You think you’re dangling an enticing lure in front of your customers’ eyes. You plan to set the hook and reel them in. But what you don’t know is that the lure you’re using is completely ineffective!

Yes, that’s a nebulous analogy but you’ll see where it’s going very soon. It includes a challenge for everyone reading this to take a look at what you’re presenting to your customers.

From My Experience…

I’ve just completed a major purchase, one that’s very similar to that of buying a car: a travel trailer. I spent hours browsing online, searching for just the right layout and configuration for my family’s needs. I visited probably 10 to 15 dealer sites – maybe more – looking for the elusive ‘white whale’ of travel trailers.

And then I did. I found the right floor plan and the right equipment. But what was extremely tough to find was a list price. What I wanted to know is approximately what I should expect to spend for my desired trailer. And time after time, I was frustrated by the lack of pricing available. What was on more than 90 percent of the VLPs was a statement that makes my innards burn: “CALL FOR PRICE”.

You Haven’t Earned a Call Yet

Think of it as it applies to your online shopping and research experiences. When you come across a listing that demands you “CALL FOR PRICE”, how do you respond? I can tell you, my initial response is to find another dealer who will give me a price online. When you require your potential customer to ‘take the bait’ on a bare hook, you aren’t going to land many fish.

It’s because you haven’t earned a response yet. The goal for vehicle listing should be to create warm leads; to generate true potential sales. If someone is contacting you to find out a price, they’re already irked that you haven’t given them information they want and, for all intents and purposes, should already have from you.

You Don’t Want Their Call

And if you’re a salesperson who gets that phone call, you’re already behind. The conversation is no longer about the product or the experience – it’s all about price. No matter how much better your dealership performs, there’s very little chance you’ll sway the customer on any other metric than the price. Can you say “Mini”?

Take a look at your website today. Are there vehicle listings, parts specials, or service menu items that tell the customer to ‘CALL FOR PRICE”? If there are, think about how you’d respond if you were in the customers’ shoes. Then consider why your listing is like that. Is it because you don’t have a price available for the unit yet? Or, are you fishing for price-based leads that whittle your gross profit down to a nub?

If you’re fishing, you need a worm on your hook to get a bite. If you want customers to respond to your vehicle listings, give them a full, juicy, tantalizing description complete with a price.