That one word? “Approved.” It’s costing you deals.
In this short sales coaching clip, Adrian Anania explains that telling subprime customers they are "approved" can unintentionally give them permission to walk away and shop elsewhere. He argues that the word "approved" signals completion of the deal, which reduces the dealer’s control over the remaining steps. Anania recommends replacing the term with "pre‑approved," which conveys that the customer is moving forward but still has steps to complete before final approval. This subtle language shift keeps the dealer in the driver’s seat, encourages the customer to stay engaged, and ultimately protects subprime deal volume. He urges viewers to share this insight with their F&I managers as a quick win for increasing subprime sales.
Chapters
More from Adrian
"What's it gonna take. When can we get you in this?" That's not closing, that's begging.
A high payment customer walks in with a pre-approval from their credit union. Most managers panic
You are the author of your own story. Every deal, every choice in the box is a page you're writing,
Every new manager walks toward the same hole. No real training. No loop. No one watching the deal
You bought the best training program in the country. Six months from now, it won't matter.
Someone drew a fancy graph on a whiteboard, capped the marker, and called that my F&I training.
Most of your PVR is won or lost in the first six minutes, before the customer ever sees the menu.
