News Articles

It's only halfway over, but 2008 is almost certain to go down as a rough year from automotive retailers and manufacturers alike. Recently, Ward's Dealer Business and Dealix held a webinar addressing this topic. Three successful dealers discussed some of the strategies they've adopted for making the best of bad times — and they seem to be working. Presented here are some highlights from each of these experts.

Shaun Kniffin

Director of Internet Sales and Business Development

Germain Motor Group — Columbus, Ohio

• We've increased our Internet budget to 30% of our total advertising budget.
• We've optimized our website so that the search engines pick up our current inventory.
• We're looking into video as a way to promote our used-car inventory.
• We've introduced live chat as an effective and economical way to move people through the sales funnel.
• Our goal for our website is to make it a community for automotive shoppers.
• By regularly sharing data with our salespeople, we've improved process consistency and buy-in.

Donna Lawlis

GM Certified Internet Manager

New Sales Manager - Chevrolet/Hummer

Classic Chevrolet/Hummer — Grapevine, Texas

• We've cancelled our Yellowbook listings and put that money into online marketing, including SEM, third-party leads, and banner advertising.
• We continue to answer all consumer questions honestly and straightforwardly.
• We're currently looking into adding video to our site, keeping in mind our goal of doing this in a way that is consumer-friendly.
• We've increased our Internet spending so that it's now 30% of our marketing budget.

Scott Pettitt

Direct Sales Manager

Toyota of Sunnyvale — Sunnyvale, California

• We invite customers to provide us with feedback on their shopping experience and publish these reviews on our website.
• We've created and published three videos about our dealership.
• We've eliminated radio and TV advertising and have cut back on print.
• We've increased spending on third-party leads - including Dealix - over past year.
• Every 60 days, we completely re-evaluate our marketing spending. Unless we meticulously track our spending, we can't know what's working and where we're headed.
• 30% of our total budget is spent on the Internet.
• We always provide price, and we're always happy to discuss it at the beginning of the conversation.
• We mystery-shop in order to identify what we can do to give customers a better experience.
• We're always working to cut our response time. In this market, every second counts.

In case you've skipped to the end looking for a summary, here it is. All three dealerships are spending 30% of their marketing budget on Internet advertising and related expenses - implicitly or explicitly cutting back on traditional advertising. Also, they're sticking to their guns. Just because consumers are more price conscious, these dealers aren't shying away from talking about price, because they know that honesty and forthrightness are qualities that customers value. Finally, they're continuing to innovate. Tough times don't mean that you stop refining your processes and technology. On the contrary, experimentation and disciplined evaluation of results offer an unparalleled way to get through difficult times and start out ahead during the next big run.

Best of luck and good selling!