Scott Pechstein – Why buying 3rd party is still the most efficient advertisement
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Autobytel has partnered with Polk to track sales results on all Autobytel New and Used Car Quote Requests. Polk matches these leads to State Registration data for all 50 States. Scott will discuss numerous standard reports that include: Close Rate by Source, Close Rate by Make, Crossover between Makes (submitted a lead for a Toyota and bought a Nissan), Crossover between New and Used (submitted a lead for New and bought Used), and Time in Between Lead Submissions and Purchase. Most importantly, what can dealers can do with this information will be discussed. By the end of this discussion, you may redefine who your “competition” really is and refine your Internet Sales process. For a Toyota dealer, you may find you aren’t losing business to the local Toyota store, rather, to the used independent across town.
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Scott Pechstein – Why buying 3rd party is still the most efficient advertisement
- 1. Why buying 3rd party is still the most efficient advertisement Plus: How to engage the consumer in their preferred method of communication to increase engagement
- 2. • How we gathered our results • ROI of internet leads • What is influencing buying behavior • Best Practices (Phone, Email, Text, Chat) • Mobile Opportunities Topics Copyright (c) 2014 Autobytel Inc.
- 3. Overview Who is “Polk” Over 5 million Autobytel internet leads sent to Polk annually Polk matches leads to State Registration data for all 50 states “Committed” = Purchased the brand in the internet request Close rate by source Close rate by make Crossover between makes (submitted lead for Toyota and bought Nissan) Crossover between New and Used (submitted lead for New and bought Used) Time between lead submission and purchase Lost sales report by dealer Copyright (c) 2014 Autobytel Inc.
- 4. Industry Influences Brand Parity Merging of Tier One and Tier Two brands •Domestic Bankruptcies •Recalls •Tsunami Less loyal generations of consumers Product Parity Increased Marketing spend Industry quality awards More time spent researching on web sites & inventory Improved on-line content Purchase behaviors continue to change Consumer use of ratings & reviews Copyright (c) 2014 Autobytel Inc.
- 5. • New Vehicle buyers spend 11.5 hours online (Source: R.L.Polk/AutoTrader.com Automotive Buyer Influence Study) • 37% of shoppers enter the market without a specific brand in mind (Source: Compete Vehicle Cross Shopping Analysis, July 2012) • 59% of consumers don’t decide which vehicle to buy until the last week (Source: JDP 2012 New Auto shopper Study) • New-vehicle shoppers consider average of 3.3 vehicles – up from 2012 (source: JDP 2013 Avoider Study) • Baby Boomers only visit 1.9 dealers and overall based on dealership experience all generations express a desire to avoid salespeople in the future ( source: AutoTrader Next Generation Car Buyer Study) Industry Studies Copyright (c) 2014 Autobytel Inc.
- 6. • Autobytel base line close rate is 16 - 25% • If a dealer is closing less than the base line they are losing sales and revenue Why This Data is critical to dealers Copyright (c) 2014 Autobytel Inc.
- 7. Buying Funnel Not Really – Just Different Research Consideration Lead Evaluate Evaluate Evaluate Vehicle 1 Vehicle 2 Vehicle 3 Purchase Copyright (c) 2014 Autobytel Inc.
- 8. What’s changed? • Myth – When a consumer submits an internet lead, my competition is my fellow brand dealer in the area . . . • Truth – The consumer is still shopping brands as the consideration set is being finalized • Consumers submit leads as a starting point to begin the discovery and analysis of their consideration set. Copyright (c) 2014 Autobytel Inc.
- 9. Lost Sales Dealer Reports Leads Purchased from Detailed Dealers Purchases based on 1 month of leads and up to 3 months registration period Sales Match Period: Lead Date + 90 Autobytel Dealer Name Number of Leads Total Purchased Purch. Assigned Dealer Purch. Other Dealer Purch. Other Dealer Anytown Chevy 33 14 7 7 CHEVROLET | CRUZE | 2013 Main Street GMC CHEVROLET | EQUINOX | 2013 CHEVROLET | EQUINOX | 2011 Main Street Honda CHEVROLET | EQUINOX | 2011 CHEVROLET | SONIC | 2013 Premium Toyota TOYOTA | PRIUS V | 2013 CHEVROLET | CAMARO | 2013 Hometown Ford CHEVROLET | TRAVERSE | 2011 CHEVROLET | EQUINOX | 2013 GMC of Anytown CHEVROLET | EQUINOX | 2006 GMC | ACADIA | 2013 Import Kia KIA | SPORTAGE | 2013 CHEVROLET | SILVERADO | 2013 Great GMC CHEVROLET | IMPALA | 2013 Dealer had 21% Close Rate but lost 7 additional sales Copyright (c) 2014 Autobytel Inc.
