Before the age of the Internet, gathering information for a new vehicle required taking a look at the local paper or paging through a manufacturer’s booklet.  Driving down to your local dealership for a test drive it was something that was part of the norm.  In some of those cases, it may have necessitated a phone call to schedule an appointment to get a hands-on experience. 

Today’s automotive marketing efforts now open us to numerous possibilities to gather information for a new vehicle purchase, especially with access to the Internet.  With a few finger taps on the keyboard or a few clicks of the mouse, we have 24/7 access to automotive reviews (both professional and peer), reliability ratings and pricing details for any make or model that may fit into a targeted purchase.

At this point in the automotive buying process, it’s crucial that online car dealer marketing be effective.  To do so, a dealership needs to develop an online presence that stands out among a crowded landscape and gives the consumer a need to visit their sites and showrooms.

The follow represent just a handful of points to consider when putting an online plan in motion.

Engagement. As social media continues to make inroads in all facets of automotive marketing, the most important aspect is that it provides engagement with the customer.  With the emergence of Facebook as a social media dominator, it’s vitally important in establishing a presence on that medium to build a robust online brand.

Reach. As noted in previous posts, the Internet offers “active reach.” Teamed with a traditional car dealer marketing plan (mailers, collateral coupons, etc.), automotive dealers now have unprecedented reach in offering prospects information on future sales, service specials and more.  Putting more relevant details into the right hands helps enhance reach, can improve sales and offers a better return on investment.

Choice. Developing a dealership’s online presence also offers the ability to tailor messages to specific targets.  Recently, we touched upon being proactive in your automotive marketing campaigns.  Within that entry, there were four key points (control, active listening, engagements and staying on point) that give planning online some clout.  When coupled with the identification of active and non-active prospects, these plans can help improve the efficiency of marketing campaigns.

A strong, online presence should consist of many key elements that help establish the dealership’s standing and reputation amongst peers.  A plan that offers engagement, reach and choice provides automotive marketing campaigns a solid starting point and lays the groundwork for establishing an online presence.

In the future, we will delve further into this topic and explore how each of these points can prove valuable for your dealership.

~ Missy Jensen, Social Media Manager at DMEautomotive

Bio:
Missy designs, deploys and maintains the social media initiatives for DMEautomotive in an effort to increase brand awareness, distribute company and industry news, provide updates on products and services and promote consumer engagement. Missy enjoys the process of learning; researching and watching projects come to fruition!

Prior to her transformation into a web specialist and work with DMEautomotive, she has 10 years of experience in the marketing and communications industry. Missy served as the Director, Handicapping & Communications for a regional golf association and helped successfully launch and maintain a cutting edge technology-based ticket resale program on behalf of the St. Louis Cardinals.

Missy attended St. Lawrence University where she graduated Magna Cum Laude with a BS in Psychology. She also holds a Master’s Degree from Miami University in Oxford, OH. She can be reached at missy.jensen@dmeautomotive.com and check her out on LinkedIn.

Before the age of the Internet, gathering information for a new vehicle required taking a look at the local paper or paging through a manufacturer’s booklet.  Driving down to your local dealership for a test drive it was something that was part of the norm.  In some of those cases, it may have necessitated a phone call to schedule an appointment to get a hands-on experience. 

Today’s automotive marketing efforts now open us to numerous possibilities to gather information for a new vehicle purchase, especially with access to the Internet.  With a few finger taps on the keyboard or a few clicks of the mouse, we have 24/7 access to automotive reviews (both professional and peer), reliability ratings and pricing details for any make or model that may fit into a targeted purchase.

At this point in the automotive buying process, it’s crucial that online car dealer marketing be effective.  To do so, a dealership needs to develop an online presence that stands out among a crowded landscape and gives the consumer a need to visit their sites and showrooms.

The follow represent just a handful of points to consider when putting an online plan in motion.

Engagement. As social media continues to make inroads in all facets of automotive marketing, the most important aspect is that it provides engagement with the customer.  With the emergence of Facebook as a social media dominator, it’s vitally important in establishing a presence on that medium to build a robust online brand.

Reach. As noted in previous posts, the Internet offers “active reach.” Teamed with a traditional car dealer marketing plan (mailers, collateral coupons, etc.), automotive dealers now have unprecedented reach in offering prospects information on future sales, service specials and more.  Putting more relevant details into the right hands helps enhance reach, can improve sales and offers a better return on investment.

Choice. Developing a dealership’s online presence also offers the ability to tailor messages to specific targets.  Recently, we touched upon being proactive in your automotive marketing campaigns.  Within that entry, there were four key points (control, active listening, engagements and staying on point) that give planning online some clout.  When coupled with the identification of active and non-active prospects, these plans can help improve the efficiency of marketing campaigns.

