What I love is when they throw a story in (probably true, but without all the details)
Example:
Yamaha Salesman
Grizzly versus SP500
"Yeah, I was recently on a ride that had a log crossing in it. The guy beside me on a sp just spun, and I climbed over it without any wheel spin at all"
They really try to talk down the SP500. Another dealership said that if I bought a sp, expect to be back to the dealership 5-10 times in the first couple months. He said he had a buddy who bought an sp, and after the 7th time to the ship in a couple months, brought the sp to him for a trade in on a grizzly.
Needless to say, I bought the grizzly and was very disappointed in it. After one year of misery, I traded in the grizzly (lost a chunk of change due to resale on grizzly being so low) on a '99 sp500. I was very satisfied with the sp. It would go places in stock form that the grizz couldn't make with mud tires. Very seldom do you find a salesman that knows his product, and if you do find one, he's probably selling a product you don't want.

 

ledebuhr1
We had a polaris dealer here locally that was just pushin product out the doors their sales were great but they couldn't even change the oil in a 500 scrambler they were given the boot by POLARIS lost their dealership but I'm happy to say that we got a new dealer now and they are great and know what they are talkin about it's a family run biz so you don't get all the B.S

 

Usually I go right to the owner and the mechanic. They know more in most situations then the typical "salesguy".

Since I have been tuning into these forums I show up at the dealers with more knowledge then them! Now if I can just brush up on my mechanical skills I can back up my knowledge with technical specifications instead of "that round thingy" or "the piece that makes the belt go"...

As for the good employees are hard to find, totally true. I have 35 employees at my stores at any given moment. We hire about 100 during the year and only keep about 10%. Believe it or not!

Lets be patient with them!

 

TREE Farmer yes I agree that there are bad salesmen in all parts of sales,just happens they weren't there,but the Quad salesmen were and they were the ones that I talked to.I had run into salesman at Honda dealer here in town last year that knew it all and knew nothing also.He was telling me all about POLARIS,not being aware that I owned one.He told me how the 4x4 switch on Grizz was mechanical and that polaris were junk and the switch was electric and that if they sat very long that it would drain battery.I forget what all I learned about Polaris that day,but coming from such well informed person,it was all I could do to keep myself from tradeing in that piece of junk, up till then had thought that I was happy with.It took me awhile to get over being short changed ,I never had battery run down,I hadn't been able to be towed out of woods several times like everyone else.I was ready to appologise to dealer as I hadn't been takeing my Quad to the shop all the time to get it fixed,I know he was getting ready to lay off one of the many mechanics he must have had,to work on all them pices of junk he had sold, because I had failed to have piece of junk like everyone else has.Wish I hadn't brought this up as I'm depressed again as I have got stuck with 00 500SP a very reliable fine machine that has yet to let me down or be hauled out of the hills.That can really ruin a guy's day,I wanted to be like everyone else!!!!!CM

 

When I bought my Scrambler, not only did the salesman talk to me for at least an hour, but the mechanic did also!I had only ridden a friends Trailboss, when I decided to buy a atv. Not knowing what I was looking for,these guys told me eveything I needed. I went back a week later, and afte test driving several models, bought the Scram5004x4. It's Dirty Harry's Dirt Bikes in Verona Pa.(outside Pittsburgh)I'll definetly go back!

 

I must be one of the few, the proud, the......oooops, sorry guys. ) I knew very little aboout atv's. Only rode my dad's older 300 2 stroke a few times. the closest dealer to me was about 45 minutes away. I e-mailed them about what I was interrested in and told them the price I was willing to pay. Tammy, the salesperson there called me the next afternoon and too easily agreed t omy price. ( should have said less) My wife and I drove there and the service manager was there and went over, in extreme detail, about their product. He answered every question I had and also brought up more for me. They were not the slightest bit pushy and he told me to test drive anything I wanted to so I could feel and see the difference. I chose the 500 of course. They delivered the bike to my house at the time I was available, ( I too am in sales and on the road all day, oh, by the way, I do care about my customers and their needs) The owner of the company delivered the bike himself and went over everything including where all the "ZERKS" are located. They even let me trade in the FREE winch for gear. The winch doesn't mean a lot to me and I don't want the added weight on the front. It it very difficult for me to get the bike there and when my belt starting stripping (not really sure why, did this at aboout 200 miles) they just mailed me another one and talked me through replacing it over the phone. So far, I'm very pleased with the salesperson (Tammy) there and the entire store.
Rick

 

While going to University I had a part time job at a small, well established sporting goods store. The place was a mess, stuff everywhere but the service we gave the customers was what kept people coming back.

People would say that they went to one of the large chain stores, but couldn't get any help or find what they were looking for. If we never had what they wanted and couldn't get it in time, we would direct them to one of our competitors. This amazed numerous customers who eventually came back to us for other purchases. We got to know customers by their first names.

The lessons in customer service I learned in that small shop I still use today. I am currently working as a Collector and needless to say people don't like hearing from me . . . but I still give them the best customer service I can.

Oh yea . . . the sporting goods store is still in operation and that is where I now buy all my fishing supplies.

Sorry for the long post, but in today's rush rush society the art of good customer service seems to be slowly fading away.

 

I was looking at jeeps at a dealership and I knew the packages offered better than any of the salesman. Had the same experience at a Polaris dealership. It would be to their advantage to train salesman to know something besides their cut of the sale.

 

I guess I am lucky. Not only is the dealer where I got my Polaris knowledgeable, they actually have a small farm where they beta test their machines. They take all their used ones there for about a week to be sure everything works as it is supposed to. Any question I had was answered by either Rhonda (the saleslady) or if she wasn's sure, she got Mike (the mechanic) to answer it. Never pretended to know what they didn't & I like that. They also give free advice over the phone after the sale. They work at Hilders in Central City Nebraska. The owner is a nice guy who will quote prices & answer questions as best he can when no one else is there, but Rhonda & Mike really know their stuff.
Farmr

 

MY experiences have not been real good either. Not
really with sales people. You only deal with them once when you buy the machine. Maybe you know more then they do about the machines, so you go in. Decide for your self what you want. We need them to fill out the paper work and make the transaction. If they are resonable people, we can get a fair price for the machine or walk out the door otherwise. Most of my problems have been with
other people. Like the time a parts manager said there was no k&n filter for my polaris xpedition. Its the same one as is for the sp5oo. I have asked for information and found out later that I got wrong information. Repairmen that improperly fix something or can't find the problem or only 1/2 finish the job or take 2 weeks to get to you, or when they found a factory problem. fixed and and neglected to tell me it was a factory flaw or on there own character did not call polaris to see if they would cover that problem. The least of my problems have been with salesmen. Some of them do know there stuff. Talk friendly and do try to help
you out. rangerchet