Why Automotive Marketing Must Evolve to Win with Today’s Mobile-First Auto Shoppers

Today’s car shoppers spend more time researching their next vehicle on their smartphones than at the dealership lot. Automotive marketers must follow suit and evolve their strategies to win with this growing segment of consumers.  As the auto industry seeks ways to engage mobile consumers, more ad spend is migrating to mobile.  In 2015, the auto sector spent $3.43 billion on mobile ads in the U.S., representing 47% of the industry’s total digital ad spending, according to eMarketer.

Shopping Habits of Mobile-First Auto Consumers

Facebook IQ commissioned a study with Ipsos to understand the behaviors of mobile auto shoppers. Key findings from the study include:

• 71% of all respondents use mobile during the purchase process, with 58% stating that in the future their smartphone is likely to be the only device they use for all their vehicle research.
• 48% of mobile-first auto consumers are millennials (ages 18 – 34), 48% are Hispanics and 41% are people with household incomes greater than $200,000.
• 50% of mobile-first auto consumers shop during the day.
• 44% of mobile-first auto consumers plan to purchase in less than 3 months (as compared to 21% of desktop-first consumers).
• 24% of mobile-first auto consumes have requested a quote online.
• 76% of mobile-first auto consumers know the exact vehicle they want before they go to the dealer.
• 41% are likely to download a dealer or manufacturer’s app as part of their research.
• 36% find manufacturer apps useful for deciding their vehicle make, model and vehicle features.
• Mobile-first auto consumers agree that mobile sites work better for comparing specs (39%) and customizing a vehicle, and apps work better for getting warrant information (23%) and researching the nearest dealer (22%).
• 62% say that if they could complete the entire vehicle purchase online, they would and 58% of mobile-first auto consumers say that in the future, their smartphone is likely to be the only device they use to research a vehicle.

In a report by Google, additional statistics reveal that the average car buyer makes just two visits to dealerships, but one in four purchasers use mobile every day to research vehicles.

Examples of Auto Brands Doing Mobile Right

Ford: Move Smarter with FordPass Mobile App

The Fordpass, recently launched by Ford, is designed to enhance the customer experience and brand loyalty by giving consumers a variety of mobile solutions in one place.  The app, designed for both Ford owners and non-owners, is based around a “My Vehicle” feature which gives vehicle owners information on basic model details, color, when it was purchased, current fuel level, mileage, product recall notifications, and more. The app also features a loyalty program and Ford plans to launch additional features in the future, such as a digital key to remotely lock and unlock the vehicle.

Nissan: Interactive Video Ad

Nissan’s interactive video ad, created by JUICE Mobile and OMD, promoted the 2014 Nissan Rogue. The video featured a compact SUV battling evil snowmen and had various ‘hotspots’ throughout the video where the user could tap the screen to gain more information about various features of the car. According to JUICE Mobile, “Using five hot spots to enhance its commercial, Nissan’s content highlighted statistics on winter weather and snow safety. The 60 second video garnered a 78% completion rate and a 93% engagement rate.”

Toyota: Video Personalization Goes Extreme

Toyota’s mobile-friendly Facebook campaign for the Toyota RAV4 Hybrid featured highly personalized video clips to engage consumers.  Using 100 video clips, more than 100,000 unique video ads were created starring actor James Marsden. Ads were then served to users based on their Facebook likes and searches. For example, if a person was interested in sports and camping, they were served a video referencing those hobbies.

Chevrolet: Virtual Car Building on a Phone

Chevrolet recently launched an immersive app for the 2016 Camaro.  The app is described as: “The immersive Camaro SIX App allows you to fully customize and explore the 2016 Chevrolet Camaro. You’re the creator. Pick and choose accessories, packages and wheels to design the perfect Camaro. Learn about the legend. Wrap your head around the power of Camaro and its engine specifications and enjoy a fun experience built around its Active Rev Match technology.” The app has garnered 62,000 downloads in just a couple months, said John Foley, senior manager for Chevrolet’s digital and CRM marketing.

From Initial Research to Mobile Showrooming

When thinking mobile-first, the entire purchase journey must be mobile-optimized, from initial research through final purchase. When consumers are doing the bulk of their research, most marketers are using some type of mobile-friendly design at this point in the game.  This includes mobile-optimized emails, websites and content.

Many marketers may be missing the mark however at the point when a consumer actually steps onto the lot.   Research shows that 63 percent of car shoppers engage in “showrooming” – examining merchandise online via mobile while physically shopping an auto lot.  While on a dealership lot, 51% of auto shoppers seek mobile content pertaining to price and payments, 29% want to check out inventory, 17% are looking for reviews, and 16% of mobile users are looking for advice. Dealerships must have an easy, responsive mobile web design so customers can access pricing and inventory on their mobile phones.  At the final stages of the purchase decision, a positive mobile experience can go a long way in making or breaking a deal.

Consumers across industries have come to expect a fully immersive mobile experience.  Automotive brands who wisely use mobile strategies can ensure they stay top of mind as consumers increasingly shift from the dealership lot to the mobile screen.

Learn more about Relevate Auto, the largest and most accurate automotive marketing data and mailing list solution in the industry, containing information on over 190 million VINs, profiles on over 225 million consumers, 170 million email addresses, demographics, and much more.

Are Consumers Ditching the Dealership? How to Improve the Car Buyer’s Shopping Experience.

Have you heard the claims that most consumers would rather go to the dentist than to the dealership? Year after year, we hear similar bad claims. The recent 2016 Beepi Consumer Automotive Index found that an astounding 87 percent of Americans dislike something about car shopping at dealerships and 61 percent feel they’re taken advantage of while there.  But it gets worse. According to the survey, 52 percent of car shoppers feel anxious or uncomfortable at dealerships. Millennials really don’t like dealing with dealerships, with 56 percent saying they’d rather clean their homes and 34% stating that they would prefer to wait in line at the DMV.  And of the 35-44 demographic, 24% stated they would rather get a root canal.

With that in mind, according to the research, “Over half of Americans would love the ability to buy or sell a car without ever leaving their home (54 percent); roughly two in five (42 percent) stated they would be comfortable purchasing a car online without a test drive if certain assurances (like a money-back guarantee) were in place.”

