OneCommand

OneCommand Blog
Total Posts: 80    

Kristen Williams

OneCommand

Jun 6, 2014

Make a Splash with AC

Whew! Is it just me, or are the temperatures heating up outside? For most of the U.S., it’s time to turn on the AC and enjoy the cooler temperatures indoors. Even when riding in their vehicles, consumers are opting to turn on the AC versus rolling down the windows because of the heat and humidity. Chances are however, that your customers have not performed a routine AC check on their vehicle, nor do they even know it is important for them to complete this needed maintenance. Here are some easy ways to make a splash by cooling off your customers.

Raise AC Awareness
If your customer’s vehicle is blowing warm air, they may already suspect they have a problem with their AC. However, if there are issues with the hoses, lines, seals, or other components of the AC system which aren’t apparent, they probably have no idea there is a problem. Raise awareness with customers about their vehicle’s AC by reminding them to check these important items on their vehicle or offer an AC inspection and maintenance special to ensure they stay cool all summer long.

Host an AC Clinic
If you want to take your campaign one step further, you could host an AC Clinic in your Service Department. Most customers would like to learn a little more about how the AC in their vehicle works, but don’t have anyone to teach them. Offer to help them get a better understanding of the components that make up their vehicle’s AC and how to spot warning signs when these components may be aged and need replacing.

Before summer gets underway, keep your customers cool with helpful AC tips or an on-site clinic. You’ll make a splash this summer and drive additional traffic and revenue to your Service Department.

Kristen Williams

OneCommand

Communications and Marketing Manager

1987

5 Comments

Robert Karbaum

Kijiji, an eBay Company

Jun 6, 2014  

The AC Clinic idea is solid. Like it a lot. Nice work.

Kristen Williams

OneCommand

Jun 6, 2014  

Thanks guys. Great points.

Dustin Lyons

M10 Marketing Firm

Jun 6, 2014  

Great idea, it is smart to use the seasons to your advantage when marketing. Maybe even offer a free AC check and have sales people ready with cars to test drive while the customer waits for the service dept.

Grant Gooley

Remarkable Marketing

Jun 6, 2014  

It's creative ideas like this that will create a trustful relationship with customers. Knowing your Dealer cares about you keeping cool in the "HOT" season, goes a long way. Like my wife always says... "it's about the little things" :)

Kristen Williams

OneCommand

Jun 6, 2014

Make a Splash with AC

Whew! Is it just me, or are the temperatures heating up outside? For most of the U.S., it’s time to turn on the AC and enjoy the cooler temperatures indoors. Even when riding in their vehicles, consumers are opting to turn on the AC versus rolling down the windows because of the heat and humidity. Chances are however, that your customers have not performed a routine AC check on their vehicle, nor do they even know it is important for them to complete this needed maintenance. Here are some easy ways to make a splash by cooling off your customers.

Raise AC Awareness
If your customer’s vehicle is blowing warm air, they may already suspect they have a problem with their AC. However, if there are issues with the hoses, lines, seals, or other components of the AC system which aren’t apparent, they probably have no idea there is a problem. Raise awareness with customers about their vehicle’s AC by reminding them to check these important items on their vehicle or offer an AC inspection and maintenance special to ensure they stay cool all summer long.

Host an AC Clinic
If you want to take your campaign one step further, you could host an AC Clinic in your Service Department. Most customers would like to learn a little more about how the AC in their vehicle works, but don’t have anyone to teach them. Offer to help them get a better understanding of the components that make up their vehicle’s AC and how to spot warning signs when these components may be aged and need replacing.

Before summer gets underway, keep your customers cool with helpful AC tips or an on-site clinic. You’ll make a splash this summer and drive additional traffic and revenue to your Service Department.

Kristen Williams

OneCommand

Communications and Marketing Manager

1987

5 Comments

Robert Karbaum

Kijiji, an eBay Company

Jun 6, 2014  

The AC Clinic idea is solid. Like it a lot. Nice work.

Kristen Williams

OneCommand

Jun 6, 2014  

Thanks guys. Great points.

Dustin Lyons

M10 Marketing Firm

Jun 6, 2014  

Great idea, it is smart to use the seasons to your advantage when marketing. Maybe even offer a free AC check and have sales people ready with cars to test drive while the customer waits for the service dept.

