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Hanukkah, Christmas, and New Year Marketing

Whether you believe in “saving the best for last” during the winter holidays or not, there’s no denying that December offers the most opportunity for holiday-themed marketing.

 

OEMs seem to understand that. Just consider all the year-end sales that take over national ad campaigns following Black Friday. However, what can dealers locally do to take advantage of all this positive energy?

 

Bring a festive flair to your outreach

Every December, advertising across the board adopts a holiday-themed aesthetic for a reason: this is the busiest shopping month, and covering your ads with cheery graphics serves to emphasize how important gift-buying is!

 

This entails incorporating artistic images into your display campaigns, promoting pertinent holiday deals through direct mail and focused email, or simply generating interest with a cheap postcard showcasing your staff members’ tacky holiday attire.

 

In fact, statistics support allocating a disproportionately large chunk of your budget to advertising in December, when consumers are more likely to spend time buying. During the holiday season, advertising impressions often increase by 50%, click-through rates by 100%, direct traffic by 1500%, and conversion rates by 60%.1

 

Make a festive impression by being there

The “presence” of your dealership at this point includes both your website and your actual showroom. Both should aesthetically coordinate with the Christmas theme you’ve developed for all of your other ad campaigns.

 

In order to do that, you should decorate your showroom appropriately (and tastefully — don’t let your passion cause you to lose your professionalism). You could also spruce up your website with new banners and original artwork.

 

Making your dealership feel festive also increases customer interaction options, such as offering free holiday cookies in the waiting room or taking pictures of families.

 

In summary, it’s best to create as much family-friendly warmth as you can in a setting where customers could anticipate a drawn-out and possibly stressful shopping experience.

 

Enter their DMs with ease.

Yes, direct mail. During the holidays, consumers are not only more responsive to marketing, but they are also more eager to get letters. Most individuals anxiously check their mailboxes at this time of year in the hopes of finding messages from friends, presents from loved ones, and offers from the brands they adore. No period is ideal for a direct mail campaign. It’s critical to apply skilled targeting, printing, and content strategies because so many other businesses take advantage of sending letters during this period to stand out.

 

Utilize This Chance to Give Back

One of the main advantages of adopting a Christmas theme is that you’re well-positioned to reward all of your devoted consumers while cultivating connections with prospective new ones.

 

For current clients, this can take the shape of entertaining and reasonably priced gifts, social media competitions, and numerous other initiatives intended to both inspire interaction and potentially entice them back into your showroom for some crucial face time.

 

Get engaged in your neighborhood to reach folks who haven’t made a purchase from your dealership yet. You can do this by organizing a toy or food drive, supporting volunteer work at a nursing home or emergency shelter, or by supporting any number of other deserving charitable endeavors.

 

Here, there are two distinct advantages. First off, your efforts will directly help those in need. Second, your efforts will pay off later on since your firm will logically benefit from a more successful community. Second, this is a great opportunity to grow your dealership’s reputation locally and position it as more than just a location to buy and service cars.

 

By doing this, you can demonstrate to potential clients that your business is more than simply another dealership and that it is conducted with the needs of its customers in mind.

 

Leave People Grinning

The end-of-year holidays are a time to honor the greatest qualities in individuals and to look forward with a fresh outlook. You’ll be able to capitalize on special chances and tap into that good spirit if you let your holiday-themed marketing reflect that more than anything else!

You Get What You Sow with Organic Articles

Most of the time, we assume that “organic” means “natural.” Social media is no different in this regard. Organic posts are those whose reach expands on its own as a result of audience interaction rather than through paid promotion. For success, organic posts, and the surroundings they are planted in require care and hydration.

 

Here are our suggestions for making the most of your Facebook organic posts by expanding your fan base and boosting interaction and shares:

 

Examine your accounts.

First things first: start over with a clean slate. It’s time to give yourself a good, honest look in the mirror. It’s likely that the page you built years ago is severely lacking in capabilities because Facebook is constantly expanding and modifying its features.

 

If there is one thing you should get perfect on Facebook, make it your profile photo. On and off of your main page, your profile photo acts as the main visual representation of your company. Here are some queries to consider:

 

Is the size correct? Although Facebook recommends 180 x 180 pixels, a little more resolution is never a bad thing.

Does it reflect your company’s image? Users ought to be able to instantly recognize you from your profile photo.

Can you identify it? Really? even when the comment sections just have the teeny-tiny version? Choose to simplify if you’re utilizing a more complex logo or a lot of text.

 

Cover Photo: Sizing cover photographs feels like a terrible third-grade arithmetic problem, only pixels are used to measure instead of watermelons or apples.

 

“Let’s say that mobile cover photographs are 640 pixels wide and 360 pixels tall, while desktop cover photos are 820 pixels wide by 312 pixels tall. What proportions should our cover image have?

 

The response? The image size should be calculated using the higher of the two values:

820×360

 

Take the lower of the two now to include the crucial elements of your image:

 640×312

 

Cuttable areas will be left with 90 pixels on each side and 24 pixels on the top and bottom.

 

 Business Information: Asking if you’ve recently verified your business information may come out as unneeded and arrogant, but have you? There are a surprisingly large number of blank company pages floating around on Facebook. We’ll just say that you wouldn’t be the only company to have created your page hastily and added some information without giving it any further thought. Verify your contact information, business hours, website details, and descriptions of your products and services.

 

“Our Story”: What is your name? What purpose do you serve in this world? What does your company really stand for? Post your discoveries in the ‘Our Story’ section of your Facebook page once you’ve recovered from your existential crisis. Create brand authenticity while demonstrating to customers what your company is all about. Pro tip: Writing in the first person conveys assurance and familiarity that will appeal to potential followers.

 

Are you interested in finding out more about Facebook Marketing for Dealerships? Get our free eBook now.

 

Reviewing the Rake

Many people who visit your website do so because of the place that many people wish they never visit: internet reviews.

 

The situation for small firms is considerably worse because customers will explore unfamiliar brands more. That might be the reason why 91% of customers say they check online reviews before making a purchase from a local business. Although Facebook Reviews may seem insignificant in comparison to the online review goliaths Google and Yelp, for some customers they are the first impression of your dealership, therefore you need to make the most of them.

 

We are aware that you have no influence over what individuals write about your company online. Even if you adore your customers, some of them can be exceptionally difficult to satisfy. You may, however, choose how you react to them.

 

Best Practices for Facebook Reviews: Leave them turned on. Did you realize that it’s feasible for your company’s Facebook page to lack any reviews? You probably haven’t received reviews over the years if you don’t use your “check in” features. Although it could be tempting to cut them off entirely, you must resist the impulse and continue to send them. Nothing is more shady than a company with no reviews.

adore the couples. Make your happy camper a regular ranger once you have them. It will make potential customers feel more at ease entering your establishment when they read the reviews.

Thank the critics. After all, they took the time to offer you comments. To better comprehend their worries, clarify your own. Then, try your best to put things right. Although we know it would feel great to attack them in your response, it won’t feel as wonderful when it costs you 30 clients.

 

Post Frequently

Any farmer who is even remotely respectable will tell you that consistency is key when it comes to watering their fields. The limit? Your fields start to decay and become damp. Not enough? Your crops wither away, just like your aspirations to become a farmer.

 

Maintaining the appropriate consistency with your social media calendar is similar. We use social media on a daily basis because, whether we like to admit it or not, we are creatures of habit. We need to know what to anticipate. Here are three techniques to maintain consistency on your Facebook page:

 

Choose the amount you can really commit to. Posting twice a day every day is challenging because it takes time to create new content. It won’t be good for your company if you start out strong but burn out after two weeks.

Implement a scheduling service. Platforms like Hootsuite or Facebook company not only let you schedule updates for days, weeks, or even months in advance, but they also offer useful advice on how to manage a successful company page.

Locate your object Finding a weekly schedule is one of the simplest methods to maintain consistency. Whether it’s Cat-of-the-Week Caturdays or Fun Fact Fridays. Find your niche and stay with it. They’ll adore you for it among your following.

In Post Native

One wants to continue using Facebook when they are idly looking through it. Unknown connections with scant details are quite unappealing. Native postings don’t require readers to switch to another page in order to view the content and are solely available on Facebook. The majority of your postings should be original content on your website so that visitors can stop, read it, and go back to scrolling. Native posts may have an 86% larger reach than their link-clicking competitors due to how simple they are to utilize.

Automotive Reviews Gone Wild

We all engage in it. One of the first things we do whenever we decide to purchase a new item or try a new service is to read reviews. We thoroughly research options on social media and review websites until we are satisfied with our decision. This is particularly true when making a significant purchase, such as selecting a new car or the dealership from which to buy it.

The good, the bad, the sad, the hilarious, and the ugly are all revealed in reviews.

We sincerely hope that your reviews don’t resemble the ones we found for actual dealerships. If they do, you must be prepared with a strategy.

Worst salespeople for any type of business, according to 1. They mistreat everyone, even customers, and use profanity in front of children. People should avoid this location because of its negative reputation. Those awful, awful individuals. Talk about being cheap—they charge visitors to use their restrooms.

Amazing vehicle. I have nevertheless participated in a couple police pursuits. Actually, I’m currently being chased by police. Because of the car’s speed, I can stop and leave a review without being discovered.

“This car has damaged my relationships with my family and friends… I’ve lost the ability to tell if people like me or my car… No longer am I loved for who I am. What good are two chairs if you have no friends? If you ask me, the space is worthless.

What are the dealers supposed to do?

Regardless of the reviews that have been left about your dealership, although some dealers have done so, we don’t advise doing so yourself. There are more effective approaches to solve the problem.

Be understanding of the circumstances at hand

Take the conversation offline and get the customer’s contact information.

Once the problem has been resolved, urge them to update their review.

If things start to become strange, don’t be afraid to defend yourself (politely, of course).

They refused to let me in on my 21st birthday since my license was vertical and from another state. A horizontal license cannot be obtained before the age of 21.

“Hi, I’m sorry to learn of your problems. But we deal in exotic premium brands as a car dealer. I’m not sure where you intended to leave the review, but would appreciate it if you will remove it because it lowers our star rating overall. (We strive for five stars!) I wish you the best.

It’s good if any of these reviews made you cringe. It indicates that you are aware of the conversations your present and potential clients are having.

Email Address Provides Device Access

Over the past 25 years, email has been through a long and interesting transformation. From being seen as cutting edge in the early 1990s to being oh-so-passé for the majority of the 2000s, email is now a dependable mode of focused marketing that constantly generates outstanding engagement rates.

 

Email is useful for more than just that, though. Although having verified consumer email addresses is important for any focused, direct, or digital marketing plan, it is even more valuable than one might initially think.

 

The principal cause? Almost everyone you interact with on a daily basis is experiencing it right now, including you. Yes, I’m referring to our phones or, more broadly, smart devices.

 

Since they debuted in the late 2000s, smart devices have practically taken over the world. Now that our phones, tablets, and TVs can all access the internet, a vast majority of those gadgets are linked to an email account.

 

This implies that getting a customer’s email address now also gives you access to their device, rather than just using it to target them afterward.

 

What Can You Get With Device Access?

The importance and power of getting an email account have never been higher. Consider all the digital channels you can use to reach both current and new clients, including search, display, YouTube, Facebook, and others. If you have access to a verified email account, you have advertising access to all of the devices connected to that email address.

 

In other words, the mobile nature of the majority of our smart devices opens the door for you to reach someone whenever and wherever you are. Never undervalue the marketing potential of maintaining a constant presence in a customer’s thoughts.

 

Now, access by itself does not ensure the success of upcoming efforts. When it comes to knowing how to optimize for different channels and platforms, when to push a given message hard and when to scale it back, and what the content of that messaging should even be based on important consumer and demographic information, here is where genuine skill comes into play.

 

These are all crucial elements when putting together any real targeted marketing, but once again, one of the first stages to success is protecting the customer’s email. It opens the door to device access in the always-connected world of today.

 

Keep in mind the significance of your dealership data when determining what kind of messaging will help a particular consumer get closer to making a purchase. Maintaining clean, accurate, and up-to-date client data is essential. This includes having verified email addresses, basic identifying information, and any purchasing history with your dealership.

 

Conclusion

Although email may have firmly occupied its own niche in focused marketing over the past several years, that doesn’t imply it has reached the pinnacle of its value; rather, it provides access to both current and potential customers in a manner that no other single piece of information can. Accept the mentality that all of your client data should be handled with the same level of accuracy and always get the email.

 

When you do this and gain device access, a universe of opportunities will become available for your upcoming campaigns.

Knowing Your Customers Pays Off With Model Shake-Ups Coming

The fresh wave of car models slated for discontinuation in 2023 is the most recent proof that nothing endures forever in the automotive retailing industry.

 

Some of these are merely getting a revamp and a slight rebranding rather than truly disappearing. Others, such as the Volkswagen Touareg and Ford Fiesta, will actually no longer exist and have no similar replacement inside that brand. According to Forbes, 13 different models are actually expected to vanish

 

This occurrence occurs at a time of even greater industry disruption, as major companies like Ford indicate they will completely phase out sedans in response to the explosive growth of crossovers.

 

What does this ongoing lineup change mean for dealers, then?

 

First, you still need to market the available goods, even though manufacturers may be concentrating on the choices they believe are best for them.

 

Second, many customers are forced into a shopping mindset since they simply won’t be able to get the same automobile they had or even a comparable vehicle from the same brand.

 

That presents a chance if you have the expertise to respond to the following crucial question:

 

What will they probably purchase next?

 

Knowing Your Customers Is Important

In order to understand your customers and predict what they will want in the future, you must first understand your current customers.

 

What precisely does smart analysis entail? Predictive analytics, a fancy term for utilizing computers to determine the likelihood of future outcomes based on historical data, would be one example.

 

In other words, the analysis gives you the ability to market proactively by making accurate projections of future customer behavior or wants.

 

How is that analysis carried out? Consider examining similar populations and the activities they took in response to a particular circumstance. Then picture a system that can examine past outcomes that have occurred frequently and provide a probability that the same outcome will occur again in the future.

 

It’s vital to remember that you might receive more precise and unique outcomes from such a system the more specific data you provide.

 

Let’s return to the topic of changing vehicle lineups. You can draw trustworthy conclusions that aid in directing the buyer into their next model by utilizing detailed client data for a predictive analytics method.

 

When you no longer sell the vehicle a customer drives, how do you keep them from defecting? By identifying their underlying wants and behavior patterns based on the available data, you may present them with a solution that makes sense to them and satisfies their needs.

 

When we break down predictive analytics to this level, some of the concepts may seem obvious, but mastering them and putting them into action will set you apart:

 

The available data contains these insights.

It is possible to use the data to draw consistently accurate conclusions about potential future behavior.

It’s crucial to use tried-and-true targeted marketing that is individualized at the individual level in response to actionable insights.

 

The advantage of understanding your clients is this. It’s the only way dealers can reliably keep customers who wish to be devoted to a brand or model but find it difficult due to aging models and shifting lineups.

Tips for the Fixed Ops Department’s Winter Marketing Maintenance

The Christmas and retail seasons occur in the final few months of the year. Vehicle sales at dealerships typically increase significantly during manufacturer-publicized end-of-year sales. However, most market patrons won’t buy again until the spring after this push.

 

Winter and autumn in the service drive should be busy with activity. Customers who don’t intend to purchase a new car get theirs ready for the winter because the cooler temperatures and shifting weather conditions put more wear and tear on their cars.

 

Here are some suggestions to keep your service marketing campaign going for the upcoming season in order to increase service demand at your dealership and to get ready for the sales downturn that follows the holidays.

 

Size up your tread.

When seasonal changes in the market demand start to affect your outcomes, maintain control. To make sure that your investment keeps you on track and generates revenue, regularly review your plan and KPIs.

