The Indelible Bonobo Experience

Fifteen minutes. That’s how long most new vehicle buyers (60 per cent) want to spend on price negotiations, once the test drive is complete, reports a recent J. D Power and Associates online survey. (via The 15-minute rule for buying cars - The Globe and Mail)

• “This is likely due to the overwhelming majority of shoppers who build and price their vehicle online before arriving at a dealership,” reports J.D Power in a research note. “In fact, 63 per cent of shoppers say they knew the exact vehicle they wanted (including colour and options) before they set foot in a showroom.”
• The point is, buyers become increasingly unhappy with sales staff who cannot or will not come to a deal within 15 minutes of the onset of what many consider to be the dreaded back-and-forth over price. J.D. Power says “buyers have clearly defined timelines in mind, and satisfaction suffers when expectations are not met. In fact, dealer staff would be wise to set the stopwatch at 15 minutes, as overall sales satisfaction with most dealership activities drops significantly after that point.”
• “After a deal is in place, buyers expect to have the final paperwork in front of them quickly,” notes J.D. Power “Again, overall satisfaction declines if they’re kept waiting for more than 15 minutes.”
• But there is a key exception to the 15-Minute Rule: vehicle delivery. New owners want to be fully briefed about their new vehicle before they drive off the lot. In fact, when a dealership rushes through the delivery in 15 minutes or less, customer satisfaction suffers. Stores that take 45 minutes to brief a new owner before they take the keys and head off, enjoy a high degree of customer satisfaction.