This document discusses best practices for automotive dealership marketing that differ from traditional approaches. It recommends that dealerships target their marketing more precisely using clean customer data and personalized messaging rather than blanket email campaigns. Dealerships are encouraged to supplement any manufacturer (OEM) marketing programs with additional targeted campaigns controlled by the dealership to fully engage their own customer base. Following data-driven strategies developed by a marketing partner, rather than relying solely on vendor tools, can help dealerships improve customer retention and sales.
29. Best Practices
• Have a process for cleaning the database.
• Email collection is imperative!
• No more email blasts & blanket mailers.
• Shy away from using a CRM tool for all of your marketing.
• Stay in contact – but only with relevant, targeted messages.
• If using an OEM program, find another way to fill the gaps.
30. Identifying a Good Provider
• Open ROI reporting.
• Customizable.
• Creates strategy from clean data.
• Look for a partner, not a vendor.
• Service, not tool.
31. Best Types of Services
• Data-driven strategy.
• Regular reporting and
strategy meetings.
• Proactive.
• Listens to you.
Editor's Notes
Customers have really high expectations – they are aware of an expect a 5-star experience, they like to be engaged (but on their own terms)…they expect retailers to know who they are, where they are, what they are in the market for, and how they prefer to be communicated with. Unfortunately, there is no crystal ball to give us that information, so we have to do our best to strategize ways to deliver.
Customer Expectations – Personalization – Mobile – GEN Y - ZMOT
With the release of the iPhone into the market place in 2007, followed by the release of the iPad a few years later in 2010, there are a whole new set of pressures that you are faced with while trying to run your business. Almost all of a customer’s shopping and research is done online today – and there are, on average, 2 mobile devices (among adults) for every 1 desktop device. Consumers have gotten accustomed to having instant access to the information they are seeking, which also having a personalized experience (based upon their preferences, search trends, etc.). They also expect retailers that they choose to do business with, to provide them with a wonderful experience online, and even more importantly, in the store.
We know the consumers are different, but HOW different? (Introduction of the ZMOT study)
Google partnered with research company, Shopper Sciences, to conduct a comprehensive study of how consumers shop in today’s market place. What they found was that the traditional 3-step mental model (above), now has a 4th step – named the “Zero Moment of Truth” – this is where the consumer conducts all of their research prior to making their buying decision. This study was conducted across multiple industries, but what they found was that the segment around Automotive was more complex than the others – consumers are shopping dealers harder than any other industry (more than elective surgery even!). They are looking at more resources and holding you to a higher expectation even than most retailers they work with. This adds another difficult element to manage….
The only problem with that is that….the automotive industry as a whole has not necessarily been on the cutting edge of technology. Who can tell me what the picture on the left is? The DMV – everybody hates going to the DMV. You have to wait in line forever, the people are cold, you start at the back of a computer screen while the agent types furiously away on the keyboard. Now who can tell me what the picture on the right is? This is an Apple store – I personally love going to the Apple store. It’s so easy to make an appointment, they address you by name when you walk in, they escort you throughout the store as they answer your questions and address your concerns, they make eye contact…., it’s wonderful. And I know that for myself, Apple has won me as a customer – I am currently waiting for my new iPhone 6 to arrive, which will be my 4th iPhone over the last 6 years.
They have set, and continue to raise the bar, when it comes to the customer experience, and what the customer should expect from a company that they do business with. Most of my dealers admit that the experience in their store is more closely related to the DMV than the Apple store – but they are understanding that they need to give the customers what they expect, and what they are asking for. That is the only way you are going to get that bigger piece of the market and keep your customers’ loyalty.
Similarly to how customers shop, and buy – and the expectations they have from an overall experience standpoint, how you should be communicating with them is very different today than it was a few years ago. As I mentioned before, they expect to know who they are, where they are, what they are in the market for, and how they prefer to be communicated with…buying a vehicle is one of the largest purchases a consumer makes, and they are keeping/maintaining their vehicles longer today than in previous year. In this age of technology and email, communication is more accessible and somewhat easier today, but the messages need to be relevant in order to retain the business of that customer.
The first step is to identify the problem(s) with your current marketing strategy. The days of “email blasts” and “blanket direct mail campaigns” are over – sending the same exact message to 10,000 different customers is no longer relevant, and does not meet the consumer’s expectations.
Compliance is something that spans from the dealership level, to the OEM level, to the legal level – do not call lists and text campaigns – OEM compliance is a huge area of concern with most of my dealers today, especially as the focus on customer retention continues to grow
Recent research suggests that most companies only analyze about 10%of their available data.
That leaves the potential for a lot of business insight - and profit - hidden in the other 90 percent.
But which data is relevant? How do you find it? And what do you do with it?
