When buying a used car in Waco, TX (or anywhere else for that matter), your selection of dealership can make or break your experience. It’s a choice as important as the make and model of the vehicle.
Choose well, and you can expect a smooth ride; choose poorly, and you’ll be encountering proverbial roadblocks every step of the way. The problem is, with so many dealerships vying for your attention, how do you separate the wheat from the chaff?
Short of searching online for BYOT cars for sale in Waco (which is guaranteed to yield a trustworthy result), if you’re anywhere else in the US, you may want to employ a more methodical approach: checking all the green and red flags noted in this guide.
Fortunately, today, you can do it all from your phone or computer – without leaving your home! Let’s explore how!
How to know if a car dealership is reputable?
Today, more than 96% of people do online research before committing to a purchase – and you should be one of them. Web resources and directories are a treasure trove of useful information that you can leverage to your advantage. Granted, this demands some time and effort but, once you go through with it, you’ll have peace of mind knowing that the dealership you chose is trustworthy.
Online reputation
We recommend starting with reputable review sites (e.g. Google Reviews, Yelp!, etc.), as these can give you a “single-glance overview” of the dealership’s reputation:
Green flags:
- Excellent star ratings: 4.3+ stars are generally considered a safe bet, but you can lower the criteria if you don’t mind doing more research.
- Majority positive reviews: Aside from showcasing reputability, reviews can help you familiarize yourself with how the company operates and treats its customers.
- Resolved negative reviews: An excellent indicator that the company cares about its relationships with clients.
Red flags:
- Too-good-to-be-true ratings: 100% 5-star ratings may be an indicator of artificial inflation, warranting some caution.
- Majority negative reviews: Typically means that there’s an underlying problem, especially if many reviews point to the same issue.
- Poorly resolved/unresolved negative reviews: This usually showcases that the dealership lacks customer care and/or responsiveness.
Of course, online reviews and ratings should be taken with a grain of salt. However, if you check multiple sources and compare the results, you will get a pretty good general overview of the situation.
Online presence
Once you’ve narrowed down your choices, it is time to go a bit more in-depth – and there’s no better way to do that than to check the official websites.
Green flags:
- Robust website: A reputable dealership will have a well-designed, responsive, and user-friendly website.
- Information galore: Except for being easy to navigate, the website should be packed with useful info, including services, location(s), and ways to contact the dealership (e.g., phone, mail, web form, etc.).
- Regularly updated inventory: Since this is the #1 reason to visit a dealership website, it should always be up-to-date about the status of its inventory.
Red flags:
- Poorly maintained website: A site that is outdated, difficult to navigate, or riddled with broken links showcases carelessness and lack of professionalism.
- Sparse information: Lack of critical details (as noted above) may indicate lack of transparency and, as such, is a huge warning sign.
- Too many ads: Aside from being incredibly annoying, excessive pop-ups and ad banners usually means that the company prioritizes sales gimmicks over customer experience.
Verifying the info
Tying into the previous point, the most important thing to note here is that all the info found on a company website should be easy to verify. This includes basic details, such as physical address(es) and phone number(s) but, more importantly, the dealership’s certification and affiliations.
The Better Business Bureau (BBB) accreditation and/or National Independent Automobile Dealers Association (NIADA) certification are easy to check and are huge green flags, indicative of the company’s commitment to operating by the book.
In addition, if there are other certifications, such as with a specific manufacturer (e.g., “Toyota certified”, “Ford authorized”), or affiliations, such as Certified Pre-Owned (CPO) Programs, these are all major pluses.
Making contact
At this point, there’s a good chance that you’ll have only a handful of dealerships left on your list. Now, it’s time to contact them and gouge their customer services and professionalism firsthand.
Green flags:
- Responsiveness: Promptly respond to inquiries, regardless of whether you’ve contacted them via phone, mail, web form, or other means.
- Direct: The staff should answer your questions in a clear and concise manner – no beating around the bush.
- Transparency: A reputable dealership won’t hesitate to provide you with critical information, such as vehicle history, pricing, terms of purchase, etc.
- Prioritizing customer experience: Whether a salesperson or customer support, they should be willing to provide guidance without being pushy.
Red flags:
- Lack of responsiveness: Difficulties reaching the dealership or delayed responses to your inquiries suggest disorganization and carelessness.
- Rude, dismissive, or unhelpful staff: Showcases poor company culture, which typically reflects on every other aspect of doing business.
- Lack of transparency: Vague or evasive responses to your questions about pricing, services, policies, or vehicles are a tell-tale sign of shady practices.
- Aggressive sales tactics: Pressuring you to make a hasty or uninformed decision should be your immediate full-stop-no-go sign.
Ultimately, when contacting a dealership, you should trust your instincts. If something feels off or is too good to be true – that’s because it probably is. However, if you were detailed during the first three steps, there’s an excellent chance that this last one will be more about choosing the options that’s the most convenient for you.
Umar Malik