Grant Gooley

Remarkable Marketing

Jun 6, 2014  

It's creative ideas like this that will create a trustful relationship with customers. Knowing your Dealer cares about you keeping cool in the "HOT" season, goes a long way. Like my wife always says... "it's about the little things" :)

Kristen Williams

OneCommand

May 5, 2014

Make a Splash for Father's Day

Isn’t it crazy that it’s already time to start planning and executing your June marketing campaigns? Plus, if you took advantage of Mother’s Day to drive additional traffic, it’s only right that you do the same for Father’s Day – especially if you saw a lift in traffic and revenue. But, what type of marketing can you execute to create buzz for your dealership and spur top-of-mind awareness? Today I’ll share two ideas to make a splash this Father’s Day.

Celebrate the ’Stache
In case you haven’t noticed, mustaches are in. They’ve been made into earrings, rings, temporary tattoos, and even emblems on shirts and other apparel. You can leverage the ’stache craze to market to local dads. You could offer savings to any dads sporting a ’stache, have a best ’stache contest, or simply sport some ’staches on your marketing pieces. This fun campaign will get the attention of your audience and your dealership will stay top-of-mind for future vehicle needs.

Go Golfing
A favorite pastime for many dads is playing golf with friends, colleagues, or family… or at least all the dads I know. Think about leveraging this interest to drive business to your store. You could host a Wii golf tournament right in your showroom or a golf outing at the local golf course. By creating a fun atmosphere and asking your customers to join in, you’ll generate brand awareness and drive additional foot traffic to your door.

Have Fun
Regardless of the contents of your marketing outreach for Father’s Day, be sure to have fun with your campaign. This approach will make your dealership stand out from your competitors and your profit centers are sure to see a splash for Father’s Day.

Kristen Williams

OneCommand

Communications and Marketing Manager

3151

4 Comments

Chris Halsey

DrivingSales

Jun 6, 2014  

Some really great ideas here.

Robert Karbaum

Kijiji, an eBay Company

Jun 6, 2014  

Dad's are such an easy, and enjoyable target. I would go with Dad Jokes. So many ways to string that up. Just think of Phil Dunphy from Modern Family: http://25.media.tumblr.com/ac05a5e510b90b9799eeb4b6b2ebefdc/tumblr_mu2usaOqVM1si4b64o1_400.gif

Kristen Williams

OneCommand

Jun 6, 2014  

Love it! Great idea! I'm going to have to use that one. Thanks.

Wendy Lowen

Park Chrysler Jeep

Jun 6, 2014  

I like the Wii golf idea!

Kristen Williams

OneCommand

May 5, 2014

Make a Splash for Father's Day

Isn’t it crazy that it’s already time to start planning and executing your June marketing campaigns? Plus, if you took advantage of Mother’s Day to drive additional traffic, it’s only right that you do the same for Father’s Day – especially if you saw a lift in traffic and revenue. But, what type of marketing can you execute to create buzz for your dealership and spur top-of-mind awareness? Today I’ll share two ideas to make a splash this Father’s Day.

Celebrate the ’Stache
In case you haven’t noticed, mustaches are in. They’ve been made into earrings, rings, temporary tattoos, and even emblems on shirts and other apparel. You can leverage the ’stache craze to market to local dads. You could offer savings to any dads sporting a ’stache, have a best ’stache contest, or simply sport some ’staches on your marketing pieces. This fun campaign will get the attention of your audience and your dealership will stay top-of-mind for future vehicle needs.

Go Golfing
A favorite pastime for many dads is playing golf with friends, colleagues, or family… or at least all the dads I know. Think about leveraging this interest to drive business to your store. You could host a Wii golf tournament right in your showroom or a golf outing at the local golf course. By creating a fun atmosphere and asking your customers to join in, you’ll generate brand awareness and drive additional foot traffic to your door.

Have Fun
Regardless of the contents of your marketing outreach for Father’s Day, be sure to have fun with your campaign. This approach will make your dealership stand out from your competitors and your profit centers are sure to see a splash for Father’s Day.

Kristen Williams

OneCommand

Communications and Marketing Manager

3151

4 Comments

Chris Halsey

DrivingSales

Jun 6, 2014  

Some really great ideas here.

Robert Karbaum

Kijiji, an eBay Company

Jun 6, 2014  

Dad's are such an easy, and enjoyable target. I would go with Dad Jokes. So many ways to string that up. Just think of Phil Dunphy from Modern Family: http://25.media.tumblr.com/ac05a5e510b90b9799eeb4b6b2ebefdc/tumblr_mu2usaOqVM1si4b64o1_400.gif

Kristen Williams

OneCommand

Jun 6, 2014  

Love it! Great idea! I'm going to have to use that one. Thanks.

Wendy Lowen

Park Chrysler Jeep

Jun 6, 2014  

I like the Wii golf idea!

