Quick Cash Auto Blog

An automotive history report on a vehicle is an excellent tool for either buying or selling a new vehicle. They are relatively simple to attain and can save a buyer a world of headaches. Vehicles that survive floods often see their structure fail much quicker than normal. A vehicle that was involved in a major accident may crumple up on impact if it was repaired incorrectly.

The former Cash for Clunkers program under the Obama administration required all vehicles that were brought in through it to be scrapped. The goal was to remove many of these older or more unsafe vehicles from the road. Most individuals and dealers are honest entities simply trying to sell a vehicle. You can use a car history report as either a buying or selling tool to facilitate that sale.

*As a Buying Tool
Vehicle history or car reports are available from a number of online venues in addition to your local Department of Motor Vehicles. The VIN of the vehicle is riveted on a panel on the dashboard. That VIN should be compared to the available registration to ensure they match. If there appears to be any machining or damage around the VIN plate, it is likely tampered with and cannot be relied on. Walk away from the deal if that turns out to be the case.

Avoid any seller that tries to pass off VIN plate damage or attempts to dissuade you from checking the history of the vehicle. Remember, it is you and your family’s safety you are safeguarding with this check.

*As a Selling Tool
Some may find it surprising to realize that they can actually use a car history report as a selling tool as well. A big part of leadership, effective sales, and success in general is confidence. Not an unhealthy amount, simply the confidence that you will meet your goals no matter what the setback is. Many people respond well to that mentality and are more likely to listen to that individual.

As a seller of a used car, you already know that a potential buyer is going to want to know about the history of the vehicle. Instead of making them do the legwork, run your own vehicle and have several copies of the car history available when they look at the car. Have enough copies so they can take a copy with them as they consider your vehicle.

The confidence you project in your honest representation will leave a better impression with that individual than the person who comes unprepared. There are many, many potential sellers that will come completely unprepared.

Most people are going to assume that a used vehicle is going to have some problems with it. That is simply part of buying a used vehicle. The way you present and represent those problems can actually work for you as a sales tactic. That open, frank demeanor and confidence in your vehicle will help you sell it. Sales are just as much charisma and presentation as it is the product.

Almost everyone in the United States has been impacted in some way by the tough economic climate of recent years. With mass layoffs, a slumping stock market, federal bailouts, and one of the highest foreclosure rates in any decade, the business of buying and selling automobiles was forced to adapt in order to survive. While the car industry has suffered many causalities in the last several years, the industry has also become creative, gritty, and methodical in order to wade through the difficult circumstances.

In reality, the recession has created a worst case scenario for both car buyers and car sellers. From the standpoint of the buyer there is obviously still a need to have reliable transportation yet there is a need to spend much less on this transportation. For many buyers this means buying a used car instead of a new car and therefore they must really do their homework before making a decision to ensure that they pick a reliable, cost efficient vehicle. Sellers, on the other hand, need to increase profits while minimizing operating cost which means cutbacks at all levels from design to production and especially sales. With fewer cars in their inventory, many sellers have less to offer buyers at a time when buyers need more to choose from to get the best bang for their buck.

The automobile industry has found ways to be creative in this difficult economy and it has paid off for many car companies and consumers. For instance, a great marketing tool that is inexpensive is using social media to advertise as well as become more personable sellers. Many car dealerships and automobile companies now have accounts on popular websites such as Facebook, Twitter, and MySpace which helps them relate to their consumers in a wonderfully unique way. On these websites car companies and dealerships post updates about inventory, discounts, sweepstakes, prize giveaways, and other relevant information that consumers need to know. This type of communication is immediate and makes consumers feel more connected with their sellers.

Many car dealerships have offered considerable discounts on vehicles in order to make the sale or provided extra incentives with the purchase of a car such as free maintenance “for life”. Many dealers give away prizes with every car purchase such as trips, electronics, and shopping sprees.

