Sales tactics.

[spudsinidaho Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close spudsinidaho]

Hi,

Just want to give me two cents on how to get through a high pressure sales pitch. I'm staying at Silver Lake Resort in Florida. Our friend owns a timeshare, (they rarely use, if ever, by the way) and was able to get us a room. Anyway, upon check in we were asked to attend a 1 hour timeshare presentation (by RCI) to receive discounted Disney Tickets. Here are some tips to get through the presentation.

Immediately inform the sales person you are only staying for one hour. Look at your watch and mark down the time. Also tell them upfront you are not interested in buying anything.

Their goal is to engage you in any type of conversation to get you talking. Don't take the bait. Act bored the whole time. Avoid eye contact the whole time. Look at your watch, a lot!

Things they don't like to hear.

Can I take the contract with me to have it reviewed by my lawyer?
They will not let you do this. One of the games they like to play is to ask questions that you have to answer yes to. I didn't do this at the time, but it would have been fun to turn the tables on them. Maybe a conversation like this.

Me: Time shares are a good investment, right?
Salesperson (SP) Yes!
Me: Maybe even one of the best vacation investments you can make?
SP: Yes.
Me: You have nothing to hide about what you are selling. Right?
SP: Yes, of course, we are highly regulated by Florida Law and can not misrepresent anything.
Me: I hear your customers are very pleased, and you have few complaints. Isn't that right?
SP: Yes, or course blah, blah ,blah
Me: Then it's OK for me to take my contract home and have it reviewed by my lawyer before I sign anything, right?
SP: Probably will say No, we cant do that, and then go into the spiel about there is no need because you can cancel (rescind) contract.
Me: Do you own a house?
SP: Yes of course. (Probably will tell you he owns 3 or 4)
Me: When I bought my house, there was no problem having my lawyer look at the contract, as a matter of fact my salesperson encouraged it. Isn't this as good an investment as a house.
SP: Yes.

Anyway, you get the point. You could really have fun with this, and you are leading the conversation, not the SP.

Another fun line of conversation would be when they tell you how this deal is only good today. Ask the sales person how long they have worked here?

SP: 12 years. blah blah blah.
Me: Is today your last day?
SP: Of course not, why do you ask?
Me: Well, what about the people that come in tomorrow, won't they get a good deal too, like all your customers during the last 12 years, or are all the good deals gone after today.
SP: Dumbfounded!

I made my guy so mad, he had to leave the table for 3-4 minutes.

Some other things they don't like. Mention EBay and how you can get 50,000 RCI points for a dollar,(you still have to pay the yearly maintenance fees and membership costs. Check it out.

I reminded my SP an hour was up. He went to get the closer. The closer came over with and laid a piece of paper on the table. I noticed it was going to be used to fill in figures. I told him you don't have to fill in any numbers, we are not interested. He said he wasn't going to do that. I asked what all the dollar signs on the form were for? He was speechless for a minute.

Say NO to questions they want you to say YES to.

SP: Do you like vacations?
Me: No.
or
SP: Do you like saving money?
Me: No.

Etc, etc, etc. They seem to be thrown when things don't go their way.

I'm running out of room, but do your home work!! If you really want a timeshare check out the secondary market, this forum, Ebay etc. Use travel web sites to book pretend vacations and compare them to costs of owning a timeshare.

Before you go to a presentation, Google "timeshare complaints" or something similar. There is a reason high pressure sales tactics are used to sell timeshares. As far as I'm concerned, these guys are vultures. They choose the job they are in. In their hearts they no know they are selling something that is way over priced to make a hefty commission, and do not care about you after the sale. Do not be afraid to take them on.



We were out in an hour with our Disney tickets. The disgusted look on the salesperson and closer was priceless.

[JWC Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close JWC]

Better yet, don't go to sales presentations.

[chriskre Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close chriskre]

You sound like you go on TS presentations for a living.


You've got it down to a science. That's something to be proud of.

[spudsinidaho Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close spudsinidaho]

John.