A strong, online presence should consist of many key elements that help establish the dealership’s standing and reputation amongst peers.  A plan that offers engagement, reach and choice provides automotive marketing campaigns a solid starting point and lays the groundwork for establishing an online presence.

In the future, we will delve further into this topic and explore how each of these points can prove valuable for your dealership.

~ Missy Jensen, Social Media Manager at DMEautomotive

Bio:
Missy designs, deploys and maintains the social media initiatives for DMEautomotive in an effort to increase brand awareness, distribute company and industry news, provide updates on products and services and promote consumer engagement. Missy enjoys the process of learning; researching and watching projects come to fruition!

Prior to her transformation into a web specialist and work with DMEautomotive, she has 10 years of experience in the marketing and communications industry. Missy served as the Director, Handicapping & Communications for a regional golf association and helped successfully launch and maintain a cutting edge technology-based ticket resale program on behalf of the St. Louis Cardinals.

Missy attended St. Lawrence University where she graduated Magna Cum Laude with a BS in Psychology. She also holds a Master’s Degree from Miami University in Oxford, OH. She can be reached at missy.jensen@dmeautomotive.com and check her out on LinkedIn.

In the customer retention management field, automotive retention programs that allow for users to ‘opt-in’ for continuous updates on their vehicles serve as an important tool for automotive dealerships to drive customers into their service centers.

In fact, automotive dealerships use multiple channels of communication such as targeted direct mail, voice messaging and emails to make sure they’re always in touch with their customers.  By using data segmentation techniques, these solutions allow dealerships to save on costs by sending out crucial information to relevant targets.

The following are some benefits in using a set it and forget customer retention strategy to help drive traffic into your dealership and help with your overall return on investment (ROI).

• Right offer, right time. One of the primary advantages of a targeted marketing plan is delivering the right offer, to the right person, at the right time.  If a customer is coming out of a lease arrangement, a well-timed email informing them of some leasing offers can help pique your customer’s interest in a new vehicle.

• Budget appropriately. When putting together direct marketing initiatives, it’s easy to want to have grand plans and want to do anything you can to increase that ROI for your dealership.  But take a deep breath: if you’ve strategized right and used all the tools available to you (email, texting, social media and an properly maintained database), you can have a very budget-friendly campaign that delivers results.

• Be aggressive – to the right targets. With any direct marketing campaigns, there are two sets of targets: customers that actively consume offers that come their way and inactive ones that either read the offer and forgets it or simply tosses it aside without batting an eye.  It’s the latter that an aggressive, discounted promotional campaign should be directed towards.  By doing so, you’ll give them incentive to come to your dealership for such items as brake specials, services and wheel alignments.

Putting together effective targeted direct marketing campaigns that use multiple channels helps increase response rates and augments your chances of reaching customers.  It also ensures that you’re always communicating with them the way they want to receive communications.  So if you’re timely with your targeted direct mail offers, budget your plans appropriately and are aggressive in your offers with inactive customers, you’re well on the road to a rock solid ROI on your efforts.

~ Missy Jensen, Social Media Manager at DMEautomotive

Bio:
Missy designs, deploys and maintains the social media initiatives for DMEautomotive in an effort to increase brand awareness, distribute company and industry news, provide updates on products and services and promote consumer engagement. Missy enjoys the process of learning; researching and watching projects come to fruition!

Prior to her transformation into a web specialist and work with DMEautomotive, she has 10 years of experience in the marketing and communications industry. Missy served as the Director, Handicapping & Communications for a regional golf association and helped successfully launch and maintain a cutting edge technology-based ticket resale program on behalf of the St. Louis Cardinals.

Missy attended St. Lawrence University where she graduated Magna Cum Laude with a BS in Psychology. She also holds a Master’s Degree from Miami University in Oxford, OH. She can be reached at missy.jensen@dmeautomotive.com and check her out on LinkedIn.

In the customer retention management field, automotive retention programs that allow for users to ‘opt-in’ for continuous updates on their vehicles serve as an important tool for automotive dealerships to drive customers into their service centers.

In fact, automotive dealerships use multiple channels of communication such as targeted direct mail, voice messaging and emails to make sure they’re always in touch with their customers.  By using data segmentation techniques, these solutions allow dealerships to save on costs by sending out crucial information to relevant targets.

The following are some benefits in using a set it and forget customer retention strategy to help drive traffic into your dealership and help with your overall return on investment (ROI).

• Right offer, right time. One of the primary advantages of a targeted marketing plan is delivering the right offer, to the right person, at the right time.  If a customer is coming out of a lease arrangement, a well-timed email informing them of some leasing offers can help pique your customer’s interest in a new vehicle.

• Budget appropriately. When putting together direct marketing initiatives, it’s easy to want to have grand plans and want to do anything you can to increase that ROI for your dealership.  But take a deep breath: if you’ve strategized right and used all the tools available to you (email, texting, social media and an properly maintained database), you can have a very budget-friendly campaign that delivers results.