- 10. Why Third Party Leads • Return on Investment – Anytown Chevrolet - $25 per lead X 33 leads = $825 expense • 7 confirmed sales (probably more) x $1,000 front end and $1,000 back end • $14,000 - $825 = $13,175 gross profit • Cost per sale = $118 – ROI 16 :1 – What if Anytown got 3 of those 7 lost sales • 10 sales X $2,000 = $20,000 • $20,000 - $825 = $19,175 gross profit • Cost per sale = $82.50 – ROI 23:1 – What if Anytown only got 3 sales • $6,000 - $825 = $5,175 gross profit • Cost per sale = $275 – ROI 6:1 – ONLY 1 sale • $2,000 - $825 = $1,175 – still ROI positive Copyright (c) 2014 Autobytel Inc.
- 11. Brand Defection - Demographics • Bought a different Make • (New or Used) •53.61% Submitted a New Car Purchase Request Based on Household income Less than $15,000 = 60.45% Over $150,000 = 49.85% Based on Age Head of Household 18 to 24 = 68.12% 55 to 64 = 51.28% Demographics show variance in buying behaviors Based on Gender Male = 51.44% Female = 54.19% Copyright (c) 2014 Autobytel Inc.
- 12. Brand Defection - Demographics • Bought a different Make • (New or Used) •53.61% Submitted a New Car Purchase Request Based on Household income Less than $15,000 = 60.45% Over $150,000 = 49.85% Based on Age Head of Household 18 to 24 = 68.12% 55 to 64 = 51.28% Demographics show variance in buying behaviors Based on Gender Male = 51.44% Female = 54.19% Copyright (c) 2014 Autobytel Inc.
- 13. Correlation “Committed*” / Loyalty Autobytel “Committed” Brands – Bought New – SUBARU – TOYOTA – HONDA – CHEVROLET – NISSAN – JEEP – DODGE – FORD – CADILLAC – HYUNDAI “Committed” = bought the brand that the lead was submitted for. Copyright (c) 2014 Autobytel Inc.
- 14. Correlation “Committed*” / Loyalty Autobytel “Committed” Brands – Bought New – SUBARU – TOYOTA – HONDA – CHEVROLET – NISSAN – JEEP – DODGE – FORD – CADILLAC – HYUNDAI Polk Loyalty Ranking Q1 2013 – FORD – TOYOTA – HONDA – CHEVROLET – NISSAN – MERCEDES-BENZ – BMW – SUBARU – LEXUS – HYUNDAI “Committed” = bought the brand that the lead was submitted for. Copyright (c) 2014 Autobytel Inc.
- 15. Brand Defection Buying Patterns Buying Pattern after New Car Lead Submission 2012 Polk sales results Copyright (c) 2014 Autobytel Inc.
- 16. Brand Defection Buying Patterns Buying Pattern after New Car Lead Submission Copyright (c) 2014 Autobytel Inc.
- 17. New to Used Defection • Bought Used – any make •40.23% Submitted a New Car Purchase Request Based on Household income Less than $15,000 = 55.81% Over $150,000 = 28.52% Copyright (c) 2013 Autobytel Inc. Based on Age of Head of Household 18 to 24 = 67.59% 55 to 64 = 33.74% Demographics show variance in buying behaviors Copyright (c) 2014 Autobytel Inc.
- 18. New to Used Defection • Bought Used – any make •40.23% Submitted a New Car Purchase Request Based on Household income Less than $15,000 = 55.81% Over $150,000 = 28.52% Copyright (c) 2013 Autobytel Inc. Based on Age of Head of Household 18 to 24 = 67.59% 55 to 64 = 33.74% Demographics show variance in buying behaviors Copyright (c) 2014 Autobytel Inc.