 

Important Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) to monitor are:

 

digital advertising’ click-through rates from social media, retargeting, and search results

Conversions on your landing pages (services provided, appointment scheduling, etc.)

appointments canceled after receiving online leads

Traffic to a website, including sessions, pages per session, time spent on a page, and bounce rates for different service pages

Traffic from social media and conversions from advertisement material to a unique landing page

Tools for navigating your material for the best user experience

Targeted email campaign delivery, unsubscribe, and click-through rates

leads from click-to-call or toll-free calls generated by printed and digital media

 

Test the Life of Your Battery

In order to avoid running out of steam during the season, regularly review your marketing budget. Your ROI and traffic consistency will be affected by keeping your budget in check and applying it effectively.

 

To make sure your marketing spend is effective, look for the following:

 

Mix

What kinds of advertisements do you run? On websites like YouTube, you may create search ads (also known as SEM, or Search Engine Marketing), display ads, social networking ads, and video ads. Cost per click (CPC), conversions, bounce rate, impressions, and other KPIs can be used to measure them.

material Your material should reflect various levels of awareness and service readiness. This means that you need information for either prospect in your target area who have no service history in your DMS or customers who are familiar with your dealership and may have previously serviced with you.

Keywords Which searches result in the appearance of your adverts, and how much do you spend when that happens? Because you are vying with other dealerships and independent shops to appear in the top results, keywords like “dealership service” and “oil changes near me” will be costly.

However, keywords might also cause your adverts to appear even if they aren’t pertinent to the customer. Your “service” keywords might be connected to searches for a retailer’s customer care number, therefore it’s critical to put up negative keywords to prevent pointless spending.

Timeframe

Do your adverts run when you want them to and for the appropriate period of time? If your ads cease appearing during the day or after a week even though you are certain that your content and keywords are relevant to the proper searches, you may need to reevaluate your budget. A budget that is too little excludes you from the “auction” of the advertisement and keeps potential clients away.

On the other side, if you still have money left over at the end of the campaign, you may be able to diversify your ad mix and move into more aggressive ad formats.

 

Refill your fluids.

Create effective campaigns for discounts and promotions to ensure that you don’t abandon customers on the road. At any point in their service cycle, a well-rounded plan enables you to connect with your consumers wherever they spend their time.

 

How to make your point more clear:

 

For advertisements on social media and video-sharing websites, create visuals and brief videos. (Plus points if you choose to target clients from your pre-selected marketing lists!)

For your present campaigns for make, model, service requirements, and other factors, modify the terms in your search advertisements. Never forget to verify OEM compliance before using any co-op funds!

Run email promotions and include them in articles your clients will be interested in. Make it simple for them to tap or click to claim offers.

 

Pay close attention to your findings and evaluate the performance of each platform as you get ready for the upcoming season. Advertising is dynamic. To keep it operating at peak performance and giving you more lucrative business, it needs continual modifications.

Some Things Simply Don’t Mix: Does Your Marketing Work?

Water with oil. orange juice with toothpaste. alcohol and wise choices. There are some things in life that simply cannot be combined, and there is no point to try. It holds true for your marketing as well. It’s simpler than you might think to come up with a poor match because there are so many distinct components and tactics. Just a few instances are shown below:

 

Long-term outcomes and short-term plans

Operational or tactical marketing are terms frequently used to describe short-term marketing. This kind of marketing is targeted at daily, weekly, or even monthly goals and often gives your dealership “quick wins.” Even though effective short-term marketing is essential, doing so alone won’t produce long-term results.

 

Consider it like this: imagine that you are cultivating a marketing garden. You might just make short-term plans. You might decide to spread a few tomato seeds one day after learning that your audience enjoys tomatoes. You decide to add some cucumbers a week later and some carrots the following week. Once the seeds are sown, you are too preoccupied with your subsequent duty to care for what you have already planted. You may be able to grow a few veggies in your haphazard garden, but it probably won’t yield the substantial crop you were expecting over the long term.

 

The alternative is to design a long-term plan for your garden before you even enter a garden center to purchase seeds. You may be more deliberate with each step of the process if you plant your garden with a specific outcome in mind. The tomatoes, cucumbers, and carrots you will plant in the near future all perfectly complement the blossoming plan you have developed.

 

Consumers of today and conventional marketing

We won’t reiterate the point that “millennials use technology” to you again. However, going beyond conventional marketing calls for much more than just leveraging the internet.  It’s important to consider how you market and the message you convey, not just how many outlets you use to do it. Consumers today seek an honest personal connection. When people purchase the same product from any dealership, they will pick the one with which they connect the best.

 

Here are some of our preferred methods for demonstrating authenticity:

 

Check out your reviews.

Consumers are wary of anyone attempting to sell them anything, which is why traditional marketing doesn’t work as well as it once did. They respect others’ opinions and believe in other consumers’ experiences. In addition to encouraging customers to submit reviews, you should be sure to respond to them.

 

Trade tales

Listen to your customers’ tales as you go beyond reviews. This is more than just their dealership experience; rather, it is what motivated them to make such a significant life choice. Reach out to customers, offer them something of value, and engage in conversation. For the legitimacy of your brand, these tales are priceless. In order to generate excitement for your dealership, post them on your website and social media.

 

Educate

It can be challenging to avoid pursuing the sale right away. But if you take the initiative to inform the customer about how to choose wisely, your brand will be better off in the long term. Giving potential clients access to information that can address their questions will help them develop trust in your dealership before they decide where they want to buy since selecting the perfect car is not a simple undertaking.

 

Various Suppliers and Consistency

For the management of their marketing and online presence, many companies choose to engage with a range of providers. Even if each vendor is an authority in their field, it is impossible for them to all communicate with one another in a way that produces the integrated marketing strategy you require to attract customers. You must ensure that your messaging differs from all the other dealerships customers are hearing from, in addition to matching the messaging of your OEM. Your brand may suffer if the creative components or messaging you utilize in your marketing are inconsistent.

 

If you find yourself in this predicament, our recommendation is to untangle your network’s mess by consolidating vendors where you can, setting up regular communication between your providers, and hiring a lead strategist to oversee all of your marketing initiatives and hold all of your vendors accountable.

 

In conclusion, when your marketing doesn’t work properly together, getting the outcomes you want is nearly impossible.  Putting together the ideal mixture of marketing components that enhance each other’s benefits is a crucial component of any holistic marketing plan.

Is Your Service Reputation Sputtering? It Needs a Tune-Up!

Online reviews resemble a multipoint inspection in that even if everything is good, one red item indicates that improvement is required. Even one negative review that isn’t addressed will deter clients from coming to your otherwise profitable service drive.

 

More than many businesses, dealership service departments suffer from negative online ratings. The average person’s personal budget is threatened by unexpected repair expenditures and the inconvenient nature of automobile maintenance. Because people need your service but don’t actually want you to be there, expectations are high, and there is a chance that they won’t be met.

 

Customers are increasingly turning to social media to get the opinions of their friends, family, and other consumers, which has complicated issues. When users check into a place, browse for locations to go, or search for places to do business, some social media platforms, like Facebook, encourage recommendations and reviews.

 

When deciding which service to use, it’s essential that potential clients have a good first experience. Let’s go over the fundamentals for preserving a positive internet reputation and handling critical reviews.

 

For reviews, quality and number are preferred.

Before deciding whether to visit a business or continue looking, consumers read 10 or more evaluations about it on average (Bright Local, 2019). Customers might not have enough positive social impact to confidently choose your dealership if your service department doesn’t have enough reviews or if the ones it does have aren’t all glowing.

 

Make sure to let clients know at the conclusion of their visit that you respect their business and would appreciate their online reviews in order to increase the number of reviews on your website and other review sites.

 

In order to get feedback, you may also email or text customers a survey after they have received service. This method makes it easier to gauge client satisfaction and identify opportunities for process improvement. What benefits most from proactively asking for feedback? Before an OEM survey is sent out, your dealership can review any unpleasant experiences and feedback. This enables you to rectify misunderstandings or complaints and prevent a worse CSI score.

 

The first step is getting the review, but what you do after that is equally important. 97% of readers of reviews take note of how a company replies online (BrightLocal, 2019). But make sure you answer each review in a suitable manner; failing to do so suggests that you don’t value your customers’ opinions. An identical response should be given to both positive and negative reviews.

 

On the other hand, it is risky to attempt direct problem-solving on a review website. Responses may be misinterpreted and result in a confrontation in front of the public.  Thank reviewers for their input, whether it’s negative or favorable, to defuse situations and leave a positive internet impression. Then, move any ongoing conversations offline.

 

Consider including the following in your responses to reviews:

 

First, “Thank you.”

Customers are taking the time to provide feedback, whether they are providing positive or negative evaluations. Saying “thank you” in response to any feedback, positive or unfavorable, demonstrates your willingness to grow and make up for any errors.

 

2. Individualization.

Use the reviewer’s name, vehicle, the particular service rendered, or any other facts included therein in your response to demonstrate to your clients that you are available to listen to their concerns and engage in dialogue.

 

We apologize if your visit didn’t live up to your expectations.

When someone leaves a poor review, it’s easy to become defensive or angry. Instead, adopt a sympathetic stance and pay attention. A clear area for improvement exists at your dealership if the same complaint is made repeatedly. Customers are put off by persistent complaints in your reviews, yet fixing issues demonstrates your concern for making things right.

 

Please be aware that when expressing regret for an incident, language matters. While empathetic behavior is crucial, you do not necessarily need to acknowledge wrongdoing. Even if you didn’t do anything wrong, saying you’re sorry could be construed as legally admitting guilt.

 

4. Mention their upcoming visit.

The clearest indication that a customer is satisfied is when they frequently purchase their next vehicle from your dealership and return for routine service in between transactions. Tell a customer you can’t wait to see them again if they post a positive review. Ask if you can make it right the next time someone leaves a bad review.

 

Keep in mind that reviews of your service drive may disappear in the dozens of places that social media and forums have spawned. Don’t limit your reactions to Google, Facebook, and Yelp; customers may also post on regional or news articles that mention your company, as well as on other less well-known websites that include comments and user-generated posts. Setting up notifications to notify you of mentions of your name, whether users leave direct comments on your pages, on review websites, or elsewhere, is a great practice.

 

Don’t try to keep every site’s rating at a flawless 5 stars if you don’t have to. Customers are aware that reviews can differ; what is a 4-star experience for one person may only receive a 2-star rating from another. 53% of customers will still think twice before picking a company with less than four stars; for most customers, the number of critical reviews and how you handle them is the most significant factors.

Four Green Ways to Market Your Dealership

It’s a good reminder to look for ways to make our earth a little bit cleaner as we observe Earth Day.

 

Here are four strategies to market your dealership in a more environmentally friendly manner:

 

1. Present your eco-friendly goods and services

In 2021, the majority of automakers will provide at least one environmentally friendly car. By using less or more gas, these vehicles have a less harmful impact on the environment than their conventional counterparts.

 

Customers that value those qualities will explicitly search for them; therefore, you need to make sure they are noticeable in your inventory.

 

Some ways to draw attention to your environmentally friendly vehicles are:

 

Advertise exactly what is on your property with current inventory ads for display advertising. These display ads have the potential to reach more than 90% of internet users, guaranteeing that your inventory is presented to the appropriate customer at the appropriate time, in the appropriate location, and in accordance with the customer’s shopping habits.

Did you know that 71% of used car buyers wind up buying the car they had originally planned to buy? These search ads are distinctive for each car on your lot and are tailored to include information about the make, model, price, and mileage of each car. Additionally, they connect customers to your vehicle detail pages for a simple experience.

Automotive Inventory Ads (AIA) on Facebook send your available inventory from your DMS directly to Facebook. It structures the specifics of each vehicle to adhere to Facebook’s technical requirements, automatically creates distinctive ads for each vehicle, and drives them to the pages detailing the vehicle in question, lead forms, or the next step in the purchasing process.

2. Think locally.

You must get engaged in your community if you want your dealership to become well-known in your area. In addition to having a beneficial effect on individuals around you, volunteering or making a donation to a local cause is a terrific way to garner attention. People in your community will already have your dealership’s name in the back of their minds when they are prepared to buy their next vehicle.

 

Although every municipality is unique, some suggestions for giving back are:

 

Recycling collection at your dealership

Sponsor a section of the neighborhood garden.

Collect some workers and their families to help clean up garbage or plant trees in a nearby park.

3. Online banner placement

In addition to consuming a lot of resources (the average billboard uses 48 or 96 sheets of posters), physical banners and billboards are frequently unsuccessful.

 

It’s no secret that during the past year, fewer people have driven their cars. Those billboards aren’t as noticeable as they once were. Additionally, it is advised to limit those banners to 10 words or less, as anyone who reads them is likely to be perplexed as to what to do next even if they do pay attention.

 

On the other hand, people are massively increasing the amount of time they spend online. You may target people who are most likely to make purchases with banner advertisements in addition to being present where consumers spend their time.

 

4. Incorporate Greenery

People respond strongly to their surroundings. It can affect how we feel and act. Because of this, consumers are prepared to spend extra for cute boutique experiences, and many fast-food establishments use hues like red and yellow to pique customers’ appetites.

 

This also holds true for your dealership.

 

Customers will be less defensive and easier to persuade if they feel peaceful and at ease in their surroundings.

 

Using plants is one of the simplest methods to accomplish this. Plants can stage your vehicles, help cool down warm showrooms, and improve the ambiance of your interior.  They make consumers believe they are receiving a better shopping experience while also promoting environmental sustainability.

 

Our world is truly beautiful. Despite all that we put it through, it continues to give us everything we need, including food, air, and shelter. Wendell Berry, a novelist, famously remarked, “The Earth is what we all have in common.”

Is Your Service Department Ready for Modern Search Techniques?

You are almost invisible if you are not found first in a search. This is particularly true for organic content, such as blogs, social media postings, and site pages, which are backed by an optimized and pertinent approach rather than by the money you spend on advertising.

Every modern business needs to focus on search engine optimization (SEO) and social media, but dealership service departments can have a particularly big impact by developing and promoting this soft content.

Only if you can mark each optimized method off the list below will you be able to guarantee that your dealership service department appears when buyers begin looking.

Maps, reviews, and the Knowledge Panel for Google My Business

When you Google “your dealership,” you will see:

Do you have a separate company listing for your service department on Google Maps?

Are the actual service address and phone number listed? What about the proper operating hours?

Have you routinely answered comments or inquiries made online?

Do you have images of your service department on display, along with URLs to your service website?

Why it’s important

Verifying your company with Google and the public

The data you enter into Google My Business appears in the “Knowledge Panel” of search results, along with connections to your website, maps, and other information. Since this listing appears prominently in almost all searches for your dealership, maintaining it consistently is crucial.

Google began automatically separating dealership service divisions into their own business “pin” on Google Maps a few years ago. Incorrect information may be provided for unclaimed firms, which could harm how people perceive your department.

If you’re unsure whether you’ve already claimed the listing, look up your dealership name in Google Maps and look for a distinct company pin on your service drive. If it isn’t claimed, a claim option for the company will be presented. Here’s how to manually split your parts and service departments in Google Maps if it doesn’t already do so.

establishing the foundation for your business partnership

Along with popular postings and your comments, the Knowledge Panel will also gather your overall star ratings from Google and other review sites like Facebook and Yelp. In order for customers to know what to expect from your business, it also has a Q&A area where they can inquire and get answers about your services, holiday hours, policies at your dealership, and more.

Content Promotion

Do you have any service-specific blog posts, such as seasonal maintenance advice, explanation videos, and other content?

Do you write your content with particular consumer searches in mind?

Are your website’s content and schema.org data optimized to appear in featured snippets, which are panels of data that Google has identified as particularly pertinent to a search query?

Do you use social media as part of broader initiatives to advertise your services?

Are links, language, and content tailored to user intent and engagement in each social media post that is hosted natively within each channel?

Why it’s important

Developing trust to meet the demands of your consumers

A content marketing approach focuses on providing relevant and educational content via blogs, social media, and newsletters. Since your customers can interact with you directly and gain knowledge from your content, this technique fosters trust between you and your audience.

