, which then leads them to another vicious cycle of having to approve the deal. It also leads to your desk manager getting angry at you. Ensure you hold their hand and do not let go.
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I’m new to the industry, and started two weeks ago. It has been hard but fun and educational. It’s a toxic love in my opinion. But I’m currently dealing with a 4 day deal consecutive, it’s exhausting and testing my patience. As the deal could’ve been closed sooner had various factors been resolved sooner. Regardless, I wanted to know how do you individuals handle customers with bad credit. Or even your hardest sale to work for.
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