- 19. New to Used Buying Pattern Buying Pattern after New Car Lead Submission Copyright (c) 2014 Autobytel Inc.
- 20. New to Used Buying Pattern Buying Pattern after New Car Lead Submission Copyright (c) 2014 Autobytel Inc.
- 21. Off-line Experience Copyright (c) 2014 Autobytel Inc. Less visits = more burden on the internet lead process to drive visits Baby Boomers visit 1.9 dealerships Gen X visit 2.5 dealerships Gen Y visit 3.1 dealerships Based on their dealership experience, in the future they will avoid salespeople: 56% Gen Y 49% Gen X 37% Baby Boomers (AutoTrader.com Next Generation Car Buyer Study Sept 2013)
- 22. Off-line Advantages Dealership Brand is featured • Ability to test drive and explore vehicle features and benefits • Ability for a professional walk around of the vehicle Sales Consultant can be a vehicle consultant: • Who will be driving the car? • How will the car be used? • What features are important in a vehicle? Ability to profile the consumer to lead them down a personalized vehicle presentation • New/Used/CPO – Model – Trim – Colors – Optional Equipment Copyright (c) 2014 Autobytel Inc.
- 23. On-line Experience What demographics and buying behavior trends do we know about this consumer? How committed are they to my brand? Do we stop at price or do we start asking questions? Copyright (c) 2014 Autobytel Inc.
- 24. On-line Challenge How can we give them the off-line dealership visit experience? How do we create a need for them to visit my dealership? This applies to responding to leads plus website strategies to drive showroom traffic Copyright (c) 2014 Autobytel Inc.
- 25. On-line lead responses (phone and form) Internet Sales Consultant can be pigeon holed into being an information provider: 1) Do you have the car I want? 2) What is the price? When a consumer submits a lead WE MAKE THEM PICK A YEAR/MAKE/MODEL. Is that the vehicle that really meets their needs? Copyright (c) 2014 Autobytel Inc.
- 26. Traditional Best Practice Why buy from me 1 Vehicle of interest 2 Alternative vehicles 1 New 1 Used 3 Quick Response Time and Continuous Follow up Copyright (c) 2014 Autobytel Inc.
- 27. Internet Process Needs to Change Why Buy Brand 1 Why buy from me 2 Vehicle of interest 3 Alternative vehicle(s) 4 All used options 5 One size fits all does not work – emphasis needs to vary for each deal Copyright (c) 2014 Autobytel Inc.
- 28. Recap/Communicate Differently • Email responses and talk tracks need to: – Reinforce the brand – why BLANK is a great brand with a great lineup – Mention the various trim levels and other similar models – Briefly explain CPO and your used inventory (all models) • But the real opportunity lies in communicating differently – Texteo and Audio interaction – Video and Audio interaction PLUS co-browsing April 15, 2014 Copyright (c) 2014 Autobytel Inc.
- 29. Challenges • The key challenge is contacting the consumer – Challenges with Phone • How many times do we call, and at different times? • Do we call to sell the car or the appointment? – Challenges with E-mail • Do we use Automated responses and how often? Do they look like Auto Responses? • Do we give pricing on-line? – Create a 2 way dialog instantaneously • Do you give the consumer the option to Text your dealership? • Do you offer Chat? • Do you offer multiple communication options (video and audio)? • Can you make your website a virtual showroom? Copyright (c) 2013 Autobytel Inc. Copyright (c) 2014 Autobytel Inc.
- 30. Why Mobile? Copyright (c) 2014 Autobytel Inc.
- 31. Who is Texting • It is not just the Millennials that are texting • Note the income levels – prime income demographics Copyright (c) 2014 Autobytel Inc.
- 32. Call Volume vs. Text Volume Click to call is very popular on smartphones but note how text volume out paces call volume in all age groups Copyright (c) 2014 Autobytel Inc.
- 33. Text Leads • Consumer adoption of Texting is growing – 98% of text messages are read, compared to 22% of emails, 29% of tweets and 12% of Facebook posts. (Frost & Sullivan 2010, Slick Text) • Limitation on characters leads to more of a conversation than trying to cover every detail in one e-mail or phone script • Ability to be consultative – Two way conversation • Ability to respond to consumers on the lot – Your lot and others • 49% of automotive smartphone users made a purchase related to that interaction (The xAd/Telmetrics Mobile Path to Purchase Study) Copyright (c) 2014 Autobytel Inc.