Kristen Williams

OneCommand

May 5, 2014

5 Characteristics of Mobile-Friendly Emails

If you haven’t heard the buzz in the email marketing world, we’ve finally reached the tipping point where more than 50% of all emails are now read on mobile devices. That’s right, according to Litmus, in November 2013, 51% of all emails were being opened on a mobile device – a 21% increase since January 2013. This is a direct result of more and more consumers opting for smart phone devices and these numbers are expected to rise in the coming year, making mobile-friendly emails a must for marketers. How do you ensure your emails are mobile-friendly?

Why are mobile-friendly emails important for marketers?
You might have heard about mobile-friendly emails… but do you really understand how to put it into practice? Basically, mobile-friendly emails are built in a way that allows the email to be easily viewed on a mobile device. Traditional desktop email layouts, which often times feature large images and multiple columns, render terribly on a mobile device.  If you are part of the 51% of smart phone adopters that are viewing emails on your mobile device, then you have probably been a victim to a non-mobile-friendly email. For recipients of this type of email, it can be frustrating and result in low engagement, in turn creating low campaign response rates and ROI.

As a general rule of thumb, mobile emails must be aesthetically pleasing to the eye, work properly, and perform correctly or a mobile user will just unsubscribe. In today’s marketing era, you have to create your emails with the mobile user in mind. Here are five characteristics of mobile-friendly emails:

Mobile Characteristic #1:
The easiest and probably most effective way to make your emails render correctly on a mobile device is by creating them in a one-column layout. Emails with a multi-column layout are very difficult to navigate on a mobile device and, in some cases, the mobile device will actually strip the email so it only displays the first column. A single-column layout is the best way to go; it is easy to read and scroll through with your finger on a smart phone.

Mobile Characteristic #2:
Keep your content short, sweet, and to the point. This honestly is a good tip for any email marketing, but specifically on mobile, because these recipients don’t want to scroll through a long message just to get to the point. Real estate within in a mobile window is very finite, so a clear, simple message is the best for mobile emails.

Mobile Characteristic #3:
One of my favorite tips is to use a good mix of content and images. We’ve all been there where the email we just received is all white space that says download images. A typical consumer will simply delete the email message versus downloading the images either because they don’t really care about the email or they don’t trust the sender. If you use a mix of content and images, the recipient can at least see what the email is about before deciding what action to take or download the images.

Mobile Characteristic #4:
One thing marketers typically forget to incorporate into their mobile email are large, call to action buttons. These are really, really important when creating mobile emails because they are easier to click on than a link. When creating a mobile email you want to think about tappable buttons not clickable. By utilizing these types of buttons, you’ll increase engagement with your emails.

Mobile Characteristic #5:
Another thing to keep in mind when creating mobile-friendly emails is understanding how the email from and subject line will appear in consumer email applications. Remember, this is the email’s first impression to get the recipient to open your email. If the subject line isn’t eye catching or the sender info isn’t recognizable, chances are your email won’t get opened. So, be sure to use your company name is in the from line and trim subject lines down to under 40 characters or front load your subject lines.

Lastly, once you have fully optimized your email and made it mobile friendly, you’ll want to test, test, test. You can use platforms like Litmus and render your email on multiple devices at once, or you can do it the old fashion way by simply sending your email to the most utilized mobile devices (iPhone, Android, Windows, etc).  

In summary, when creating mobile-friendly emails, you really need to think about the user experience. You have to adjust the way you think about email layout, design, and content. You have to create your emails to be finger friendly and get out of the mindset of the point and click mouse… fingers are the new mouse.

Kristen Williams

OneCommand

Communications and Marketing Manager

4542

4 Comments

Grant Gooley

Remarkable Marketing

May 5, 2014  

Open rates will only be somewhat adequate with a mobile friendly email. MailChimp does a great job putting together a platform that allows for strong mobile friendly emails. Mobile, Mobile, Mobile!!! Soon that will be 80% of our concentration, I'm sure of it! Great post.

Kristen Williams

OneCommand

May 5, 2014  

Thanks so much.... agreed! Well need to become smarter and adapt faster to the forever changing mobile environment.

Stephanie Young

The Manus Group

May 5, 2014  

It seems like I am always working on a "For Mobile" project, converting previously existing formats into mobile friendly. I think my boss wonders why I am on my phone all the time...and I am starting to wonder if I can take off my phone on my taxes as a business expense. (smile) Thanks for the post. I now have email for mobile on my to do list.

Robert Karbaum

Kijiji, an eBay Company

Jun 6, 2014  

I need to stress: TESTING. Testing, testing, testing. I like to use the million dollar approach; would you bet a million dollars that it is going to work as expected. If you can't risk the million, do more testing until you can.

