How effective are your Internet marketing efforts?

jasonbreck · #1 (**permalink**) 06-05-2007, 08:55 PM

Are Your Online Marketing Efforts As Effective As They Should Be?

If you're not sure, it may be time to take a hard look at it. The reason? It is undeniable that today the Web plays a more vital role in used-car sales than do print ads. More than twice as many late-model used-vehicle buyers find the vehicle they purchase through the Internet than both newspaper and magazine classified ads combined, according to the J.D. Power and Associates 2006 Used Autoshopper.com Study SM.

Add to that, the phenomenon of the so-called Generation-Y. Typically, the twenty something and under population purchase used cars. The used-vehicle market will only increase as today’s younger buyers become a larger buying force in the market. Buyers under the age of 35 are more than four times as likely to be led to the vehicle they purchase by information found online than by print classified ads .

But many dealerships have holes in their used-car online marketing efforts. This is evident if you visit the average dealer’s website. Used-vehicle inventory on the average dealer's website is out of date; pictures are missing or are incomplete; and used-vehicle department sales staffs are not typically aware of Web-related activities.

At the very least, dealers should require their Internet managers have a process for uploading used-vehicle inventory online. This includes both the dealership website and classified sites such as AutoTrader.com, Cars.com, Vehix.com, UsedCars.com, and any other lead generating sites that the dealer is signed up with. Each vehicle should have approximately six to ten photos at a minimum. If your lead generating site allows for 27 or 32 pictures, then it only makes sense to include that many.

Successful Internet managers also suggest writing a short description of the vehicle, rather than relying on acronyms that many buyers may not understand. This helps to create an emotional attachment to it, and leaves the customer feeling better informed.

In my experience, I have found that it is also imperative to include a price and mileage with each and every vehicle. Online buyers are seeking information. The more information you can provide them, so that they can make an informed decision, the better. If you don’t provide this information, they will more likely buy from a dealership who did.

So take a step back and examine your online marketing efforts. Do all of your online vehicles have photos? Do they include at least 6-10 photos of each car? Is there SOLD inventory still being advertised on your sites? Are you adding custom descriptions for each vehicle? Chances are, if you are the "average" dealership, you have room for improvement. Start being above average and start selling more cars!

Jason Breck

bhoecht · #2 (**permalink**) 06-15-2007, 03:13 AM

Good start Jason...

Go to the grocery store, buy a nice cut of beef, some spring vegetables to sear in oil, some tenderizing seasoning... and you're in business right?

Show pictures of the car, nice descriptions.... you've descibed a steak.

Engage the consumer in the conversation around buying a vehicle... what it means on a financed basis, extended service contracts, GAP Protection, price, tax, title & fees, accessories, accurate monthly payments... now you're talking sizzle.

You will sell far more steaks by describing the sizzle than the steak. Photos + descriptions are the steak. Getting real on the transaction and engaging in the conversation... that's the sizzle.

Just because it is the Internet doesn't mean proven, effective sales psychology approaches don't work. They are what separate high ROI initiatives vs. those that cause most dealers so much torment over the Internet.

Having a steak is the price of being in the market.

Making sure your Internet strategy has sizzle will sell you cars you would not have sold. Great process, great training, great sales psychology, great technology, great people. There is no magic pink pill that any piece of technology will provide (even one as good as that which my company provides - a true vehicle eCommerce system for a dealer to add to their website = consumer-facing Desking and complete F+I system).

Just like running a great showroom is not easy, neither is it easy to run a profitable, effective Internet operation.

But if it is where consumers are... certainly it is affecting how vehicle purchase decisions are made... so if traditionally advertising is less effective for car dealers and if I haven't figured out how to profitably operate in this medium... the greatest threat to my store's profitability probably isn't even on my financial statement.

Ouch.

As business owners it is the dealer's responsibility to be profitable... and that includes what it does on the Internet. Clearly avoidance of Internet expense is not an effective strategy.... once you commit to it as the next frontier which must be managed profitably whether you understand how it works or not. I hardly claim to know everything about it and I'm a vendor in this space. SEM, SEO, banner ads, cover pages, click thru's... it's like a foreign language to me.

Building an Internet strategy around a low gross (low price) option is another path to ruin. Just as in the showroom, a better experience is the ONLY sustainable competitive advantage (and good Internet volume and gross profits, lead to better sales commissions for Internet Managers & increased budgets for advertising items designed to bring even more traffic).

So.... does your Internet experience have sizzle?

In your store, whose responsibility is it to be profitable?

If they are not reading this post, what should you tell them?

My experience with dealers is that they are terrific entreprenuers. Awesome actually... but to date many of them have very real pain over what they've experienced so far... primarily from pursuing technology for technology's sake.

The Internet as a buying medium has grown up... has your dealership's Internet operation? Hopefully you aren't just blaming your manufacturer for not building enough new or exciting product and are actually doing what it takes to secure the profitable future of your dealership (yes that means figuring out how to be profitable and effective on the Internet).