Posts Tagged ‘dealers’

The Eric Clapton Social Media Plan

Wednesday, December 14th, 2011

We know that social networking is going to Change the World, but dealers are jumping in without any plan of action. You need to understand the medium and Get Ready before you Walk Out In The Rain or you’ll have a Losing Hand. Listening to one of the greatest musicians of all time, Eric Clapton, can give you advice on how to become successful at social media when he sings:

“It’s in the way that you use it,
It comes and it goes.
It’s in the way that you use it,
Boy don’t you know.
And if you lie you will lose it,
Feelings will show.
So don’t ever abuse it.
Don’t let it go.”

As countless dealers create FB (and G+) pages every day, they need to develop a posting and sharing strategy and it MUST be tied in to what you are doing on the ground within the community. There are six primary ways that I see dealers posting on the social sites:

1) C.R.A.P. – an acronym developed by my friend Eric Miltsch where he believes in posting Coupons, Reviews, And Pictures. This also includes service specials and fixed ops discounts.
2) Celebrating your Customers – this is the posting of customer testimonials, pics of happy customers, and milestone purchases/services/mileage images.
3) Celebrating your Employees – this is the posting of reviews, employee biographies, videos, personal accomplishments, and more to endear your staff to your followers.
4) Celebrating your Community – Sharing your involvement in local events, charities, and organizational activities in and around your primary market area. Your goal is to align yourself with important aspects of local goings-on and act as a valuable, participating member of the nearby community.
5) Trivia – Since your social prowess is determined by the amount of engagement you have on the social pages, many dealers post questions asking the opinions or their fans. (ie – ‘What was the best Christmas gift you ever received?’ Or ‘Where is the best place to eat barbecue?’) Any way to get others to comment or elicit a response.
6) Being an Extension of the OEM – This is where dealers share information about the newest models, concept cars, third-party validating reviews, and OEM-style material that helps further the brand, but not so much the dealership.

So you are at a Crossroads. You don’t have to decide right now. Wait until After Midnight. Whichever way you choose, I urge you to listen to some Clapton and recognize that your success will be based on “the way that you use it”.

If you are only utilizing one of the strategies above (which is what most dealers are doing), you need to Reconsider Baby. Instead create a plan to post using ALL of the tactics above. Tell the Truth, you don’t have as many Lay Down Sally’s walking onto your showroom as before so you need to begin reaching them in a contemporary fashion. My guess is that if you look at your most recent posts on FB, with The Shape You’re In, it’ll take Five Long Years to see any reward from your current strategy.

If you aren’t involved in social networking at all, you’ll be Standin’ Around Crying Tears in Heaven and Groaning the Blues without a franchise because these are the places the public is turning for information. Only those that develop a social marketing plan From the Cradle will look Wonderful Tonight. There is a way to be the Cream of the crop while marketing your dealership socially and that is to be a little like Clapton.



Automotive Storytellers

Wednesday, October 6th, 2010

So you’ve been assigned the responsibility to write the vehicle comments on behalf of your store.  While this may be Internet Sales 101, it is more than apparent that dealers can use a refresher course now and again.  As I research dealership after dealership and do comparison studies between my own clients and their competition, I find it disheartening that so many dealers overlook the basics.

It is not that dealerships today don’t recognize the importance of unique vehicle comments on each inventory listing.  It is that there is a time investment that some don’t feel willing to give for a basic best practice.  Or maybe it is that no one spelled out for them how to write quality vehicle comments in the first place.

While some use the valuable, time-saving technology that auto-generates unique comments on their behalf from the vAutos, VinSolutions, and Homenets of the world, others have to do it the old-fashioned way…. By actually writing it themselves.

Unfortunately, even when dealership staff take it upon themselves to write this ad copy for their inventory, it usually turns out limp.  Majority of dealer-written descriptions include the customary smattering of lines such as
Looking for a family sedan?
This vehicle is still under factory warranty.
Just Reduced!
This is a nice one!
CarFax available.
Traction Control.  Front wheel drive.
Must ask for Internet Sales Manager if you want Internet price.
As with all pre-owned vehicles normal wear and tear should be expected.
All of our pre-owned vehicles are sold “as-is”.

Now I ask you, are those statements important to some customers?  Absolutely, yes.  However these exact statements are far too often jam-packed together in the same description.  We need to connect with people searching for our inventory on a personal level, not just educate them.  There are several keys to writing engaging inventory description.  Below, I’ve broken down the more important aspects.

1)  Paint a picture.  Create a visual by exploring the five senses.  Put them in the driver’s seat. “When you sit back comfortably in your…”  “As you drive, you won’t hear any engine/road noise…”  “Within a second of putting your head inside this sparkling clean…. you will realize that no smoker has ever lit up anywhere near it.”  And always remember to write words like “You” and “Your family”.

