Traditional Advertising, is it truly over as many might say?
Traditional Advertising, is it truly over as many might say?
I've found that there are different environments, climates and demographics that call for traditional advertising! Although Social Media is on the move and in my opinion will be sooner than later, the #1 source to reach a customer, traditional advertising must not be counted out!
In some towns the paper is still King, while in others a local T.V. station is King and believe it or not in some towns Radio is King.
While the hot topic of today is online digital marketing and social media, my message is this; don't count out any source or avenue to reach a dealers customer base, and rather than assume what is best for a dealer in their climate, it's more important to learn of what their climate and demographics call for!
Tip of the week on dE...
Tags: AUTOS, BOBBY, COMPTON, LIVE, VIP, dealerELITE, vipautoslive
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Kevin W. Kelly on -
@ Bobby Compton, @ Andrew Myers
I completely agree that traditional and digital marketing complement each other today. However, the trend is moving towards digital and by the end of 2012, it will be significantly pointed towards digital vs print. TV and digital will remain merging and you can take this to the bank in 5 years, there will be no more print. What you see on your smart phone, tablet, laptop, pc will be identical to what you see on your TV. Today in my Cisco world, I use Google + more than my phone. I can tell who is there, I can share docs, spreadsheets and video, and if needed I can video live with anyone I need instantly. With Google + upgrading twice a month, by June it will be amazing, by the end of the year fully integrated with Google TV.
How long will be before dealerships start taking down payments and service payments via smart phones? Dealerships should start doing live Google + walk arounds of the vehicle their customer is interested in now. Hence, is traditional print adv dead? My answer is not yet, but sooner than most think.
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Permalink Reply by Thomas A. Kelly on -
A pleasure to meet you as well Mr. Kelly!
Kevin W. Kelly said:@ Bobby Compton, @ Andrew Myers
I completely agree that traditional and digital marketing complement each other today. However, the trend is moving towards digital and by the end of 2012, it will be significantly pointed towards digital vs print. TV and digital will remain merging and you can take this to the bank in 5 years, there will be no more print. What you see on your smart phone, tablet, laptop, pc will be identical to what you see on your TV. Today in my Cisco world, I use Google + more than my phone. I can tell who is there, I can share docs, spreadsheets and video, and if needed I can video live with anyone I need instantly. With Google + upgrading twice a month, by June it will be amazing, by the end of the year fully integrated with Google TV.
How long will be before dealerships start taking down payments and service payments via smart phones? Dealerships should start doing live Google + walk arounds of the vehicle their customer is interested in now. Hence, is traditional print adv dead? My answer is not yet, but sooner than most think.
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Permalink Reply by Andrew Myers on -
Kevin,
Our business model is banking on the fact that you are right. I think print will linger for awhile longer simply because of the old network of ad agencies that have loyal customers. The technology is headed places that dealers cannot predict, and things will change much faster then they have in the past. We currently DO shoot vehicle walkarounds, and dept walkarounds now on G+, and it DOES work. As a company we have gotten tremendous feedback. Both in sales, but also in branding. Everything is headed in that direction because soon customers won't even stop by - if you don't get their attention digitially first. But the old ugly mail piece will always work!...unless the post office goes under.
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Permalink Reply by Bobby Compton on -
@ Kevin - Thanks for your input my friend. I agree with you 100% in regards to T.V. and the digital field coming together. I suppose what I see this thread turning into is a current and accurate scope of all advertising mediums as without a fair understanding of each we would all be cutting ourselves off short.
The T.V. world is changing dramatically, as I am a partner of Comcast media, Americas largest media company. I will tell you this much, interactive technologies such as (RFI) "Request For Information" is a cutting edge way for a consumer to request quotes, apply for credit and more, and all from the click of a T.V. remote. Without saying, the same videos that are produced for T.V. are the best of content that Google would appreciate in their search engine, as well as the absolute best way of creating conversions. Better the content, better the SEO, better the conversions - a win win strategy for dealers to combine them all, and especially via social media!~
There are other awesome technologies that will be introduced to the market sooner than later as well, stay tuned.
In respect to print; no question the news paper has taken a major hit in most markets but far from out of the game. In some markets print is the dominant as the local paper is the driving source. As a marketer, I like to assess all mediums available as every market is different. In some markets, believe it or not - SEO and the Internet isn't even viable as it could be the local radio station - just as an example. My message in this; don't count any of them out until they're out. I'm a promoter of seeking just that extra little bit of business for any and all sources available based on each market.
