How to Prepare Yourself
Emotionally for Buying a Car
without Getting Taken for a Ride
by www.Sedona.com Going to a dealer to buy a car is one of those American customs that ranks right up there with going to the dentist or cleaning the fired-on gook off of your barbecue grill at the end of the summer. You know you have to, but it can take a good deal of mental “psyching up” to actually do it. In the case of buying a car (or buying any big-ticket item, for that matter) there is the fear that you will get taken advantage of, that you will regret the purchase, or that you will spend a lot of money on the wrong thing. Then there is the haggling. Car dealers, of course, are known for the art of bamboozling and do everything they can to make you spend the most amount of money, so feeling a bit of trepidation is quite normal. What can you do to prepare yourself so that you get the best deal without a lot of needless worry? First, get informed. A quick search of the Internet, according to research by Florian Zettelmeyer, a Haas School of Business marketing professor, can give you the upper hand – and get you a better deal – when buying a car. When searching the Web, look for the invoice price of the car you want and use an online car-buying-referral service. Buyers who did this paid about 1.5 percent less for their car than those who did not check the Internet. "For people who dislike the bargaining process, this is a huge deal, because the information gives them the backbone to ask dealers for a larger discount," Zettelmeyer says. Simply being informed about the vehicle you’re planning to buy can also empower you when you get to the dealer. Have a set price in your mind, which you arrived at via your online research, and stick to it. Keeping Your Emotions on Your Side What do you do if your nerves and emotions seem to get the better of you as soon as you sit down to discuss the details with the car dealer? Let go of them using the scientifically proven Sedona Method. “Any time we are afraid, we are holding in our mind the very thing we are afraid of,” says Hale Dwoskin, CEO and director of training of Sedona Training Associates. “The best thing to do is let go of the expectation of getting taken advantage of and simply be open to what actually is happening now.” It’s simple to let go of your fears with The Sedona Method because you are leading your awareness to what you are feeling in the moment. Once you learn the Method’s series of questions, it will feel like second nature to release anytime you are feeling nervous or unsure. “Then,” Dwoskin continues, “you can access your intuitive knowingness and know when you are being offered a good deal and when you are not.” Because The Sedona Method allows your mind to be open to the experience at hand, without any negative thoughts sabotaging it, you will also naturally know when to say "yes" and when to say "no," Dwoskin says, which takes all of the worry and fear out of the car-buying process.
Source
UC Berkeley News
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