2)  Appeal to their competitiveness.  “Your neighbors/coworkers will be envious when you drive home in…”  “Your family will flip head over heels…”  And then, if you have the ability to research, discuss other awards/recognition the vehicle may have received.  For instance, if there is a MotorTrend truck/car of the year in your inventory, make sure you mention it.

3)  Descriptive words.  Go buy a thesaurus (or go to thesaurus.com).  It is NOT a black car with leather interior.  It is a jet-black/black onyx/diamond black clearcoat flawless paint exterior filled to the brim with soft buttery tan cream leather throughout.  It doesn’t have AC.  It has nip-at-your-nose ice cold air conditioning.  It doesn’t have am/fm/cd, it has a “crystal clear sound thumping out of its premium sound system.”  Get creative.  Oversell it.  The more fun the better.

4)  Only talk options.  There is no need to mention the standard features of a vehicle in the unique description.  Power, maybe, but most customers researching a vehicle don’t care about intermittent windshield wipers, power steering, rear defrost, vanity mirror, etc.  Only talk about what makes the vehicle exceptional.  (You’ll never see anything with a sunroof that has hand-crank windows).  So only mention things such as chrome alloys like looking in a mirror, sunroof that lets you feel the cool breeze, soft as skin leather, etc…

5)  Get Creative.  Speak to the Consumer.  Call them out.  “You cannot miss the opportunity to see this one-of-a-kind, well-cared-for beast of a mud-flinging 4×4 pick-up. And as you can tell, our dealership is the home of hyphenated words.”  As I mentioned, HAVE FUN.

Don’t think of it as a chore.  Think of it as writing a story, telling a tale, or singing a song.  Make it sound different than the rest.  Overemphasize.  It will help tremendously.  Learning how to write the descriptions will make you that much stronger when you have to verbally describe the vehicle to a customer over the phone as well so the benefits of this skill do not just stop at more eyeballs on your merchandised inventory.

From someone with a journalistic background who fashions himself a storyteller, allow me to say that it does take practice and quite a little bit of creativity.  So get inventive and try to truly create some unique comments.  By including the variables above, you too can be a master of automotive storytelling.



Are Your Emails Being Tivo’d?

Friday, May 7th, 2010

I bought a Tivo the very first month they were introduced in the market. I wanted to be a pioneer before an early adopter. I paid the $300+ one-time fee that was available to be granddaddied into the service for life. Shortly thereafter, they began charging a monthly subscription fee for those jumping on the bandwagon late – so I felt on top of the world for several years (until I switched over the a regular DVR). I haven’t watched commercials since. Never. I will pause a show, find something to do, and return just to fast forward it. I hate advertisements. Now stick with me here as I connect this, as per usual, in my stream of consciousness way.

Dealers ask me to mystery shop them frequently and give them my assessment of their email templates. Over time, I’ve found that dealers are pushing to be more progressive, more professional, in the emails they are sending out to customers.

In the past, emails were sent in plain text, easily read, the occasional spelling error mixed in. Then we began including banners of the dealerships for branding and pictures of the Internet Sales Managers thrown in for good measure. Today, templates have involved into flashy, overdesigned advertisements.

I understand why dealers have paid vendors for these jazzy versions of email responses. They want to appear to be as sophisticated to their consumers as possible and they’re looking for some conformity for all of their templates.

Maybe I’m old-fashioned, but I believe these glittery, some say garish, email template advertisements being sent out (being paid for) are getting your customers to fast forward, to Tivo, past your emails. I check email much the way everyone else does, and when I see a bright, shiny picture to review – or worse, click to “show images” – I click past. There is very little value to me in an email that appears to be nothing more than a template advertisement. It is just like a commercial in need of skipping.
There are some consumers out there, I could imagine, that prefer these snazzy, ostentatious emails, but to most who take the time to submit an inquiry, they want a proper, personal email back. They don’t want something that looks as if it is an automated, showy response that is all glitz, no guts.

This is the same reason why some CRMs allow dealers to decide if they want their emails to be sent in html or plain text format. The same reason other CRMs let the dealers decide if they want to include the “opt-out” message or not to their automated templates.

Don’t get me wrong. I actively train to send dynamic video messages, include fun, personal pictures in the emails, and well-created e-Brochures. However, I also request that there are a variety of templates being sent. Specifically, in the initial emails sent, it is important they get through spam filters which is why a plain text email works best. It also seems that a customer would be more willing to read something being sent from a person than a computer system. (And I won’t even delve into the content being sent – which is just as important.)

So put yourself in your customers’ shoes. Sit in their living room and flip open the laptop. Mystery shop yourself and determine if your emails are coming across as emails or getting fast-forwarded like commercials. Do the templates look like the normal spam emails you receive and automatically delete? If so, change the design of what you’re emailing. Don’t let your prospects Tivo past the value propositions you are sending.