Your overall marketing approach will greatly benefit from this content, especially in terms of SEO. In order to choose which websites to display with each Google search, Google’s algorithms and bots continuously scan websites for relevant, helpful material.

Bots are more likely to find and display your social media profiles in response to searches when your social media is optimized for each channel. The user experience (UX) within applications is another benefit of optimizing your content since it increases engagement and conversions.

The most crucial point to emphasize on this list is to always keep your clients in mind when creating listings, blog posts, and web pages. Think about what they could be looking for and the simplest method to provide them with the knowledge they require to make decisions.

The majority of vehicle owners will put off service at some point or another, so when they do start exploring, be there as a reliable and supportive resource.

The Merchant of Oz: Don’t Hide Behind the Information Curtain

Purchasing a car from a dealership is comparable to Dorothy’s journey through the Land of Oz.

 

When left to their own devices, customers travel a path to purchase that is paved with advice, suggestions, and barriers. At the end of the journey, they discover that the dealership is unable to assist them in the manner they had anticipated due to inaccurate information about the products, clients, or services.

 

Although data inaccuracy is a problem that affects many organizations, dealerships are lagging behind as other industries evolve to meet consumer expectations.

 

Here are several companies that have used data to enhance the customer experience, along with some advice on how to catch up.

 

Take the customer’s lead

Without having to speak to a salesman, clients can easily shop from home and discover whatever they need thanks to online commerce. Customers actually speak with other consumers to gain a frank opinion about things, thanks to reviews and social media.

 

Amazon responded to this trend by providing all the information a customer may need on a single page, including user reviews, prices and promotions, product specifications and photographs, and more. Customers don’t have to leave the website to learn about the product because all of this information is available upfront.

 

Customers’ expectations for pertinent marketing have also been set by Amazon. Based on a customer’s search history and “cart,” they proactively propose what other products they think they might want.

 

Today’s consumers demand these experiences from every company they interact with.

 

How it pertains to you: Ensure that the customer and vehicle information in your dealership’s DMS and CRM is updated on a regular basis. Your ads must accurately depict the vehicles that buyers will see on the lot when they search for vehicle details and availability.

 

Allowing users to register for an account or establish profiles on your website will also help them have a more personalized experience. They can trust your brand more if you suggest preferred cars or services and present deals that mirror the messaging they have already heard from you through email or other advertising.

 

Fear Not the Data Forest

Customers spend a lot of time online, which enables firms to record transactional information and behavioral patterns. The manner in which businesses engage with their clients becomes more pertinent when they correctly utilize all of this data.

 

Target provided a startling example of how businesses exploit data. The analytics team at Target was tasked with making prenatal predictions before the birth would be recorded in national registries. Soon after, before the girl could inform her parents, Target successfully anticipated a teen’s pregnancy based on her shopping patterns and sent her relevant marketing.

 

In order to identify customers based on typical purchasing behaviors, Target learned to recognize consumer trends connected to life decisions and changes. More factors than any individual could take into account when developing a marketing plan are taken into account by predictive analytics to analyze customer and market trends.

 

Advertising that is placed at the proper moment guides consumers in the right direction when businesses can foresee what customers will do before they begin looking.

 

How it applies to you: Predictive marketing, when done correctly, enables you to better understand the needs of your clients, whether they’re getting ready to buy a new automobile or need service. You may interrupt buying cycles and bring customers back into the market before they might otherwise contemplate making a purchase by knowing what other clients just like them have done in the past.

 

Adjust your marketing plan as you gain knowledge of your industry and the areas where your competitors are succeeding in order to keep the sales and service customers in your database while attracting new consumers who are likely to make purchases.

 

They’re heading to the dealer now.

Online engagement is declining for the average business, and conversion rates are much lower—around 3%. How, then, do businesses like Walmart have online conversion rates of over 40%?

 

We won’t deny the obvious: Walmart is a retail behemoth that provides almost every good at a competitive price. Less overtly, they were early adopters of the value of mobile-first websites as a tool to enhance the user experience.

 

The actual Walmart store is excellent at facilitating the shift of customers from online to in-store. Customers can select and save their primary store on their website so they can search for the most recent inventory across all departments. Customers can find precise directions to a store’s in-store locations on the product pages if they choose to visit one.

 

This user experience from online to in-store demonstrates that Walmart conducted market research on consumer trends.

 

On their phones, customers search differently than they do on a desktop. It’s critical to keep in mind that Google looks for mobile-friendly websites when displaying search and ad results. Modern customer uses their phone while shopping to seek stock, discounts, and rival offers.

 

How it affects you: With online vehicle sales being made possible by businesses like Carvana and Vroom, traditional dealerships must work harder to keep clients interested and persuade them to fill out a contact form or schedule a test drive. More online shoppers can be found and converted with the use of pre-populated lead forms for recurring customers, on-site lead incentives, and content developed to satisfy both consumer and search engine needs.

 

Customers typically visit 1-2 dealerships; therefore, your ability to attract them to your business over that of your rivals depends on the products and services you offer, how you market them, and how well you satisfy their online demands.

 

Open the Blinds at Your Dealership

Make sure your dealership is on the clients’ yellow brick road when they begin looking for a new car. Here are some pointers:

 

With a specific audience in mind, create digital advertising campaigns and website content. Ask yourself, “What customer needs does my dealership, franchise, or inventory solve?” and then develop your personalized content to meet those needs.

The content of targeted communications must be appropriate for each recipient. Revenue increases by 760% on average as a result of segmented advertising. You need to do more than just send out general email campaigns, regardless of whether your target is by last service date, expected vehicle mileage, predicted purchase need, or another criterion.

Keep up with the evolving needs of your target market. Keep track of customers’ car ownership, present and future demands, and interactions with your dealership’s marketing, regardless of when they last visited.

 

Keep your advertising efforts consistent with your brand and your present offers, regardless of the marketing services you employ to communicate with your customers. When you demonstrate to customers that you can fulfill their needs throughout the purchasing process, they leave saying, “There’s no place like your dealership.”

Where Vendors Fit in the Three Tiers of Automotive Advertising

Have you heard the phrase, “Work smarter, not harder?” It’s likely that you have encountered teenagers who don’t particularly enjoy working. They do have a point, however lazy it may sound.

 

The management of a dealership can be a busy endeavor. You can be losing money for your dealership by failing to coordinate the three tiers of automobile advertising among all of this commotion.

 

Keep in mind that each level of your advertising speaks to a different audience and has a distinct function. But without coordination between levels, there’s a chance that your own advertising campaigns would compete with one another or send out competing messages. Here, it is beneficial to “work smarter.”

 

Before we do that, let’s quickly review the three types of car advertising and how they are different from one another.

 

At the national level, OEM advertising is dealt with on a large scale, and campaigns and activities aimed at raising brand awareness are promoted. Although this tier rarely directly involves dealers, it undoubtedly influences local dealer advertising through OEM compliance and messaging alignment in its ads.

The regional level deals with marketing intended to support national advertisements while promoting local dealers by offering bargains that are only accessible at certain dealerships nearby. This tier can be the most difficult to negotiate in many respects since OEM and individual dealer concerns collide on issues like ad content and finance.

Dealership-specific brand awareness, activities, and campaigns are promoted at the local level. In order to encourage part sales and vehicle servicing, this advertising is directed both at consumers who are currently in the market and at your dealership’s current client base.

 

It can be tough to strike a balance between national efforts and local ones in terms of tone and content, and securing OEM support for funding at the regional and local levels frequently necessitates dealers taking advantage of complex co-op schemes. In other words, the difficulties can arise suddenly.

 

This is why having a dependable advertising partner who adds value to your business enables you to “work smarter” and concentrate on your strengths is beneficial.

 

What Value Vendors Add

It might be challenging to strike a balance between an OEM marketing program intended to create brand loyalty and a marketing strategy tailored to your needs. In order to maintain compliance and co-op funding, adhering too strictly to OEM marketing guidelines might actually harm your local business by eroding the reputation of each dealership.

 

At that point, collaborating with an informed vendor can assist you in marketing your dealership’s objectives. Of course, you can’t fully disregard the manufacturer’s instructions or regulations, but a skilled vendor can assist in striking a compromise.

 

The main advantage of working with the appropriate vendor, of course, is that you may increase the potential impact of your advertising while lowering the possible cost, making your organization more profitable overall.

 

The secondary advantage is that you can utilize the extra time and resources on jobs that are more immediately profitable, like selling automobiles and services, because you won’t have to spend them on managing the technicalities.

 

Utilize the resources that are at your disposal. Maximizing your dealership’s productivity and reducing stress on your store are both achieved by leaving the technical details to the professionals. Of course, it’s only wise if you hire a vendor who has already shown they can perform this duty.

 

So, take a cue from those “lazy” adolescents and locate a vendor who can handle your car marketing strategy while maintaining OEM compliance. They should also be able to personalize it to the local level. “Working smarter, not harder” no longer strikes me as being lazy.

Black Friday, Cyber Monday, Thanksgiving: Holiday Marketing

Many of us have been preparing our Christmas marketing strategies since spring, and fall is in the air. It’s not too late if your dealership hasn’t yet. Black Friday is solely about finding a good deal, unlike Thanksgiving, which may be about growing your client base by demonstrating thankfulness and family values. Your dealership needs to be prepared to make that transition the moment the clock strikes midnight (or, to be honest, more like 6 pm). Here are three simple Christmas marketing suggestions:

Eat up Mobile

Do any of these Thanksgiving-related situations ring a bell?

Your children or grandchildren persuade you to watch the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade first thing in the morning so they can see the “big kitty balloon.” for the entire three hours.

Your strange uncle corners you and forces you to spend an hour listening to him talk about his one-man band.

You overindulge in mashed potatoes and end up spending the entire afternoon curled up on the couch.

What features do these instances share? You’re most likely using your phone during each one.

The majority of us spend Thanksgiving day slacking off. To say nothing of driving yourself to the store when you don’t have to is beyond your current level of energy. Families congregate in one area without using their desktop computers. Thanksgiving is the busiest day of the year for mobile shopping because of this. Even in the automobile sector, mobile devices were used for 49% of orders for parts, accessories, and services in 2021.¹

Run adaptable ad campaigns, develop a mobile-friendly website, and enhance local search results to provide customers with an exceptional mobile experience.

Gratitude and Raising in Status

Your dealership has a delicate side, just like your family’s special turkey dish. The holidays are the ideal time to display it. Giving back to your community can increase local buzz, your online reputation through backlinks, your social media following, and your SEO. Here are a few of our preferred suggestions:

Giveaways through Raffle: On these occasions, raffle tickets are offered for sale with the chance to win amazing prizes. The ultimate prize is frequently a brand-new car or maintenance package provided by the neighborhood dealership. It’s a fantastic way to collect money for the neighborhood and promote your business to thousands of people.

Donate your skills It’s admirable to volunteer in any capacity, but rather than having your master technologists spend hours washing dishes at a soup kitchen, create a method for them to use their expertise to help others in a way only they can. That can entail providing basic repair instruction at the community center or performing winter upkeep in low-income neighborhoods.

Obtain Donations: Collecting donations is a great way to draw customers into your dealership, whether they are for food, winter clothing, or toys for families who can’t afford to buy presents for the holidays. To entice them, think about offering a discount on oil changes in exchange for any donation.

Please remove the digital ads.

Thanksgiving, Black Friday, and Cyber Monday are now grouped together as “Cyber Week” by many companies. Buyers are more susceptible to being persuaded to make purchases at this time. Digital advertisements are also more aggressive than ever since more and more people conduct their purchasing online. To give your message a chance during this time, it’s critical to increase your ad spending.

According to 2021 research by cars.com, 74% of consumers who were actively looking for a car on Black Friday wanted to make significant savings of up to $5,000 on a brand-new automobile.² You should concentrate your advertising on the weekend promotions for these customers.

Some consumers are interested in the concept of buying a car but aren’t ready to put the effort into visiting the showroom just yet. Run advertisements urging consumers to reserve a test drive for later.

In order to justify their spending during Cyber Week, consumers like to mix in a few responsible purchases. The solution might be found in a winter maintenance package, so don’t forget about your service department.

We hope your Christmas marketing, whichever you choose to do, is a success! On Facebook, tell us about your Cyber Week marketing campaigns.

Boost Dealership Sales: Recognize Your Service Users

Customers now connect with your dealership in a significantly different way than they did 20 years ago. Your clients used to take their kids into the dealership had little knowledge of the models on your lot, and came to see you because they had previously made a purchase from you or because they lived close by. They anticipated telling their salesperson what they were looking for.

 

Customers increasingly anticipate you to anticipate their needs.

 

It is challenging to anticipate needs when the typical vehicle owner waits 6 years between purchases. What they’ll look for next will depend on a number of factors:

 

Schooling/training

employment situation and pay

Relocation

relational status

changing the number of kids living there

 

Every aspect concerning every customer is impossible to know. However, market information, consumer trends, and demographic groups might provide you with the information you need to get close. You can clearly see which clients are most likely to make a purchase when you combine that data with your DMS data. The data suggests an offer based on customer requirements and trends by comparing your customer to other people who are similar to them.

 

What is the best application for that information?  Your auxiliary drive.  When you ask service customers about their present needs, especially when you know there is a good chance they will make a purchase, you may swiftly turn them into sales leads.

 

Every profit center in the dealership benefits from a successful service to sale:

 

High-quality trade-ins for resale on the lot or at auction in the used vehicle department

To replace stale inventory and fulfill OEM incentives, the new sales department is selling vehicles.

Finance & Insurance Division: Additional insurance coverage or warranties

Internal ROs and a greater possibility of continuing service: Parts and Service Department

 

You have a better chance of closing the deal if you can approach a potential customer before they begin looking. You may create the ideal strategy by fusing predictive analytics with your customer data.

 

Utilize Remarketing to Attract Your “Hot Potatoes”

As a child, did you ever play hot potato? It’s difficult to forget the anxiety of repeatedly throwing the object while PRAYING it wouldn’t be in your hands when the music stopped. But what if we told you that you were completely mistaken and that you ought to go for that potato till it is yours instead?

 

The leads that have already engaged with you at your dealership are the hottest. Catch them with a remarketing effort to take control of the transaction rather than letting them move on to the next dealership.

 

Remarketing is characterized as a type of online marketing that targets customers based on their prior behavior.

 

There are various ways to carry out a remarketing campaign, however, the following are some of our top recommendations tailored to auto dealers:

In 2021, it is anticipated that we will watch online videos for 100 minutes each day on average. You can and should retarget them if you manage to capture their interest within that period, even if it is only fleeting. The world may learn about your company and its story through video, and once they are familiar with you, you can pounce on them with advertisements that will pique their interest in what you have to offer.

 

You can segment YouTube content using the following criteria:

 

viewed a channel’s videos in any order.

watched a few videos.

watched any video (as an advertisement) on a channel.

watched some commercial video content.

Visits, subscriptions, likes, playlist additions, and shares of channels.

 

You can group users on Facebook using the following criteria:

 

spent at least 3, 10, or 15 seconds watching a video.

at least 25%, 50%, 75%, or 95% of your video was watched.

 

Greater: Upsell current clients

Those who have already given you money are frequently your best audience for bringing in more.

 

Purchasing a car can be financially scary for many. They won’t accept any additional features or packages you offer them because of this. But when they get over their first surprise and spend some time in their new car, they are frequently more receptive to your upsells.

 

For this type of remarketing to work, your client data must be organized and kept in good condition. You can enter any client data you have, including their name, email address, and phone number, into the advertising platform of your choice. In general, if they can locate that individual in their system, they will feed them digital adverts during their time online, however the details needed and the technological capability differ by platform.

 

When upselling, you should design an advertising campaign based on how long it has been since the customer bought their car. Do you want to advertise accessories? Consider delaying till a few months have passed since their purchase. Do you wish to advertise a maintenance package? Target customers that made purchases from you a year or two ago.

 

The newest trend is inventory-based remarketing.