- 34. Concerns Government compliance (TCPA) Several recent text message cases have resulted in multi- million dollar settlements. For instance: • Lithia Motors - $2.5 million class-action settlement (between $175 and $500/phone number) • Twentieth Century Fox - $16 million class-action settlement ($200/ phone number) • Simon & Schuster - $10 million class-action settlement ($175/ phone number) • Timberland Company - $7 million class-action settlement ($150/ phone number)
- 35. Copyright (c) 2012 Autobytel Inc. 35 Text Gateway • All communication is logged into a Text Gateway to assist with legal compliance • Hierarchy rules in place to hide the phone number from unauthorized users • Gateway stores Opt-in consents and Opt-out STOP • Text Gateway data can be downloaded to dealership CRM system for sales tracking Copyright (c) 2014 Autobytel Inc.
- 36. Interactive Engagement Platform • A true “virtual up” to create a high-touch interaction with consumers • Video, voice, chat and dual- cursor guided browsing with any visitor • Explain incentives and offers to visitors in real-time • Traffic is viewed real time on the website With in-person visits to dealerships declining, consumers are now walking around “virtual showrooms” (automotive websites) to make their purchase
- 37. Conclusion • The traditional buying funnel has changed – More vehicles are being considered and the funnel is fluid – Majority of consumers do not buy what they think they are going to buy • Form leads are not dead but there are more options available today to communicate beyond phone and e-mail • It is not hard to have a positive ROI with Third Party Leads • Text Communications is growing – Actionable & Customer initiated • Recent technology allows for bringing the showroom experience into desktop and mobile devices – Audio and Video Chat & Co-browsing • Bottom line – allow consumers to communicate with you in their preferred communication method – Higher Engagement with More Efficient Communication – Capture the high % that leave without filling out a lead form Copyright (c) 2014 Autobytel Inc.
- 38. Thank you • Scott Pechstein • Vice President, Sales • Direct: (949) 862-3001 • Mobile (949) 278-8618 • Scottp@autobytel.com • Nasdaq ABTL Copyright (c) 2014 Autobytel Inc.
Editor's Notes
- Today we are going to do an overview of the buying behaviors exhibited by consumers submitting car pricing requests through Autobytel by focusing on 4 areas A dealerships’ competitive market conditions The consumers demographics Brand and vehicle segment of the request Brand loyaltyFor purposes of this presentation we will use the term “COMMITTED” meaning did the consumer purchase the brand originally intended in the quote requestFirst, lets at the process that lead to the results
- Three factors are driving a change in buying behaviors BRAND PARITY PRODUCT PARITY IMPROVED ON-LINE CONTENT(add stories)
- (just read this slide)
- We know our baseline for a consumer submitting a quote request and buying a car is in the 16 – 25% range.Typically a dealer will be very pleased with an 8 to 10% close rate but you can see, even at that high close rate they are leaving many sales on the floor.Brad – what is Polk seeing in the market place
- We all see the comments regarding the traditional buying funnel – that it is dead - but we feel there is still a buying funnel – it is just different.Various studies have shown that instead of narrowing, at various times in the funnel, the consumer is actually increasing their consideration set instead of narrowing the consideration list and a final decision is often done in the final week.
