Competition for car buyers today is fierce, which means it is critical to keep your dealership top of mind at every phase of a consumer’s shopping and buying journey. But with so many possible paths to purchase, it can be challenging to effectively build and maintain brand awareness for your dealership.
With the right tools and best practices, however, you can maximize the return of your auto dealer marketing efforts and keep your dealership’s name on the mind of car shoppers throughout their buying journey.
Identify Shopper Preferences and Target Messaging
Today’s consumers are spending more time looking for cars online (more than 7 hours, according to Cox Automotive research) and less time at the dealership. Shoppers spend time on several websites, including your dealership website and third-party sites like Autotrader and Kelley Blue Book. With all that time spent online, reaching consumers with targeted digital advertising is critical to building brand awareness.
As shoppers browse online, they leave behind clues about their unique shopping preferences that your dealership can use to personalize your car dealership ads. These behavioral insights can help you reach shoppers with targeted, relevant messaging.
You can identify and activate these insights by aggregating customer data from your website and CRM to deliver personalized, one-to-one marketing messages relevant to each customer’s interests.
Use the Right Technology to See Real Results
In addition to telling you what a shopper’s preferences are, behavioral insights can also tell you when a shopper is ready to make a purchase. With this information, you can use advanced technology to deliver impactful messaging about your dealership at just the right time—as shoppers are forming important opinions about what and where to buy.
With the right digital marketing technology, you can automatically serve up personalized ads at the exact time a shopper is looking for a vehicle. You can also retarget customers that have visited your website with a relevant ad, and send personalized, targeted emails with automated workflows.
Leave a Lasting Impression on Your Shoppers
Every car shopper’s journey is unique, but a few best practices can help you build and maintain brand awareness with the right shoppers. But with the right strategies and technology in place, you can deliver the right messages at the right time—and leave a lasting impression on each individual shopper.