Kristen Williams

OneCommand

May 5, 2014

5 Characteristics of Mobile-Friendly Emails

If you haven’t heard the buzz in the email marketing world, we’ve finally reached the tipping point where more than 50% of all emails are now read on mobile devices. That’s right, according to Litmus, in November 2013, 51% of all emails were being opened on a mobile device – a 21% increase since January 2013. This is a direct result of more and more consumers opting for smart phone devices and these numbers are expected to rise in the coming year, making mobile-friendly emails a must for marketers. How do you ensure your emails are mobile-friendly?

Why are mobile-friendly emails important for marketers?
You might have heard about mobile-friendly emails… but do you really understand how to put it into practice? Basically, mobile-friendly emails are built in a way that allows the email to be easily viewed on a mobile device. Traditional desktop email layouts, which often times feature large images and multiple columns, render terribly on a mobile device.  If you are part of the 51% of smart phone adopters that are viewing emails on your mobile device, then you have probably been a victim to a non-mobile-friendly email. For recipients of this type of email, it can be frustrating and result in low engagement, in turn creating low campaign response rates and ROI.

As a general rule of thumb, mobile emails must be aesthetically pleasing to the eye, work properly, and perform correctly or a mobile user will just unsubscribe. In today’s marketing era, you have to create your emails with the mobile user in mind. Here are five characteristics of mobile-friendly emails:

Mobile Characteristic #1:
The easiest and probably most effective way to make your emails render correctly on a mobile device is by creating them in a one-column layout. Emails with a multi-column layout are very difficult to navigate on a mobile device and, in some cases, the mobile device will actually strip the email so it only displays the first column. A single-column layout is the best way to go; it is easy to read and scroll through with your finger on a smart phone.

Mobile Characteristic #2:
Keep your content short, sweet, and to the point. This honestly is a good tip for any email marketing, but specifically on mobile, because these recipients don’t want to scroll through a long message just to get to the point. Real estate within in a mobile window is very finite, so a clear, simple message is the best for mobile emails.

Mobile Characteristic #3:
One of my favorite tips is to use a good mix of content and images. We’ve all been there where the email we just received is all white space that says download images. A typical consumer will simply delete the email message versus downloading the images either because they don’t really care about the email or they don’t trust the sender. If you use a mix of content and images, the recipient can at least see what the email is about before deciding what action to take or download the images.

Mobile Characteristic #4:
One thing marketers typically forget to incorporate into their mobile email are large, call to action buttons. These are really, really important when creating mobile emails because they are easier to click on than a link. When creating a mobile email you want to think about tappable buttons not clickable. By utilizing these types of buttons, you’ll increase engagement with your emails.

Mobile Characteristic #5:
Another thing to keep in mind when creating mobile-friendly emails is understanding how the email from and subject line will appear in consumer email applications. Remember, this is the email’s first impression to get the recipient to open your email. If the subject line isn’t eye catching or the sender info isn’t recognizable, chances are your email won’t get opened. So, be sure to use your company name is in the from line and trim subject lines down to under 40 characters or front load your subject lines.

Lastly, once you have fully optimized your email and made it mobile friendly, you’ll want to test, test, test. You can use platforms like Litmus and render your email on multiple devices at once, or you can do it the old fashion way by simply sending your email to the most utilized mobile devices (iPhone, Android, Windows, etc).  

In summary, when creating mobile-friendly emails, you really need to think about the user experience. You have to adjust the way you think about email layout, design, and content. You have to create your emails to be finger friendly and get out of the mindset of the point and click mouse… fingers are the new mouse.

Kristen Williams

OneCommand

Communications and Marketing Manager

4542

4 Comments

Grant Gooley

Remarkable Marketing

May 5, 2014  

Open rates will only be somewhat adequate with a mobile friendly email. MailChimp does a great job putting together a platform that allows for strong mobile friendly emails. Mobile, Mobile, Mobile!!! Soon that will be 80% of our concentration, I'm sure of it! Great post.

Kristen Williams

OneCommand

May 5, 2014  

Thanks so much.... agreed! Well need to become smarter and adapt faster to the forever changing mobile environment.

Stephanie Young

The Manus Group

May 5, 2014  

It seems like I am always working on a "For Mobile" project, converting previously existing formats into mobile friendly. I think my boss wonders why I am on my phone all the time...and I am starting to wonder if I can take off my phone on my taxes as a business expense. (smile) Thanks for the post. I now have email for mobile on my to do list.

