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In today’s wireless world, it’s essential to be smart about your dealership digital marketing strategy.
Auto marketing used to be reasonably straightforward. You’d place a weekly ad in the newspaper, schedule a bulk mailer campaign to go out every few months, and then you’d rely on cold calling and dealership visitors for the rest. Now that car buyers have access to so many online resources, these antiquated methods have lost their magnetism. Google, Yelp, and the plethora of car buying and review sites have severely shaken things up, and a lot of car dealers can’t figure out how to avoid costly dealership digital marketing mistakes until it’s too late.
It shouldn’t take a reputation disaster for you to pay attention to your dealership digital marketing plan.
Ten of the most destructive marketing mistakes you should avoid at all costs
1. You’re neglecting your online presence.
The most significant mistake car dealers make with their digital marketing is neglecting it. It’s important to make time every day to maintain your dealership’s online presence. It helps to assemble a team to ensure timely customer responses and reputation management.
2. You’re not giving your approach time to work.
Not only do you need to put enough time into your marketing, but you need to give it time to work. A lot of dealers give up too quickly, but it takes time to create a successful digital marketing presence.
3. You’re not editing your dealerships online information.
Your team should monitor not only your reputation but also your dealership’s online information. The accuracy of your name, address, website and phone number can affect how you show up when people search for local car dealers. Some dealerships pay a reputation management company to help with that, but it’s easy to fix these errors on your own. Just make sure to google your company periodically and correct any inaccurate information.
4. You’re not posting enough.
It’s difficult to engage clients online if you’re not following a posting schedule. Online algorithms depend on a few factors, but your activity level is one of them. If you want your dealership to get noticed, you have to post daily.
5. You’re not acknowledging customers fast enough.
Potential clients consider star ratings, but they also like quick replies. The odds of making contact with a lead are 100 times greater if you reply within the first five minutes compared to a half-hour. It’s imperative that someone on your team is available to respond to customers at all times.
6. You’re not monitoring your progress.
There’s no harm in trying new things, but you need to keep track of what works and what doesn’t. What marketing methods are generating the most traffic? What seems to be appealing to customers? Are these methods leading to closed car deals? It’s a lot easier to plan future campaigns when you have an idea of what appeals to your customer base.
7. You’re just posting ads.
The goal is to sell cars, but posting repetitive ads is not the way to do it. Consider posting service tips, video blogs, and photos and reviews from satisfied customers. Give a tour of your dealership or introduce your staff members. Followers want useful or entertaining information when they scan social media, not spammy ads.
8. Your dealer sites aren’t mobile-friendly.
It’s important to make sure your dealer website is mobile-friendly if you want to achieve sustained dealership digital marketing success. Ease of use is vital in time where mobile usage has increased by 77%. If your site doesn’t work on a smartphone, you’re losing a lot of potential car sales.
9. You’re scared to give up bulk mailers.
No one is saying you have to give up mailers entirely, but there are so many better options out there for car dealerships. You can do many of them economically, in-house, without the need to outsource. Send text and email blasts, engage your social media accounts, and take the time to post dealership videos on YouTube. Not only are these methods budget friendly, they’re a better way to market to a broad range of car buyers both near and far.
10. You’re not utilizing the potential of your CRM tools.
CRM tools are helpful for inventory management and appointment scheduling, but they also make great dealership digital marketing assistants. Here are some ways you can use your CRM to boost your digital marketing:
- Schedule bulk text and email campaigns.
- Analyze and market to specific customer groups.
- Utilize the CRM mobile app to respond to customers with efficiency.
- Document lead sources so you know how the customer heard about your dealership.
Digital dealership marketing isn’t just a trend; it’s a new path to success for a lot of car dealers. Assemble your team, come up with a plan, and keep your audience captivated with fun and engaging content. Don’t get left in the dust while the competition is going digital.
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