To find the best digital marketing solutions for your store, it’s imperative first to understand the automotive internet sales process. By having a firm grasp on these steps, you can better anticipate potential shoppers’ needs. Moreover, this also puts you in a better position to manage your marketing vendors and ensure they offer you the best products possible. This doesn’t mean that managers need to know the ins and outs of every advertising solution. Instead, understanding the overall gist will make it easier to distinguish between those selling snake oil and those offering useful techniques. 

The internet has significantly changed how consumers shop for cars, trucks, and SUVs. Rather than visiting several dealerships and test driving lots of vehicles, shoppers usually visit one store and know what they want. Buyers have adopted this behavior because so much information about the car buying process is readily available on the web. Folks can read reviews, learn all about financing, and narrow down their choices without speaking to a salesperson. Unfortunately, car dealerships have struggled to adapt to these changes. Instead, many stores rely on the same methods they always have, especially third-party leads. 

We all know why third-party leads are so prevalent in the automotive industry. The potential car shopper info in your CRM is relatively inexpensive to purchase, and you can rely on a steady number of new contacts every month. However, these leads often feature incomplete or inaccurate information. If some consumer details are accurate by some miracle, it is nearly impossible to connect with these buyers. This process is so tricky because the same contact information gets sold to your competition, so they’re trying to reach the same folks you are. Also, these “interested buyers” filled out forms that had nothing to do with your store and inventory. They filled out a generic form, so there’s no reason for them to get excited about a call, text, or email from your staff. 

Dealers need to change their tactics to get ahead of the competition. Instead of relying on waiting for consumer information to come to you, it’s time for a proactive approach that encourages higher rates of first-generation leads. What car shoppers want is information about the models they see and the purchasing process. In practical terms, this means moving away from a boring spec list and, instead offering an engaging description about the models on your lot. This also means providing buyers with more details about loans, leases and lease returns, and the service department. It’s time for dealerships to stop hiding behind a wall of mystery. 

In other words, it’s time to update how you advertise your services and inventory to the broader public. By opening the door to the latest SEO and PPC techniques, you have an opportunity to connect with buyers on a whole new level. Moreover, when their interest gets piqued, you make your store available to first-generation leads. In comparison to third-party ones, first-generation leads have a 25-40% closing rate. Considering the economic times we live in, no one can turn down those kinds of odds. So the next time you hear a pitch for a new and improved marketing solution, don’t shut it down. Instead, have a listen, primarily if it generates first-generation leads. That pitch could be the difference between shutting down your doors and keeping them open for years to come.