The auto industry is competitive and it takes more than just a great product or service to stand out from the competition. One key factor in staying ahead of the curve is diversifying your advertising budget. Here are four reasons why this is so important:
Reach a wider audience – By spreading your advertising budget across different channels, you can maximize your reach and attract new customers. Different channels also have varying demographics, which means you can target specific audiences for better results.
Minimize risk – Diversifying your advertising budget reduces the risk of relying on just one channel – if one doesn’t perform as well as expected, there are still other channels that can make up for it.
Test new channels – When you diversify your budget, you can test different channels and find the ones that work best for reaching your target audience. This opens up possibilities such as social media or influencer marketing, which may be more effective than traditional methods in certain cases.
Take advantage of seasonality – Different channels have peak times throughout the year, and by diversifying your budget, you can capitalize on these periods for even better results. For example, outdoor advertising may be more effective during summer months while digital ads may be more successful in winter months.
Ultimately, diversifying your advertising budget is essential for market share growth in the car dealership industry by providing greater reach and minimizing risks while testing new innovative strategies to stay ahead of competitors and capitalize on seasonal trends!
Are you looking to save money on your dealership’s Google Ads? Here are 5 tips to help you get started:
1. Choose the right keywords.
2. Set your budget based on results, not clicks.
3. Target your audience with precision.
4. Use negative keywords to exclude unqualified leads.
5. Monitor your results and adjust accordingly.
By following these simple tips, you can save money and get more out of your Google Ads campaigns!
Choose the right keywords.
Google Ads is an invaluable tool for dealership owners to advertise their inventory. Selecting the right keywords, or search terms, to focus your Google Ads campaign on can make all the difference when it comes to being successful. Some keywords will produce way more clicks and leads than others, so take some time researching what works best in your area and market. If you’re just getting started with Google Ads, defining a keyword strategy that focuses on customer search terms and trends can go a long way towards optimizing your results.
Set your budget based on results, not clicks.
If you’re looking to increase vehicle sales, it’s critical to take meaningful results into account when allocating your budget. Instead of focusing on clicks alone, think about how many leads a campaign is generating or how often people are filling out contact forms after seeing an advertisement. Even if one campaign has more clicks than another, it could still be underperforming in terms of meaningful outcomes that result in increased sales. A budget based on meaningful results is key to reaching your goals of increased vehicle sales!
Target your audience with precision.
When it comes to targeting your audience with precision, the goal is to scan competitor sites and aim for current in-market shoppers. This can help you find customers who are genuinely interested in what you’re offering, resulting in higher conversion rates and a better ROI. With the right tools and data sources that measure the customer journey and understand past interactions, you can research strategies to appeal to small niche markets that are especially receptive to your message. When done correctly, this kind of pinpoint accuracy will result in an impressive list of leads, ready for conversion.
Use negative keywords to exclude unqualified leads.
Looking to increase your clicks AND get better leads? Look no further than using negative keywords! Negative keywords allow you to consciously filter our those leads that don’t fit the scope of your business, helping increase the quality of traffic and increase customer conversion. Big data has plenty of pitfalls and choosing negative keywords is one way to make sure you aren’t getting lost in them! So break down those barriers, take a few extra steps, and embrace the power of negative keywords – you won’t be disappointed by the outcome!
Monitor your results and adjust accordingly
As a dealership, monitoring sales results and adjusting accordingly is a crucial component of success. A dealership should always stay flexible and knowledgeable to understand the changing demands of customers in order to maximize opportunities. Analyzing trends in customer spending can help you stay on top of the market and craft targeted approaches to drive results. After all, it’s all about knowing which tactics work best for your dealership so you can make the most out of each opportunity. So keep an eye on the numbers, tweak your approaches as needed, and watch those sales soar!
By following these five digital marketing tips, you can set your dealership up for success and avoid some common pitfalls. Remember to focus on the right keywords, set your budget based on results, target your audience precisely, use negative keywords, and monitor your results so you can fine-tune your approach as needed.
Ready to get started? Reach out for a free digital assessment today.
While every dealership has its own unique strengths and weaknesses, we’ve discovered there are a few key advertising strategies that any successful GM should utilize. After 40 years of working with dealerships from all over the place, here’s our top 5 ideas to level up your sales game:
Create a Compelling Offer The first step to increasing auto sales is to create a compelling offer that potential customers can’t resist. This could be a discount, a freebie, or something else that would entice someone to buy a car from your dealership.
