Recently, I embarked on my first-ever lease shopping journey. With a new addition to our family, a toddler keeping us busy, and my full-time job, time and energy were at a premium. In just a span of about two weeks, I went from browsing to signing a deal.
To streamline the process, I hired a freelance virtual assistant (VA) from Fiverr to oversee the majority of lease shopping communications. Opting for a purely digital approach not only maintained a clear record of interactions but also made it far more manageable for the VA. Every interaction with dealerships was all through emails alone. Of course, we still got the barrage of phone calls but I just ignored all of that and reiterated that I could only communicate via email and would not visit the dealership until we were close to a deal.
The VA? It might not have been an absolute necessity, but at just $75, I was keen to try it out. I provided the VA with my expectations, specific preferences, and details I wanted from the dealer before I moved forward with them.
Here’s are a few key points:
Initial Setup: Set up a dedicated Gmail account with shared access for real-time tracking, without the clutter in my main inbox. Also, used Google Voice for a local number, shielding me from countless direct calls (ended up with 44 voicemails!).
Organization: All dealer communications were sorted in folders(labels) within the Gmail account, and quotes were all cataloged into a spreadsheet for straightforward comparisons.
ChatGPT: I created an initial template of a few responses I wanted the VA to utilize at the beginning but encouraged them to use ChatGPT for all other dealer responses, ensuring effective communication.
Cost and Coverage: For $75, the VA agreed to gather 15 quotes in total; 3 car model with 5 quotes each.
This method was a major time-saver for me, especially given my current family situation. While the VA took care of most interactions, I was able to focus my time on reviewing quotes and final negotiations. It was definitely a refreshing twist to traditional car shopping – a true blessing for busy parents! If I were to do this again, I’d probably ensure an even clearer initial briefing to the VA about my exact preferences, just to fine-tune the process.
Ultimately, after a competitive back-and-forth, I landed on a 2023 Kia Niro Wind at $249/month with 2k DAS.
Would I recommend this method to others? Absolutely, especially if you’re stretched for time.
Has anyone else ventured this way? Keen to answer questions and hear your experiences.
Can you explain what you mean about the competitive back and forth? Sounds like you are saying the VA merely got you contact info and you still had to negotiate in the end. Is that correct?
Back in the day I used the Amex plat concierge to call dealers to check actual inventories on specific cars. They stopped doing there types of requests but the internet has also gotten better.
What was your criteria for picking the VA? Did you test his English proficiency (assuming VA was no English speaker) etc ?
Basically, I took the best quote I received and emailed it to all the dealers the VA had previously contacted, inquiring if they could match or beat the offer. In my situation, the decision came down to which dealer was willing to work with US Bank. Three dealers were open to negotiating, so I kept circulating the current best offer to see who could offer a better deal.
In hindsight, I could’ve been more patient. I Ironically got the best offer a day after I signed for my car. This dealer dropped their price to $241/month with 2k DAS, and even threw in a 2-year maintenance package. However, they didn’t have the color I wanted, but I could’ve leveraged this offer for a better deal elsewhere.
What I did was just create a job posting on Fiverr with my list of expectations and let the offers come in. It was a first for me so choosing someone with good reviews was my main criteria. The one I went with had good reviews and a intro video on her page that at least gave the vibe that she was experienced and fluent in English. She was great to work with and picked up on what I was trying to do pretty quickly.
Hi Kervr, I want to replicate what you did (albeit in a different geography; bay area). Would you be open to introducing me to your VA. It will certainly make it go faster. I infact what the same car as well.
I’ve had minimal success with cold emailing. How did you get them to budge away from horrible rates to something at least in the ballpark? You needed that first good deal to negotiate against the rest.
This is what I was thinking as well. Generally the path to the grand prize involves a different strategy than just getting five quotes on the same car.
Wait, y’all are trying to outsource the actual shopping and negotiating a new car lease? Finding cars and figuring out what they should cost and sending a bunch of emails and getting down to a great deal is…well the whole process is my favorite part of the whole process.
I’m shopping right now, and I’ve basically missed two days of work because I get obsessed with my spreadsheet calculators and my Airtable tracking system and whatnot. Could I have done it all in a few hours? Probably. But like I said…I get obsessed.
While I understand that time is money, too, and some folks don’t have the luxury of ignoring other priorities in favor of car shopping, I really look forward to this temporary hobby’s return every few years. I don’t think I would pay someone to do it for me. Am I the weirdo?
Absolutely, and I probably could’ve provided more context about all that in the initial post. I definitely wouldn’t recommend anyone to venture into car shopping without doing their due diligence. Before hiring the VA, I had already invested my time diving into the specifics for the cars on my radar. I provided the VA with all the details and had templates ready with responses to dealers, detailing my specific requirements. The challenge for me was finding the time and patience to continuously communicate with numerous sales associates just to get quotes. This approach allowed me to step back for a bit and re-engage once the offers started rolling in.
This is old news…The new hustle is the “Political method” Just get your kid hired on the board of foreign companies and watch the bank account grow.
This informative video from EnardEcom explains how former colonists are glad to be exploited by Western middle people who take most of the margin for their work, in exchange for the ability to buy some samosas 2 nights in a row. #nowyouknow#itsthenewdropshipping
It’s a fair comment. Just playing devil’s advocate at the end of the day though, the ultimate goal is to get a good deal. The OP has a good deal (at least what I consider as a good deal). Now could I squeeze more of a deal, maybe, maybe not. But if I can get the exact same deal and leverage the work he is done, then I consider it a big win. To the person who posted below who loves spending time understanding how the system works and negotiating, couldn’t agree more, if you like it, then yes please go for it. The goal there is not just getting a good deal, it is the journey of learning how a system works and getting a sense of accomplishment of mastering the system, which I did the last time I leased a car and was happy with the result. Right now, I need a car and I want to do it as fast as possible, hence me reaching out to OP.
Your point is well taken though.