However, despite the bad rap, most consumers will continue to head to the dealership for buying, selling and leasing a vehicle.  But clearly dealerships need to do some damage control.  Using technologies to create exceptional experiences and concentrating on a bit of consumer education, dealerships can ease people’s fears and make the experience one that consumers enjoy.

A Trustworthy Reputation and an Exceptional Experience Are Critical

Research by AutoTrader.com shows that a majority of shoppers would not buy from a dealership they found to be untrustworthy, even if that dealership had the best price or the exact car they were looking for. In fact, 70 percent of respondents said they would walk away from a dealership that offered the best price on a vehicle if they found the dealership to be untrustworthy, and 74 percent stated that they would walk away from a dealership that had the exact car they wanted if they found the dealership to be untrustworthy.

AutoTrader provided an exceptional example which really drives this point home. According to their news release: Lynn V., an avid online car shopper, drove this point home in a recent conversation with AutoTrader.com where she said, “I went online and narrowed it down to two different dealerships. One was very good about communicating with me via email, was explicit in putting out an offer – very detailed. [They] included a price in the offer and invited me to the dealership. The other dealership, which actually had my first choice of color…wouldn’t give me specifics in email.”

She continued to try and work with the dealership that had the exact vehicle she wanted, but they would not communicate with her effectively the way she wanted, and her in-store experience led to her decide against doing business with that dealership:  “I will never go to that dealer again, even though they were probably 40 miles closer to my house. I was willing to spend the time and make the drive for a dealership that honored its word and treated its customer right.”

Six of the top 10 reasons why car buyers select the dealership where they ultimately purchased from have to do with some element of the customer experience:

• 21% – past experience with the dealer
• 10% – dealer’s reputation
• 7% – referral from someone else
• 6% – dealer’s service department
• 5% – always buy from my salesperson
• 3% – liked salesperson/treated us well

Identify and Address Customer Pain Points

Consumers in any industry are more likely to remember and focus on the negative aspects of an experience than they are the positive.  So what are some of the pain points can you specifically address to streamline the purchase experience?

Begin by conducting customer surveys, pay attention to your online reviews, monitor social media conversations, and ask questions.  Based on this feedback, take steps to eliminate these pain points. Does your website need updating to make it easier for your customers and prospects to navigate? Are there improvements that can be made to the financing and paperwork process?  Is your staff promptly handling inquiries or complaints? Look at each point in the purchase process, from initial point of contact to after the car is sold to ensure you are continually building trust and responding to your customer’s individual needs.

Get to Know Your Customers

Personalization is a large component of the customer experience in any industry. Consumers want to be known and understand wherever and whenever they choose to interact with your dealership. Of brands focusing on a personalized strategy, 74% report an increase in sales and 61% report an increase in profit (Infosys). The research also found that 86% of consumers said personalization has some impact on the purchasing decision.

Be sure you are constantly asking questions and gathering data about your customers and prospects at every opportunity. Collect names, addresses, emails, vehicle interest and other key details from online forms or call-ins.  Analyze data such as past purchases and service center history.  Append missing data elements such as contact details and demographics.  For example, you may want to know which households have children (“may be time to upgrade to a larger vehicle”), who has a teen driver in the house (“time for a first car”), or who is interested in the outdoors (“this new model of truck just came out”). Details such as income, marital status, occupation, hobbies, lifestyle, and age are some examples of demographics that can be used to create targeted marketing messages to which your consumers are most apt to relate.

Also consider adding VIN marketing data to your database, such as make, model, and year of their current vehicle, other vehicles in the household, vehicle equity, or trigger data sets such as new teen drivers and new births.

There is a wealth of data available for you to fine-tune your messaging, available through your own internal data systems or through third-party vendors.  Use it to your advantage to create the type of personalized experience that will wow your customers and prospects.

Yes, many consumers may lack trust when it comes to interacting with a dealership.  But with the wealth of data and technology available today, dealerships can quickly overcome this bad rap to create an amazing experience worth writing about.

Visit Relevate Auto to learn more or to request your free quote.

Automotive Marketing: An Overview of Current Marketing Trends, Statistics, and Strategies

The auto industry has undergone ongoing and dynamic transformation over recent years.  Connected technologies, changing trends in consumer shopping behavior, digital and mobile channels, longer vehicle lifespans, and consumer mobility behaviors are all impacting how the automotive industry must respond to the changing climate.

Research recently released by 9 Clouds, “The 2016 State of Automotive Marketing”, broke down some of these key trends and how they specifically relate to marketers in the auto industry.

For automotive dealers, the biggest marketing priority by far is increasing lead volume and conversions.

Proving ROI and securing budget were named as the biggest marketing challenges at dealerships.

Dealerships are increasingly adopting marketing automation tools to automate and personalize communications with new prospects. So for example, if a website visitor fills out an online form expressing interest in a certain vehicle, an automated email can be triggered with information about that vehicle and an alert can also be sent to the sales team for follow-up. Dealers using marketing automation are 2x more likely to see higher marketing ROI than dealers who do not use marketing automation.

Dealerships are also utilizing the data they have on hand prior to contacting a prospect.  The most common pieces of consumer data include basic contact details, vehicle interest, and purchase/service history.

An interesting study by ACA Research maps out the automotive customer journey and the timing for key events from initial research to final purchase. According to the research, “Generally the automotive vehicle purchase journey for the vehicle and finance can take between 5 and 12 weeks and encompasses the following steps.”

• Develop a shopping list of vehicle brands: approx. 1-3 months prior to purchase.
• Cull the shortlist: 4-7 weeks before purchase.
• Test drive vehicles: 2-4 weeks before purchase.
• Finalize vehicle choice: on average 1-3 weeks before purchase.

Trends in Mobile Marketing

Mobile devices are rapidly changing the way that consumers research, shop and make purchases. According to the J.D. Power 2015 New Autoshopper Study, 51% of respondents said they used a smartphone or tablet to help find the make, model, price and dealership that best suited their needs.

