OEM Stair-Step Programs: Why Dealers Get Aggressive at the End of the Quarter — and Why They Rely on AutoCompanion to Hit Their Volume Goals

If you’ve ever shopped for a car in late March, June, September, or December and suddenly saw discounts that looked nothing like what you saw earlier in the month, you’ve already felt the impact of an OEM stair-step program — even if you didn’t know it.

These programs don’t just influence pricing. They control it.

And the most dramatic swings — the moments when dealers will practically sell a car at break-even — aren’t usually month-end. They happen at the end of a quarter or end of the year when the largest bonuses are on the line.

This is also when dealerships quietly lean on AutoCompanion, because they need volume fast, clean, and guaranteed.

Here’s how it works.

What a Stair-Step Program Actually Is

A stair-step program is a performance bonus system created by the manufacturer. The OEM gives each dealership a sales target they must hit within a specific period. The biggest stair-step incentives are almost always tied to:

• Quarter-end (Q1, Q2, Q3, Q4)

• Year-end (December)

If a dealership hits the target, they unlock massive bonuses — money that often determines whether the quarter ends as a win or a loss.

The bonuses can take different forms:

• A retroactive bonus per unit sold (commonly $1,000–$1,500 per car)

• A large lump-sum bonus ($100K, $150K, sometimes $200K+)

• Tiered “steps” that pay more as you climb

Miss the target by even one car?
They receive nothing.

This creates intense pressure inside dealerships — especially as the quarter closes.

Why Quarter-End and Year-End Are So Extreme

Bigger bonuses = bigger desperation.

Quarterly stair-steps pay far more than month-end bonuses.
Year-end (December) stair-steps are the biggest incentives OEMs issue all year.

Hitting or missing a quarter can change a dealership’s entire financial year.

This is why:

• Discounts get bigger

• Managers take deals they rejected earlier

• Dealers switch from “protect the margin” to “just get the deal done”

• Payments drop overnight

When a store is 4–7 units away from hitting a $150K–$250K quarterly payout, the pricing becomes unusually aggressive.

Why Some Dealers Don’t Participate at All

Stair-steps aren’t guaranteed. Some dealers know their target is simply unattainable.

This happens when:

• The OEM set the goal too high based on last year’s inflated demand

• The dealer lost staff or inventory

• The local market softened

• A big fleet deal didn’t repeat this year

If a dealer knows they won’t hit the target, they completely disengage from aggressive pricing.
No discount.
No negotiation.
No volume push.

This is why two stores 20 miles apart can behave like they’re selling two totally different products.

Why Dealers Turn to AutoCompanion at Quarter-End

The end of the quarter is chaos inside dealerships. General managers are often staring at a target that makes or breaks the next three months.

When the gap is small — five, ten, sometimes even fifteen cars — they need:

• Real buyers

• Deals that close

• No drama

• No back-and-forth

• No time wasted

• And they need it right now

This is exactly where AutoCompanion becomes their secret weapon.

1. AutoCompanion provides actual buyers, not browsers

Quarter-end is no time for:

• Test drives

• People shopping five dealers

• "Just running numbers"

• Emotional buyers who back out

Our users submit inquiries because they are ready to transact.
To a GM staring at a volume gap with 72 hours left, that matters more than the front-end profit.

2. We can produce volume extremely quickly

Quarter-end bonuses create artificial deadlines.
Every hour matters.

Traditional leads take days.
Walk-in traffic is unpredictable.
Internet forms convert slowly.

AutoCompanion can plug several real customers into a dealership within a day — sometimes within hours.

When a dealer needs 8 cars by Saturday night, our volume fills the gap.

3. Our deals are clean and frictionless

Quarter-end deals can’t afford complications.
Stores do not want:

• Trade nightmares

• Add-on battles

• Last-minute payment negotiations

• Contracts kicked back by the bank

• Confusion over rebates or eligibility

Our process is transparent:

• The pricing is structured

• The rebates are accurate

• The buyer knows the payment

• The dealer gets a clean deal

This is why they’d rather take five AutoCompanion deals than chase 25 flaky showroom leads.

4. Our buyers close — they don’t waste time

Nothing is more dangerous to a dealer than counting on a car deal that ends up falling apart at finance.

Our audience is decisive.
They’ve seen the payment.
They know it fits their budget.
They follow through.

At quarter-end, this reliability is worth more to a dealer than any profit on the contract.

5. We help them secure their biggest bonuses of the year

This is the real reason dealers use us:

We help them hit the step.

If a dealer is 6 units away from unlocking a $200,000 year-end bonus, they would rather sell those 6 cars at break-even than miss the step entirely.

AutoCompanion is the fastest way to deliver that final push of volume.

And when the dealer wins — our customers win.
That’s why quarter-end pricing is often some of the most aggressive pricing you’ll ever see.

What This Means for Shoppers

If you buy a car through AutoCompanion at quarter-end, you're benefiting from:

• Dealer incentives the average shopper doesn’t even know exist

• Pricing that temporarily drops because of OEM pressure

• A store that needs your business — right now

• Payments you won’t see outside these specific windows

Dealers don’t advertise these stair-step targets publicly.
Customers never know when a store is one unit away or 12 units away.

But when a store reaches out to us and says, “We need a push,” our users get access to pricing the retail market will never see.

Final Takeaway

OEM stair-step programs are the real engine behind dealership pricing — especially at the end of the quarter or end of the year, when bonuses spike and pressure hits its peak.

Dealers don’t suddenly get generous.
They get strategic.
They need volume, and AutoCompanion gives them a reliable, fast, predictable way to reach their targets before the clock runs out.

This is why our platform consistently delivers some of the strongest deals in the marketplace.