- Consumers have to submit a make and model to start the process – keep in mind, we (the industry) forces them to select a make and model. We here in this room are pretty educated about new models and features but the average consumer, who shops for a vehicle every 5 years or so is typically not familiar with features, advantages and benefits of the new technologies and terms that a constantly more sophisticated vehicle launch entails.Dealers have been taught to 1) Respond quickly and 2) give pricing, availability and features of the vehicle shown in the quote requestWhen actually, the consumer is still considering other brands and there may be a different model or trim that better fits their needs
- Let’s start with what we can see at a dealership level. This is an actual dealership with names changed. As you can see, even with a 21% close rate, they lost 50% of the sales. They lost 2 used car sales where the consumer bought a used Chevrolet at another dealer, even though the initial request was for a new car.They also lost 2 sales to other brands, reinforcing the fact that the consumer was still shopping and considering other brands. How we would coach this dealer is different than the message to a dealer losing a large number of same brand sales to a particular same brand dealer in their market or a dealer losing the majority of sales to another brand.Lets take a quick glance of the demographic implications on buying behavior
- Consumers have to submit a make and model to start the process – keep in mind, we (the industry) forces them to select a make and model. We here in this room are pretty educated about new models and features but the average consumer, who shops for a vehicle every 5 years or so is typically not familiar with features, advantages and benefits of the new technologies and terms that a constantly more sophisticated vehicle launch entails.Dealers have been taught to 1) Respond quickly and 2) give pricing, availability and features of the vehicle shown in the quote requestWhen actually, the consumer is still considering other brands and there may be a different model or trim that better fits their needs
- We have tons of slices on this data but in the essence of time, lets just look at a few. More details can be found in the case study we released recently.Of all the consumers who bought a car after submitting a new vehicle quote request – 53.61% bought a different brand (either new or used). This is Q1 2013 data but 2012 data was very similar. This again reinforces that the consumer is considering more than one brand in the funnel.Looking at some specific areas you can see that Household income has a significant impact on “Committed” ranging from 60.45% brand defections down to 49.85% brand defections, a gap of over 10%. Age of Head of Household has an even larger gap of almost 17 percentage points and if we showed all the levels these trend lines you would see that are linear. Gender is an influence but not as much as the others.
- We have tons of slices on this data but in the essence of time, lets just look at a few. More details can be found in the case study we released recently.Of all the consumers who bought a car after submitting a new vehicle quote request – 53.61% bought a different brand (either new or used). This is Q1 2013 data but 2012 data was very similar. This again reinforces that the consumer is considering more than one brand in the funnel.Looking at some specific areas you can see that Household income has a significant impact on “Committed” ranging from 60.45% brand defections down to 49.85% brand defections, a gap of over 10%. Age of Head of Household has an even larger gap of almost 17 percentage points and if we showed all the levels these trend lines you would see that are linear. Gender is an influence but not as much as the others.
- On the left hand column you will see the top 10 “most committed” brands from the Q1 Autobytel results. The right hand side is the top 10 from our Q1 Polk Loyalty rankings. We calculate loyalty as a consumer buying the same brand as their last purchase.You can see in black that we share 70% of the same brands, indicating to us that what a consumer currently owns also impacts them buying with they initially requested – ie MORE COMMITED. Looking a little deeper…
- On the left hand column you will see the top 10 “most committed” brands from the Q1 Autobytel results. The right hand side is the top 10 from our Q1 Polk Loyalty rankings. We calculate loyalty as a consumer buying the same brand as their last purchase.You can see in black that we share 70% of the same brands, indicating to us that what a consumer currently owns also impacts them buying with they initially requested – ie MORE COMMITED. Looking a little deeper…
- It is also important to note that buying behaviors also change after 30 days. In the first 30 days, Committed is slightly higher than defections but in the after 30 days the defection % raises – showing the importance of following up. You can also see that the majority of sales do occur in the first 30 days.Again, at various times in the funnel, consumers add vehicles to their consideration list so you can not give up on selling your brand.
- It is also important to note that buying behaviors also change after 30 days. In the first 30 days, Committed is slightly higher than defections but in the after 30 days the defection % raises – showing the importance of following up. You can also see that the majority of sales do occur in the first 30 days.Again, at various times in the funnel, consumers add vehicles to their consideration list so you can not give up on selling your brand.