Regarding mailers; I see them being a viable marketing option as well. I currently offer this service and utilize many mailer sources depending on the market place. As I said, so much of all of this is driven by the individual market place and what it will call for.
@ Andrew - I agree with you regarding vehicle video demonstrations. Our company has been providing this service as well for quite some time. No question that a quality produced video is the ultimate testament of how a dealer chooses to represent their people and business with. You're heading in the right direction.
Year 2011 Our company produced well over 200 Plus Video Productions. T.V. Commercials, Web Videos, Infomercials, Spanish Spots, Customer Testimonies, Employee vidz and more! I will tell you that Video is King - and will continue to dominate and grow in leaps and bounds for an endless amount of time.
Awesome way to share in this thread gentleman.
Keep it going!~
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Permalink Reply by Troy Spring on -
Sometimes I think great blogs fall off ther radar to quick... This was one of them. So hope you don't mind me promoting it Bobby.
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Permalink Reply by Bobby Compton on
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@ Troy - I'm glad you discovered this thread. My main point behind this is that I don't count out one avenue of opportunity to create more and better business.
I've never been so sold on what I do that I would ever limit myself on what others do. In fact, I've made it a point to incorporate much of what others do with what I do. Everything is ever changing, reaching people is still the same just in different forms of the how to!
I appreciate all you do my friend!~ HAVE A TURBO CHARGED DAY!~
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Permalink Reply by Bill Alberts on -
I have recently taken on a dealership that had the Suzuki franchise and no other. Yikes! They were in the top 5 nationally consistently and the campaign they ran was strictly "old school." Billboards, radio, TV and classifieds. Horrible web presence and no social media exposure whatsoiever. No CRM, no tracking data and nobody clearly permitted toact in the dealers name while he was out, even on vacation. You must call him. Debt at the store is minimum and profitability is high. Now before you laugh and say it is Suzuki, they were selling 70 new units a month regularly as well as doing an OK job with used in a city with a population of 45000. A very rural community. Now they find themselves looking for a franchise, Mitsubishi, tops their list and they believe the same approach will work with them. Mitsubishi was in this town once before and failed to produce more than 15-20 new units per month and that volume was spotty. I said all that to say this, whatever works. Yes, an aggresive web presence and an accurate tracking tool along with some minimal social media would add to the delivery picture...........they just don't see it that way.
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Permalink Reply by Bobby Compton on
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@ Bill Alberts - Firstly, thanks for sharing your experience here on dE. I've found that sometimes making simple sense isn't so easy, but the simpler your case is made the better chance of having a receptive audience to your ideas, concepts and what you know to be current and relevant avenues to market and advertise.
I'm a firm believer that demographics will vary, some places a web presence really isn't all that it's cracked up to be, while other areas maybe T.V. is not the solution, in most cases as you shared, all of them are a solution to one degree or another. Cross branding, and marketing multiple channels with a consistant and professional message, yet personalized to separate the dealer on a personal basis from the rest, I'm big into grass roots marketing and tying a dealer into the community - social media and the rest are a great way to promote client interaction and testimony!
Would love to hear how you go about implementing and or devising your marketing plan for your new and future task at hand. Please share here as we can all use the difference in experiences and the how to do, as well as we are here for you as well to bounce off off and to collaborate with.
Happy Holidays my friend!~
Great Selling.............
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Permalink Reply by Mark Tewart on
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The argument of digital vs. conventional is a false one. Message, Market, Media and Match. Utilize and get high ROI from digital and conventional. Get even higher ROI when you utilize not only 1 step advertising but multiple step media that utilizes digital and conventional together with intentional congruence. Never fall in love with just one media source be it digital or conventional. One is a bad number in advertising and business.
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Permalink Reply by Paul Accinno on -
Mark....Agreed! So much has been said about the new Zero Moment of Truth (ZMOT) model and how it has turned the old “Purchase Funnel” literally on its side. ZMOT describes the auto purchase process as a more linear process than a funnel. It starts with “Stimulus” in the form of TV or other traditional media. Next is the Zero Moment of Truth, when most shoppers begin their research. The First Moment of Truth is when shoppers actually enter the dealership, and finally the Second Moment of Truth is when they experience the vehicle/dealership and share with others.