Your hottest leads are those who have visited a vehicle page on your website. They are prepared to buy after conducting their due diligence. Avoid making them “the one who got away.”

 

You may follow them through the rest of their car-buying investigation by using dynamic-style adverts. Bring up the vehicle they looked at and offer comparable cars that could be of interest. This style of advertisement can be highly thorough, giving all the information a potential buyer needs to know about a car.

 

Conclusion

Stop throwing away your best leads. Because behavior defines us as individuals, behavioral marketing may be exactly what you need to attract your target markets. Take a look at these sites to find out more about behavioral marketing.

Will SEO Still Be Important in 2023?

Although the memes suggest that time may have lost all significance for many of us recently, many businesses are already starting to think about their marketing plans and budgets for the upcoming year. Is search engine optimization (SEO) still important? It seems like we cannot get beyond the start of a new year without hearing this query.

 

Many people in our field have grown so accustomed to the idea that cutting-edge new technology will eventually replace what we already knew and loved that they believe SEO will soon go a similar course. Big drops in organic traffic, ongoing Google algorithm updates, and significant changes to the search results page all seem to be pointing in the same direction for them.

 

Although such a sentiment is understandable, it is also incorrect. In actuality, SEO remains a crucial financial commitment for your business. What has changed is the best way to carry out an efficient SEO plan.

 

The three foundations of creating a strong online presence are still content, keywords, and mobile optimization, but you can’t stop there. Keep up with the latest developments in technology and let your plan develop naturally to make SEO work for you in 2023.

 

Zero-click Searches and Featured Snippets

Among the above-mentioned modifications to search results pages, highlighted snippets are by far the most crucial for SEO. Although featured snippets have been around for a while, neither marketers nor dealers can effectively utilize them. Whether or not you are familiar with the term, highlighted snippets are the succinct, straight responses Google offers at the top or close to it of a search results page.

 

Google automatically selects the “best” response to a particular query from a third-party website and displays it, frequently along with an appropriate image. By the way, the relevancy of the content and the quality of the keywords are what matter most when optimizing for featured snippets.

 

There are now two significant ramifications of featured snippets. The first is that you might profit from securing that position and the associated exposure. On the search results page, featured snippets steal, on average, 8.6% of clicks away from the organic search result that is ranked number one.

 

Additionally, there are intangible advantages: By responding to question-type searches, featured snippets are also naturally geared for voice search and establish you as a respected expert in your field.

 

However, there is a downside to optimizing for featured snippets. You might actually lose out on clicks overall if your page were featured even though it would have otherwise ranked #1. This is due to the fact that the organic search result that ranks first in the search results still receives the most clicks (and Google won’t display your organic listing on the same page as your featured snippet; it will be moved to page 2 of search results).

 

The second implication relates to what are known as zero-click searches, which were the original purpose of featured snippets: Google responding to user inquiries without requiring users to click through to the content. This facilitates Google searches and places Google as the user’s final stop along their path rather than your website.

 

Obviously, Google’s decision to make it more difficult for consumers to click through hurts your website traffic, but you can fix this with a clever SEO plan. Observe the following two facts:

 

In the beginning, users who get their questions answered in a featured snippet are somewhat less likely to convert. Why? Considering that they were probably seeking a simple answer, like an address or phone number.

Second, review which of your terms are reliably generating clicks. To ensure that your organic search listing is as relevant as possible in the event that the featured snippet is unable to answer the user’s query, optimize for those.

 

As a result, featured snippet optimization must be purposeful, narrowly focused, and integrated into your whole marketing plan.

 

Don’t just focus on local packs while optimizing.

Local packs have been around for a while, much like featured snippets, and whether you know their name or not, you’d recognize one if you saw it. Consider the last time you performed a local online search for certain products or services in your neighborhood, and three nearby companies in that industry appeared at the top of the results page, likely with a map indicating their locations. It’s a neighborhood pack.

 

For local search, optimizing for local packs is crucial. Simply establish pages for both Bing Places and Google My Business to do this.

 

You can’t, however, end there. People continue to visit your website when they need more specific information than just an address, phone number, or operating hours. When that happens, tried-and-true SEO tactics like high-quality content, mobile optimization, and reliable backlinks all start to make sense once more.

 

The short version of the 2023 strategy for local search is to adapt and optimize for new advancements but don’t let the established methods go, either.

 

Managing the Algorithm (Yes, BERT is Back)

BERT, the Google algorithm update that continuously improves the engine’s understanding of user query intent with a focus on context, caused a public outrage only a few months ago. From dismissiveness to complete terror, BERT-inspired reactions and hot takes can be found everywhere (for what it’s worth, we also voiced our opinion).

 

Search engines are placing more focus on matching user query intent than just particular words as we move forward.

 

In other words, search engines will penalize content that answers the fundamental query behind a search, while content that relies on keyword stuffing and lacks a clear focus or structure will find it increasingly difficult to rank on results pages.

 

Consequently, dealing with search algorithms just requires reinforcing tried-and-true best practices rather than changing how you approach SEO. Instead of destroying the entire system, think of it as search engines cleaning out useless content.

 

SEO is not going away or becoming obsolete in 2023; on the contrary, it is now more important than ever for your total digital marketing plan. Your strategy will evolve alongside it if you let the professionals assist you in developing and implementing one that takes into consideration new and emerging trends.

Set Up Service Advisors and Techs for Successful Upselling

It would be an understatement to say that dealership service facilities are busy locations. According to the NADA (2019), the typical dealership issues 1,556 repair orders per month, or 18,676 per year.

 

 

Yes, a sizable portion of those ROs will be for maintenance that is competitive, such tire rotations and oil changes. However, if your technicians and advisers are collaborating to find and suggest extra work, your RO hours and profit per customer rise quickly.

 

 

What happens next if your clients reject those suggestions?

Owning a car already comes with a lot of fees, including monthly loan payments, gas and travel expenses, and routine maintenance. You can easily understand why many Americans put off automobile service for weeks or even months when you include in unforeseen repairs. The majority of owners just do not have the financial means to accept advice when the advisor first suggests the task. They might need to consult with partners, review their budgets, or give some repairs more priority than others.

 

 

Will you ever see the customer again if they choose to depart the dealership without finishing the additional work?

 

 

According to your procedures. Service representatives frequently have trouble persuading consumers to return. Perhaps the advisors are simply too busy with their other duties to call or email every customer with the pertinent advice. Or perhaps the customer’s “no” they’ve already heard in the drive has convinced them not to call because they felt they were being “sold to” and the repair isn’t actually essential.

 

 

You might be able to persuade consumers to return if you have an effective method for following up with them after their visit to remind them of your advice after consulting their family or their budget.

 

 

Some of the most lucrative upsells are those for auto maintenance. If you can’t bring in new clients for this service, you’re losing out on a significant profit margin.

 

 

Regaining the business

Your technicians have already identified the required fixes. Your clients have received these recommendations from your advisors. When the customer leaves the drive without finishing the work, the dialogue shouldn’t cease.

 

 

Ensure the success of your service advisers when they follow up with clients:

 

In order for any communication with your consumers to really reach them, update your customer database frequently with the accurate car and owner information.

Create customized messages to remind your customers of the precise services they require. General messaging gets missed and will persuade them that you’re only after an unnecessary upsell.

Customers should be reminded on a regular basis to ensure that those who must save money or frequently postpone service don’t forget. They’re less likely to price-shop elsewhere if you combine it with incentives like free or discounted services.

Automate these procedures to promote consistency in follow-up and free up your advisers’ time for other duties.

 

Techs are incentivized to continue recommending work, and advisers are driven to keep speaking with consumers when upsells and follow-ups are successfully executed. Employee work satisfaction increases as a result, and your dealership becomes more profitable.

Why Dealers Should Care About Click Fraud

Running advertising campaigns on a daily basis can be difficult and time-consuming. You are concerned about the efficacy of your messaging, the accuracy of your audience targeting, the potential ROI, and other factors.

 

 

Black hat shenanigans are the last thing anyone wants to deal with in a situation like this, but regrettably no industry is immune to fraud. In fact, behind the drug trade, ad fraud is now the second-largest global organized criminal operation, and by 2025, it is predicted to cost advertisers more than $50 billion worldwide.1

 

 

Who is the worst offender? fake clicks.

 

 

How does click fraud work?

The term “click fraud” refers to illegal conduct that targets your Pay-Per-Click (PPC) marketing advertising. If you need a reminder, PPC refers to advertisements that you pay for each time they are clicked and are often displayed on major search engines or ad networks. They are effective when used in addition to other methods of increasing organic website traffic.

 

 

Falsely inflating the number of clicks on an advertisement is known as “click fraud,” and it typically happens in one of two ways: either your rivals sabotage you by repeatedly clicking to raise your cost-per-click and waste your ad budget, or the owner of the website or app where your advertisement is displayed is trying to artificially inflate their own revenue.

 

 

You can see how this would be a difficulty! Competitors are using dishonest tactics to attempt and reduce the effectiveness of your advertising campaigns, while website owners who are part of an ad network are simply stealing from you.

 

 

These possibilities are anything but as unbelievable as they may seem. Due to click fraud on its website, tech giant Google was forced to pay out roughly $100 million in credits as far back as 2006. Facebook also sued two app developers just last year for click fraud on its platform.

 

 

There are also long-term ripple effects to take into account, such as the distorted data you are extracting from the impacted PPC campaign, which makes it far less helpful than it would have been otherwise.

 

 

So, how can you fight back if you’re conducting PPC advertising (as you should be) and worried about click fraud reducing your income potential and profitability?

 

 

Keeping Click Fraud at Bay

The good news is that there are steps you can do to prevent click fraud if you realize it poses a risk to the effectiveness of your PPC ads.

 

 

To begin with, you’ll need the capacity to perform some fundamental tracking and reporting, whether it be internally, via the ad platform itself, or via a third-party partner who manages that connection on your behalf.

 

 

Your reporting must specifically include the IP address, click, and action timestamps for each click. With this information, you can determine the device clicking (and, with a little more investigation, who it belongs to), the time the user arrived at your website after clicking the advertisement, and the time the user took an action on your website. There’s a significant possibility you’ve discovered click fraud if you notice numerous click timestamps from the same IP address but no action timestamps.

 

 

Then what? Setting up IP exclusions is the most direct measure you can take to stop your ad from ever again being delivered to that IP address, effectively stopping any click fraud coming from that device for as long as you block them.

 

 

You can modify your ad targeting to exclude certain geographic regions down to the level of city and zip code if you suspect a specific competitor or even a “click farm” headquartered in another country is the perpetrator, assuring your advertising will no longer be delivered to the would-be saboteurs.

 

 

Like many other types of cybercrime, click fraud is a severe problem that is only going to get worse in the years to come. You don’t need to be a victim, though. Keep an eye out for certain signs, keep an eye on your PPC campaigns (or leave them in the hands of a trusted vendor partner), and be aware of how to combat click fraud if and when it occurs.

 

 

Before long, you’ll be catching the evil guys.

Marketing Phrase or Indie Horror Film Quiz?

Like Triple Crown racers or celebrity kids, marketing names for ideas and concepts (and perhaps even agencies…) can err on the side of the bizarre. We made the devious decision to test your marketing expertise in honor of Halloween:

 

 

Can you distinguish between these independent horror films and marketing jargon?

 

Here’s how it will proceed:

 

Ten rounds are played.

We’ll give you the name of a marketing buzzword and the name of an independent horror film in each round.

You have to hazard a guess as to the marketing word.

Do not be deceived! If you looked up the answers, we’ll know. Although it’s a falsehood, where’s the joy in that?

Users of Internet Explorer may have trouble loading this quiz.

 

Got it? Let’s get going.

 

 

Round 1: Select either Clinger or a Crawler.

 

 

Crawler Correct! A crawler is an internet bot that is used to properly index data and crawl online sites. These are used by search engines like Google to decide which queries will bring up your website and where they will appear on result pages.

 

 

Clinger Incorrect. A crawler is an internet bot that is used to properly index data and crawl online sites. These are used by search engines like Google to decide which queries will bring up your website and where they will appear on result pages.

 

 

Round 2

 

It Follows or It Doesn’t Follow, pick one.

 

Then comes

Not exactly. No Follow links are used to prevent a link from influencing how a website is indexed by search engines. These are typically employed when a link is unreliable, paid for, or unrelated to the keyphrase you want search engines to prioritize.

 

 

Don’t Follow

That is correct! No-follow links are used to prevent a link from influencing how a website is indexed by search engines. These are typically employed when a link is unreliable, paid for, or unrelated to the keyphrase you want search engines to prioritize.

 

 

Round 3: Select between Housebound and Unusual Visitor.

 

Housebound Incorrect. Any individual who visits your website multiple times is considered a unique visitor. Therefore, even if a single individual visits your page 100 times in a single month, they still only constitute one unique visitor. This is a more accurate way to keep track of how many potential customers have visited your website.

 

 

Unusual Guest

You know it. Any individual who visits your website multiple times is considered a unique visitor. Therefore, even if a single individual visits your page 100 times in a single month, they still only constitute one unique visitor. This is a more accurate way to keep track of how many potential customers have visited your website.

 

 

Round 4

Dead End or Bleeding Edge, pick one

 

Infringing Edge

Yes! “Bleeding Edge” describes goods or services that are so fresh that not many people have had a chance to use them. Utilizing these technologies frequently carries a tremendous potential for development and reward, but it also carries a considerable danger of unreliability.

 

 

The end

but not this one. “Bleeding Edge” describes goods or services that are so fresh that not many people have had a chance to use them. Utilizing these technologies frequently carries a tremendous potential for development and reward, but it also carries a considerable danger of unreliability.

 

Round 5: Select either Green Room or Evergreen.

 

Evergreen

Well done! Even years after it is written, evergreen material on the web is still current and engaging for readers. It works wonders for a website’s SEO and is every content marketer’s secret weapon. Lists, “How To” guides, product reviews, and videos are examples of common evergreen content.

 

 

Green Room

Nope. Sorry. Even years after it is written, evergreen material on the web is still current and engaging for readers. It works wonders for a website’s SEO and is every content marketer’s secret weapon. Lists, “How To” guides, product reviews, and videos are examples of common evergreen content.

 

Round 6

The Blackcoat’s Daughter or The Black Hat Tactics, pick one.

 

incorrect The Blackcoat’s Daughter. Black Hat Techniques are unethical SEO methods used to elevate a page’s position in search results. Examples of Black Hat SEO include keyword stuffing, invisible text, page swapping, and doorway pages. Current search engine algorithms look for these kinds of things and will diminish a site’s rank if they are caught using them.

 

 

The Black Hat Techniques Are Right! Black Hat Tactics are unethical SEO techniques used to rank a page higher in search engines. Examples of Black Hat SEO include keyword stuffing, invisible text, page swapping, and doorway pages. Current search engine algorithms look for these kinds of things and will diminish a site’s rank if they are caught using them.

 

Round 7

Select either holistic or hallows.

 

Holistic

Yes! Holistic marketing strategies look at the big picture of a company. It uses all available resources to ensure that every possible customer touch point is cohesive, including social media, websites, email marketing, employee interactions, and internal company culture. This creates synergy between people, processes, and communications.

 

 

Hallows

Not exactly. Holistic marketing strategies look at the big picture of a company. It uses all available resources to ensure that every possible customer touch point is cohesive, including social media, websites, email marketing, employee interactions, and internal company culture. This creates synergy between people, processes, and communications.

 

Round 8

Choose one: Personas or Strangers

 

Personas

You know it. In user-centered design and marketing, personas are fictional characters created to represent different user types that might use a website, read content, or research a brand. Marketers use personas to adapt their methods to catch and keep a particular persona’s interest.

 

 

Strangers

This is not correct. In user-centered design and marketing, personas are fictional characters created to represent different user types that might use their website, read content, or research their brand. Marketers use personas to adapt their methods to catch and keep a particular persona’s interest.