- Here is a good example of the demographic influence on purchases. When we take the Polk data and look into those consumers that buy a used car most often after submitting a new car quote request you see the significant variance just based on Household income and Age of head of Household.If consumer A is a student with a part time job and consumer B is an physician who has been practicing in your neighborhood for 30 years would your wants and needs discussion be different?Of course – for Consumer A you will make sure they are aware of the CPO program, the 99 point inspection and 3 year warranty. For Consumer B you will want to focus on what Trim or optional equipment is desired and maybe the special lease incentive.THAT IS THE HUGE CHALLENGE OUR INDUSTRY FACES – HOW TO CREATE AN ON-LINE SHOPPING EXPERIENCE THAT REPLICATES AN OFF-LINE SHOPPING EXPERIENCE
- Here is a good example of the demographic influence on purchases. When we take the Polk data and look into those consumers that buy a used car most often after submitting a new car quote request you see the significant variance just based on Household income and Age of head of Household.If consumer A is a student with a part time job and consumer B is an physician who has been practicing in your neighborhood for 30 years would your wants and needs discussion be different?Of course – for Consumer A you will make sure they are aware of the CPO program, the 99 point inspection and 3 year warranty. For Consumer B you will want to focus on what Trim or optional equipment is desired and maybe the special lease incentive.THAT IS THE HUGE CHALLENGE OUR INDUSTRY FACES – HOW TO CREATE AN ON-LINE SHOPPING EXPERIENCE THAT REPLICATES AN OFF-LINE SHOPPING EXPERIENCE
- Again just like in the other example of brand defection – most activity is in the first 30 days with the majority of consumers submitting a new request and buying a new vehicle but look at after 30 days.Not only is it important to sell your brand but you also need to put more emphasis on used cars in follow up communications as the lead ages.
- Again just like in the other example of brand defection – most activity is in the first 30 days with the majority of consumers submitting a new request and buying a new vehicle but look at after 30 days.Not only is it important to sell your brand but you also need to put more emphasis on used cars in follow up communications as the lead ages.
- Data has shown that dealership visits have declined significantly, primarily due to the growth of the internet. This is a key data point, keeping in mind they have to visit 1 dealership to actually buy the vehicle.Think of the experience a consumer has driving onto a typical dealership lot.You can see the wide variety of inventory – different models, trims and colors. You can see a well indentifed Used Car or Certified Pre-owned section of the lot. The cars are all clean and well lit if evening. You walk into a showroom and see the full lineup on display with vehicle window stickers and advertising marketing materials being displayed.A well trained and knowledgeable sales consultant greets you and goes through the process of identifying the best vehicle for you, which may not be what you thought you wanted when you entered the lot.
- You can test drive the car and have the features explained to you via a professional walk around.The sales consultant can ask some key questions about your vehicle needs.WHO WILL BE DRIVING THE CARWHAT WILL THE CAR BE PRIMARILY BE USED FORARE THERE ANY FEATURES OF A VEHICLE ARE REALLY IMPORTANT TO YOUFrom there the vehicle presentation flows based on this information and the constant interaction and feedback from the consumer until you find the vehicle that best meets their needs.Think back to the demographic data too – asking a consumers occupation or viewing the vehicle that they drove in with can give you some input into their income, asking their children’s age you can estimate their age (plus the visual of the person). We are not talking profiling if they will buy or are qualified to buy but RATHER THE PATH TO THE RIGHT VEHICLE.
- Contrast that interaction with what happens on the internet. The sales consultant has a name, address, phone, e-mail and one particular vehicle of interest.We know very little about the consumer other than maybe some insight based on their address.Are they knowledgible about my brand based on what they currently own?How committed are they to buying that make/modelHOW DO WE CREATE A NEED TO GET THEM TO VISIT THE DEALERSHIP to get the actual sale?
- Contrast that interaction with what happens on the internet. The sales consultant has a name, address, phone, e-mail and one particular vehicle of interest.We know very little about the consumer other than maybe some insight based on their address.Are they knowledgible about my brand based on what they currently own?How committed are they to buying that make/modelHOW DO WE CREATE A NEED TO GET THEM TO VISIT THE DEALERSHIP to get the actual sale?
- We all know the scenerio:CONSUMER – do you have the car I want?SALES CONSULTANT – yes we do, when can you come in?CONSUMER – what is your best price?SALES CONSULTANT – $19,995SILENCE – END OF COMMUNICATIONIs the really the vehicle they want or need based on the their budget and driving habits? We made them pick a make and model (and sometimes trim) to submit a quote request but that does not mean they are really sold on just that one make/model.