And once a consumer arrives at the dealership, they continue to use their mobile devices for additional research. Did you know that consumers using a mobile device are 72% more likely to visit another dealership than those who were without a smartphone or tablet while car shopping? And 33% of customers went to another dealership based on a mobile ad they saw while shopping for a car. (Source: Placed, Inc. and Cars.com)

Google has responded to this trend with solutions to help dealerships display their inventory on mobile devices. 1 out of every 2 automotive searches on Google now occur on smartphones – which is up 51% year over year. In response, Google has released a mobile ad format for auto marketers: Automotive ads. They’ve effectively created a mobile showroom that includes:

·         Exterior and interior images of cars searchers can swipe through

·         Details about vehicle performance and features

·         A find a local dealer section

·         Links to navigate to a dealer site, and to call or get directions to a local dealer

Advancements in data insights and mobile technologies have also given dealerships new ways to target in-market auto and service shoppers by mobile IDs. Mobile targeting has generally taken the form of audience targeting, such as targeting based on device, apps, site user is visiting, and assumptive “look-alikes.  Real-time location targeting targets every device within a store’s proximity such as beaconing and geofencing. However, unlike traditional mobile marketing, which only targets the device, new technologies can target the actual consumer during the crucial 48-72 hour period when they’re making a buying decision.

Relevate Auto offers a solution called Relevate Signals to give dealerships the ability to identify which of their customers and prospects are visiting competing dealerships and which dealerships they are using for service. Relevate Signals is different from traditional mobile marketing or lead products because Signals leads represent real people who are actively shopping at a dealer lot. Mobile devices are matched to actual people including demographics, contact information, and VIN data.

Consumers Demand a Personalized and Exceptional Experience from their Dealership

Auto dealerships can no longer compete on price alone in an age where customer experience has become the new competitive commodity and consumers have the luxury of comparison shopping on line. Two studies conclude that in the age of the empowered consumer and changing expectations, auto dealers must change too.

Autotrader

• 54% of consumers would buy from a dealership that offers their preferred experience, even if it didn't have the lowest price.
• 72% would visit dealerships more often if the buying process was improved.

DrivingSales

• 56% of shoppers would buy more cars if the process was easier.
• Auto sales could rise about 25% if the retail experience improves.
• 99 of 100 automotive shoppers begin their purchase journey expecting it to be a “hassle” driven in large part by their experience, and that of friends/family, with retailers seeking to control the buying process to the retailer’s objectives.

Capgemini also released a report indicating a strong correlation between customer satisfaction and loyalty particularly for dealers. Only 10% of customers, not satisfied at all, say they would likely or very likely buy their next car from the same dealer. 87% of highly satisfied customers would purchase the same brand again and 85% would buy from the same dealer.

Clearly there is huge opportunity for dealership to increase revenue among car buyers by providing a seamless and personalized customer experience across channels.

Video Marketing is Driving Sales

Research that Google commissioned from Millward Brown Digital indicates that 70% of people who used YouTube as part of their car buying process were influenced by what they watched and views on YouTube of test drives, features and options, and walk-throughs have doubled in the past year.

Consumers tend to search out videos at the beginning of the car buying process. The 3 types of videos consumers spend the most time watching include:

• Test drives of particular makes and models
• Videos that focus on features of different makes and models
• Interior and exterior car walk-throughs

Some additional key statistics and trends to consider include:

• Consumers Expecting a 24/7 Real-Time Response. According to a study by Arthur D. Little, dealers average response time is 9.2 hours and OEMs average time is around 24 hours.  This is a huge opportunity for improving the overall customer experience.
   
• The Role of Integrated Mobile Apps. Integrated mobile apps and connected vehicle services deliver more value for the customer, enhancing customer loyalty after the initial car purchase. A study by DMEautomotive showed that vehicle buyers using a branded app were 73% more likely to make a purchase from the dealership, and after making a purchase, booked 25% more service appointments than shoppers without an app. They also spent more money than non-app users when purchasing a vehicle, 7% more according to a study commissioned by Cars.com.
   
• Changing Technologies and Key Demographics. Consumers today are more connected and connected cars will ultimately appeal to a wide variety of demographics.  However, a wide range of studies show that demand skews towards younger demographics. A report by automotive research company, SBD provides evidence that these connected systems are important to younger, more digitally oriented consumers and will likely impact their next vehicle brand purchase decision.  Cars play a key role in supporting Millennials’ need to stay connected, and in a study by Autotrader.com, 72% of younger millennials indicated that a car is important to their social life. Style and features, especially technology, are critically important to them. For example, more than 70% of younger millennials cite technology and infotainment features as “must-haves” when purchasing a car.
  
  
  
   
• Focus on Digital Channels. As many as 89% of consumers are looking for vehicle information online - on car manufacturer and dealer sites, third party review sites and through social media. The research also shows that while 52% obtain information from dealerships the reliance on sales people is declining. Automotive brands must place high emphasis on an array of digital channels in order to make the short list throughout the customer journey.

As purchasing decisions continue to shift online, marketing and sales teams will have to follow suit. Consumers are conducting more research through digital and mobile channels, and the customer experience they receive as they engage with automotive brands will determine which vehicle and dealership they will choose.

Learn how to boost your customer acquisition and retention with Relevate Auto, the industry-leader in VIN marketing data solutions.

DataMentors Launches Auto Lease Expiration Data to Power Conquest Marketing

TAMPA, FL – October 25, 2016 – DataMentors, LLC, a leading provider of Data-as-a-Service (DaaS) and Right Time Marketing, announced today the launch of its solution available  through Relevate Auto, a business line of DataMentors. The auto lease expiration data, which includes names and addresses of vehicle lessees whose auto leases are nearing expiration, offers automotive marketers a unique data set to target consumers who may soon be in market for a new vehicle.

“In a continuous effort to provide automotive marketers with industry-leading acquisition solutions, I’m extremely excited that we are now able to provide auto lease expiration data, a robust addition to our Relevate Auto marketing database,” said Michelle Taves, SVP of Data Strategy and Product Management. “In today’s market, it is estimated that 28% of households currently lease at least one automobile in their garage.  Having the ability to target a household before their lease expires provides a powerful opportunity.”

The database contains over 2,700,000 consumers with an automobile lease expiring in the future.  Data can be pulled by lease expiration date and can further be segmented by vehicle ownership information, demographics and contact data.

