03-18-2010, 04:21 PM
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Join Date: Oct 2009
Posts: 59
|  Managing Your Marketing
How are you managing your marketing?
Or should I ask, are you?
Some of the fatal mistakes automotive dealers make is the shotgun marketing approach, hitting all your customers as many times as possible. I know you have heard this all before, but I am going to say it once more - you don’t want to make your customers numb to your message. One of the critical steps in managing your marketing is to determine why you are communicating to the customer.
Are they due for service? Most of you are on an automated program that communicates to your customers during their vehicle lifecycle. These campaigns are timed by business rules that are based on the vehicle needs, driving habits, etc. Just because they are automated does not mean you cannot improve your results and market more efficiently. Review your reports to see who you are targeting and how or if they are responding. A customer data driven mapping tool can be a great way to help you see a snapshot of your customer database You can view which zip codes have the higher response rates and customer spend with just a mouse over. Review your enrollment detail in the program. You can adjust your radius after seeing how far your customers will travel for service. You need to own your 5-10 mile radius around the dealership for service. Are your offers relevant and priced comparatively with the market? A reasonable priced offer is more effective than a percentage off. Remember – your customers may not know your prices so a percentage off offer doesn’t give them an idea of value.
Are you trying to build traffic? Alright, I fibbed – I am going to say it once more…you don’t want to numb your customers to your message. Therefore, depending on the relevancy of your offer, you may want to consider suppressing the above-mentioned customers from your custom campaigns. Sales prospects will travel further for a perceived value offer - keep the radius open on this communication. Track your campaigns to see which offers and formats have a higher response rate. Refer back to those formats when creating new campaigns.
Ok now that I have said not to blast your customers with too many messages, I am going to put a twist on this. There have been tests that prove receiving the same message across multiple channels increases your response rate. How do your customers want to be communicated to? Email is a more cost effective channel and more and more customers prefer to receive emails, but don’t forget about those customers that just prefer a letter. Keep in mind the demographics of your target audience.
Stay involved…manage your marketing.
~ Marcie Hopey, Product Manager @ DMEautomotive
Bio:
Marcie has 15 years of extensive experience, of which 10 are in the automotive industry, with strategic planning, market research, media and events. She has a successful track record for implementing new marketing plans to expand market share and grow revenue. Marcie possesses a forward thinking approach to business with an emphasis on bottom line results. As DMEautomotive’s Product Manager Marcie is responsible for the company’s Direct to Dealer Program, product development and data analysis, client services, and customer retention.
Original blog location: Automotive Direct Marketing: Advice from the experts at DMEautomotive: Managing Your Marketing | | |
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