Porsche's climb to the top

Have you ever bought a Porsche? If you have, you can understand why they are the top car company in the world. They just bought VW. In a time when car companies are filing for bankruptcy, and others are on the "dole" for government handouts, Porsche is a company more associated with terms like, "billion dollar profits," and "record-breaking sales."

So what are they doing right?

The biggest thing is the application of the Laws of Power.

Law 8 Make other People come to you – use Bait if Necessary

Law 13 When Asking for Help, Appeal to People’s Self-Interest, Never to their Mercy or Gratitude

Law 26 Keep Your Hands Clean

These are actually similar concepts. The idea is that when you want to trigger a behavior, do it in a positive way, not through complaining.

When you go to turn in your leased Porsche, they don't find every little flaw in the turn-in. A lot of dealers will do that--they bad-mouth the trade. This assaults the buyers' self-esteem, wearing them down until they accept a lowball on the trade.

Porsche takes the opposite approach. They try to make it very easy to get out of your old Porsche and into a better one. They emphasize the advantages of the new car, and basically ignore the old car. Not a single negative word is uttered.

I have found this strategy very useful in my dealings with people. It is so easy to be sidetracked into negativity--with some people, that's the only way they know how to talk. But if you can get people smiling and create a positive environment around you, people will love you. Though some days it can be a real effort to put on a happy face, with the right group of people it can be fun.

The Porsche dealers use this technique to essentially turn you into a Porsche addict, almost like a mafia deal. You know turning in the leased vehicle for another Porsche is ridiculously easy, while turning it in for another type of car would involve all kinds of expenses, repairs, and other inconveniences.

Then they can not only upsell you on features and options, but also they have a nice number to brag about: buyer loyalty.

Think about it--not a single negative word is said, and they get the car shopper to do exactly what they want them to do: forget about every other car out there and follow the path of least resistance to a new Porsche.

The best strategy to win here is to avoid the dealership altogether. Unless, of course, you prefer Porsches...