DataMentors’ auto lease database is not credit based, and can be used with zero marketing restrictions.  Data is multi-sourced from data sources including:

• Point of Sale and service data
• Transactional data sources
• Automobile warranty data sources
• Aftermarket repair and retail facilities
• Insurance transactional data
• Self-Reported data obtained from national online surveys and telephone surveys
• Service transaction records
• After Service work surveys  

In addition to the newly launched auto lease data, Relevate Auto possesses the largest and most accurate data in the automotive marketing industry, including information on over 190 million VINs, profiles on over 225 million consumers, 170 million email addresses, and robust demographics. 

For more information contact kidol@datamentors.com or call 1-800-523-7346.
  

About DataMentors 
DataMentors is the industry’s leading provider of Data-as-a-Service (DaaS) and Right Time Marketing. Our comprehensive data solutions combine an integrated suite of data products, marketing technologies, and analytics to deliver: The Right Person, at the Right Moment, through the Right Channel. This makes us the Right Answer for clients seeking to grow, acquire, and retain their most profitable customers with cross-channel marketing strategies. We help companies leverage the modern data ecosystem and real-time data analytics to create a customized “always on” dataset of consumers where purchase is imminent. Recognized by Gartner for data quality for the past nine years, we provide the most powerful marketing data and technology services in the industry.

Dealership Marketing: 7 Surefire Ways to Ramp Up Your Email Marketing Success

Email can be a strong platform to connect with your current and prospective customers throughout the purchase journey. Regardless of the many channels available to market to your audience, email should be an integral strategy when conquesting new sales and reaching out to your current base.

Numerous studies have been conducted that prove  that email marketing is at the top of the list in terms of customer acquisition and retention and new revenue generation. According to Adobe, email has an ROI of $40 for every $1 spent. In research by Salesforce, 80% of those who use email marketing agree that it is core to their business and nearly half say it’s directly linked to their business’ primary revenue source.

Dealership Email Statistics

Benchmark Internet Group conducted analysis on how dealerships in particular are using email marketing. Survey findings include:

• Sending Frequency: 57% of all Automotive Dealerships send out their email missives and newsletters on a monthly basis, with quarterly being the next most popular send frequency at 21%.
• Content Type: The type of emailed newsletter that combines both informational aspects and offers of discounts or sales was the most popular type of content to be included in dealerships' campaigns, accounting for fully one third of all sends. Emails that were strictly informational by nature accounted for 13% and the ones that included little to no informational content and instead focused on providing sales and discount information were responsible for 21% of all sends.
• How Dealership Build Lists: Purchased and supplied leads account for the largest group at 36% and current customers account for 29% of email leads. Subscribers who sign up through promotions account for 21% and 9% are subscribers from the web.

Statistics gathered from automotive dealerships nationwide show that those who use email marketing are seeing tangible results – increased ROI, sales and customer bases. According to the research, “Email campaigns have on average a 9%-to-12% open rate, and of those, as much as a 14% click through.”

In order to make email a successful channel for your dealership, here are 7 tips to boost your success.

One - Encourage Email Subscribers:

The first key to a successful email marketing program is of course having a high quality email list. Before a consumer even steps onto your lot, they do tons of research on digital channels.  Once of the places they are most apt to visit is your website. Consider using an overlay to your homepage like the one below. According to E-consultancy, an overlay brings in 400% more email addresses compared to other online opt in forms. 


 

Two - Source Emails From a Third-Party Auto Data Vendor:

A great way to add new subscribers to your email list is through a third-party vendor. Email lists can be purchased based on current make, model and year of the vehicle a consumer is currently driving. Additional demographic data selects can be added such as income, occupation, presence of children in the household, age, gender, new teen drivers, new parents, and so forth.  In this way, you have the power to choose only those prospects which would be the most likely candidates for your dealership’s inventory profile.
 

Three - Follow the Car Email Lists:

Consider sourcing additional emails based on “Follow the Car” strategies.  This strategy identifies cars that you sold and performed regular service on, after they are sold to a new owner, so you can bring them back in for service.  By letting a consumer know that your dealership knows the history of their vehicle, more often than not they will bring their car back to your dealership for service, allowing you to build a relationship when they are ready to purchase their next vehicle.
 

Four - ALL Emails Must Be Mobile-Responsive:

An estimated 65% of all emails are now opened on a mobile device. When emails don’t render correctly on mobile, 42% of consumers will simply delete them. Emails that aren’t optimized for mobile devices don’t look good on the small screen of a smartphone or tablet and your customers and prospects won’t stick around to find out what you have to say. In fact, 89% of marketers lose leads because their emails aren’t mobile optimized. You cannot expect a customer to save your message and reopen on their desktop at a later time.

Not only should you use mobile responsive templates for your dealership’s emails — but you should test the email to make sure they display correctly across all email platforms before you send it to make sure it actually works.
 

Five - Incorporate Video into Your Emails:

Using video in an email can boost click-through rates by 200-300%. And according toeMarketer, approximately half of the marketers using video in email campaigns saw increased click-through rates, increased time spent reading the email, and increased sharing and forwarding.  Video is a particularly powerful medium for dealerships to showcase walk-arounds, car service tips, meet the staff, and announcements of new specials and promotions. 84% of all car shoppers watch auto related video so what better way than to send a video directly to their in-box.

Six - Make Email a Two-way Conversation:

Research from Cobalt Group’s National Automotive eShopper Experience Study revealed that dealers do not respond in any way to nearly 25% of all email generated leads and of the ones who do, 30% never follow up.

According to an article by Benchmark Email, “Of the dealers surveyed in the Cobalt study, only 46.2% replied to an email within an hour, with the majority leaving the email reply for much later. A great number of these emails were rather scant in the important details that the consumer seeks. 63.8% did not quote a price of any kind, 56% did not address availability of the desired vehicle, and 87% did not provide any information as to the value of the brand or the vehicle they were interested in. 23% of all customers that switched brands claimed poor dealer interaction for their decision, thus it can be concluded that lack of proper and thorough responsiveness to email queries is primarily to blame for this considerable number of lost sales.”

So if you are going to send email, be sure to follow up and with the information the consumers is seeking.

Seven - Use Marketing Automation for Highly Personalized Emails:

An automated marketing solution can be used to send highly personalized messages to your customers and prospects. A customer’s preferences and previous behaviors, such as vehicle history, purchase and auto maintenance history and individual customer dates are used to send personalized promotional messages and maintenance reminders at exactly the right time.
 

