In our modern world of e-commerce, facilitating sales of products should be easy and seamless. A recent auto purchase revealed we aren’t quite there yet and made me wonder how we could break down the barriers to facilitating large transactions to match the ease of making everyday purchases. Providing a positive customer experience results in higher loyalty and return business and is worth the effort, particularly for automobiles and other high ticket items.
Recently I tried purchasing a car with cash thinking it would save both time and money. It turned out to be much more complicated than it should have been. We live in a world where just about everything is instant. Financial transactions consist of a quick swipe or scan and the purchase is approved. Why should buying a car, especially when you have the resources, be that much more difficult? The answer, it shouldn’t be.
Before I went on my quest, I was well prepared. My bank knew I was traveling out of state to purchase a car and had given me a temporary debit card line increase to facilitate my transaction. Now all I had to do was find the right car, pay for it and drive off into the sunset without the hassles of financing and tons of paperwork. I quickly discovered my best laid plans were about to unravel. After a long day of test driving cars, I had found the one and was ready to swipe my card and go. One problem, the dealership would only accept up to $5,000 on a debit card. Considering I did not have the actual cash in my hand it seemed I was out of luck.
My salesman really wanted to help me out and was quick to inform me that I was not the only person this has happened to. If my bank had been in the city I purchased the car, the salesman and I would have gone to the bank together to get a cashier’s check. You heard right. He said he has customers who are millionaires and yet they still have to physically go to the bank with the customer and watch the check being drawn by the teller. Apparently cashier’s checks are one of the most counterfeited items car dealerships have to contend with.
My only option left was to complete the paperwork for a backup contract and wire the money to the dealership’s bank when I got home. The volume of paperwork was much like that required for a home mortgage. I was signing and initialing for more than an hour. My salesman then asked me to give them my favorite rewards card so that I could get the benefits from a $5,000 transaction. That was a good customer service move. The dealership was willing to pay the interchange fee to give me some card perks. I’m sure he could also sense the frustration of what was supposed to be an easy transaction. Finally, I was on my way but the barriers to finalizing my purchase were not over.
Once I arrived at home I contacted my bank to complete the wire transfer. To my surprise they don’t offer that service for my type of account, but suggested a cashier’s check. I had been down this road with the dealership but called them anyway to see if they would make an exception. A few more phone calls and I was in business. The cashier’s check was sent by overnight mail and everyone was happy, but my time and money saving quest had left me puzzled and exasperated.
There has to be a better way to easily facilitate large purchases that don’t leave the buyer or seller at risk. Understandably car dealerships need to protect themselves from fraud and banks need to protect their customers by not leaving large open lines available from their accounts. If not cash, check, debit, credit, wire transfer, or cashier’s check, then what? Have you found a way to manage these large transactions seamlessly? If so, leave a comment. I would love to write about it.