The concept of the Purchase Funnel has always been more vertical, starting at the top of the funnel and working down to the actual purchase.
In a new proprietary report called “The Purchase Funnel 3.0” from the Futures Company (formerly Yankelovich), advertisers are given an opportunity to better understand a consumer mindset throughout their purchasing evaluation process. The report shows….”In the automotive category, television commands the most relative strength throughout the process. 70% of awareness for the automotive category is attributed to television advertising. “Internet Plus” (essentially any online behavior outside of email) has the second-most impact, peaking with 17% in the consideration phase, when most of the consumer’s research would likely begin. Activity on blogs and review sites in the automotive category is more than double the average of all other categories.”
While these therories seem at first glance to be contradictory…they are actually complimentary. The difference in these studies indicates that TV “Stimulus” is responsible for building awareness and interest to learn more and this action is more “Advertising Induced” whereas the internet shopping is more “self-directed”. Another way of saying this is that TV creates more awareness for a dealership while the internet provides better, trackable shopping tools….so both are important and it’s not an either/or choice; do I spend my money on traditional media or do I spend my money on digital media?
One of the attributes of broadcast media is that it brings people “into the market”. I like to call these shoppers “Early-Market” as opposed to “In-Market”. As an example, an individual is watching the late news and sees an ad for a local car dealer advertising their FINAL MODEL YEAR END CLEARANCE with a payment of $136 a month on a 36 MPG Chevy Cruze. This person may be in the “Early Market” stage; however this deal may be perceived as too good to pass and may move them to the “In-Market” stage sooner than anticipated. Now as the models stipulate, they will begin their shopping process using all sorts of digital methods.
Another example of how TV works with Digital media and awareness is the trust and familiarity factor that we have with brands that are advertised on TV. When faced with the myriad of ads online, a shopper is more apt to click on an ad from an advertiser that they know and trust rather than clicking on an ad from a total stranger, assuming they don’t just click on every ad they see.
Getting back to the Purchase Funnel for a moment…it also appears that the traditional roles have changed as well. For years the top of the funnel had been the domain of the OEM. In fact sometimes you may have wondered if they were selling windy roads instead of automobiles. At the middle of the funnel, Tier 2 ad groups would support the theme and tonality of the OEM and throw in a deal here and there and the dealer would basically say buy now. However in recent years, it seems the roles have changed. Many of the OEM’s are running constant themed promotions with the deals included. The ad groups run the same spots, simply adding more weight and the dealers are trying to figure out whether they should spend more money, on traditional or digital. Given the fact that Tier 1 and 2 advertising is decidedly more “deal oriented”, in this economy it makes sense that if Tier1 is going to say “what & how much” and Tier2 is going to say “when to buy” the dealer should spend more time saying “why buy from me”. So an effective strategy might be to run 15-second bookends, one devoted to the reasons to buy for your dealership, and the second 15-second spot devoted to a compelling offer that drives them to your website to learn more.
In advertising/marketing, as in life, it is always better to have a balanced approach. You need an effective level of traditional advertising to create stimulus and brand your dealership, and a tactical level of digital media to capture the “in-market” shoppers that you have cultivated.
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Great response Paul. Very well thought out.
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Permalink Reply by Tom LaPointe on -
Not over, and not dead, but certainly transitioned to the background. I think dealerships should use event hosting and participation to leverage social media...not just post on a FB page and put their clown on youtube. IMHO
Of course we think that interactive chat is one way to better engage prospects, but check out this statistic overall I wrote for an article...
During the decade that ended in 2010, dealers cut newspaper and radio ad dollars by a staggering 67% and auto dealership internet advertising has exploded by more than 500 percent (Source: NADA)!
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My wife does tax returns and takes payments via smart phone.....too easy...too natural...When my kids visit our home my wireless Sony Media Box links with their smart phone the minute they step in the door....I can play their media for everyone in the room on the big screen...(word of caution: remember what is stored before you give permissions!)
Things are moving at lightning speed...It is a way of life for the younger folks and they demand it or they have no interest....I have 5 boys, 16-37...what little TV they watch is recorded on DVR (no commercials) ...None of them read newspapers or mags...If it is not digital, they won't see it.......and don't think they are uninformed for a minute....they are more aware of what goes on in the world and how things work than most......They feel if it is important it will be digitized and they will see it.