Yes, that is great advice, don't go. But, we (2 couples) saved over $400 on Disney tickets. I looked at it like a job, and the pay was $100 for an hours work for each of us. Pretty good money. We did not solicit them, they solicited us. I don't feel sorry for these people. They know they will not close every sale and I told them right up front we would not buy anything and were not interested. I was completely honest with him about our intentions, even telling him upfront we were just here for the discounted tickets. The salesperson makes the decision whether to then invest his time with us. It was a bad investment of an hour for him, good for us. They could have asked us to leave, but of course they never will.

[JWC Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close JWC]

Yes, that is great advice, don't go. But, we (2 couples) saved over $400 on Disney tickets. I looked at it like a job, and the pay was $100 for an hours work for each of us. Pretty good money. We did not solicit them, they solicited us. I don't feel sorry for these people. They know they will not close every sale and I told them right up front we would not buy anything and were not interested. I was completely honest with him about our intentions, even telling him upfront we were just here for the discounted tickets. The salesperson makes the decision whether to then invest his time with us. It was a bad investment of an hour for him, good for us. They could have asked us to leave, but of course they never will.

No gift is worth any of my time doing something that I don't enjoy.

[dougp26364 Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close dougp26364]

It's to easy for a well trained TS salesman to overcome the objection that you want to take the contract to a lawyer. All they have to do is point out the 5 to 10 day right to rescind the contract, which is the regulation built in by FL for those who want to spend more time than than the 1 hour presentation to review.

The only easy way out is to remind them at the END of the alloted time that they're out of time and stand up. Just politely say no and request the promised gift. They'll send another closer over but, you can remain standing if you like and tell them that their time is up and you're ready to leave. Just say no. It's as simple as that. No gamesmanship and no objections that a good salesman can overcome. Just a simple no. Just the word no is a tough objection to overcome.

[T/S Guy Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close T/S Guy]

I have a great idea. Just don't go on the presentation. It is your greed that is bringing you there in the first place. And possibly you are not aware that you might get that salesperson fired. I realize you feel that all timeshare sales people are scum, but at least they are working and very likely need that job to feed their family.

Keep in mind that the developers offer you gifts so that your greed will voluntarily bring you to a presentation. The salesperson's greed is the motivator to get you to buy a timeshare. WHO IS THE BAD GUY IN THIS SCENARIO. Also, who does more lying? The consumer, the salesperson or both? Who attends a presentation all prepared to lie? Consumer, salesperson or both? Again, WHO IS THE BAD GUY? The consumer, the salesperson or both?

[bluka Member Find all posts View Profile Close bluka]

Remember the old saying "buyers are liars, sellers are tellers"

once you spend time on this forum (or any t/s forum out there,) you really dont have to worry about presentations. you end up with enough knowledge to actually have an informed conversation with the sales staff and they soon figure out they cant play you.

As soon as the sales pitch gets to be to much you just tell them" thanks but no thanks " get your gifts and go.

[spudsinidaho Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close spudsinidaho]

Some comments on the replies.

Greed? Really? I had never been to a Timeshare Presentation before our stay in Silver Lake. Our friend offered theirs when she found out we wanted to vacation in Florida. Upon arriving we were told we had to attend a presentation as part of our stay. (I now know that is a bold faced lie.)

Before we went I researched Timeshares and soon discovered a vast multitude of complaints, warnings, horror stories, etc. about these sales presentations. I didn't find any entries about what a great time people had attending. I also found multitudes of complaints about what happens after the sale. I also found what a horrible investment they are if are purchased at these presentations. I researched the secondary market and Ebay to look at their values. My conclusion (opinion) timeshare sales people are scum.

As far as the comment about getting a salesman fired, and this is his job to feed his family etc. Being a pimp is job for some people to! They know they are getting fat commissions based on how much money they can get from their prospects (victims). Its the same as car sales. Are you getting the best price on a timeshare with the first offer? Of course not, they have lots of room to come down in price. Why not pay the sales people a salary? Give the customer a good price, with fair financing up front. Be honest. Give the customer time to make a decision. Let them take the paperwork home to review. Enough with the hard sell. If its a good product, people will buy it on their own.