Thee triggered based campaigns can also be utilized when a specific action is taken by a customer or prospect, based on a specific consumer action such as a sales inquiry, opt-in for newsletter or confirmations when service is scheduled online. Emails triggered by customer behavior can increase retention, revenue per email, customer lifetime value, and program ROI.  According to Cynthia Price, the Director of Marketing for email service provider Emma, “triggered email messages average 70.5% higher open rates and 152% higher click-through rates than traditional bulk messages.”

When it comes to driving consumers to your dealership, email works. Local Automotive Dealerships: The Role Of Interactive Media In The Local Car Shopping Process found that 23% of all visits to dealership websites were triggered through an email link. Receiving an email from the dealership was the number one action that convinced prospects to visit the showroom. And fully 59% of all motorists stated that it was the dealer’s email that got them to travel to the lot.

Service department revenue continues to increase in importance for dealerships.  With lower margins, service revenue is the bread and butter for many dealerships. However, consumers today own their cars longer, and when their vehicle is out of warranty, research shows that most tend to head to third-party mechanics and repair shops rather than returning to the dealership for service.
 

According to Cox Automotive's 2016 Maintenance and Repair Study, “After buying a car, 72% of customers are opting for third-party mechanics. The main reasons are price and customer service, with 58% of respondents indicating they didn't go back to the dealerships for service work because they felt they would be overcharged.”
  

Additional findings include:

• 85% of the study's respondents indicated that the service department experience impacts their likelihood to purchase.
• Customers who are introduced to the service department when they purchase a vehicle are 1.5 times more likely to return to that same dealer for service. They’re also more likely to purchase another vehicle from that same dealership.  

Another study by DEMautomotive found similar results. Customers who go off-warranty and head to a repair center are estimated to cost dealers a large percent of their revenue on older cars. Dealers lose an average of 60-78% of revenue on three to six-year-old cars and 82-92% of revenue for cars more than seven years old. Forbes estimates that more than 40% of a dealership’s overall income can originate from the service department, and vehicle servicing accounts for more than $200 billion in revenue annually within the U.S.
  

Beyond pushing a service and maintenance plan at the initial sale, there are several key areas on which dealerships need to be focused.
  

Changing Digital Channels.

One of the first places a customer turns to when looking for a service shop is the internet.   The DMEautomotive study found that 34% of consumers were more likely to use internet resources prior to taking their vehicles in for service. Additionally, 47% visited the store’s website prior to their service visit, 33% researched common prices for automotive services, 26% researched specific vehicle services, and 23% read online reviews of automotive service stores.
  

Be sure your dealership is getting found during this initial point of research. This includes updating your website regularly with engaging content, videos, and the latest service deals and specials.  Focus on SEO strategies, making sure to include keywords for auto repair services.  Try typing in “auto repair services” to see what comes up in the search results.  Dealerships show up in only a small percentage of these results.  Most dealerships tend to focus only on SEO strategies to move inventory but by making some tweaks, your dealership can quickly move up in search rankings.
  

Having a strong presence in the digital space means you can’t neglect mobile channels. Customers with a dealer-branded mobile app make 25% more service appointments. If your dealership doesn’t have an app, chances are that you are missing out on valuable opportunities. Customers can use a mobile app to view your service hours, schedule service appointments, get notifications when their car is ready, and even pay for their service repair directly from their smartphone. 
  

Follow the Car Strategies.

Follow the car strategies are an ideal way to continue to maximize service revenue when a car has been resold or traded. Third-party vendors who specialize in auto marketing intelligence can tell a dealer when a car they sold changes owners, who the new owners are, and how to contact them. Working with a dealership that knows a vehicle’s history is appealing to most consumers. Targeting the new owners with personalized offers is an ideal way to ramp up service center profits.
  

Transparency and Changing Perceptions.

The DMEautomotive study found that 50% of customers believe aftermarket shops excel in convenience compared to other store types, while only 34% of customers felt this way about dealership service departments. 52% believe aftermarket shops complete service faster than other stores, exceeding dealership perceptions by 18 percentage points. Additionally, 59% of consumers expect dealerships to offer less competitive pricing compared to other service centers. However, 53% of consumers expect dealerships to offer higher quality service than other stores.
  

A Cars.com study found similar results with the study’s survey respondents citing high price as the main reason for not considering a dealership. However, according to the study, “when shoppers were provided more information about actual price ranges and quality of dealership work, many were willing to pay 10% to 15% more.” Dealerships should advertise the fact that they employ master mechanics, as well as post actual prices for basic services to show prices are competitive.

Target In-Market Service Consumers.

Advancements in data insights and mobile technologies are empowering dealerships with new ways to target in-market auto and service shoppers by mobile IDs. Mobile targeting has generally taken the form of audience targeting, such as targeting based on device, apps, site user is visiting, and assumptive “look-alikes.  Real-time location targeting targets every device within a store’s proximity such as beaconing and geofencing. However, unlike traditional mobile marketing, which only targets the device, new technologies can target the actual consumer during the crucial 48-72 hour period when they’re making a buying decision.

(Yes – shameless plug here.) DataMentors and Relevate Auto offer a solution called Relevate Signals to give dealerships the ability to identify which of their customers and prospects are visiting competing dealerships and which dealerships they are using for service. Relevate Signals is different from traditional mobile marketing or lead products because Signals leads represent real people who are actively shopping at a dealer lot. Mobile devices are matched to actual people including demographics, contact information, and VIN data.

Some real life examples include:

• Service Signal: A person visiting a dealership for service in your area. (Results: Over 1.5 million people annually visiting a dealership for service. This indicates an opportunity to create service segments by dealership brand.)
• Dealer Visit Conquest Signal: A person visiting a competing dealership in your area. (Results: Over 3 million people annually tracked visiting a competitor brand dealership.)
• Dealer Visit Loyalty Signal: A person visiting a common brand dealership in your area. (Results: Over 1 million people annually tracked visiting a common brand dealership.)

Service departments represent an important revenue stream for auto dealerships. Dealerships must work to grow these revenues by building loyalty and repeat business from current customers as well as attracting new customers in the face of strong competition from independent service centers.