 

 

Round 9

Choose one: V/H/S or SoLoMo

 

V/H/S

Wrong. SoLoMo is an acronym for Social-Local-Mobile marketing. This is an emerging mindset that markets in the way people shop for local businesses like car dealerships. Some methods include optimizing a site for mobile since most local searches happen on cell phones, using local SEO tactics, and engaging customers through various social media sites.

 

 

SoLoMo

Great job! SoLoMo is an acronym for Social-Local-Mobile marketing. This is an emerging mindset that markets in the way people shop for local businesses like car dealerships. Some methods include optimizing a site for mobile since most local searches happen on cell phones, using local SEO tactics, and engaging customers through various social media sites.

 

Round 10

Choose one: Absentia or Abandonment

 

Absentia Incorrect. Abandonment Rate typically refers to the number of site users who add things to their shopping carts but abandon the site before completing their checkout. This can also apply to actions like partially filling out lead forms or scheduling a service appointment. This can be useful to marketers to see where they can improve website functionality, as well as a way to retarget those users with emails or digital ads.

 

 

Abandonment Correct! Abandonment Rate typically refers to the number of site users who add things to their shopping carts but abandon the site before completing their checkout. This can also apply to actions like partially filling out lead forms or scheduling a service appointment. This can be useful to marketers to see where they can improve website functionality, as well as a way to retarget those users with emails or digital ads. Great job!

How’d you do?

 

Conquering new markets requires knowing your stuff and staying on top of the latest marketing trends.

 

Don’t create your own horror story by trying to do it alone.

Is Chasing New Customers Always Worth It?

Going after the next new thing can be enjoyable. It’s exciting to chase something. If you’re taking something away from someone else while winning, it’s even more thrilling.

 

That’s just human nature, but it frequently results in dealership marketing that is overly concentrated on luring in new sales clients.

 

While expanding your clientele is crucial, avoid becoming sidetracked by the rush of relentlessly pursuing new clients to the point where you neglect your current clients. What good is spending money on acquiring a new business if you can’t keep it?

 

Every relationship, including the one you have with your consumers, goes through a honeymoon phase. The actual labor begins once the initial glow fades, but it is worthwhile. Long-term value can be found in returning customers.

Continue to deny the fact that maintaining existing clients requires just as much effort as acquiring new ones. Here is your evidence that quality is just as essential to your clients as quantity.

The 90s Called: Change Your Dealership’s Email Strategy

Consider the mid-1990s. Friends became popular and were viewed in living rooms all around the world. Hip-hop music may be heard playing on automobiles and store speakers. In the United States, football has grown to be the most popular spectator sport.

 

All of these are still valid today despite the passage of time, although certain details have changed.  People are still watching Friends, but they stream the episodes from Netflix rather than watching them on a network at a set time and day. Although the form of hip-hop has changed, it is still a well-liked musical genre. Nowadays, people listen to it on their smartphones rather than portable CD players. Even though Americans continue to watch football, they now support their fantasy team’s players rather than the actual squad playing.

 

Email’s boom began in the middle of the 1990s with the introduction of well-known email providers. Email advertising is still effective. Don’t trust me? See the statistics below.) But as consumer expectations and habits have changed, so have company strategies.

 

Avoid dwelling on the past. Future email marketing strategies should be developed using data, behavioral trends, and pertinent content.

Put Fixed Marketing Back Into Focus

The sales figures keep coming in and raising questions. It’s time to show your fixed operations department some much-deserved love as car sales revenues fall.

According to recent NADA data, the typical fixed operations department contributes about 50% of their dealership’s gross income.

 

However, fewer than 10% of dealership marketing budgets are allocated to fixed operations.

 

Customer needs and wants should be the foundation of any marketing strategy. Because they’ve only sometimes sent mailers, many dealerships that we encounter are unsure of how to market their service offerings. Service must employ a multi-channel strategy, much like sales.

 

Consider the following:

 

Make a proposal.

50% of shoppers shop for a car for less than 45 days, but they keep it for 12 years on average. They have a sizable window of opportunity to join your service drive, and a pertinent email offer is just a click away.

 

Engage your readers on a regular basis with a newsletter that contains more than just sales offers; mix it up with articles about lifestyle, the local community, or maintenance advice for well-liked cars. Add a service offer to the mix after that for preventative maintenance.

 

It improves your online search ranking if you upload this kind of original content to your website or blog. To determine your site’s ranking, Google’s algorithms look for relevancy, originality, content, and a variety of other factors.

 

Update the client database.

Customers aren’t just buying cars less frequently as they become more sophisticated; they are also servicing them less regularly. Excellent-condition vehicles can survive weeks, even months, without a planned maintenance appointment. Your consumers must keep you in mind when it’s time for another oil change or other manufacturer-recommended maintenance.

 

Maintain email and residential addresses with customer and vehicle details using your marketing database. Send customers follow-up emails and letters after each service visit to ask them to make another appointment.

 

Pro tip: If your follow-up procedure isn’t automatic, you could be missing out on opportunities to make thousands of dollars from denied service. To entice clients to return, use reminders or triggers to deliver marketing materials at predetermined intervals.

 

Recognize the market.

You may target the customers most likely to visit your dealership for service by conducting a market analysis. Knowing who to target in your neighborhood makes a significant difference because customers won’t travel far for service when they’re searching for speed and cost-effectiveness.

 

Advertising on social media is excellent for reaching past clients who haven’t purchased from you in a while. If your database contains their most recent information, you can target them with “claim offer” ads for preventative maintenance.

 

Paid search ads are excellent for service advertising as well since car owners are more inclined to visit for reactionary service than to plan preventative maintenance. When customers require a nearby repair shop, they simply search “repair shop near me” and find your dealership.

 

Pro-tip: If you modify the language of your ads, clients can contact you directly from their mobile device or PC to obtain directions, schedule an appointment, and more. As mobile optimization is one of Google’s top priorities, it’s crucial to make sure your content is viewable on all devices.

 

Display your worth.

Less than 5% of a dealership’s website is typically devoted to service and parts. It pays to display your store’s back end as online research into service work grows. The likelihood that service clients may contact you improves when you produce content to foster relationships and trust with them.

 

Do you provide your clients with a shuttle service, roadside assistance, or towing? Develop it! A few more concepts are FAQs, upkeep advice, instructional and instructive films, and seasonal car care advice. Before shopping for a new automobile again, drivers maintain their current vehicles for years. To keep customers coming to you for maintenance and repairs, establish yourself as a reliable provider.

 

Pro-tip: Before maintaining or purchasing a car, consumers watch videos on Facebook and Youtube to learn more about automobiles. To increase SEO and website traffic, provide video content that is related to your website.

 

Organize your teams.

Because fixed operations are in charge of two distinct phases of the vehicle ownership cycle, they frequently operate independently of variables. Before the F&I office tries to sell service packages or the first generic email for an oil change is sent out, sales customers aren’t informed about servicing.

 

Identify the service drive with the thrill of a car purchase! Introduce the consumer to the service drive after a contract is closed. Invite an adviser to welcome them and arrange for their initial maintenance appointment.

 

Service retention is like running a sprint and a marathon at the same time, as a pro tip says. The modern consumer demands quality, speed, and convenience; therefore, you must work quickly and efficiently. However, providing services is not a one-time fix. Returning customers are more likely to spend more money each time (hello, recommended but uncompleted repairs!). Maintaining their satisfaction will encourage them to come back for their subsequent automobile purchases.

 

Nobody likes to maintain their car. People are busy; they can’t afford hundreds in repairs, and, let’s face it, their car never breaks down at a convenient moment. Customers demand the best from you from the moment they conduct their first internet search until the service drive vanishes from their rearview. Offer them an experience that is customized for them.

Halloween Tricks and Treats: Holiday Marketing Part One

Most people certainly don’t think about buying a new car when they think of Halloween. They may have a point, but Halloween marketing for car dealerships still has a lot of unrealized potentials.

 

Halloween marks the beginning of the holiday season and is therefore a prime opportunity to concentrate on marketing with the goal of raising brand recognition. If you take advantage of this opportunity to introduce your dealership to the neighborhood, they will be more likely to contact you when they are ready to make a purchase.

 

Here are some marketing tips for dealerships for 2023:

 

Stay Current

The use of pop culture references around Halloween is unrestricted. Make sure your dealership is on trend, whether it be with costumes, decorations, or social media posts. You can engage with your audience on a deeper level by using a pop culture allusion that they can relate to. People are naturally drawn to those who share their interests.

 

It’s crucial to keep in mind a few more concepts for Halloween marketing in addition to pop cultural trends:

 

The holiday begins early: nearly 40% of individuals begin Halloween preparations even before October officially begins. This implies that your Halloween promotion can be used for weeks, much like the Christmas season.

Pets’ costumes: Nothing attracts followers to a Facebook page like an adorable dog in a sushi roll costume. That’s all we’ll say about it.

Halloween is for adults only. Children, move aside—this one is ours. For the first time, Halloween was identified as the Millennials’ preferred holiday in 2022. Now is an excellent moment to take action if your dealership has been mulling over how to handle the looming “how to market to Millennials” issue many businesses confront.

The New Front Porch is Local Business

For many American families, the custom of going door to door and demanding candy is no longer as prevalent as it once was. One of the fastest-developing Halloween trends is parents taking their kids to local establishments to go trick-or-treating due to constantly rising concerns for convenience and safety.

 

This is a fantastic chance for your dealership to become involved in the community and get customers to your showroom at the same time. Your dealership will be in the back of these parents’ minds the next time they are in the market for a new car for the tiny cost of a fun-size candy bar.

 

Do we suggest? Spread the news early, dress festively, and avoid purchasing cheap candies.

 

Tell spooky tales

It’s no secret that true crime and horror stories are very popular among Americans. Numerous studies have demonstrated that one of the primary causes of this pathological attachment is that it gives us a sense of readiness. People frequently concentrate on dangers for their own safety.

 

When marketing your goods and services, keep this in mind. Talk about the terrible consequences that await individuals who neglect their 60,000-mile maintenance work or the harrowing case of a person who failed to purchase GAP insurance and was left with thousands of dollars in unpaid debt for a totaled vehicle. Nobody likes to experience hardship; therefore, readers will take all reasonable precautions to feel ready for bad luck.

 

beautify your website

One of the key elements of Halloween is dressing up. So why not also make your website seem nice? Fun is Halloween’s primary goal. Make it clear to site visitors that your dealership enjoys itself! You’re not restricted to skeletons and spider webs. Find a Halloween design that suits your brand the best by using your creativity.

 

Let’s see what ideas you have. Share with us on Facebook your finest Halloween marketing strategies.

The Crumbling Cookies: Getting Ready for the Future

For some people, the phrase “cookieless future” won’t be unfamiliar. After all, Google already declared that they would gradually stop using third-party cookies in their Chrome browser. Advertisers were initially concerned about the unknowns that this would introduce to the digital marketing world, but a lot has changed since that initial announcement.

 

Google delayed the implementation of these modifications in order to get the approval of businesses and government regulators. By the end of 2023, third-party cookies will no longer be supported on the Google Chrome browser, according to a recent announcement from Google. (Remember, this is the year!) In addition to Google’s disclosure, Apple has made several adjustments that greatly reduce the value of Identifiers for Advertisers (IDFAs). These factors, taken together, have raised concerns among marketers across all industries about a world without cookies.

 

But what can you specifically anticipate from these changes, and how can you appropriately optimize your business in the midst of everything?

 

What Does “Phasing Out Cookies” Mean?

 

It’s crucial to understand that not all cookies are going away. (Yay!) First-party cookies will continue to exist. First-party cookies are used to remember things like user preferences, login information, and other settings. If you are unfamiliar with them, they are created by the website a user is viewing. These cookies are kept on the user’s computer and are only accessible to the website that created them for analysis.

 

First-party cookies will not be phased out, and they are also the most trustworthy source of information you can use to track website user activity, send targeted messages, and provide relevant content for your dealership.

 

On the other hand, third-party cookies are made by a domain other than the one the user is now viewing. They are used to offer customized ads and track people across other websites. Any website that employs third-party cookies may access the user’s device to access the third-party cookies. A third-party cookie is used, for instance, when you look for a new umbrella online and subsequently see umbrella ads all over the next ten websites you visit.

 

Third-party cookies are used for tracking and advertising, whereas first-party cookies are ultimately utilized to enhance the user experience.

 

The gradual removal of third-party cookies implies that websites will no longer be able to follow users’ online activities and present customized advertisements. Advertisers will instead need to target visitors using different strategies. To target customers after the cookie apocalypse, it will be essential to use non-cookie identifiers like email addresses.

 

Many companies are refocusing their marketing efforts on gathering enormous volumes of precise, usable client data. This is wonderful news for many dealers since it allows them to use first-party data in their DMS to not only improve marketing outcomes but also increase customer loyalty, profitability, and market demand.

 

Without Cookies Optimization

 

As the day draws closer when third-party cookies will no longer be used, it is clear that dealers and other companies must understand how to use their consent-based first-party data to concentrate their ad spending on reliable websites and apps. Nobody wants to be exposed as relying solely on these cookies to reach consumers who are actually interested in their products. Businesses and auto dealers alike need to get ready for the disappearance of third-party cookies by

 

Constructing a first-party data approach Your dealership may provide more individualized experiences by using first-party data to better understand its customers.

Investigating alternate targeting strategies: Start looking into strategies like cohort-based targeting or contextual advertising.

Online advertisements that are displayed in context are those that are relevant to the webpage being viewed.

Advertising that targets groups of consumers with similar traits or behaviors is known as cohort-based advertising.

Privacy should be a top priority for your dealership, and you should be open and honest about how you gather and handle data.

Keep up with the newest trends in the advertising sector and be ready to adjust as needed by staying informed.

 

Be inventive, quick advice. Your click-through rates and conversions can be significantly increased by making sure that your dealership’s advertisements are distinctive, attention-grabbing, and engaging.

 

Test, test, test is a bonus tip. And keep trying. Test out various targeting techniques to find which ones are most effective for your dealership’s audience. Then, using first-party data and other options for third-party cookies, you may expand on these techniques to continuously enhance your advertising performance.

 

Coming Out of the Crumbles

 

Despite the fact that, without the glitzy functions and advantages of third-party cookies, the future of advertising may at first appear bleak, there is actually a lot to get excited about amid the confusion. Many companies and advertisers have been duped by third-party cookies into thinking that more targeting equates to more relevant ads and better business results (oops, we want quality, not quantity). These third-party tactics are not always successful, especially for dealerships that might be able to use first-party data.

 

Many advertising-related expenditures decrease without third-party cookies, but their profitable business consequences increase. More specifically, direct marketing that interacts 1:1 with an individual will yield better results for advertisers than ads displayed on millions of websites to both humans and machines. Additionally, this will lessen the necessity for privacy-harming data collection and the additional expenses associated with audience segments, fraud detection, brand safety detection, and other targeting characteristics. In fact, the “cookieless future” looks promising.

 

It’s a good idea to educate yourself on the data your current digital advertising suppliers utilize, as this change is quickly approaching. First-party data is almost always more trustworthy and impactful than third-party data, so being comfortable with those targeting strategies can only make you more prepared going forward. We will continue to provide dealerships with updates and support as Google works more assiduously toward its third-party cookie-free operations.

12-Day Marketing Campaign

Making future plans is challenging. but every firm needs to have a marketing plan. Here are our 12 adaptable dealership marketing suggestions that you may use in any marketing strategy.

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1. Don’t put all of your eggs in one basket, first. By initially analyzing your audience and coming up with original ways to stand out from the crowd, you can look for opportunities to diversify your strategy.

2. Modern consumers can smell phony, sales-oriented content a mile away. Put authenticity first if you want to win them over.

3. Pay attention to your current material. Creating new infographics, blogs, or reports takes more effort than updating older ones, but the results are the same.

4. Participate in recurring hashtag themes, such as ThrowBack Thursday (#TBT). You must take an active role in the community if you want to grow your social media following.