Your Social Networking Resolution

Sunday, January 10th, 2010

Your Social Networking Resolution: What’s Your Plan or What’s Your Budget?

With the new year upon us, it is time we sit down and determine the ROI of our past (and recent) online marketing initiatives. What has worked for you? What hasn’t? What is your social networking resolution?

Are you going to dedicate your financial resources (ad budget) to the failed or fledgling programs of yesteryear or try your hand at all of the digital marketing tactics you read so much about daily? If it isn’t working, at what point do you cut ties, end your relationship with the old school vendors, and spend time on a more worthy venture such as social media?

If you want to succeed on a social networking landscape, you must first put yourself in your customer’s shoes. You must share their mindset. “What is in it for them?” you have to ask yourself. You need to show a benefit to the consumer for joining you on these networking sites. Stop worrying about what is important to you and start realizing what is important to your audience. This is the greatest obstacle for almost every dealer with a Twitter and Facebook account right now. So few have any idea what the hell to do with them! Remember, your customers are likely on these sites for personal reasons so recognize that it is called SOCIAL networking, not “business” networking.

I’ll tell you – to do it right, you must learn how to educate, engage, and entertain your audience with multiple forms of media and user-generated content to increase customer retention, brand awareness, and positive consumer reviews all while creating interactive, VIP-styled discount/deal/contest programs to elicit referrals, responses, and business. By the way, you can’t be too intrusive, pushy, overwhelming, or generic. Let me tell you… easier said than done. The “doing” takes time, knowledge, dedication, and commitment. More than most dealers are willing to dedicate.

A year ago and a half ago, you could say that social media is still early in its evolution and could have spent time figuring out the best practices on your own. Today, it is too late to experiment. You are losing market share every single time another one of your competitors joins the social site community. You no longer have the luxury to play around and wait to find out the best practices of the medium. If you are behind the social networking times, you have to make a resolution. You’ll need to either rededicate some advertising budget to training – someone who can give you a jump start on the best practices of the platform – or farm out your entire social networking campaigns to a company or group able to control your presence in this online marketplace. Or if you wanted to spend even more money, hire a professional to do it on-site full-time. I don’t know anyone who does the latter, but DealerKnows Consulting based out of Chicago and our Preferred Partners around the nation can assist you with your social media management needs.

So I ask you…what is your Social Networking Resolution? Do you have a plan? If not, you better have a budget.



The Importance of Being Earnest

Thursday, December 24th, 2009
Joe Webb's Automotive Digest blog - The Importance of Being Earnest

Joe Webb's Automotive Digest blog - The Importance of Being Earnest

Dealers — be truthful to your Internet customers. There is a dichotomy in the business development centers and Internet departments of our stores. Many are using their Internet departments to flood the floors and do whatever it takes to bring the prospect from lead to appointment by any means necessary. Others are thinking beyond the sale and creating an entirely new customer-centric experience – based in fact, truth, and value.

This is the Internet age
At this point in the evolution of our dealerships, everyone has an individual or team handling their Internet leads. However, some approach internet leads much the same way they’ve been taught to lure in a phone up. Ask questions, overcome objections and set appointments. We’ve all heard our managers say “Get ‘em in. Get ‘em in. Get ‘em in.”

Way back when…
In the digital age, however, we cannot simply stand by the policies of the past and get them into the dealership at any cost. Too many old pros relied on shadowing the truth to reach their end goal of selling a car and they’ve passed this belief onto our internet teams. With the over-researched shoppers of today, these overused practices of yesteryear are a detriment. Yet, mystery shop your competition and you will still see them mislead and misrepresent the truth to achieve their goal of setting an appointment online.

Do what’s right.
Follow in the footsteps of those dealers that are upfront about pricing and inventory. Unfortunately, I’ve seen dealers still doing the “destination bump” to their internet customers as recently as a few weeks ago. I knew a dealer didn’t have a vehicle in-stock yet still tell me they did. These poor practices continue to negatively affect the entire reputation of our industry. So for your sake, tell the truth to your internet shoppers. Not only are they far too researched to fall for the deceit, but your reputation and trust is destroyed when they catch you in a lie. It damages the way we are all viewed in the industry.

Be upfront in the information you provide your customers and you will see a growth in your sales and CSI. It pays to be earnest.



Genetics

Saturday, December 27th, 2008
(Check out this old blog from my very first post on DrivingSales.com)

I have a distinct feeling that some dealers believe achieving online success may be a flash in the pan. These dealers (owners) must have a chemical imbalance passed onto them from their fathers and family members before them to believe e-commerce is a trend. Many struggling owners learned from an older generation that didn’t have to adapt as quickly to newfound technologies and, therefore, lived well by sticking to tried and true advertising mediums. There is a major problem facing many of today’s owners that has a greater affect on their long-term goals than the economy does. It is their judgment. I can only assume this problem is genetic.