Robert Karbaum

Kijiji, an eBay Company

Jun 6, 2014  

I need to stress: TESTING. Testing, testing, testing. I like to use the million dollar approach; would you bet a million dollars that it is going to work as expected. If you can't risk the million, do more testing until you can.

Kristen Williams

OneCommand

May 5, 2014

Grow Your Business by Sharing Road Trip Tips

Summer is in the air; can you feel it? Warmer weather, longer days, and school quickly coming to an end all mean one thing… summer is just around the corner. Most American families take a vacation in the summer time and because of the cost of flying, many use their own vehicles to get to their destination. Why not offer them something to ensure your customer’s summer travel isn’t interrupted with vehicle problems? Why not do everything you can to get them to their vacation destination on time and safe?

Offer Roadside Assistance
Now I know what you’re thinking, “I can’t offer each customer the option to have roadside assistance,” which is probably very true. However, you can offer customers a roadside assistance kit. You can either pick up the kits at a retail outlet or create your own. You can offer them as an additional item for sale in your Service Department or include them when a customer purchases a particular dollar amount of services from your dealership. Roadside assistance kits are a sure fire way to ensure customers are prepared for traveling this summer.

Offer Travel Tips
When families are getting ready for their summer travel, often times it is in a huge rush and certain things can be forgotten or just simply overlooked. You could send a helpful communication to customers to remind them of those vehicle items that are typically overlooked but could cause travel delays. For example, you could remind customers to check their spare tire for proper inflation, test their vehicle’s battery, or simply get an oil change and top off fluids. All of these quick and simple services only take a few minutes but could save your customers hours on the road.

You can grow your business this summer by sharing road trip tips with your customers and ensuring they are prepared for the road. You’ll not only build trust and brand awareness, but you’ll also drive additional service traffic to your store.

Kristen Williams

OneCommand

Communications and Marketing Manager

2093

3 Comments

Grant Gooley

Remarkable Marketing

May 5, 2014  

Great stuff! Anything that provides value to a customer is what I like. This idea would be great to blog about or create a landing page around "Tips For Each Season". Im sure your social channels would love this well, good for some likes and shares I bet! Thanks Kristen!

Dylan Graham

Edifice Group

May 5, 2014  

On par with Nancy's Comment. Most customers do not realize how inexpensive Roadside Service is to add to their Insurance policies. For most policies it is just a couple of dollars a month and includes Tow, Run out of Fuel and Locksmith services. If you had one tow, it would pay for itself at least 15x over.

Kristen Williams

OneCommand

May 5, 2014

Grow Your Business by Sharing Road Trip Tips

Summer is in the air; can you feel it? Warmer weather, longer days, and school quickly coming to an end all mean one thing… summer is just around the corner. Most American families take a vacation in the summer time and because of the cost of flying, many use their own vehicles to get to their destination. Why not offer them something to ensure your customer’s summer travel isn’t interrupted with vehicle problems? Why not do everything you can to get them to their vacation destination on time and safe?

Offer Roadside Assistance
Now I know what you’re thinking, “I can’t offer each customer the option to have roadside assistance,” which is probably very true. However, you can offer customers a roadside assistance kit. You can either pick up the kits at a retail outlet or create your own. You can offer them as an additional item for sale in your Service Department or include them when a customer purchases a particular dollar amount of services from your dealership. Roadside assistance kits are a sure fire way to ensure customers are prepared for traveling this summer.

Offer Travel Tips
When families are getting ready for their summer travel, often times it is in a huge rush and certain things can be forgotten or just simply overlooked. You could send a helpful communication to customers to remind them of those vehicle items that are typically overlooked but could cause travel delays. For example, you could remind customers to check their spare tire for proper inflation, test their vehicle’s battery, or simply get an oil change and top off fluids. All of these quick and simple services only take a few minutes but could save your customers hours on the road.

You can grow your business this summer by sharing road trip tips with your customers and ensuring they are prepared for the road. You’ll not only build trust and brand awareness, but you’ll also drive additional service traffic to your store.

Kristen Williams

OneCommand

Communications and Marketing Manager

2093

3 Comments

Grant Gooley

Remarkable Marketing

May 5, 2014  

Great stuff! Anything that provides value to a customer is what I like. This idea would be great to blog about or create a landing page around "Tips For Each Season". Im sure your social channels would love this well, good for some likes and shares I bet! Thanks Kristen!

Dylan Graham

Edifice Group

May 5, 2014  

On par with Nancy's Comment. Most customers do not realize how inexpensive Roadside Service is to add to their Insurance policies. For most policies it is just a couple of dollars a month and includes Tow, Run out of Fuel and Locksmith services. If you had one tow, it would pay for itself at least 15x over.

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