When a millennial steps onto your lot, chances are that they are ready to buy. In fact 48% of 17 to 24-year-olds intend to buy a car on their first visit to a dealership according to research by Auto Trader.  They have done their research and know what type of car they want, although according to the research, nearly half are open to purchasing either a new or pre-owned model.

With millennials expecting to drive off the dealer lot in a newly purchased vehicle, dealerships need to keep some key considerations in mind:

• Ensure the sale process and paperwork is quick and efficient. “Of all the age groups, Millennials are more likely to say they find the car buying process boring, confusing and complicated, and least likely to say they find it exciting, fun and interesting,” said Nick King, Auto Trader Insight Director.
• Be sure inventory stocked and ready to move or risk losing the sale.
• Integrate offline and online experiences to create a rewarding and personalized customer journey from initial research to final purchase.

FICO recently conducted a survey that took a deeper look into millennial car buying habits. The survey asked respondents about their finance options. 19% of respondents said they would buy a new automobile with a credit card even if it meant paying high interest rates. An additional 20% said they would prefer to finance a car through a dealer, 27% would use banks and credit unions, and34% would prefer to use cash.

Millennials still prefer to purchase a vehicle at a dealership, although online channels are gaining in popularity.  FICO’s research indicated that 82% of millennials prefer a dealership, but they are more likely to consider other online channels as compared to any other age group.  59% of millennials would consider buying a vehicle from another consumer on sites such as AutoTrader, Craigslist, and eBay.

Not long ago, the auto industry was up in arms, not sure what to expect from this younger generation of car consumers as they delayed car buying in favor of transportation choices such as Uber and ZipCar. However, with this generation entering into the workforce, millennials are now buying cars in large numbers. The FICO survey indicated that 91% of Millennials prefer vehicles for commutes and recreational purposes. Millennials bought 4 million cars and trucks in the U.S. last year, second only to the baby boomers, according to J.D. Power’s Power Information Network. Millennials’ share of the new car market is at 28 percent and in California, the country’s biggest car market, millennials have now outpaced boomers for the first time.

This is a generation that is poised to quickly grow in car ownership. With older millennials having entered the job market and gaining economic stability, 84% of these older millennials own a car. Approximately half of younger millennials don’t currently own a car but 73% stated they intend to purchase a car within a year or more(Autotrader.com).

Millennials see their car as playing a key role in staying connected and 72% indicated that a vehicle is important to their social life.  As far as connected features that they most desire, the top rated features include:

• Navigation system
• Satellite radio
• Bluetooth
• MP3 player
• Mobile integration

How Millennials Shop for Vehicles

According to AutoTrader’s research, “They spend over 17 hours researching their vehicle before purchase, and 71% say they need to be aware of all possible vehicle choices – more than Gen Xers or Baby Boomers. While friends and family largely influence their purchase decision, the Internet is even more influential, with third-party sites being the top source for 82% of Millennials shopping online.  Not surprisingly, Millennials are more likely than any other generation to use mobile devices. Already, 45% use a tablet or smartphone during the car-shopping process.”

With online channels being such an important factor in the research stages, automotive marketers must be extra diligent in ensuring these channels are optimized for personalized engagement. Be sure to share plenty of content – both informative and interactive – across various sites. Focus areas should include your website, social networks, videos on YouTube, real-time updates and transparency into inventory, online forms to capture a prospect’s information, an easy interface for consumers to engage with a sales rep online, and integration with third-party review sites.  Remember, a millennial won’t even consider walking onto your lot unless you can create brand awareness and promote a positive online experience.

Millennials also tend to be mobile-first consumers. In fact, 48% of mobile-first auto consumers are Millennials. Websites, email communications, online contact forms, and any other piece of content to promote your brand and dealership absolutely must be optimized for mobile users. A poor mobile experience can turn shoppers away quickly. According to a 2015 CDK Global report, “A majority of Millennials said they wouldn’t wait more than five seconds for a page to load on a mobile device. In addition to slow load times, lack of mobile optimization, interactive features, and quality photos were the top complaints about mobile shopping. Essentially, Millennial shoppers expect to get the same quality shopping experience no matter what device they are using.”

Download the Modern Auto Marketers Complete Kit for Success and access some of our most informative resources on data-driven marketing for the automotive industry. The most convenient way to research, this success kit contains topic focused blogs, whitepapers, infographics, and more – all with one download.

5 Digital Strategies to Drive New Business into Your Dealership Service Center

With car owners keeping their car longer than ever, now is the time to take a serious look at how you are marketing your automotive service department. Currently, third-party repair shops own about 75% of the market.  However, according to DealerSocket’s Dealership Action Report, “53% of the average dealership’s gross profit comes from the service department, but only 30% of sales customers bring their vehicle in for service within the first year of ownership. That number drops to 13% after three years and to 2% after five years.”

The service department should be one of the highest generators of revenue for your dealership. Competing with third-party service centers can be challenging, but the right mix of digital, mobile, and customer-focused strategies can bring new revenue and more customers in for maintenance and repairs.

Here are 5 ways on how to transform your service center into a profit center.

Focus on SEO

Vehicle-service is a $215 billion a year industry and is expected to reach $247 billion by 2017. (Cars.com) However much of this revenue is going local shops or national chains. Simply put, these repair centers are “out-marketing” dealerships on digital channels.

The first place a consumers usually heads when seeking out service and repair work is online. Unfortunately, dealers show up less than 5% according to Jack Simmons, a trainer for Cars.com. To reach digitally engaged consumers, look beyond traditional print and television ads and focus on channels where your prospects are actively engaging.  First and foremost, be sure your SEO is fully optimized for your service department.  Many dealerships focus on getting found for new car sales, but SEO must be optimized to ensure your service center is showing up in search results among competitive repair centers.

Drive Awareness with Content

Studies show that consumers perceive dealership repairs and service as the more expensive option, even though they’d prefer to have their car serviced by factory authorized dealership technicians. Overcome these misperceptions by creating content that focuses on the quality of your services and the competitive pricing of your dealership. According to the Cars.com study, “when shoppers were provided more information about actual price ranges and quality of dealership work, many were willing to pay 10% to 15% more.”

