Almost every one asks me.

One time, I test drove the hyundai genesis sedan, and the newbie kept asking me about my job.

I kept thinking, it's none of your business. You're supposed to sell me on the car.

So, are they trying to size you up to see if you can afford the car, make small talk, or is it in Salesman for Dummies?

 

yeah they're trying to make small talk and size you up. sounds like typical salesmanship.

 

Salesmen need to ask questions so they can build a rapport with you. That is what a good salesman does. A customer is more apt to buy something from a salesperson that they can relate to. For example, if you told the Hyundai salesman that you are a firefighter, I can guarantee that he will respond by saying that one of his relatives is also a firefighter (even if it is a lie).

 

Psychological ploy. Cater to the customers needs and what drives them.

 

Rapport a little, but it's often to see if you are a slouch and wasting his/her time. It's also a way to get a rough idea of what your credit may be. The last thing a salesguy wants to do is spend four hours catering to you and learn at the end you don't qualify. In the course of a day, there are a lot of tire kickers but only a few good buyers. The life of a salesguy is countless hours, days, and years of listening to people talk big and then flaking out. Questions like "what do you do for work" paints a picture of credibility and gives them a clue to go on.

 

The tactic that Fizzboy is referring to is called "pre-qualifying the customer". It is a very useful tool for car salesmen. It prevents them from wasting time with customers who aren't serious or capable of buying.

 

I learned long ago in the wonderful world of dating: "What do you do for a living?" is the polite way of asking "How much $$$ do you make?"

 

Yeah, as others have said, it's purely to gauge your income level. That's why it's always one of the first questions asked.

 

My answer has always been, "in business."

 

I'm surprised with everyone's answers.

I have always thought salesmen were honestly interested about me and my interests...

 

They might be looking for honest work themselves.

 

Yep, most are just trying to figure out a ballpark amount of your income. Bet if you tell them you are unemployed, they won't put so much effort into trying to sell you a car and some might even be annoyed just to have to show it to you. Tell them your a lawyer or something and i'm sure they will do whatever they can to sell you on the car suddenly

 

I doubt if that will impress them. Dealerships themselves (not to mention the car-manufacturers thrmselves) usually have their own team of lawyers. Any decent-sized buisness today does...or should have.

I sometimes impress salespeople, though, when I (truthfully) I tell them what kind of work I did at FAA before retiring, that I was a rated pilot and ground-instructor, and that I do (unpaid) auto-consulting and reviews in my retirement.

 

Mostly all the answers here are right along the right lines. However you should all also know that there are MANY customers who KNOW they have ****ty credit, no money down, just in a bad situation all together, and STILL proceed to try and buy the most expensive car on the lot. They like to keep all this information to themselves instead of making things easier for themselves and the salesman.

All those reasons are a result of why your likely get such questions.

A salesman's job is not as easy as most of you like to think. They put up with daily constant pressure and bull**** from annoying and lying customers.

 

Not only that, but some dealerships have actually been busted by the FBI (my own brother was at one when agents came in) when new cars were attempted to be purchased with drug-money, and the dealership accepted it. (No, my brother wasn't involved).

By law, any cash purchase over $10,000 today is now reported to authorities.....even if it is clean and there's nothing to hide.