- Remember that Myth we discussed early on – that when a consumer submits the quote request, they have finalized their vehicle selection down to one?We need to change how we respond to internet leads – Today a good dealer will usually do a pretty good job on the red areas of the process – this is why you should buy from me – here is the price on the vehicle in your quote request and here are some used car options.We feel it needs to be expanded first by continueing to re-enforce the brand and then by detailing many more viable options for consideration.“Congratulations on submitting a request for a Honda Accord. The Accord has won numerous industry awards and has the highest safety ratings in the industry – plus right now Honda is offering zero % financing.Here at ABC Honda, we have the largest inventory of new Accords in the area and we have won the American Honda Presidents Award the last 5 years which means we pride ourselves in providing good service to our customers.Here is the internet pricing for the Accord you are interested in and depending on your trade-in and available options we can easily get you firm pricing after you have the opportunity to visit the dealership. Keep in mind the Accord has 4 trim levels for you to choose from and we want to be sure you get the features included that are most important to you.The Accord is a great car but we also have a full line up of Civics. If you have not seen the new Civic yet, it is loaded with great features and you can save $4,000 to $8,000 on our hottest selling model. Add to that the full Honda line up …….”Ideally, this transparency will lead to a consumer response of “you have so many options to consider and I would really appreciate your help in getting me into the right vehicle so when can I come in?” Or at least that is what you want the consumer to be silently be thinking.This challenge is exasperated by the mobile explosion. Consumers reading your e-mail on their smartphones will be frustrated by scrolling and scrolling. Instead of attachments in your responses use links. One solution Autobytel provides is a secured TextChat that is geared to getting leads from a mobile consumer and downloads the exchange to a dealers CRM system. So instead of one long e-mail, a textchat might be a dozen or more short back and forth discussions.
- We need to modify how we respond to the traditional lead form by first reinforcing the brand – what awards has the brand won? – what accolades? – where are they the industry leader? Is it pricing, fuel economy, safety, re-sale value, new introductions etc – what makes your brand stand out?Don’t assume the consumer really picked the right model or more specifically the right trim to meet their needs – make sure they know what trims are available and the hierarchy of what is available.And make sure the consumer knows about your CPO program and your used car inventory.BUT lets also look into what we can do differently in terms of responding differently to consumers and really helping them into the right vehicle.
- To recap – we went over the variable factors that influence “Committed” – buying the brand the consumer showed interest in getting a quote request. Market conditons Demographics Brand and segment Current vehicle ownershipConsumers do not visit many dealerships – boomers only 1.9 – and based on the salesperson experience, we expect the numbers to go down.WE NEED TO FOCUS OUR EFFORTS WHEN RESPONDING TO INTERENT LEADS TO GETTING THE APPOINTMENT, NOT GETTING THE SALE.AND HOW DO WE CREATE A CONSUMER DRIVEN NEED TO VISIT THE DEALERSHIP.
- Bret Dunlap is going to get into much more detail on Texting in the next session but lets do a quick focus group.If you need to get ahold of a family member right away what is the best way – call, email or text? Almost always text is the answer.Consider too how many unopened e-mails are on your phone compared to how many unopened text messages. Again text usually becomes a more efficient communication method.Please note that we are not recommending that dealerships engage in unsolicited texting to consumers’ phone numbers but rather within an environment where the consumer initiates the text session and has given permission.
- We are all aware of Chat programs and there is no doubt they have become a useful tool to encourage engagement with website visitors.But lets look at basic Chat and how we can elevate it to new levels by also allowing for video and audio interaction, being able to view how the consumer is browsing a site and offer guided co-browsing all in real time.Making a website a virtual showroom.
- The traditional buying funnel has evolved and is no longer really a funnel – consumer are expanding and contracting their consideration list throughout the process.Form leads are still effective and will always be an option but we also need to allow consumers alternative means of communicating with us.We were founded by a car dealer who saw the internet as a way for consumers to be more efficient in their car buying process and we are proud to take the internet car shopping experience to a new level.Interact more efficiently – after all it is all about selling more cars regardless of the engagement method?
- To recap – we went over the variable factors that influence “Committed” – buying the brand the consumer showed interest in getting a quote request. Market conditons Demographics Brand and segment Current vehicle ownershipConsumers do not visit many dealerships – boomers only 1.9 – and based on the salesperson experience, we expect the numbers to go down.WE NEED TO FOCUS OUR EFFORTS WHEN RESPONDING TO INTERENT LEADS TO GETTING THE APPOINTMENT, NOT GETTING THE SALE.AND HOW DO WE CREATE A CONSUMER DRIVEN NEED TO VISIT THE DEALERSHIP.