Use Eye-Catching visuals When it comes to advertising, visuals are key. Use eye-catching visuals in your ads, such as bright colors, interesting graphics, and attention-grabbing headlines.
Utilize Different Channels Don’t just stick to one form of advertising, such as print ads or TV commercials. Utilize different channels to reach potential customers, including social media, email marketing, and even guerilla marketing tactics.
Test, Test, Test Make sure to test different versions of your ads before you roll them out to the masses. Try different offers, visuals, and copy to see what works best with your target audience.
Be Consistent Once you’ve found an ad that works well, be sure to be consistent with it. Use the same offer, visuals, and copy for a period of time so that potential customers will start to recognize your brand.
Invest In Google’s Vehicle Listing Ads
Are you a car dealership looking to increase your online sales? Look no further than Google’s Vehicle Listing Ads. Google Shopping is already one of the most popular platforms for e-commerce, and Vehicle Listing Ads allows automotive dealers to showcase their products directly on Google search pages. This means that potential customers searching for cars on Google are much more likely to come across your listings, leading to a higher chance of conversions. Plus, these ads use features like automatic price updates, which means that your information stays accurate and up-to-date. So why wait? Take advantage of Google’s Vehicle Listing Ads and boost your sales instantly.
Use OTT to Reach Large Audiences on a Small Budget
OTT, or Over-the-Top television, refers to the delivery of television content via internet streaming rather than traditional cable or satellite. OTT offers several benefits for advertisers, particularly when it comes to reaching large audiences on a small budget. OTT platforms like Hulu and Netflix allow for targeting by demographic and even specific interests, allowing for highly targeted ad campaigns. In addition, OTT platforms offer scalable advertising options, with the ability to adjust budgets on the fly as well as measure ad effectiveness in real time. Whether you’re a small or large dealership, OTT can be a cost effective solution for expanding your audience reach and increasing ROI.
Create Social Videos That Stand Out
If you want your social videos to stand out from the crowd, like the one we did for Prosper Ford above, it’s important to think outside the box and get creative. That means finding unique and attention-grabbing visuals, utilizing engaging sound effects and music, and making sure your content delivers a clear message in a short amount of time. In terms of platforms, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube are great options for hosting and sharing your videos. Facebook offers opportunities for targeted advertising, while Instagram is all about visually stunning content. No matter what platform you choose, consider experimenting with different formats like live streaming or storytelling through a series of videos. With some creativity and strategy, your social videos will be set up for success.
Targeted Inventory Ads On Social Media
If you’re looking for a way to increase your vehicle detail page (VDP) views and improve your web sessions, targeted inventory ads on social media could be the answer. By showcase your inventory on social media, you can reach a wider audience and target potential customers who are interested in your vehicles. Additionally, by using targeted advertising, you can ensure that your ads are seen by people who are most likely to be interested in what you’re selling. As a result, you can see an increase in VDP views and web sessions, which can lead to more sales. If you’re not sure how to get started, talk to your social media marketing team or automotive digital marketing agency about creating targeted inventory ads that will help you reach your goals.
Expand Into Google Dynamic Search Ads
Have you ever noticed how, when you’re searching on Google, the ads seem to be tailored specifically for what you’re looking for? That’s because Google uses dynamic search ads (DSA) to show relevant ads based on a user’s search query. DSA are a great way to expand your reach and capture leads that may be interested in your product or service but don’t know about your brand yet. And, they’re easy to set up – all you need is a Google Ads account.
When a user searches on Google, the DSA algorithm scans your website and analyses your landing pages to identify the best match for the user’s query. This match is then used to generate a dynamic ad that is served to the user. DSAs can be super effective in generating leads as they bridge the gap between targeting keywords and creating relevant ad copy. They also tend to result in higher click-through rates and lower costs-per-click than other types of search ads.
Not sure if DSAs are right for your business? Here are three reasons to give them a try:
1. You don’t have to worry about keyword targeting – with DSAs, Google does the work for you by automatically matching your ads to relevant searches.
2. You can serve highly relevant ads – since the DSA algorithm will match your ad to the user’s specific search query, you can be sure that your ad is relevant and targeted.