Effective marketing starts and ends with data – and your database is the backbone of the dealership…
Good data can be used to send effective, targeted marketing messages, and as a result you will have more data to track response trends and deliverability, which will help you to continue to fine-tune your marketing strategy.
Recent research suggests that most companies only analyze about 10%of their available data.
That leaves the potential for a lot of business insight - and profit - hidden in the other 90 percent.
But which data is relevant? How do you find it? And what do you do with it?
Store time: I currently live in Charlotte, NC but I am originally from Ohio. Growing up in Ohio, I lived with my parents and my siblings – my parents were both buyers and drivers of vehicles, and my brother sister and I were all drivers. My dad still gets service reminders for the Pontiac Grand AM that I drove in high school. There are a few things wrong with this scenario: 1) although Tom Adams purchased that car, Kristen Adams drove and serviced the car – service reminders should be sent to me. 2) I no longer drive that Grand AM anymore, and currently drive a Ford Fusion and 3) I have not lived in Ohio since 2009.
Store time: I currently live in Charlotte, NC but I am originally from Ohio. Growing up in Ohio, I lived with my parents and my siblings – my parents were both buyers and drivers of vehicles, and my brother sister and I were all drivers. My dad still gets service reminders for the Pontiac Grand AM that I drove in high school. There are a few things wrong with this scenario: 1) although Tom Adams purchased that car, Kristen Adams drove and serviced the car – service reminders should be sent to me. 2) I no longer drive that Grand AM anymore, and currently drive a Ford Fusion and 3) I have not lived in Ohio since 2009.
Store time: I currently live in Charlotte, NC but I am originally from Ohio. Growing up in Ohio, I lived with my parents and my siblings – my parents were both buyers and drivers of vehicles, and my brother sister and I were all drivers. My dad still gets service reminders for the Pontiac Grand AM that I drove in high school. There are a few things wrong with this scenario: 1) although Tom Adams purchased that car, Kristen Adams drove and serviced the car – service reminders should be sent to me. 2) I no longer drive that Grand AM anymore, and currently drive a Ford Fusion and 3) I have not lived in Ohio since 2009.
Successful marketing can’t be one-size-fits all, and the only way to tailor your message is with clean, actionable data
There is a method to the madness – or at least there should be:
I work with a wide range of different dealerships, and I have seen an equally wide range of OEM programs – some of which are required, some are highly recommended, some are just there if you need them – but it is important to understand what an OEM has to offer, and how using them will impact your overall marketing strategy…good, bad, or indifferent.
OEM programs are limited in regards to who they will contact – typically they only contact 1) active 2) same-make customers 3) within your defined PMA
This leaves out 1) customers who have gone dormant, 2) customers who have not yet met the “required” frequency of visits to your department, 3) customers with off-make vehicles, and 4) customers that are not officially assigned to your dealership
OEM databases are VERY different than your dealership’s database
The OEMs essentially draw on maps to distinguish which demographic areas belong to which dealerships – this means that even if the stores sells to, or services a customer that “belongs” to another dealership, there are rules for when you can actually contact that customer through an OEM program
you SHOULD be able to actively communicate with anybody that has done business with the store, but the OEM restricts that, so that their maps and counts stay “fair” (dealerization rules)
OEM programs are Tier 1 or Tier 2 focused – meaning they are advertising the look and feel that the OEM is going for, not necessarily the look and feel of the dealership specifically – or the pricing. All dealerships using an OEM program is going to have the same marketing communications going out as every other dealer on the program
A lot of OEM programs are direct-mail focused – although they measure the stores on email capture, they are only looking at same-make customers and they do not do anything to help collect or cleanse email addresses in your database – if you had the ability to increase the number of valid email addresses, there would be less customers you would need to spend money to send a direct mail campaign to – this would decrease your spend and broaden your reach of communication.
A lot of OEM programs are direct-mail focused – although they measure the stores on email capture, they are only looking at same-make customers and they do not do anything to help collect or cleanse email addresses in your database – if you had the ability to increase the number of valid email addresses, there would be less customers you would need to spend money to send a direct mail campaign to – this would decrease your spend and broaden your reach of communication.
A lot of OEM programs are direct-mail focused – although they measure the stores on email capture, they are only looking at same-make customers and they do not do anything to help collect or cleanse email addresses in your database – if you had the ability to increase the number of valid email addresses, there would be less customers you would need to spend money to send a direct mail campaign to – this would decrease your spend and broaden your reach of communication.
A lot of OEM programs are direct-mail focused – although they measure the stores on email capture, they are only looking at same-make customers and they do not do anything to help collect or cleanse email addresses in your database – if you had the ability to increase the number of valid email addresses, there would be less customers you would need to spend money to send a direct mail campaign to – this would decrease your spend and broaden your reach of communication.
Hand out
Hand out
The Best Services are:
-Data-driven strategy
-Regular reporting and strategy meetings
-Proactive
-Listens to you