However, consumers need to be made aware of your services so get creative and share content, articles, tips, service hours and prices, etc.  Some great ways to do this include:

• Advertise the fact that your dealership employs master mechanics. Many customers are willing to pay extra if they know a master mechanic is fixing their cars, according to a Cars.com study.
• Post articles on social media discussing seasonal care needs, advice for a regular maintenance schedule, or news and updates from your service center such as special events.
• Be sure your prices for basic services are transparent on your social media sites and website to show prices are competitive.
• Post fun photos of vehicles and their owners that come in for service.

The point is, be sure to constantly get in front of your digital audience to establish both awareness and brand trust.

Pay Attention to Your Online Reviews

Good service reviews help drive business to both your showroom and to your service center. Car shoppers are 90% more likely to visit your website and 5.3 more likely to visit your dealership if you have positive dealership reviews online. The study, conducted by DealerRater and Dataium, clearly reveals that dealer reviews have a strong impact on shopper behaviors.

Be sure to ask for reviews and at times when consumers are most likely to leave them.  While unhappy customers can’t wait to leave a negative review, your satisfied customers may need a bit of encouragement. According to a survey byCars.com, consumers leave reviews most frequently during business hours. 52% of dealer reviews were posted on Cars.com on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays, between the hours of 10 AM to 4 PM. Since consumers are more inclined to leave reviews during these time frames, send out requests for reviews to correlate with these peak hours. Happy consumers are also less likely to leave a review than dissatisfied consumers so a friendly request during these times will increase the chances of getting more reviews.

Mobile Apps are Fueling New Service Revenue Streams

According to research by Nielsen, 89% of a consumer’s mobile time is spent on an app. Dealerships have a great opportunity to leverage mobile apps as part of their service department customer acquisition and retention strategies. A variety of apps are available today, such as OpenBay, which allows users to search for a vehicle repair center and review dealer ratings and reviews from previous customers. RepairPal is another mobile app that offers price comparisons for particular services and regular maintenance. Apps like Driver Connect also allow dealers to offer loyalty programs, coupons, and an easy interface to schedule a service appointment, receive a notification when the vehicle is ready, or pay an invoice.

Social Mining for New Service Customers

The social media stratosphere is constantly buzzing with conversations about busted engines, blown tires, and unpleasant service experiences. All of these add up to the perfect opportunity for a well-timed digital ad, a personal response from your social media team, or both. A real-time data company can implement solutions that comb the internet for social signals, key phrases, web searches, and other activities that indicate a need for repair services and then execute advertisements across appropriate channels to get the attention of your prospects and ultimately make them your next customer.

A social media team can target customers in need of service or unhappy with current services by doing targeted searches on Twitter, Facebook, and other social sites. There are many resources online with detailed instructions on how to accomplish this (and even more social media providers who can take care of it for you), but the basic strategy is to search key phrases in an area local to your shop and then reach out via social media to those individuals.  For instance, on Twitter the search “broke down car near: tampa” brought up the first tweet– looks like someone may need a new mechanic. The same for “auto repair near: Orlando” and “auto shop near: Orlando” as seen in the other tweets.

40% of new car buyers report they don’t return to the dealership for non-warranty related service, and 67% say that outside repair shops are a better value than dealership service centers. These 5 strategies are a good place to start in making your service center shine.

Research by The Social Habit found that 42% of consumers who complain on social media expect a response within 1 hour. If they don’t receive a response in that time period, 38% report a more negative opinion of the brand. This is a great opportunity for repair centers to jump in and gain a new customer.

Check out our Automotive Marketing Strategy Guide for more great tips and tactics on how to generate new leads and convert them into sales.

Data Strategies to Increase Your Dealership Sales and Profitability

Despite the digital disruption and new ways to research and shop online, the dealer is still an integral piece of the sales process. Consumers may do the majority of their research online, but they still want to head into a dealership to take that test drive. This means there is plenty of opportunity to influence shoppers across their entire purchase journey – from initial online research to critical point when they step onto the lot.

McKinsey & Company conducted research on how car consumers shop and what they expect from a dealership. Key findings included:

• 85% of customers still use the dealer touch points, but 1 in 4 customers is not satisfied with his dealer experience in the car buying process.
   
• The average number of customer visits to dealers before buying a car has dropped from up to 5 to frequently just 1 for some brands in some geographies.
   
• More than 80% of customers take test-drives during the car buying process, underscoring the continuing strategic importance of dealers.
   
• More than one-third of customers would consider buying a car online.
   
• Over 80% of new-car and almost 100 percent of used-car customers now begin their journey online, meaning that dealers have lost their role as the primary source of information as well as their power over the informa­tion shared and their ability to influence the customer.
   
• Almost 90% of customers use dealer Web sites or OEM Web sites in the early steps of their decision making journey.
   

These statistics clearly indicate a need to be more digitally present throughout the purchase journey. Consumers follow different purchase journeys and use a variety of channels to gather information on their prospective vehicle purchase. An increasing percentage of these channels are online. This is especially true among millennials, who use social sites, blogging forums, OEM and dealer web sites, and online review forums to gather information and compare offers. In fact according to McKinsey, close to 90% of millennials use online sources for vehicle research.
 

During this initial stage of research, make sure you have established a strong digital presence to encourage engagement with your brand.  Dealer websites should include lots of content, informational videos, interactive tools, strong SEO, and be optimized for mobile. Engage with consumers on social media. Encourage current customers to leave online reviews. Create YouTube showcasing your inventory and staff.  The key is getting found online to be sure your dealership is considered as consumers move along their purchase path.
 

Dealerships must also get data savvy to target prospective consumers with the right message across whichever channel they may be using.  This begins with knowing who your prospects are.
 

Start with the internal data you have and append your records with additional demographic insights or specialized sources of auto data such as the following:

Internal Data

Internal data includes anything sitting in a data warehouse, CRM system, or other sources that have not been integrated into your marketing database. Examples of internal data include customer service records, transactional data, credit card purchases, or email.

Consumer Demographics

Data providers aggregate and source these data sets to compile additional consumer insights such as age, gender, and income. Look for a data aggregator who uses multiple sources of data including public records, phone directories, U.S. Census data, consumer surveys and other proprietary sources.

