For many, the term “car salesman” conjures up images of a male, sporting a slick outfit and an even slicker pitch.
Walk into a car dealership, and that image may be shattered by the sounds of female voices. They’re not models hired to decorate the cars; they’re the sales force.
In a male-dominated industry, more and more women are choosing car sales as a career, bucking the salesman stereotype.
According to the National Automobile Dealers Association (NADA), the number of saleswomen at car dealerships in 1999 was 16,220, with 4,000 more women selling vehicles today than in 1993. In 1999, women made up 16 percent of the sales force, up from 15 percent in 1998.
As with every industry, finding good workers in today’s tight labor market is a huge challenge. For car dealerships, the stereotype makes it even more difficult.
“It’s all the more complex to attract people to the industry, and dealerships would love to have more women,” says Mike Morrissey, spokesman for NADA, a McLean, Va.-based association for franchise, new-and used-car dealers.
When Nicole Monahu decided to switch from a corporate job and a steady paycheck to a commission-only car sales position in 1997, the most nerve-wracking aspect was telling her family.
“It was difficult because of the reputation that car salespeople have,” says Monahu, a sales and leasing consultant at Grossinger Autoplex in Lincolnwood, a dealer for Pontiac, GMC, Suzuki, Buick and Cadillac vehicles. “My family thought I had lost my mind. But, my mother said, `If you’re 40 years old and haven’t tried this, will you be disappointed?’ “
The answer was simple for Monahu, 28, who had harbored an interest in cars since childhood and had, by college, a desire to be a dealer principle. After college, however, she ended up in jobs that were expected of a finance graduate–working for a division of the U.S. Treasury Department and then at a market research and analysis firm.
Not fulfilled, Monahu decided it was time to follow her gut and steered herself back toward her college wish. She called a friend whose family owned a dealership and worked there a short time before joining Grossinger a year and a half ago.
“I was scared because it’s strictly commission, but I’ve always succeeded and have never looked back,” says Monahu.
“The car-buying experience typically is perceived as negative. It’s having good people (on staff) who can change that image,” says Lee Eisenberg, general sales manager at Grossinger, which employs four women in his 30-member sales force. “The better people we attract to sales, the more we can chip away from the (salesman) stereotype. We work hard to create an environment where a woman, or any other professional, will have a good career.”
For 50-year-old Nina Perrin, car sales had never crossed her mind until a friend, who worked at a dealership, encouraged her to try. Perrin had 25 years of experience in retail sales but knew nothing about cars. She took her friend’s advice, landed a job at River Oaks Honda in Calumet City and, a year and a half later, says she’s found her niche.
“I was intimidated at first, but that quickly went away,” says Perrin, who went through training when she joined the dealership and quickly became successful in Honda sales. “I love my job. It’s professionally and financially rewarding.”
Sales experts agree that no car knowledge or experience is required for car sales. Good sales and customer-service skills, coupled with on-the-job training, are the foundation at most car dealerships for a successful sales career.
“Know your products and the cars’ features and benefits,” advises Perrin, who averages about 10 to 13 car sales per month. “Also, the first impression you give to a customer is very important.”
She says she wins customers with a smile and a professional demeanor.
Besides dealing with the negative stereotype, women pursing a car-sales career also have to deal with the fact that the industry is tough on family life, particularly for women with small children.
“The biggest challenge in attracting women to this job is the hours involved,” says Mike Clark, general sales manager at River Oaks Honda, which has two women on the sales staff. “It’s a six-day-a-week business, and the hours are long.”
“It’s a difficult job,” says Monahu. “I work about 50 to 55 hours a week, which doesn’t leave a lot of time for a social life. You work hard, but it’s rewarding.”
Monahu’s colleague, Desanka Rajkovic, never imagined she’d be selling cars. She unexpectedly drove right to it. Nearly one year ago, Rajkovic was a French-to-English technical translator at a software firm; she quit when the firm relocated. As she driving to a job interview, she got lost. Pressured for time, she went into the nearest building–Grossinger Autoplex–to ask directions.
When she mentioned her plight, the employee said, ” `If that doesn’t pan out, come back here,’ ” recalls 26-year-old Rajkovic. “The job didn’t pan out, so I went back and asked if the sales position was still open. I had no experience with cars, but I could sell anything. I looked at car sales as a challenge.”
She landed the job as a sales and leasing consultant.
Saleswomen say their gender hasn’t hurt how customers and co-workers interact with them. Experts say women are most likely to have an edge over men. For male and female customers, women are considered more approachable and seemingly put people at ease.
“Women in the sales force have an advantage. Half the customers are women and often feel more comfortable with another woman,” says Morrissey. In addition, cites NADA, industry analysts include customer and employee loyalty as benefits that women offer to a dealership.
“The general impression is a woman is more likely to be trusted and have a sale go forth more smoothly, but people seem to expect males to have the product knowledge,” says Rajkovic, a seven-month employee of Grossinger. “Sometimes they seem a bit surprised that I know about cars.”
“Sometimes women customers call the dealership and ask to speak to a woman,” adds Perrin. “Women customers often feel more comfortable with another woman because due to the image, they don’t feel they can trust male salespersons.”
Nabbing a sale, however, is not gender-specific. When a new customer walks through the door, it’s equal opportunity. “In the dealership, men and women face the same sales competition,” Rajkovic states.
Though the image lingers, Rajkovic and others encourage women to consider car sales as a lucrative and long-term career. “Car sales offers the same benefits as other professions,” says Eisenberg. “People can improve, excel, grow and have a great future in this job.”