One of the most important things that car sellers have done because of this tough economic climate is become more sensitive to the needs and concerns of consumers. So, despite the negative effects the recession has had on our economy, in many ways it should be viewed at as an opportunity to become wiser, more scrupulous consumers. The recession has also forced sellers to be more consumer friendly, cost conscious, and more effective and creative salespeople.

Have you ever been having a conversation with someone and things seem to be going great but then it seems as if there has been a sudden shift in attitude and the conversation goes downhill? You may think to yourself later about what went wrong but be dumbfounded as to why the conversation ended on a sour note. There is a good possibility that you may have offended your communication partner by displaying a nonverbal message that he or she interpreted in a negative way.

Nonverbal communication consists of messages other than spoken or written ones that people give meaning to. This includes almost any nonverbal action, even if people have no intention of sending nonverbal messages. For example, let’s imagine a scenario where a spouse asks their partner, “Is meatloaf OK for dinner?” Even if the other partner says “Sure, meatloaf is fine.” if they crinkle their nose up while they say it and make a disgusted expression they are sending a message that meatloaf was not going to be their first choice for dinner despite what they said.

This same principle applies to the business of buying and selling cars and your nonverbal cues have more importance in sealing the deal than many people might believe. While no one can be a flawless interpreter of what all nonverbal messages mean, there are ways to hone interpretation skills. If you are in the market for a new car try to pay close attention to the salesperson’s nonverbal messages.

For example, if the salesperson has trouble keeping eye contact with you during a conversation, they may not be telling the whole truth about something regarding the car or cars you are interested in. Other signs of being dishonest include keeping their hands in their pockets for long periods of time, looking away when answering a question, and even slouching or bad posture can scream “I’m a liar” without actually saying a word.

If you are buying or selling a car be sure to keep your emotions at bay. If you are selling a car and someone makes an offer that is more than you thought you could get out of the deal nonverbal messages like a raised eyebrow or a smirk may tell the buyer that they are overpaying because you are so excited about their offer and they may back out of the deal. Buying a car is much the same way, showing nonverbal messages about how excited you are about a car can tell the dealer or sales staff that you like the car enough to pay more than you should. This could make negotiation difficult if the seller knows that you are in love with the vehicle.

If you can learn to pick up on other people’s nonverbal messages and interpret them accurately, you may be able to navigate life in a better and unique way including getting a better deal the next time you buy or sell a car and that would be a big thumbs up!

As far as four letter bad words go, one of the worst may not be what most people would think; that word is scam. This word strikes fear into the hearts of people across the globe. Scams can cause major financial losses, identity theft, and major stress in consumers’ lives.

Scams can happen in many business, personal, political, and even religious settings. It comes as no surprise then that the business of buying and selling cars is not immune from scams. There are several unique scams associated with the automobile industry that consumers should be aware of before buying or selling a vehicle.

One scam that is very pervasive in the automobile industry and often has sellers playing the role of victim is a certified check scam. In this infamous scam, the potential buyer – who is actually the scam artist, tells the seller that they want to purchase the car but they must send a certified check for more than the selling price and have the seller wire the “buyer” the difference. The scam occurs when the seller wires the scam artist money, but when the seller tries to cash the check, it turns out to be fake. Always contact the bank that issued the check from the buyer before accepting the payment, and never transfer the vehicle over to the buyer until the check has been processed.

While technology such as the internet has made many aspects of life easier and more convenient, including selling a car, the internet also makes it much easier for scam artists to commit crimes. One example of technology being used to scam both buyers and sellers comes in the form of a false online auction. Sellers often ship a vehicle after selling an automobile on the internet but never receive payment. Much in the same fashion, buyers have often been required to make payment on an auction site, yet they never receive the car they paid for. Many times it is difficult to track criminals down that use fake auction websites on the internet because the sites can be set up with little personal information about the creator of the site readily available.

It is important for buyers and sellers to always do research before doing business with other people or companies, especially when the internet is being used as a medium to transfer goods and services. People that have been scammed and want more information about the process of filing a complaint, or just want to research ways to avoid future problems can contact the National Fraud Information Center at www.fraud.org or regional authorities with experience in scams.