January 2005, this was the moment in time where the rubber met the road for my passion for cars. I was hired for my very first auto sales position at a Honda store located on the West End of Richmond, Virginia. My first couple of months were a bit of a challenge as I adjusted to a retail sales career that was full commission; so, for those who aren’t aware of what that’s like, basically you eat what you kill. And if you don’t kill anything, you don’t eat anything, LOL. In March of that year, I started off at a decent pace, finally getting acclimated, getting my sales legs under me. I started making better connections with customers, understanding their needs much better and also providing better solutions all while making sure I asked for the business.
I had two sales managers that I owe a great deal of thanks for training me and getting me up to speed. Our New Car Sales Manager, Gordon, was like a mentor to me. I would follow him around every morning doing rounds, checking on vehicles, reviewing trade-ins we took in, and also checking out our entire vehicle inventory for both new and used cars. Gordon helped me figure out a good routine to make sure I was on top of whatever we had on the lot and also make sure that I kept up with vehicles that prospective customers were interested in. Our Used Car Manager, Woody, operated differently. I remember a story my dad told me about starting out in the work force. He said, “you gain a lot of experience and appreciation when you work for someone that’s tough and isn’t about doing things with a soft touch. You’re gonna come across certain situations and circumstances where people are not going to sugarcoat things for you or provide a team friendly environment where everybody’s a winner type of management style.” That was definitely Woody. He was very firm, very assertive, tough and would not let you slide by if you did something wrong. Honestly, that’s what I really appreciated about him because he really helped me understand that life ain’t going to be easy and everything that you do, you gotta work hard for it every day.
For this particular situation, Woody was key in my achievement of Salesman of the Month. As I said I was on a decent sales streak for but there was this one deal I was trying to close on the last of the month that I couldn’t get done. I thought the customer was gonna complete the deal at the 11th hour, but ultimately, he decided he needed to think about it. Now this particular guy was looking to purchase a 2003 Acura RL 3.5 V6. To this day, I find that body style the most appealing and intriguing and I remember that was the year that Consumer Reports called that particular option a great buy. The car was so clean. It had a silver exterior with a light gray leather interior, 6-disc CD changer, heated seats, sunroof, beautiful alloy wheels, the full epitome of luxury and design. And it rode like a dream! When the guy told me he was gonna think about it, I remember walking over to Woody at the Sales Tower and doing what we call in the business a TO. Basically, this means I was letting the sales manager, Woody, know where we were in the process, then he would come over to my desk with the customer and check in to see if there was anything that we could do to earn his business that evening. The customer ultimately said no it is just something he needed to think about and Woody shared that he understood, but informed the customer if he had any questions, make sure to reach out to me, the salesman. When the customer left, Woody looked at me and said, “Go get you another customer, dawg, it’s gonna be alright.”
I remember packing up and going home and I was telling myself that even though I didn’t close that one, this still was a decent month. It was the first month I sold more than 10 cars. My final count was 14 units sold, but I really wanted to hit 15 sales. Achieving that sales milestone provided a nice commission bump for my check and also represented my personal goal for the month. Walking down the hill to our employee parking lot, I remember thinking about that #15 and wondered what I could’ve done differently to make that sale happen.
The next morning, I came into work, April 1st, ready to start a new day and a new month. As I was walking up to the building, I saw my buddy and fellow salesman, Shawn, helping out a customer with a car. He yelled out to me, “Hey man, Congratulations!” I looked back at him and I said, “congratulations for what?” He said, “Man, you hit Salesman of the Month!” I said back to him, For real?!” He was like, “yeah man, go in there and make sure you holler at Woody!” So, I went inside. Woody was at the sales tower as per normal. He was calculating numbers and keeping up with our sales log. I went up to him and asked, “Woody, how in the world did I make Salesman of the Month? I didn’t even close that sale yesterday!” He told me to come sit down and he began telling me about it. After we closed up last night, he went over across the street to TGI Fridays and he happened to meet the same customer that was interested in the Acura. He and the customer talked it over at the bar and the customer agreed to come back in the next day and finish up the deal. I asked Woody, “How is that possible, because we didn’t make the sale at the end of the month?” What he told me was, in our business, we’re allowed to complete a sale the following first day of the month, as long as we marked it sold at the end of the month, and true to form, Woody had marked that deal sold on our log book just on the off chance that that would happen. And man, did it paid big dividends for me because that was my 15th unit for the month! And, based on my total gross revenue for front-end sales and back-in sales, which meant financing commissions, I was the Top Sales Person for our dealership for March 2025. It also meant I received an extra bonus “spiff” or pay-out, and a designated parking spot right next to the building so I wouldn’t have to walk up the hill from the parking lot.
What made this even more special for me is that I had only been in the car business, to that point, for only three months. My drive, my commitment to my craft, followed by me plugging in and making connections with my sales managers and other polished sales veterans, I achieved something that I didn’t even know I could do. From that day forward, I not only felt a strong connection to the car business, but it gave me an even deeper connection to my passion for cars and the art of making a deal.
Car Guy’s Car Tip
Being persistent and willing to connect with people can go a long, long way. Determination along with receptivity builds trust, which in turn, creates strong, long-lasting associations in any endeavor you choose. This is the key to bridging the gap in business and personal relationships.