3. You can track purchase intent – with DSAs, you can track when users view your product or service on your website (VDP). This allows you to see which users are interested in purchasing your product or service and follow up with them accordingly.
Start Tracking Vehicle Sales Via Digital Advertising
If your advertising agency is driving vehicle sales for your dealership, they should be able to tell you exactly how many cars they’ve sold as a result of their efforts. But that’s not always the case. Many agencies only track their success at a high level, not drilled down to the individual digital platform. That’s why it’s important to ask your agency how they are tracking vehicle sales so you can get a better sense of their ROI.
The simplest way to track vehicle sales is by looking at your sales numbers before and after your agency began working with you. This will give you a broad sense of how your agency is impacting your business. However, it won’t give you insight into which platforms are performing well and which ones aren’t.
To get this level of detail, you need to ask your agency to track vehicle sales down to the individual digital platform. This way, you can see which ads are generating the most leads and resulting in sales. You can also identify any underperforming platforms and make changes accordingly. By tracking vehicle sales at this granular level, you can optimize your digital advertising efforts for maximum results.
If you’re looking for an advertising agency that can help drive vehicle sales for your dealership, be sure to ask about their tracking and reporting capabilities. With the right tools in place, you can track ROI at every stage of the sales funnel and make data-driven decisions to improve your results over time And luckily, we have plenty of experience in this area. Our team can help you get started with campaigns across Google, Facebook and Twitter that will reach new customers and convert them into buyers.
If you’re like most car dealerships, you’ve been using direct mail as a way to reach out to potential customers for years. But how do you know if your direct mail campaigns are actually working? In this blog post, we’ll show you how to measure the success of your direct mail campaigns so that you can make sure you’re getting the most bang for your buck.
There are a few different metrics you can use to measure the success of your direct mail campaigns. The first is response rate. This is the percentage of people who respond to your direct mail campaign by either visiting your dealership or calling you. Our clients typically see a response rate for a direct mail campaign within 2-3%.
Another metric you can use is conversion rate. This is the percentage of people who responded to your campaign and ended up buying a car from you. Our clients see a conversion rate for their direct mail campaigns around 10-15%.
Finally, you can also measure the ROI of your direct mail campaigns by looking at the cost per lead. This is the amount of money you spend on your campaign divided by the number of leads it generates. Our clients typically see an ROI around $25 – $50 for every $1 spent.
Direct mail can be a great way to generate leads for your dealership. But it’s important to measure the success of your campaigns so that you know you’re getting a good return on your investment. By tracking the response rate, conversion rate, and cost per lead, you can make sure that your direct mail campaigns are as successful as possible.
Want to learn how to get more sales from direct mail?
Want to learn how to get more sales from direct mail?
Direct mail can be a great way to reach new customers and grow your business. But how do you make sure you’re getting the most out of your direct mail campaigns? In this blog post, we’ll share some tips on how to maximize your return on investment (ROI) from direct mail.
Define your goals.
Before you even start planning your direct mail campaign, it’s important to define what you want to achieve. Are you looking to increase brand awareness? Drive sales of a specific product or service? Grow your customer base in a certain geographic area? Once you know your goals, you can develop a direct mail campaign that’s more likely to achieve them.
Know your audience.
Another important consideration is who you’re targeting with your direct mail campaign. What are their demographics? What are their interests and needs? What motivates them? The more you know about your target audience, the better equipped you’ll be to create a direct mail campaign that resonates with them.
Test, test, test.
Don’t just assume that one type of direct mail piece is going to work for everyone on your list. Try testing different versions of your direct mail piece with small groups of people before rolling it out to your entire list. This will help you fine-tune your message and ensure that it’s as effective as possible.
Track your results.
Finally, once you’ve launched your direct mail campaign, it’s important to track the results so you can see what’s working and what isn’t. There are a number of different metrics you can track, such as response rate, conversion rate, and cost per lead. By tracking these metrics, you’ll be able to fine-tune future campaigns for even better results.
Bedford Advertising Clients Average a 50:1 ROI on Direct Mail Campaigns
Following these tips can help you get the most out of your direct mail marketing campaigns and maximize your ROI. Not sure where to start? Our team at Bedford Advertising would be happy to help! Contact us today and we’ll get started on developing a direct mail campaign that’s right for you.
