The eBook: 5 Billion Reasons to Kill SEM in Retail Auto is released! Very excited to share this with our industry! As promised the eBook that is focused on truth, transparency, and profitability relative to SEM for dealers is available at this link for free.

"More proof that SEM does not work in Retail Auto the way that you believe it does."

You can get a free copy here http://www.theawakeningdealers.com/5-billion-reasons/

http://www.theawakeningdealers.com/5-billion-reasons/

Note, the eBook uses data from NADA and its Dealership Financial Profile Report(s) which refers to “Average Dealership” of which NADA includes the following manufacturers:

Acura Audi USA BMW FCA North America Ford Motor Company General Motors American Honda Motor Company, Inc. INFINITI Jaguar Land RoverKia Motors America Lexus Mazda USA Mercedes-Benz USA Mitsubishi USA Nissan Porsche North America Subaru of America, Inc. Toyota USAVolkswagen Volvo Car USA

1. Believe you need more traffic on your website
2. Believe stimulus is synonymous with attention
3. Believe your internet department needs more leads
4. Believe that paid-search budget puts buyers in market
5. Believe you need an SEM budget larger than your Relationship Management budget
6. Believe that “in market” buyers for your brand don’t organically visit your site
7. Believe that all website visitors are equal
8. Believe that going wide in your market is more profitable than going deep with your relationships
9. Believe the vendor argument: “We mailed to them, and look they bought from you.”

Yes, it does and the reason as you'll see in this article is that according to your customers themselves, TV, radio, and Direct Mail have less influence on them than driving by your dealership.  But first let's talk about a faster better way to drive sales at your dealership  in October – and every other month after that for that matter. And that's by ensuring you're marketing correctly in today's digital world. Polk and Cox put out a 2015 Automotive Buyer Influence Study earlier this year and basically laid your most effective marketing strategy on a silver platter for you.

First how to align your marketing stack. Real simple, if your marketing stack doesn’t closely resemble what sources your opportunities use to get to you, you won’t be as successful as you should be. Here’s what your marketing stack needs to look like from a percentage basis according to the Polk/Cox study. Notice that according to buyers, the internet is growing in influence whilst all others mediums are falling.

Second, your customers and opportunities are online, ALL THE TIME, NOT JUST WHEN THEY'RE SHOPPING FOR CARS! At the Tier 3 level that's where you need to reach them to effectively brand your dealership. Do your advertising there early and often. Look at the chart below about what drives customers to your dealership most and ask yourself this question: "Do I spend advertising dollars according to the facts and reality of my customers or the bias and interests of my traditional advertising vendors?" For instance look at Direct Mail, not only do many dealers do it wrong (see the Do you do Direct Fail post), but according to the data it only represents 2% of traffic headed your way. And TV and Radio are even worse.  Look closely too at customer service and relationships in the chart. Most dealers are making a killing via great customer service and internet marketing alone.

According to the Polk / Cox study Direct Mail, Print, TV, and Radio are the least effective means to drive traffic to your dealership in today's digital world.

 

Third, if you’re spending money on the wrong mediums then you’ll have additional problems, like low brand recognition, low traffic, low sales, and wasted budget expenses. Again, according to an 2014 NADA study, dealerships are spending advertising dollars incorrectly relative to what the data says drives customer to dealerships.

Yes, it does and the reason as you'll see in this article is that according to your customers themselves, TV, radio, and Direct Mail have less influence on them than driving by your dealership.  But first let's talk about a faster better way to drive sales at your dealership  in October – and every other month after that for that matter. And that's by ensuring you're marketing correctly in today's digital world. Polk and Cox put out a 2015 Automotive Buyer Influence Study earlier this year and basically laid your most effective marketing strategy on a silver platter for you.

First how to align your marketing stack. Real simple, if your marketing stack doesn’t closely resemble what sources your opportunities use to get to you, you won’t be as successful as you should be. Here’s what your marketing stack needs to look like from a percentage basis according to the Polk/Cox study. Notice that according to buyers, the internet is growing in influence whilst all others mediums are falling.

Second, your customers and opportunities are online, ALL THE TIME, NOT JUST WHEN THEY'RE SHOPPING FOR CARS! At the Tier 3 level that's where you need to reach them to effectively brand your dealership. Do your advertising there early and often. Look at the chart below about what drives customers to your dealership most and ask yourself this question: "Do I spend advertising dollars according to the facts and reality of my customers or the bias and interests of my traditional advertising vendors?" For instance look at Direct Mail, not only do many dealers do it wrong (see the Do you do Direct Fail post), but according to the data it only represents 2% of traffic headed your way. And TV and Radio are even worse.  Look closely too at customer service and relationships in the chart. Most dealers are making a killing via great customer service and internet marketing alone.

According to the Polk / Cox study Direct Mail, Print, TV, and Radio are the least effective means to drive traffic to your dealership in today's digital world.

 

Third, if you’re spending money on the wrong mediums then you’ll have additional problems, like low brand recognition, low traffic, low sales, and wasted budget expenses. Again, according to an 2014 NADA study, dealerships are spending advertising dollars incorrectly relative to what the data says drives customer to dealerships.