• Be aggressive – to the right targets. With any direct marketing campaigns, there are two sets of targets: customers that actively consume offers that come their way and inactive ones that either read the offer and forgets it or simply tosses it aside without batting an eye.  It’s the latter that an aggressive, discounted promotional campaign should be directed towards.  By doing so, you’ll give them incentive to come to your dealership for such items as brake specials, services and wheel alignments.

Putting together effective targeted direct marketing campaigns that use multiple channels helps increase response rates and augments your chances of reaching customers.  It also ensures that you’re always communicating with them the way they want to receive communications.  So if you’re timely with your targeted direct mail offers, budget your plans appropriately and are aggressive in your offers with inactive customers, you’re well on the road to a rock solid ROI on your efforts.

~ Missy Jensen, Social Media Manager at DMEautomotive

Bio:
Missy designs, deploys and maintains the social media initiatives for DMEautomotive in an effort to increase brand awareness, distribute company and industry news, provide updates on products and services and promote consumer engagement. Missy enjoys the process of learning; researching and watching projects come to fruition!

Prior to her transformation into a web specialist and work with DMEautomotive, she has 10 years of experience in the marketing and communications industry. Missy served as the Director, Handicapping & Communications for a regional golf association and helped successfully launch and maintain a cutting edge technology-based ticket resale program on behalf of the St. Louis Cardinals.

Missy attended St. Lawrence University where she graduated Magna Cum Laude with a BS in Psychology. She also holds a Master’s Degree from Miami University in Oxford, OH. She can be reached at missy.jensen@dmeautomotive.com and check her out on LinkedIn.

With the global economy slowly bouncing back from the depths of a recession, automotive manufacturers are expecting to see a similar bounce back in vehicle sales and leases.  Assuming that both trends go hand in hand that people are more willing to spend on cars thanks to an increase in consumer confidence – automotive direct marketers may be emboldened to try and capture these newly-interested customers with new vehicle marketing campaigns. 

But will new vehicle purchases really rule the day for automotive marketing?  In actuality, customer retention and automotive service marketers may be the ones benefitting the most from the economic upswing.

Why?

In research conducted by R.L. Polk & Co., a premier provider of automotive information and marketing solutions, the trend appears to be heading in another direction – a growing number of vehicle owners are holding onto their vehicles longer than expected.

The study notes that in 2001, vehicle owners held onto their automobiles for 47.5 months.  Fast forward to 2010’s second quarter, and the data shows that rate has climbed to 52.2 months.  Some factors that contribute to this rising number may include the economic climate, tighter financing rules by lenders, warranties/extended warranties, and the increase in vehicle durability ratings.

So how can automotive customer retention and service marketing campaigns capitalize on the trend of owners keeping their vehicles for longer than expected?  DMEautomotive recommends developing proactive, multi-channel communications that talk to your customers about your retention and service programs. Broadcast your customer loyalty initiatives, or create seasonal service campaigns.

When these initiatives are successful, you not only build your service base and reach customers who hold onto their cars – you’ll also create relationships for when customers are in the market to make a purchase.  And with the economy starting to trend towards the black, that time may be fast approaching.

With the global economy slowly bouncing back from the depths of a recession, automotive manufacturers are expecting to see a similar bounce back in vehicle sales and leases.  Assuming that both trends go hand in hand that people are more willing to spend on cars thanks to an increase in consumer confidence – automotive direct marketers may be emboldened to try and capture these newly-interested customers with new vehicle marketing campaigns. 

But will new vehicle purchases really rule the day for automotive marketing?  In actuality, customer retention and automotive service marketers may be the ones benefitting the most from the economic upswing.

Why?

In research conducted by R.L. Polk & Co., a premier provider of automotive information and marketing solutions, the trend appears to be heading in another direction – a growing number of vehicle owners are holding onto their vehicles longer than expected.

The study notes that in 2001, vehicle owners held onto their automobiles for 47.5 months.  Fast forward to 2010’s second quarter, and the data shows that rate has climbed to 52.2 months.  Some factors that contribute to this rising number may include the economic climate, tighter financing rules by lenders, warranties/extended warranties, and the increase in vehicle durability ratings.

So how can automotive customer retention and service marketing campaigns capitalize on the trend of owners keeping their vehicles for longer than expected?  DMEautomotive recommends developing proactive, multi-channel communications that talk to your customers about your retention and service programs. Broadcast your customer loyalty initiatives, or create seasonal service campaigns.

When these initiatives are successful, you not only build your service base and reach customers who hold onto their cars – you’ll also create relationships for when customers are in the market to make a purchase.  And with the economy starting to trend towards the black, that time may be fast approaching.