So for the greed part, they lied up front to us about us a having to attend. They also solicited us and offered us tickets to attend. If given the opportunity in the future I will attend as many as possible for all the free stuff I can get, and then give it away to someone coming in the door so they don't have to go through a sales pitch. It's not about greed, its about doing something to stop these people from preying on other people, so they don't wind up on forums like this complaining and asking questions about something they don't understand.

You may not like what I have to say, because you are already stuck with a bad investment and are still trying to justify it, but maybe someone will read this before they buy and use the information to make an informed decision.

[tonyg Goomba & Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close tonyg]

Remember the old saying "buyers are liars, sellers are tellers"...

Sound like a timeshare salesperson made that one up. I see no need to lie and get down the low level of a timeshare shark. On the rare occasions when I do a presentation, I tell the truth and bring up resales or if applicable rentals (for less than MF). Try selling someone something they can buy for much less or rent cheaper whenever they want to with no further obligation.

[martygeorge79 Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close martygeorge79]

Better yet, don't go to sales presentations.

Especially when you're on vacation!! Time is short as it is and rarely are the gifts worth enduring the gauntlet.

[T/S Guy Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close T/S Guy]

I agree

Martygeorge79, you make perfect sense.

[T/S Guy Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close T/S Guy]

Spuds

Millions of people own timeshare and are very happy. They use their timeshare every year and enjoy their vacations. On the other hand there are only thousands that choose to complain. Some are legitimate complaints and some are from people that like to complain about everything. Unfortunately, you can never make these people happy. They just like to complain. Spuds I think you are one of those people that like to complain.

Additionally, Spuds you should never buy anything (car, timeshare, etc) again. You apparently feel ripped off every time you do buy something from a sales person (scum). Thank God for those sales people, they make business stay in business (at least until the government gets involved) and those businesses create jobs for people like you and your family because their products get sold. Also, if the sales world followed your thoughts on how to sell, nothing would ever be sold, then you would have to find something else to complain about. Lets see, no jobs, huge taxes, no potato sales, and the list can go on and on.

Get a life.

Oh, by the way I wonder if you enjoyed staying at your friends timeshare. Did you pay him/her for the week of vacation or did you mooch it for free.

[wilson22447 Member Find all posts View Profile Close wilson22447]

I will admit to sometimes going for the free stuff in exchange for attending a presentation. My wife has finally put a stop to much of it. My addiction stems from being a poverty-stricken college student many years ago. Poor people have poor ways, etc. She reminds me that I need to get over that. I do respect others who don't want to waste vacation time on these. In my case, however, I spend more time than this sitting on a bench while she goes in and out of the stores at the mall.

Anyway, I have had some learning experiences in the process. First, noone should be surprised at the hard-sell attitude, including bringing in the "closer" for the final deal at the end. Thanks to these experiences plus things I have learned of this forum, I am better informed when I do go to one. I have tried to count how many we have attended--probably 20 or more. I have had only 2 really bad experiences. One who lied to me from the beginning, and the other who also lied from the beginning and got mad when I wouldn't believe it. One the other hand, a few have been almost pleasant. The rest somewhere in the middle. I could say the same thing about car salesman I have dealt with.

These people are skilled at what they do--since they do this every day, I can't outsmart them. I can, however, say NO, and that is the power we have.

[JLB Please excuse me, I'm a Dick. Not a moron just a Dick Find all posts View Profile Close JLB]

Sorry, you lost me in the first paragraph, when you said "(by RCI)".

Since anyone who knew what they were talking about would know that RCI does not give sales presentations, and they use that distinction often to their advantage, I did not read any more, knowing I could not rely on it.
- - - - -

OK, I lied (after the fact) . . . I had to read T/S Guy's comments.

Who is he shilling for?

Himself?

All TS salespeople?

I don't get the abusive treatment angle . . . dangle freebies if front of peeps, then give em $#!+ for accepting them.