Ideally, Canadian used car buyers should be comfortable buying a car after visiting one dealership. However, the average buyer visits 2.9 dealerships, with only one in three visiting a single store. We want to get that average down to one, but to do so, we need to know exactly why customers decide to take their business elsewhere. But this isn’t easy, as 55% of Canadian used car buyers revealed that when they leave your dealership without buying, they don’t tell you the real reason they left. But they told us.

Why are they really leaving?

Ever had a customer tell you they need time to think about a deal or discuss it with their spouse? This is the most common thing used car buyers say before they leave your store, never to return. But when we dug past this polite, non-confrontational excuse and found the real reasons they leave, going home to think or discuss barely made the top five.

Why does this happen?

When customers don’t tell us what’s on their minds, it means they don’t feel confident about their relationship with the salesperson. This is even more apparent if you consider their real reason for leaving. A good relationship means your sales staff will know which car is right for the customer, and the customer will have enough confidence in the information you give them not to waste time shopping around.

What should you do?

Overcoming be-backs and ensuring customers can purchase during a single visit to your store comes down to empowering your sales staff so they can focus on building relationships, understanding the customer’s needs and having transparent processes customers can trust. That way, a customer can buy into your dealership and sales team, and they won’t want to shop anywhere else.