Female Friendly car shopping, yes there IS such a thing! :)

Recently I read something in an Internet forum that really got me thinking, a person had posted the question, “would you let your Grandmother got to a car dealership alone?” My first impulse was to vehemently defend the car business as I usually do but after pausing to gather my response, I realized that his question came from a very real opinion that is shared still by many. Now as much as I like to believe that car business HAS progressed by leaps and bounds I do know it hasn’t always been the most female friendly industry. From the beginning of my own career I have always tried treat all my female customers as if they were my own Mom, sister etc and I train my staff to do the same however I work at only one car dealership and there are well over 7,000 car dealers out there. Luckily, there are a growing number of awesome resources for female car shoppers to look to for guidance and information that they can rely on. AskPatty.com was created by Jody DeVere, a Social Media and Car Care specialist to provide automotive education to women consumers, as well as training, ongoing marketing support and education, and certifications to car dealers, independent service locations, tire dealers, collision centers, and other automotive retailers. AskPatty can be followed on Facebook and Twitter also for some great car related info and advise! WomenCertified.com is another great site, the creation of Delia Passi who recognized that male dominated sales needs to understand that their female clientele shops differently than their male counterparts and in addition to assisting female shoppers her site provides sales training for companies wishing to ensure their sales force is at the top of their game and treating each and every one of their customers with the respect and courtesy they deserve. Delia is a leading women’s consumer advocate, author and leading expert on the women consumer and former publisher of Working Mother and Working Woman magazines teamed up with the Wharton School of Business to conduct a groundbreaking gender based retail satisfaction national study. The findings helped  define the standards that every WomenCertified business must maintain to earn the trust and the dollars of today’s female shopper. In case you are wondering, yes I have passed the ‘WomenCertified’ course and am very proud of that! Although the stigma of car buying being not female friendly may be slow to vanish completely the great folks at AskPatty and WomenCertified can be powerful partners and provide the name of a dealer close to you that you can trust!  :)

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