5. Put together gift guides for your most important holidays. This provides useful information to customers and assists in monetizing your site by endorsing your own goods and services.

6. Prevent audience duplication. Many marketers lose money by purchasing two or more ad sets that compete with one another for the attention of the same audience. Double-check your lists for duplication.

7. Quit using the third person in online posts. This will likely be many people’s first exposure to your dealership. Make it cozy and individual, and don’t be afraid to add a little of your individuality.

8. Retargeting people who have already visited your website and expressed interest in your company is a tried-and-true but frequently disregarded method of promoting your goods.

9. Create a strategy for responding to internet reviews. To avoid disagreements or emotional responses, decide who will keep an eye on reviews, which reviews will necessitate a response, and how you will reply.

10. Enter their mailboxes with a slide. During the holidays, consumers are not only more responsive to marketing, but they are also more eager to get letters.

11. Encourage a spirit of thankfulness. Customers and businesses around the world have been under a lot of stress. Be pleasant and empathic in your reactions when emotions are running high.

12. A crucial component of your marketing plan should be connecting with consumers through mobile devices. It is insufficient to just handle mobile marketing as an expansion of your desktop content.

What Did Google Do With This New BERT Update?

Introducing BERT, a new Google algorithm upgrade called Bidirectional Encoder Representations from Transformers. It pays to learn as much as you can about BERT since, like all important Google upgrades, it will have a direct impact on search engine optimization (SEO).

 

 

In reality, Google has publicly stated that BERT will directly impact more than 30 million searches each day, or around 10% of all searches made in the United States.

 

Thus, the natural question arises: What exactly is BERT?

 

 

BERT is essentially a deep learning algorithm designed to enhance language comprehension in search. In particular, BERT improves search in two crucial areas: nuance and context.

 

How does that appear? Imagine the word “boat” appearing in both the search keywords “boatload” and “boat prices.” To us, the difference is clear. It may not be as obvious to a machine with poor contextual differentiation. As an alternative, think about the differences between prepositions such as “to,” “for,” and “from” (e.g., “nine to five” versus “a quarter to three”).

 

 

The crucial step in this situation is identifying user intent, which BERT does by comprehending specific search phrases in the context of the entire question. In other words, rather than just returning web pages that match keywords, the search will now produce results based on a deeper understanding of what is actually being sought.

 

Regarding voice search and how it will affect everything from SEO to reputation management, we have previously discussed this. BERT furthers the change in search’s emphasis toward user intent, which is excellent news for everyone who uses Google but poses some marketing challenges for your dealership.

 

How Does It Affect You?

Specifically, how will BERT affect your SEO? Much depends on how well you follow the SEO best practices that are already in place.

 

 

Without going too technical, we already know that on-page SEO, also known as BERT, is directly impacted by BERT the most. On-page SEO is primarily composed of three elements: title tags, the URL or web address of the page, and the content of the web page (including any alternate text you provide for images).

 

 

We’ll focus on the content of your website as one of these factors. Why? Remember that the goal of BERT is to better comprehend entire queries and provide consumers with pertinent results.

 

That means that websites that overuse keywords but lack a clear structure or emphasis will suffer more penalties than before. However, this is not necessarily new advice. In the long run, keyword stuffing has never been a successful tactic.

 

 

In other words, BERT is more of a wake-up call for marketers to review their current SEO tactics than a revolutionary change that demands new methods of SEO. Those who have gotten by up until now with scant, subpar, and irrelevant information may discover that their luck has run out.

 

 

This is crucial for dealers, who must contend with severe local competition and have every incentive to ensure that their websites are stuffed with fresh, practical, pertinent, and distinctive material in order to rank as highly as possible in those search results.

 

 

Conduct an SEO audit.

Because of this, it would be a fantastic idea to evaluate your dealership’s SEO strategy right away and make sure you’re using best practices wherever possible.

 

 

What percentage of the following do you do?

 

Unique, current, and keyword-focused website material that boosts your site’s search rankings Keeping your new content in front of customers and search engines with a dealership blog and articles on major automotive blogs

Continual meta title, description, and keyword management and updating can help you accurately describe the content of your website to readers and search engines.

Using site indexing, managing the navigation, and customizing the sitemap

 

Although this is simply the tip of the iceberg, utilizing these guidelines as benchmarks for your SEO performance will undoubtedly put you on the correct path. Additionally, as Google continues to improve its comprehension of user intent, it will assist in preventing your websites from becoming BERT fatalities.

 

 

Avoid buying into the hype that BERT is poised to drastically change your SEO, but also avoid dismissing it as irrelevant. Like any significant search update, it helps to be as knowledgeable as you can about the change, but in the end, adhering to tried-and-true best practices still prevails.

 

 

Your marketing will go smoothly if you do that and ask the pros for assistance to prevent you from becoming overwhelmed.

 

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Halloween-themed Automobile Trends We Love

Even though it’s distant, the time goes by so quickly.  Halloween is a time to be frightened, dress bizarrely, and bury mountains of candy wrappers between couch cushions.

 

However, did you realize that Halloween can also be a good time to gain new clients? Halloween has been identified as the preferred holiday among Millennials for the third consecutive year. They’ll pay attention to how you decide to celebrate. This year, many conventional solutions are no longer an option, so new trends are emerging. Listed here are some of our favorites:

 

spooky car washes

Although the idea of haunted car washes is not new, it has gained popularity in the COVID era. They offer the ideal means for thrill-seekers to satisfy their needs without ever leaving the security of their (now spotless) automobiles.

 

In Ohio, one car wash has made a major investment after a great year in 2021. Interested parties can book tickets for $20, which include the car wash and a bag of goodies, for the Rainforest Car Wash’s one or two haunted car wash weekends each year.

 

2. Car-themed costumes

It’s likely that your dealership has certain stock that you enjoy showcasing to onlookers. Why not dress them in appropriate seasonal attire to attract more attention? This year, a broad variety of car costumes have been displayed, including animals, well-known movie vehicles, pumpkins, ghosts, spiderwebs, and fake fangs.

 

You might even hold a “Trunk or Treat” with your costumed cars, depending on the laws in your state. Offering a socially awkward alternative to the customary trick-or-treating that so many children will miss this year could gain you some devoted customers.

 

Encourage participants to pre-register for a certain time slot.

To prevent trick-or-treaters from reaching into the same candy bowl, skip the candy bowls. Instead, decide to set each treat out on a table in front of the trunks.

Before they go around, spray everyone’s hands with hand sanitizer and give out masks.

Think of having a “drive-through” trunk-or-treat where visitors’ cars receive treats at each stop.

 

3. The Bone-Chilling Social Competition

Many businesses are choosing to celebrate Halloween digitally this year, just like the majority of 2022. Through contests on social media, this may be accomplished in one of the simplest and most engaging ways possible. Offer a wickedly awesome prize, and ask your fans to tell their friends and family about it so they can join in too. This is a fantastic way to get the name of your dealership in front of many individuals.

 

Here are some of our top suggestions for contests:

 

Pumpkin carving: People are looking for creative outlets because they have so much free time. Give them a chance to display their labor of love on your page.

 

Create several categories for the costume contest so that everyone can participate. Contests for the “best last-minute costume,” “best pet costume,” and “best costume made entirely from things at home” will help you stand out from the crowd.

 

Share your favorite horror stories with your followers to help them remember their time at summer camp. By “liking” tales posted in the comments section of your post, readers can cast their votes. A prize is awarded to the story with the most likes.

 

Create your own murder mystery scenario, publish it on social media, and give hints in your postings. The person who cracks the case wins a prize.

 

We hope your Halloween festivities this year, whichever way you choose to celebrate them, are a success! Tell us about your Halloween advertising on Facebook.

Service Profits & Vehicle Age: What Dealers Need to Know

When owners began to doubt their vehicles’ value due to the necessity for more frequent maintenance, cars’ maximum mileage used to be around 100,000 miles. You recently purchased a new car after paying steep repair fees for a long time.

 

Then, in the 2000s, new technologies transformed the typical car into a mechanical-computer hybrid. New technology has increased the cost of new vehicles while extending the lifespan of older ones. People began keeping their older cars since doing so was now less expensive than buying new ones and because new technology made clunkers take longer to become.

 

According to recent estimates from 2020, the average American’s car is now nearly 12 years old. It’s amazing how many even older cars there are: 25% of cars are older than 16 years. If the typical driver logs more than 13,000 miles annually, 16 years of ownership would equate to 208,000 total miles, more than tripling what was anticipated of a car in the 1990s.

 

What exactly does this mean for dealerships, then?

Longer car ownership results in fewer sales chances for dealerships, making the creation of servicing options even more crucial for profits.

 

More Years Owned = Higher Retention Value

The goal of the service push is to increase brand and dealership loyalty, which will increase sales and satisfy customers. It becomes simpler to retain a sales customer if they return for service, but only if you live up to their expectations and remain relevant.

 

Understanding how long-term consumers benefit from the service can be done by measuring the Customer Lifetime Value.

 

Client Lifetime Value takes into account:

 

What a consumer pays annually

Gross income resulting from such investment

How long have they been a customer of yours?

Any recommendations they give you, in addition to a number of additional things

 

The annual cost of maintaining and repairing a vehicle rises as it gets older, so you make more money from customer-pay ROs with a greater profit margin than you do from the majority of vehicle sales. The computer systems that operate newer-model automobiles also have a chance for higher profit margins when they get older.

 

It is considerably less expensive to keep an existing customer than to try to get new ones—by a factor of approximately 10! Customers who have previously done business with your dealership are familiar with what to expect from future dealings with you. Targeting and retaining your most profitable customers can be done with the help of lifetime value marketing.

 

With increased data mining, conquest marketing has gotten more efficient, yet retention marketing still has a higher return on investment. Every consumer who purchases or receives service for a vehicle from your dealership is recorded in your DMS. With the use of that information, you may send them the finest offer to entice them to come back for service via email, direct mail, digital ads, newsletters, and other channels.

 

Higher costs due to older vehicles

After the sale is completed, it’s best to schedule the first oil change and inform the customer about your dealership’s loyalty program (which typically entails more oil changes, right?). The entire purpose of offering consumers an oil change is to get them to return for service so that you may upsell further services.

 

Service profitability is aided by this tactic, but only when it is effective. Let’s face it: most consumers don’t make a special effort to get an oil change at their original dealership. Independent stores have persuaded them that dealerships are unreasonably slow, expensive, and inconvenient for basic services.

 

However, larger repairs on older automobiles are more profitable, and there are several methods to advertise that business. Although the majority of consumers do not travel for an oil change, many do so in order to be certain that the proper parts and specialized vehicle knowledge are used.

 

The premise behind this concept, which we refer to as profit-per-client throughput, is that you may maximize profits from each and every customer by acquiring and retaining their business. You can locate lucrative businesses by keeping track of models, purchase and service anniversaries, manufacturer announcements, and more.

 

Marketing your OEM’s roadside assistance program to consumers at their 30/60/90 maintenance milestones for the services you know their vehicles require

Recalls and warranty coverage disclosure to customers for profitable warranty ROs

 

Quality Trades + Service History + Global Profitability

The longer a car is on the road, the less value it retains, although a known sales and service history can help. You can assess whether a customer’s vehicle is worth pursuing an exchange when you have a long-standing relationship with them and a complete record of servicing visits.

 

Whether to rotate inventory when they’re in the market for a new vehicle or when you’re searching for quality used inventory to resell, the front of the dealership may decide when it’s appropriate to have a trade-in conversation with your client, but your entire dealership can profit from the trade.

 

When a salesperson tries to sell to a service customer, there is frequently friction. However, a devoted client will keep returning. Even though their new car might initially produce less lucrative work, the trade-in nevertheless generates service profit from internal ROs during reconditioning.

 

A well-timed trade proposal can bring in new revenue for the dealership as well as retain devoted clients who will come back for service in the future.

 

Conclusion

You should think about how well-executed marketing techniques might help a service acquire more profitable business as the average age of cars rises. When these older vehicles start to wear out and need emergency repairs, consumers search online for services. Service clients will think of your dealership every time if it is transparent, convenient, quick, and affordable. Relevant messages delivered at the appropriate moments are crucial.

DCJR Dealership Case Study: Stellantis Omnisocial Ad Strategy

When it comes to South County Dodge Chrysler Jeep Ram:

Since 1965, South County DCJR has been operating out of the same location in St. Louis, Missouri. Since 2020, we have enjoyed working together our partners Allen Masengil, GM, Mike Chorba, Sales and Finance Manager, and Ashley Etheridge, BDC Director.

 

Collectively, this group is one of our favorite SimpSocial Partners because they value experimentation, creativity, and the power of social media.

 

Developing an Omnisocial, Full-Funnel Strategy

An Omnisocial strategy was the ideal way for South County DCJR to dominate their market and rivals.

 

No matter where a customer spends time online, omnisocial, also known as omnichannel, refers to a multi-platform advertising approach that aims to offer a cohesive customer experience. This strategy sends the following pertinent message at the ideal point in the auto buyer’s journey, on the platform where they are now consuming content.

 

A full-funnel plan is what sets a top-performing Omnisocial campaign apart from an average one. Specifically, strategically utilizing several ad formats with well-considered text that matches the attitude and stage of the auto buying experience.

 

To create messaging for Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, Snapchat, and TikTok that would diversify as customers went through different stages of the buying cycle, South County DCJR collaborated with SimpSocial

 

Here is a more detailed look at their outcomes from January 1 through March 31, 2023:

 

Results of the South County Dodge Chrysler Jeep Ram Social Advertising Case Study

Instagram and Facebook (Meta):

Every stage of the consumer journey is addressed by South County DCJR’s Omnisocial strategy, which heavily relies on meta. Meta continues to be the most popular social platform in use today, generating the highest KPIs for the least amount of money because to its massive 251M monthly active users in the US. Promoting their new 2023 Stellantis model lines on Facebook and Instagram is one unique tactic South County DCJR uses.

 

(Q1 2023) Facebook and Instagram results:

 

1.6 million views

9,09 leads from 28,665 clicks

71 unit sales matches

 

South County DC on PinterestJR wanted to make sure that buyers in their area with higher incomes saw their new vehicle inventory. And Pinterest was the ideal answer! Pinterest can connect with 52% of adult US internet users who make over $100,000 annually. And it’s a fantastic way to connect with moms!

 

Results from Pinterest (Q1 2023):

 

1.4 million views

20031 clicks

13 matching unit sales out of 142 leads

 

TikTok: With users spending 89 minutes a day on the platform, TikTok is quickly evolving into the new “TV” for all generations. With the help of dynamic car ads, South County DCJR raises awareness and retargets users using this video-first platform.

 

Want more ideas for TikTok ads? The top-performing dealership TikTok videos can be found here.

 

Results from TikTok (Q1 2023):

 

impressions of 978K

6,081 clicks 891K views of the video

Views of 811 landing pages

 

WhatsApp: Did you know? A whopping 40% of Snapchat users don’t use any other social media sites! With 108M monthly active users in the US and dynamic automobile inventory ads, South County DCJR is utilizing Snapchat to promote their under $25,000 autos.

 

Results from Snapchat (Q1 2023):

 

impressions of 370K

3,160 swipes, 25K views of videos, and 54 leads

 

The Key Is Partnership

Don’t simply take it from us, even though we covered a lot of South County’s statistics and achievements in this post.

 

Check out this endorsement from sales and finance manager Mike Chorba:

 

“Our objective is to rule our market in every facet of the car business. That can often be difficult given how fiercely competitive our DMA is. Our online profile on social media is one thing about which I no longer have to worry. Most social ad-based businesses could only dream of achieving the cost per lead and cost per sale. With SimpSocial, we are getting eight to ten times the results we were getting from our former sources while saving thousands each month. Now that is dominant in a space!”

 

— Mike Chorba, manager of sales and finance at South County Dodge Chrysler Jeep Ram

Techniques for Dealers to Fight Vroom and Carvana’s Messaging

If you watched the Super Bowl this year, it’s likely that you saw the Vroom advertisement, which offended a lot of us in the dealer community.

