There is one common problem most companies run into when they start a content marketing strategy. Frequently, executives have unreal expectations and expect to go from zero to hero in a matter of days. They want an immediate return-on-investment – such as leads, engagement or website traffic. I am afraid that is simply not realistic. Hey, sometimes you can hit gold straight…

We are in a new era; one in which dealers make most of their money on the service side and not in new vehicle sales. Yet, as an industry we still spend far more money marketing the sales side of the business, and on conquest marketing, than we do on service marketing and customer retention.

Some dealers justify this by saying that sales drives service…

In the age of customer experience, successful salespeople have transitioned from an “always be closing” mindset to an “always be helping” mindset. In fact, the title of salesperson isn’t really an accurate reflection of what the job entails any more. A better title would perhaps be Trusted Advisor.

A Trusted Advisor earns their customers’ trust. The best way…

According to a recent article in Automotive News, Motorcars Honda in Cleveland Heights, Ohio, believes that the future of franchise dealership profitability lies in efficient vehicle service, and as a result it’s service…

In the automotive industry, trust is a must. No matter if you are a car company, car distributor or a car dealership, trust is essential for building a strong customer-service provider relationship. But it is not something given. You need to earn it. Show your customers that when they come to…

For professional marketers across all industries, the top priority for 2018 is to convert leads into customers, according to Hubspot’s State of Inbound…

A recent article in Automotive News tells the story of Carlos Liriano, a car dealer from New Orleans who migrated his dealership to Texas and brought with him a passion – gumbo. Initially, it started as a way to show appreciation to and treat his employees every month. But, at his dealership’s 5-year anniversary, he decided to invite the community, and they came. And, not…

In the automotive industry, as in all others, no matter whether you’re in a dealership or work as a vendor, you’re most likely part of a team. Sometimes the people on your team (or perhaps, even you) neglect an important detail or fail at something important. When this happens, it can cultivate emotions such as mistrust and anger. That lost commission, upset customer, or…

Think about the value propositions most dealerships present to consumers. Free car washes, fast transactions, oil changes, low prices, etc. They’re all so similar that, in reality, they cease to differentiate one dealer from another. The simple fact that they aren’t unique just about negates the offer for consumers when they consider who to buy from.

Nobody…

The four bases that make up a baseball diamond can be directly related to the car shopper’s journey. We all know the path begins online. The final destination, or home base, is the dealership. The goal is to surpass all your bases and arrive back at home, or rather, get…

Dec 23 was a sad day, indeed. A young man driving a 2001 Honda Accord was killed in an accident when his recalled Takata airbag shattered and he was fatally injured. Honda had previously made two attempts to contact and inform the original…

The reason that consumers don’t trust us is simple… the messages we send them aren’t believable.

Point in case: Doug Demiro, a former manager of Porsche Cars North America, and now author of a popular column on automotive website Jalopnik, answered a…

Why Used is Better than New 

According to Santander Consumer USA, used cars are expected to outsell new cars nearly 2 to 1 this year, making it more important than ever for dealerships and sales professionals to understand what’s driving this trend and…

Human beings do have a tendency to overcomplicate things. In our industry, there are so many things that we need to deal with on a daily basis - customers, co-workers, employees, bosses, technology - at times it gets overwhelming. I believe that most dealers understand the importance of customer loyalty and retention. There are plenty of ways to entice customers…

One of the things dealers constantly have to battle with is the consumer trust factor. Historically, some auto dealerships have kept information away from consumers. So, as is human nature, consumers then thought these dealers had something to hide.

To add to this issue of trust, in many dense markets, dealers participate in a fierce race to the bottom --…

You made the commitment to capture more recall work. You’ve done your due diligence by notifying your customers. You’ve obtained lists of in-market customers subject to recalls that haven’t been to your dealership before, and reached out to them. You’ve spent the time and energy to really saturate your market using every form of communication to maximize your reach. Now the…

I have long preached the fact that including video in your marketing is an effective way to get customers emotionally connected to a specific car on your lot. This visual connection to the senses serves to enhance the appeal of a vehicle to an online shopper. If there was some technology that allowed consumers to touch, feel and smell your car while shopping online, I’d be…

In my last blog article, I discussed the importance of building rapport with leads through the use of “Why Buy From Me” and “Lead Response” videos personalized for each customer. Now I would like to take this one step further -- Building rapport should in fact start much earlier than simply upon the receipt of a lead.

Think about the first contact a customer…