  
Example of the types of consumer data selects that can be appended to your database include Date of Birth, Home Ownership, Occupation, Gender, Donors, Estimated Income, Age, Telephone Number, Ethnicity, Credit Card, Hobbies, Language Spoken, Purchase Behavior, Lifestyle Interests, Presence of Children, and Investments. 

VIN Auto Data

Specialized VIN databases can really boost your acquisition strategies with information on a consumer’s current vehicle Type (car, SUV, truck, van), make and model, year, vehicle history, credit score range, and garage data.
  

With accurate information on your prospects, you can be sure you are targeting just the right person with rich, right time contact.  And in doing so, ensure you are driving more prospects into your dealership.
 

However, when a prospect finally walks onto your lot, your work is far from over. Of course, this is nothing new for dealerships but there are measures that can be taken to facilitate the sale. Most customers will always want to physically experience the vehicle before purchase as it is typically one of their largest investments. They also frequently seek expert advice on optional equipment and further services (such as insurance and financing options) as well as detailed information that is either not available or not conclusively answered online.
  

The McKinsey survey shows that over 40% of customers rank product expertise as the most important element of a dealer consultation. “As customers increasingly collect general information online, dealers are ever more being viewed as an advanced ‘second-level support’ for questions and doubts that neither the online configurator, the OEM website, nor the various car forums or third-party Web sites are sufficiently able to clarify. Market research shows that the need for further consultation after an online search is higher for cars than for most other consumer products, such as electronics or even pharmaceuticals. On top of this, advice on additional services around a car purchase will become increasingly important, whether financing options, insurance solutions, new features, or updates that can be sold to the customer during the lifetime of the car.”
 

From the beginning of the purchase journey to the moment a prospect steps onto a lot, dealers need to be sure they are providing superior customer experiences at every touch point. Dealers who can blend digital strategies with offline experiences at the dealership will attract more prospects, sell more vehicles, gain more repeat service revenue, and substantially increase dealership sales and profitability.
 

Download The Modern Auto Marketers Complete Kit for Success 

Drive More Sales at Your Dealership with Data-Driven Email Marketing

Personalized emails targeted to the right buyer and at the right time can drive traffic to your inventory page and prospects onto your lot. Email is a highly effective customer acquisition channel and for the last ten years in a row, email is the category generating the highest ROI for marketers (Campaign Monitor). Email marketing requires a much lower investment compared to other marketing channels and gives marketers the broadest reach of all the channels available to them.
 

How Auto Dealers Are Using Email

Benchmark Email conducted a survey analyzing the use and effectiveness of email marketing for dealerships.  According to the survey:

• 57% of dealerships deploy email campaigns and newsletters on a monthly basis and 21% send out quarterly.
• Email newsletters that combine both informational aspects and offers of discounts or sales was the most popular type of content to be included in dealerships’ campaigns (one-third).
• Emails that included little to no informational content and instead focused on providing sales and discount information were responsible for 21% of all sends.
• Purchased and supplied leads account for 36% of email leads, and current and past customers who have either purchased a vehicle through the dealership or have physically visited the location account for 29%.
• Most dealerships (73%) reported not segmenting their lists in any way and send out the same content to all subscribers equally.

According to statistics gathered from automotive dealerships nationwide, those who use email marketing are seeing tangible results – increased ROI, sales and customer bases. According to the research, “Email campaigns have on average a 9%-to-12% open rate, and of those, as much as a 14% click through.”
 

Email marketing clearly works, but dealerships have been slow to implement the strategies necessary to sell cars in the digital age. And for those that are adopting digital approaches, PCG Research estimates that millions of dollars are spent by dealers each month on ineffective marketing investments that offer little value in helping move inventory off the lot.
  

Segment Your List and Personalize Each Communication

No one wants to receive every email offer you have on the table.  And if you don’t take the time to segment and personalize your lists, be prepared for your prospects to unsubscribe in droves.  Research by Silverpop reports that the over 50% of consumers unsubscribe from a list because the email is irrelevant, impersonal, or both.
  

Every email campaign should be segmented and personalized. Start with the basics – the 1st party data you have sitting in your CRM and prospect databases. Analyze data such as age, gender, purchase history, service department transactions, and other pieces of information that can be analyzed to give you a deeper understanding of your customer and prospect segments.
 

Add 3rd Party Data Enhancement

While an internal database is a great starting point, many dealerships will find that these records are missing valuable details.  Demographics such as income, occupation, lifestyle, marital status, families with children, and other consumer characteristics will add valuable insights into which offers will resonate best with various customer groups.
 

In addition to demographics, specialty auto VIN data sources should be incorporated into lead data in order create hyper targeted offers that will increase click through rates and conversions.  Add data selects to your database such as the current make, model, and year of the current vehicle being driven. Are they in positive equity? Are there other vehicles in the household?
  

When selecting a VIN data source, keep in mind that the way the data is sourced is crucial to stay compliant with marketing and industry regulations. If the data is sourced from vehicle registrations, there will be limitations to how it can be used for marketing, as well as limitations in what data is available due to privacy states.  Be sure to ask about the provider’s collection methods and how they conform to all state and federal regulations.
  

Design for Mobile

Nearly half of all emails are now opened on mobile devices. According to Hubspot:

• 48% of emails are opened on mobile devices.
• 69% of mobile users delete emails that aren’t optimized for mobile.
• 89% of email marketers are losing leads and opportunities because they’re not optimizing their emails.

If you aren’t optimizing for mobile, you are losing out on significant opportunities.  Hubspot published a great article on how to optimize emails for mobile:http://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/optimize-email-mobile-list.
  

Analyze Performance

One of the most important stages of any email marketing campaign is taking the time to analyze it. What was the open and click-thru rate? Which emails are performing better? When are people opening and engaging with your emails? By tracking email performance, you can continuously make any tweaks and adjustments to ensure you are getting optimal results.

Email can be a powerful channel for your dealership when done correctly. Consider that 43% of the nation’s car shoppers say promotions and sales emails will motivate them to visit a dealership. There is a wealth of opportunity if you take the time to implement the strategies to reach these car shoppers with the a personalized and targeted message.
 

Download our Automotive and Dealership Marketing Success Kit for more tips and best practices on how to target and acquire new customers.