Carvana has also been pushing an anti-dealer attitude in some of its current advertising and marketing. As dealers, you already have enough to worry about without worrying about widespread messaging that undermines your efforts and spreads the myth that doing business with a dealership is unpleasant.

Many dealers are rebelling because they’re not happy.

Dealers Respond to Vroom and Carvana Through Video

Here are 3 examples of dealers that have taken things into their own hands, and made short movies that fight the Vroom and Carvana propaganda.

Tips to Create Your Own Anti-Vroom Video

Not every dealer has the resources to develop an expensive and elaborate TV ad instantly. And even if you could, would it be the most effective?

In place of traditional media, Facebook and Instagram are now the go-to platforms for companies looking to reach their target customers in a far more focused and economical manner.

And thanks to Facebook and Instagram, it’s not always necessary to attract the attention of auto shoppers with overly prepared material.

Some of the most popular films that we are seeing from dealers are “native content,” which simply means that they have the appearance of a basic selfie video or anything that you may “natively” see on your timeline; expensive equipment is not required.

Check out this illustration from Thornton Automotive Dover:

Over 58,000 buyers in the dealer’s PMA were reached by this straightforwardly produced and edited video.

With the typical American spending 58 minutes per day looking through Facebook and Instagram, your dealership can create easy videos, get in front of your target audience, and counteract the messages of firms like Vroom and Carvana to lure auto consumers back into your dealership.

Free Tool Identifies Active Auto Buyers You Can Reach

What dealer wouldn’t be interested in learning more about local car buyers?

 

Planning your dealership’s overall strategy can benefit greatly by knowing the demographics, credit ratings, and total number of in-market customers for your PMA.

 

We thus developed a solution that, with just a few easy clicks, unlocks these crucial consumer data points.

 

Data is now difficult to find At Dealers’ Disposal

We’ve discovered over the past year that the majority of auto dealerships think Facebook Ads can help them connect with customers in their neighborhood.

 

However, does your dealership realize the exact number of users you can actually reach? Even better, do you have any idea how many of those users are actual buyers?

 

To determine their maximum possible reach in the past, dealers had to create an Ad Account and look through the targeting choices in Facebook Ads Manager.

 

Dealers must then seek specific access to Oracle Data Cloud, wait for access, and overlay these audience targeting options on top of their geotargeting in order to extract important automotive insights like purchase windows and credit ratings.

 

(Or, to put it another way, it was a pain.)

 

Because of this, our development team has devoted many hours to creating tools that enable dealers to quickly and easily access all relevant audience data.

 

The Market Intelligence Report, our newest product for auto dealers, is now available!

 

How simple it is to create your own report and determine the number of In-Market Auto Shoppers in your region is demonstrated here:

 

The Market Intelligence Report Builder: How to Use

Visit https://www.dealersunited.com/resource/market-intelligence-report-auto-dealers/ to begin creating your Market Intelligence Report. and ask for immediate access to the no-cost builder.

 

Enter your dealership’s address, select your Primary + Secondary markets, then click “Get Results” to proceed.

 

You’ll discover crucial details regarding your dealership’s PMA right now, including:

 

Total Facebook Users, Total In-Market Auto Shoppers, User Demographics (Gender, Age), User Credit Score, Total In-Market Auto Shoppers  even when customers want to buy a car!

These data points can assist you in developing a data-driven Facebook Ad plan that will enable you to outperform your competitors and better understand your market.

 

Some of the hardest business tasks involve knowing, locating, and comprehending your target market.

 

“Spray and pray” campaigns have shown to be significantly less effective than a highly focused approach using a data driven analysis ever since the days of the digital marketing revolution.

 

You will have greater understanding of your target market after using the Market Intelligence Report, which will help you reach your PMA and sell more automobiles.

 

Click here to read more and get 4 campaign suggestions to make the most of your Market Report findings.

 

Have fun selling!

The Ultimate Ad Placement Method: John’s Auto Buyer Journey

It is more crucial than ever to reach out to potential vehicle buyers where they are online in today’s technologically advanced environment.

 

Furthermore, it is no surprise that today’s sophisticated shoppers spend time on social media, just like their mothers, coworkers, and best friends.

 

In fact, the typical user of Facebook and Instagram looks through nearly 300 feet of mobile information each day. That is comparable to the Statue of Liberty’s size!

 

Dealers may therefore get their brand and promotional content on prime visual real estate with every swipe of their thumb.

 

Sure, Facebook has made it simpler than ever to run ads on social networks with its wealth of tools and handy “Boost” button. However, strategy is what sets the greatest converting ad campaigns apart from the others.

 

Particularly, strategically utilizing various ad formats with smart messages all along the auto-buying process.

 

The Auto Buyer’s Experience

According to Cox Automotive, buyers are only in the market for cars for slightly longer than 3 months.

 

This means that, in a constrained length of time, your dealership must carefully move an auto shopper from awareness to consideration to conversion, or else just hope you get fortunate.

 

The majority of advertisers simply interact with consumers through one to three messages, assuming the timing and content are appropriate.

 

Although this approach has a chance of success, there is a much more effective approach.

 

Introducing “The Auto Buyer’s Journey,” where dealers consistently nab the ideal customer, the ideal message, and the ideal moment.

 

We’re going to follow an example car consumer avatar, “John,” from his first vehicle research to his eventual conversion at your dealership.

 

Remember that John’s example journey is quite particular since it takes into account his particular interests, proclivities, and stage in the buyer journey. Consider different prospects who might fit into each stage as you go through John’s experience and consider the messages you would send to them. This is where the magic really happens… lead generation for the entire monthly ad budget.

 

John, a 36-year-old man, wants to buy an F-150. John belongs to your target audience, but he hasn’t used your dealership, isn’t in your CRM, and hasn’t browsed your website.

 

Just recently, he began conducting research on independent websites like Edmund’s and Autotrader. After doing some research, John decides he wants a brand-new, white or gray F-150 that costs between $40,000 and $50,000.

 

Spreading Knowledge About Your Dealership

We now know that John is an in-market shopper in your PMA who is looking at new F-150s thanks to Facebook and third-party data.

 

At this time, we might send John advertisements together with your F-150 inventory.

 

But if you start showing John “Sales-y” advertisements right away, before you’ve even had an opportunity to introduce your dealership, it’s similar to proposing marriage to someone before you even know their name. And that’s simply incorrect.

 

When John logs onto Facebook or Instagram the following time, you want to grab his attention right away by running interesting ads that introduce John to your dealership.

 

These advertisements ought to incorporate “Why Buy” message outlining the benefits that would persuade John to buy from you as opposed to your rivals.

 

receiving “Consideration” Stage

John has learned about your dealership and has been responding to your awareness advertisements by like, commenting, and watching videos.

 

You intend to accomplish the following three tasks in this phase: Encourage John’s interest in the F-150, tell him about current promotions for the F-150, and display your real-time inventory of F-150s.

 

John will click on these advertisements to go to your SRPs, which will cause a View Content event to be sent back to Facebook.

 

We’ll now start displaying to him all of your dealership’s available live inventory.

 

We will be certain that John is prepared to make a purchase after he interacts with your ads and either visits a video direct response (VDP) on your website or one on Facebook.

 

We must retarget John if he leaves your VDPs without converting, though, in order to keep your store at the forefront of his mind until he makes a choice.

 

Continue enforcing the qualities that set your store distinct from other dealerships. Bringing John Back With Retargeting 1.

At this point, “sales-y” advertisements should take precedence but don’t forget to keep telling John what makes your store unique.

 

Building John’s trust via references from customers, honors and recognition, and your community involvement are all surefire strategies to succeed.

 

2. Remain current and politely request a lead conversion.

You definitely don’t want to retarget John with a bright blue F-150 that is out of his price range if he is looking at neutral color F-150s between $40 and $50k.

 

Instead, use all of the comparable goods you have in stock to retarget John with the precise VIN he viewed.

 

Ask John to submit a lead straight on Facebook to apply for financing, schedule a test drive, or schedule a VIP appointment when his shopping adventure is at its most intense.

 

You can give John a seamless experience without long page loads, pop-ups, or other interruptions by using On-Facebook Lead Ads.

 

Did you realize? Many agencies and dealerships run lead ads either too soon or too long, wasting your advertising budget. You may get the most out of your money by just approaching John for a lead conversion three to seven days after he left your VDP, when his journey is at its peak.

 

Your team will see John’s information entered into the CRM as soon as he raises his hand and submits it, putting you one step closer to the sale.

 

Accounting for The Sale

Say John never filled out a Facebook lead form, but he still came in and purchased the new truck.

 

How can we link your Facebook campaigns to that unit sale?

 

Dealers don’t have to guess anymore thanks to Facebook’s Offline Conversion tool.

 

You can easily monitor the number of customers that viewed or clicked a Facebook ad before to making a purchase by uploading your sales report to Facebook (or using our fantastic new dashboard).

 

Click here to read more about Facebook Matchbacks.

 

This will enable you to stop speculating and start making better choices with your advertising budget by providing you with fast information about your return on ad spend and cost per unit sold.

John’s journey with your dealership, however, is not yet over.

 

Clients For Life

You can now conduct service and promotion campaigns to John and the rest of your existing customer base as John has been recorded in your CRM as a successful transaction.

 

We can keep your dealership on John’s timetable by driving fixed operations revenue and eventually starting to reengage him with trade-in incentives to lure him back into your store to make another purchase.

 

Now that John’s journey has come full circle and he is a die-hard supporter of your dealership, get a testimonial and use it as an advertisement for prospective customers that you run into while they are on their auto shopping excursion.

 

Nothing fosters trust like personal recommendations, which is why it’s crucial to maintain these connections even after a transaction has been completed. One individual can bring connections that you never know about!

 

The Adventure Never Ends…

You are now aware of every interaction that occurs along the auto buyer’s journey.

 

There are several chances to make each touch point more effective in order to convert a potential customer (and everyone they know!) into an enthusiastic fan.

 

Internet users spend an average of 144 minutes per day on social media, making Facebook and Instagram a haven for digital marketers. Furthermore, 86% of consumers prefer to interact with businesses after making a purchase, and 63% of automobile buyers find new models online.

 

These tactics can help your business increase local recognition, boost engagement, gather qualified leads, and make the most of your advertising budget—from prospecting and retargeting to nurturing the connection (and revenue) after the sale.

 

If your company isn’t utilizing digital marketing across the marketing funnel, your competitor could easily win the business of your local audience with just one click.

 

Ready to learn more using examples from the real world? View this video to witness the process of purchasing a car in action.

Facebook Launches Private Auto Group for Dealers

The Facebook Car Marketing Collective Group, a closed Facebook group reserved only for car dealers and the auto industry, was just formed by the Facebook Automotive Team.

 

The new social group aims to unite dealers from around the world so they can support one another through challenges and advance the business as a whole.

 

The new Facebook Automotive Group’s mission

According to Bob Lanham, Head of Facebook Automotive Retail, the group’s goal is to:

 

Dealers can immediately access Facebook tools and tactics by joining the Facebook Auto Marketing Collective Group. They can also get updates straight from the head of the Facebook Automotive Team.

 

The benefits of joining the Facebook Auto Marketing Collective Group for dealers

SimpSocial and the Facebook Automotive Team have long been looking forward to a group like this.

 

Despite routinely being invited to Facebook’s automotive conferences and co-hosting events like the State of Automotive with Facebook, SimpSocial and its dealer partners have always wished for an online community of dealers to regularly exchange best practices and ideas.

 

The more merchants we can gather on this platform, the stronger our force and the more diverse our perspectives will be.

 

How to sign up for the exclusive Group

Simply sign into Facebook, go to this page, and click the “Join Group” button to become a member of the Facebook Auto Marketing Collective.

 

Once the administrators of the group have confirmed that you are a member of the automotive community, they will review and approve your request.

 

Do you wish to bypass the form and gain immediate access to the group? Pete Petersen, our CEO, will give you a direct invitation if you add him here on Facebook.

 

There will be more Facebook resources for cars.

With the creation of this group, it is evident that Facebook is redoubling its efforts in the automotive sector and giving insights and best practices more attention so that dealers may reach their communities as efficiently as possible.

 

With that goal in mind, Facebook released its resources, the Facebook Automotive Playbook and Zero Friction Future, last year.

 

These tools have assisted agencies and dealerships in enhancing their Facebook advertising plans in order to move more metal.

Strategic Marketing: Capturing vs. Generating Demand

In the current automobile market, the demand for vehicles, both new and secondhand, cannot really be disputed. With no indication that consumers are slacking off, many dealers have had consecutive months of record-breaking sales. It’s crucial that marketing initiatives change with the times, even if your dealership and its sales staff are still having a great year. When marketing expenditures are better adjusted to satisfy customers at every stage of their journey rather than abandoned or forgotten during periods of strong demand, continued success can only be sustained.

 

Simply put, there is a greater demand than supply for new cars. The introduction of vaccines has given consumers peace of mind, relocation or vacation has increased demand for larger vehicles, interest in EV models is growing, and those summertime incentives are quite alluring to individuals who spent the previous year indoors and off the road. There are countless angles to take, but the fundamental truth is that demand is high and inventory is leaving the warehouse quickly.

 

So why do you still invest? We can’t afford to promote right now, numerous dealerships and companies declared it barely a year ago. The most astute dealers, though, said that “We can’t afford to not advertise wisely right now.”

 

In a difficult market, SimpSocial’s partners who maintained their advertising budgets recovered more quickly and experienced a decline in CPLs and CPCs while frightened and bewildered rivals reduced their spending. Here is what we know about the market and the proportional marketing reactions that can be used right now, with the philosophy of spending to capture demand rather than to create demand.

 

How to Deliver on Demand in 3 Ways

Consumers are waiting weeks or even months for the automobile they want after realizing the exorbitant prices. Give on-site content first priority, especially for models that are hard to come by. Users will look elsewhere to shop if your SEO company doesn’t track or optimize for manufacturer and model keywords.

By fast-flipping inventory to keep up with sales, retailers continue to demonstrate their high level of adaptability to the current climate. Maintain the life of your paid search marketing efforts. Invest these monies in fixed ops keywords and encourage customers to visit the service department as inventory for models with little to no volume declines.

Maximize the use of sales incentives in advertising content, but exercise tact when doing so. Make sure the copy feels natural so that readers won’t even notice it’s an advertisement. Customers expect to be sold to, therefore increasing click-through rates requires adopting “why-buys” and bold tactics like asking questions, mentioning pricing points, and showing inventory count. The objectives are clicks and brand name recall. Make sure to specify the start and end dates accurately when using GMB posts as another fantastic, cost-free approach to prominently display incentives in your online marketplace.

Continue to make use of low-cost channels like Facebook or Local Campaign Ads to support buy-back and trade-in opportunities as you adapt your strategies to meet this demand. Local campaigns are popular and only cost $4.50 per conversion! Low CPMs are a result of competitors leaving Facebook. Include content about reasons to purchase incentives that aims to increase your used inventory.

 

A Lack of Inventory Doesn’t Have to Cause Panic

Take this as a warning if your dealership is considering cutting back on marketing due to limited inventory. Consumers in the millennial and Generation Z market are starting their purchase cycles quickly, and switching between brands is more common than ever. Your dealership can keep up with the needs of the day while remaining lean by having a website that is keyword-optimized and pay-per-click ads that are properly funded.

 

Want to know more? For a free website assessment and budget analysis of your digital marketing efforts, get in touch with our sales team.

 

Sources:

CNBC: Why demand for new autos is surpassing supply and why this is terrible for consumers but advantageous for investors by JD Power Despite low inventory, April new-vehicle sales will set a record, and consumers will spend more on new cars than ever before. April, Should I Be Concerned About the Shortage of New Cars?

Google Local 2-Packs: Impact on Your GMB Listings

For dealers to have organic success online, a well-optimized Google My Business presence has become a necessity. The fact that Google is testing Local 2-Pack results rather than 3-Pack results should therefore serve as motivation to further optimize and professionalize your sales, service, and parts listings.

