The VDP View Illusion
Let’s talk about busting the myth of VDP traffic and how dealerships can prioritize it in their digital advertising.
In the past, when I was in senior management at the dealership, I, too, had fallen for the newest and best item out there and drank the Kool-Aid. As a result, I could have used my advertising budget more wisely to maintain the current level of earnings.
Let’s go back to the last Dealer 20 group where I gave a speech. I found that many of those dealerships needed to work on interacting with potential consumers more effectively by sending the incorrect message at the incorrect time while taking into account where the customer was in the process of purchasing and maintaining a car.
The main objective of a dealership should be to effectively enhance showroom traffic through interpersonal communication.
Increasing online and ultimately in-person interaction between customers and the dealership is one method to make this strategy more effective.
Let’s dispel the myth of the VDP approach and show why putting all your eggs in one basket is not the best strategy for boosting sales and service revenue.
Many suppliers have supported the idea of promoting VDP views as the best method to use your digital budget ever since the VDP view campaign was launched in 2012, and this trend continues today.
The concept of bringing them straight to a vehicle of interest rather than to the dealer’s home page or SRP was fantastic. However, sadly, a lot of suppliers have jumped on that bandwagon while ignoring the principles of really guiding the customer to the showroom floor and instead leading them down a one-way street.
In many ways, the significance of sales has been overshadowed by this idea. Don’t misunderstand me, however; there is something to the argument that when a potential customer lands on a vehicle they are interested in, it is one of the last pages they visit before entering your showroom floor.
Dealers have been persuaded by many vendors that VDP views are the best strategy for increasing car sales. Sadly, this concept is gaining much more attention than it ought to. Before committing a potential buyer to a vehicle, there are considerably more important factors to take into account.
In the current environment, individuals choose to enter a showroom floor or service drive based on their knowledge of the dealer. What is their track record? What might customers anticipate if they buy or service their car with you? How simple is it to talk to your staff? How simple is it for people to find what they are looking for on your website? Can they relate to the causes that you, as a dealer, promote in your neighborhood?
What call to action is most important to website visitors who are considering visiting your showroom?
In my opinion, it would be like landing me on a VDP without giving me a cause to think about it if I walked into your dealership and was met by a salesperson who immediately started selling me a car instead of getting to know me and connecting with me.
Although vital, getting someone on a VDP is not the most crucial step. As a result, for a possible customer, it is lower on the list of marketing priorities.
You will see more views but lower-quality traffic when you solely concentrate on VDP traffic. If VDP views are your primary objective, the majority of VDP traffic will never visit your site again and will only stay for 30 seconds or less on average.
How to enhance showroom traffic and interpersonal connection should be your main concern.
Concentrate your attention on the factors that lead customers to choose you above your rivals. After that, picture yourself in their position and develop a marketing strategy that addresses the consumer lifecycle and the path that brings them to your showroom and service drive.
erect a solid fundamental advertising framework. Nothing is more crucial than boosting sales and service revenue and keeping that customer for life when examining your variable and fixed operations, absorption rate, and overall advertising budget. Your priorities as a dealer should be laid out in this aim, which will serve as your working foundation. The consumer may evaluate the vehicle you are selling as a result of VDP traffic, but frequently the vehicle needs to represent a discount because your digital budget was developed backward.
Recognize who your audience is. Before entering your showroom, shift your attention to comprehending the journey of your potential customers. As a result, the quality of the traffic will be significantly higher, and more crucially, showroom and service-drive activities will rise.
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