I hear from ISM after ISM across the country that buy-in from ownership continues to be difficult. Dealers just won’t know what they don’t want to learn. Many dealerships have one person handling incoming leads. They buy a few third party leads, place some inventory on an AutoTrader or Cars.com, and have a mediocre website. These dealers achieve their same old 12-14 cars sold off the internet each month – reaching a 10% closing ratio – and feel that they are in the game. Those of you reading this know that they aren’t even in the ballpark. There is so much more that can be gained from dedicating a significant portion of ad dollars to online initiatives and e-commerce training and the proof is in the profits, process, and testimonials of the top dealers.

I write for Digital Dealer magazine and recently left a dealership to start my own digital marketing consulting firm, DealerKnows LLC. The documented numbers I (and my team/department) had achieved there put the dealership in the upper echelon of successful Internet dealers. When I write, it is usually a rant like this where I am trying to accomplish/win an argument or struggle I was having. Through my meandering writing, I’ll find my answer. In this case, I know what the answer is. Genetics.

I was speaking to a close friend and internet professional whose dealer sent out a 60,000 piece mailer. Yes, you heard me correct. A 60,000 piece mailer. $30,000 or so in cost. During my friend’s time there, he constantly warned them that their dedication to paper (consistently spending 70% or so on newspapers, direct mail, etc.) was going to have a negative impact on their bottom line and they didn’t listen. On my few run-ins with this dealer during consulting, I too stressed their need to dedicate more money only. Time and again, they’d spend their money on paper products only to prove my friend and I right. They would have their tri-weekly full-page newspaper ads and their 10,000 piece “customer appreciation” mailers where past customers were told to come in and pick up their free set of steak knives or whatever. They expected their sales crew could convert the type of people that drive 10 minutes for a $3 set of knives – they were consistently incorrect. This $10,000 cost would equal one sale at best. (My friend’s department was responsible for tracking this monthly futility as all quality ISMs and IDs carefully looked at ROI. – $10g spent on direct mail a month would = $1g in profit. Where is the sense in that?)

Very recently, my friend left this dealer – support issue if you can believe it – and, just because this valued employee and his “team” that brought online success to the dealership had left, it doesn’t mean one must give up hope and go back to old tendencies. Direct mail may have always been in their blood, but a 60,000 piecer?! It’s gotta be a problem with the DNA that makes you choose to do this. So I learned the result of their massive mailer was, wait for it, 2 cars sold. That is correct. Two cars. $30g = $3g… maybe. I’d call up and shout out an “I told you so” or a “You still aren’t listening to us?!”, but it’s not their fault. It’s genetics.

Does losing the majority of an internet team (others left once my buddy had chosen to take a leap) mean you must go back to the ways of the wild, wild west? No. Processes were in place. Websites could have been updated. Leads were still coming in. However, this unnamed dealer had reverted back to what they knew. What their family and their family’s family before them knew. They went back to paper.

This, my first blog, is not meant to be a rant against dealer ownership. After all, I still would like to think I have good relationships at my former dealer (though I was recently just denied from filming any more of my car sales-comedy sketches in their place of business – no reason given) This also isn’t a blog to rip direct mail or newspaper – which may have its time and place – (in my opinion – newspaper ads can be printed during big holiday days and direct mail sent once a year). No, I hope this writing alerts dealers to the fact that unwise thinking never benefits them, no matter what their condition. Before I left, my department received 25% of the ad budget toward internet initiatives and would consistently yield over 60% of store sales (and up to 85% one month). Even without us, an upheaval in staff can be survived. Sure, dealerships are selling half of the cars per month they did in their heyday. You’d think they’d want to dedicate their ad money to something able to be tracked. The economy will turn around and consumers will once again walk through your door.

Turning their back to what works in today’s time and gravitating back toward the paper-type advertising in play when their ancestors were alive will not their store survive. (Wow! That sounded like a sentence written by Cormac McCarthy. I’m proud of myself. Written just how I wanted it.)

I don’t like taking an article like this to “the streets”, but I believe, during these difficult economic times, dealers must look in the mirror. They must look at what is within themselves and decide if their decisions (be it caused by faulty wiring or the wrong synapses firing) are what’s really the root of the problem. I think poor judgment (similar to what was described above) has to play a significant part. (60,000 pieces! $30,000?! It serves a dealer right to have a $3,000 or so return on that poisonous investment. You give an internet professional $30g and they’ll turn it into $300g.) It doesn’t take a genius to figure that out. Just someone with good genetics.