 

Let’s go over some fundamentals of local SEO before delving further into this Google beta test. The potential implications of this test for your GMB listings will then be discussed.

 

How Do Local Packs Work?

Google compiles a list of prospective local businesses that most closely match your search criteria when you perform a search for one. These companies generally appear in groups of three, therefore the names Local-3 or Local Packs.

 

The local pack is one of the most indubitable and reliable strategies to generate calls to your dealership, directions to your location, or clicks through to your website because there are often just 3 results presented out of the dozens of businesses that may match the criteria of a query.

 

A strategic method to improve your chances of spreading brand recognition, generating more website traffic and leads, and eventually attracting new clients is to be visible in the local pack. However, keeping your company’s listing in the viewable pack requires regular time and effort spent on turning your GMB listing into a useful resource for users.

 

The Overall Situation

At the end of March, news that Google was experimenting with showing only 2 businesses in local packs rather than 3 on mobile first surfaced in the SEO community. The beta test has been noticed on both iPhone and Android devices, and so far it appears that this local SEO update is concentrated on restaurant searches. We have not yet observed this being tested on a desktop.

 

The wider picture is that Google continually tests new ideas. Everyone who uses a search engine is aware of algorithm adjustments, but when aiming to increase traffic and leads, it’s as crucial to keep an eye on the format and expressional updates.

 

A test like this one could appear insignificant, but it will likely have a significant effect on organic visibility. The likelihood of your dealership showing up in a local pack would drop by 33% if this rollout were to become a permanent feature. The statistical impact it could have on the number of sessions, calls, and requests for directions to your dealership could be significant and necessitate spending more money on other forms of advertising, such as sponsored search marketing.

 

How to Keep Up with the Times

SimpSocial is carefully observing the regional packs offered by our dealer network as more information about this test becomes available. We constantly want to make sure that, if significant changes are impending, we can assist you in avoiding potentially disastrous effects on your traffic. The greatest strategy to keep your dealership visible in local pack results is to regularly optimize your listings and present truthful information.

 

Make sure the listings for each department you have been claimed if you have, so you may optimize all business-related listings. Other fast victories include:

 

choosing the right business categories

uploading a lot of good pictures

addressing queries from users in the Q&A section

These days, GMB offers countless opportunities! All of these steps increase your likelihood of receiving local pack impressions and contribute to SEO success.

Contact us at sales@SimpSocial.com if you’re interested in knowing more about Google, Apple, or Facebook experiments that may affect your entire digital marketing game plans. Want additional details or assistance with boosting your GMB listings? When you request a demo, we’ll provide you with a diagnostic analysis of your GMB listings and a detailed rundown of our SEO offerings.

Using AI to Boost Automotive Dealership Sales Communication

Our software business depends on innovation, and lately, we’ve taken a big step toward the future of customer communication. To build an intelligent conversation recommendation engine, we used artificial intelligence (AI), especially OpenAI’s conversation GPT API. This tool is poised to fundamentally alter our interaction model because it is built to draw lessons from prior interactions and intuitively predict a potential automobile buyer’s desires.

While AI has incredible potential, we are aware of the need to maintain a firm grip on the steering wheel. We, therefore, created the initial iteration of our AI integration to offer recommendations rather than completely take over the talks. Not to replace, but to empower.

The effects were rapid and significant on the first day of deployment. Throughout the day, I carefully assessed the leads and the AI’s performance. One instance, in particular, jumped out: after receiving automatic follow-ups for two days, a TrueCar lead responded. The dealership remained silent for an hour, but our AI was prepared with pertinent suggestions. The persuasive value of AI assistance, when the human response is weak, was highlighted in this situation.

The AI repeatedly proved its value during the day by intervening to correct subpar SMS messages, posing crucial questions, and offering solutions when the dealership fell short. On day one, our AI technology was already demonstrating its ability to change the game.

This quest involves more than just getting over the restrictions of bad salesmanship. I’ve personally witnessed how poor sales abilities may result in missed chances, declining revenue, and even the failure of organizations. Lead follow-up and CRMs need to undergo a fundamental revolution, and AI is the impetus for this change.

True salesmanship entails an unwavering desire and unwavering dedication. Even the most dedicated salespeople, however, are constrained by time and have a limited amount of capacity. Our goal in incorporating AI into our software is to empower these hardworking people rather than replace them.

We empower top performers to handle more leads and engage with more clients by offloading some of the workloads to AI. As a result, there is less need for bloated sales or BDC departments, and quality is prioritized above quantity.

AI cannot change the fact that real salespeople, the ones who develop connections with customers and work every deal until there is no more meat on the bone, are irreplaceable. However, these salesmen can accomplish more when they

The first day’s astounding success was simply a glimmer of what an AI-powered future might hold. As we move forward, I can’t wait to witness a sales floor controlled by top performers, powered by AI, and achieving record-breaking sales success.

For a green pea’s first day on the floor, it’s not awful at all!

Text-Blast Marketing: Auto Dealerships’ Next Big Thing

Independent auto dealerships are constantly looking for innovative methods to engage with clients and outperform more established rivals in today’s fiercely competitive auto market. Finding the correct avenues for communication is crucial, and it can make or break a dealership. For this reason, independent dealerships should embrace text blast marketing, a ground-breaking advertising channel that is redefining the way dealerships interact with their clientele.

 

Traditional email marketing, which was once thought to be the best way to reach clients, is having more and more problems with open rates. The amount of promotional clutter in inboxes makes it extremely challenging for your marketing email to stand out. Additionally, emails frequently get deleted, placed on the promotions tab, or lost in spam folders, making it difficult for your dealership to break through the clutter and reach your intended decision-makers. It’s obvious that a fresh strategy is required—one that enables dealerships to communicate with customers directly and rapidly, grabbing their attention and inspiring quick action.

 

Enter text blast marketing, a remarkably potent tool that is revolutionizing communication plans for auto dealerships and other retail establishments. With text blast marketing, dealerships can deliver individualized, targeted communications immediately to the mobile devices of their customers. Your message will stand out, be read, and inspire customers to act thanks to this direct and rapid communication.

 

The benefits of text blast marketing are extensive and effective. The extraordinarily high open rates that text messages experience are one of their main advantages. A survey by the Mobile Marketing Association (MMA) found that text messages have a startlingly high open rate of more than 75%. The open rates of conventional email marketing, which frequently fail to achieve even 20%, are vastly outperformed by this. Text messages cut through the clutter and grab clients’ attention in a world overflowing with information, guaranteeing that your dealership’s message is seen and heard.  An unmatched level of consumer interaction is provided by text blast marketing. According to the same MMA study, text messages have an average response rate of 45%, which is higher than that of other communication channels and suggests a better level of client connection. Due to this high level of involvement, independent car dealerships have a great chance to draw in clients, develop relationships with them, and persuade them to perform desired activities like visiting the dealership, booking test drives, or looking into special offers.

 

Based on a customer’s lead inquiry, deal stage, or prior purchases, dealerships can segment their customer database and send tailored messaging to particular consumer groups. With such a high level of personalization, you can be confident that your messages will be very pertinent and effective. You can develop a sense of connection and boost consumer engagement and conversion by providing personalized content. In addition, it provides immediate communication, as opposed to email campaigns, which can be easily missed or delayed. Due to the speed at which text messages are read and received, customers feel compelled to act right away. Text blast marketing makes sure that your dealership’s communications are delivered in a timely and effective manner, whether it’s informing customers about temporary sales events or even promoting exclusive service offerings.

 

Independent auto dealerships must place a high priority on choosing a stable and user-friendly platform if they want to fully leverage the power of text blast marketing. Look for platforms that provide simple-to-use tools for easily building and sending text blasts. Moreover, choose systems with compliance and reporting features, which will enable you to assess the success of your communication efforts, pinpoint areas for improvement, increase deliverability with compliance, and adjust your marketing plans as necessary. It’s crucial to keep in mind that success depends not only on the technology but also on the messages’ strategy and content. Write sentences that are attention-grabbing and succinct, with clear value propositions and alluring calls to action. To maximize results, test several strategies, strategically segment your audience, and adjust the frequency and timing of your messages.

 

You may respond to the shifting dynamics of consumer interaction, where attention spans are short, competition is fierce, and mobile devices are an integral part of people’s daily lives, by implementing text blast marketing into your communication plan. Independent car dealerships must seize the opportunities provided by text blast marketing now that the era of dealership text communication has arrived. Create a closer bond with your customers, transform your communication methods, and unlock the success of your dealership’s potential.

 

Take advantage of this transformative opportunity to advance your company and keep up with the competition!

Using Text Messages to Quickly Find Automobile Offers!

It’s high noon at the Chevrolet dealership I co-own on Friday, April 28th, 2023. With a hefty $8,000 reduction off the MSRP for 2023 vehicles, we’re anxious to move our inventory of Silverados this month. We currently have 4,000 leads in our pipeline.

 

It would take our modest sales team days to get in touch with all of these potential customers if we used a traditional CRM system. With SimpSocial, however, we were able to SMS them in less than 20 minutes. Our outreach turned a calm showroom into a busy center, and our sales crew is currently overloaded with 147 interested clients. Every salesperson at our dealership is currently on the phone speaking with a customer about the 2023 Silverado.

 

Compared to other follow-up strategies, text messaging is noticeably more effective in the automotive sector. It enables dealerships to quickly move from being completely idle to having every salesperson engage with a consumer.

 

Dealerships must make the most of every opportunity to stay competitive as the economy starts to stabilize and sales begin to slow down. Due to the limited amount of inventory that can be produced, it’s crucial to have a system in place that enables quick vehicle turnover to increase allocation.

 

The answer is SimpSocial! Your sales team doesn’t need to waste time calling inactive clients and leaving a ton of voicemails. Instead, all you need to do is press a button to start your dealership!

Keep your distance from the pipeline

Customers don’t move through the stages of customer-hood in an orderly checkout line in today’s growing digital environment because they are too independent-minded to be catered to in a one-size-fits-all way. Instead, buyers are frequently pushed out of the showroom by dealers who are overly focused on moving them through the funnel as if it were a one-way pipeline of stages that must be completed in the designated order.

 

Frank V. Cespedes highlights this typical tendency among salespeople to become unduly fixated on the customers’ passage through the traditional stages of the sales funnel in a recent article in the Harvard Business Review.

 

In order to move a prospect from awareness to interest to desire to action, the buying process has been conceptualized over the past 50 years as a hierarchy of effects. The AIDA formula and its variations serve as the foundation—often the unintentional foundation—for client acquisition efforts in the majority of businesses. Inside-out methodology is used, assuming that customers flow sequentially through a “funnel” or “pipeline.”

 

Research, however, points to a different reality. Customers now consider many activity streams before making a purchase. These streams will be referred to as explore, assess, engage, and experience.

 

Think about getting a car. Prior to making a purchase, U.S. automobile purchasers spend roughly 13 hours online comparing cars, but only 3.5 hours at car showrooms. Yet dealers are where more than 90% of cars are purchased. However, since they can now access prices, customer reviews, and other information online, consumers’ behavior is altering. If a test drive is necessary to obtain the vehicle’s list price, more than 50% of customers will leave the dealer. A dealer’s website listing vehicle prices will drive nearly 40% of customers away, and a dealer’s automobile will drive nearly 40% of customers away.

 

It’s basic sales knowledge. Salespeople must help customers with these priorities as they investigate, analyze, engage with, and experience them in the order and at the pace that suits them best.

 

And how does a salesperson pick up on these subtleties regarding the preferences and needs of their clients? – By asking insightful questions, paying attention to the responses, presenting clients with solutions, and making sure their experience is enjoyable and fruitful all the while, Knowing sales

 

Cespedes continues by stating

 

“Conversations with consumers on an ongoing basis are another, much-disregarded source of insights to enhance the experience—what some refer to as “conversational intelligence.” Call recordings, chat transcripts, and product documentation from call centers, sales dialogues, and customer support groups are captured and analyzed using real-time natural language processing techniques by companies like CallMiner, Chorus, NICE, TalkMap, and others. Furthermore, their first-party data capture the “voice of the customer” in their own words, not those of the engineer or brand slogan. These technologies aid in staying current with key determinants of the customer experience. This input is becoming more and more useful due to tightening privacy laws and Apple’s and other companies’ restrictions on user data.

 

Our unique hands-on approach to conversational intelligence sets SimpSocial apart from other SimpSocial solutions, and our tried-and-true solutions can do the same for your dealership.

 

Learn more about how conversational intelligence from SimpSocial can help your company and your sales force avoid becoming too reliant on the pipeline.

Do You Want to Use Crm More Effectively?

No matter the status of the industry, dealership success depends on a Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system, as we learned this past year. Two things remain constant as CRM technology develops along with rising consumer expectations: Dealers desire rapid adoption, a significant return on their investment, and great adoption. We all understand that the CRM system that is being employed by your dealership is the best one.

 

After the initial training or onboarding process, dealers anticipate that their workers will be able to use the system, but in practice, this is highly unlikely to occur. Why? You query. Was the instruction ineffective? Or perhaps my staff didn’t pay attention? Numerous times, no.

 

It’s more important than ever to consider how your CRM will scale and develop along with your company. Usually, it requires more than just brand-new, flashy features. The chances are in your favor if you embrace cultural and technological changes, optimize procedures, and get employee buy-in.

 

We provide six practical strategies to increase CRM usage in our most recent ebook, CRM Best Practices: Change the Culture of Your Dealership. To make sure that your people, processes, and CRM are operating as they should, we’ll concentrate on three crucial areas in this article.

 

Adopt Modern Sales Culture

If you’ve spent any time working in the automotive industry, you’ve probably been through more grueling sales meetings than you can count. Taking the blame for a negative post-game analysis not only demoralizes your players but also frequently indicates that you are managing after the game rather than coaching a strategy when there is still a chance to win.

 

Consider that you often tell your staff to call or email more clients or that you provide closing rates vs. activities. It’s time to reconsider customer engagement in that case. Smart dealers don’t just rely on conventional task-driven work plans; they also measure the pace and quality of interactions. Your ability to immediately identify the dealership’s most engaged prospects and consistently provide individualized experiences will put you on the road to better earnings.

 

Hire for character, develop for retention

According to the 2020 NADA Dealership Workforce Study, the average annual turnover in dealerships is over 67 percent, and some dealerships are unwilling to engage in high-quality employee training. However, badly trained workers cannot consistently deliver, and ignoring training has a substantial negative influence on your bottom line.

 

Hire staff members who are committed to upholding the principles of your business, and make continual training an investment. Industry experience is less significant than an applicant who exhibits a strong work ethic and puts an emphasis on forming connections.

 

The numerous benefits of a CRM system are only apparent at the dealership level. Your sales team needs training to help them realize how using the CRM system will benefit them individually. After that, establish performance measures to monitor, assess, and adjust in accordance with corporate objectives.

 

To assist you in providing continuing training for both technical skills and tried-and-true processes, team up with a CRM that provides a robust training program. Now that technical training is over, you can concentrate on teaching soft skills that produce greater results.

 

Center Your Goals (And Your Technology) Around Your Customers

While selling a single automobile today is excellent, developing a long-term relationship with clients is considerably more rewarding. Include important customer engagement indicators in your daily reports, and give your team feedback on how they are doing. Naturally, this will increase closing rates. Your CRM should also give you the following abilities to convert prospects into devoted customers:

 

By finding out where customers like to interact with you and communicating through that channel, you can meet clients where they are.

Utilize tools that enable you to track and understand customer behavior so you can have meaningful, useful conversations with them.

By using Artificial Intelligence (AI) technology to give clients the information they desire in real-time, you can react before your competitors.

Creating a distinctive sales culture and taking aggressive measures to encourage personnel to progress with your dealership are the first steps in creating devoted client connections. You can encourage staff to value customer experiences, which can improve engagement, foster stronger bonds, and speed up sales.