One of the comments often heard by both customers and competitors (and remember that I was one of them) is that the “best price” is not really the best because prices can still be lowered. Yes, you will hear that the best price is really the best price today which means that it might not be the best price next week or next month. There are a few reasons for this, none of which debunks the best price strategy. Long story short: things change.
The things that can change can be big or small. A small change can simply be the number of trade-ins on a specific make or model. For instance, Toyota customers are very loyal and trade for the newest version of a make and model with the frequency of a college student and an iPhone. If we get several Rav4’s traded in for new models we will want the oldest stock on the lot moved out to make room for the newer ones.
Another example of a minor change is how long a vehicle stays on the lot. As I mentioned in my last post, there is a random phenomena that occurs that can cause a vehicle to sit on a lot longer than expected. The longer that vehicle sits on the lot, the quicker that dealer will want that vehicle to move. New inventory keeps people excited and intersted. If you come to the lot several Sundays in a row (yeah, we know you’re avoiding us) and keep seeing the same inventory, you would not come back the next Sunday.
An example of a major change is higher rebates. Once the newest model year is released the manufacturer will increase rebates on the previous model year which can make them cheaper and not significantly more expensive than the pre-owned models. If a customer is looking at a pre-owned GMC Terrain and it is $21,500, but they can get a new one for $24,000 (only about $45 a month more) there is a good chance they will go with the newer model, so the only way to keep the pre-owned inventory fluctuating is to lower the price.
There is also this funny little thing called Capitalism. It is all about what the market will bear. If the entire market, and not just a specific dealer, gets flooded with inventory dealers will start lowering their prices to keep their inventory moving to compete with other dealers. The same build up of inventory can occur if you do not keep up with your competitors.
Our dealership is always striving to give you the best price it can offer considering all market conditions. What this means is that even if our price is X amount of dollars lower than our competitors today it may not be that way next week if we are not careful, so we have to keep up with the market to keep offering you a significant discount over everyone else. Conversely, our competitors know their “best price” too. They are just hoping that you pay a little more.
Ultimately then, it is our duty to keep track of the market and continue to keep our promise to our customers; even if it means the best price for you is not the best price for us.
Bill Vaughn - Kirksville Motor Company 