Automotive Providers not addressing Consumer Needs
Cobalt and Yahoo have been rolling out some good data on automotive consumer behavior trends and I had the fortune of sitting in on their training session Sunday at NADA in the San Francisco this year.
I was really taken at how they had actual data to show what buyers want today:
- Competitive prices
- A good buying experience
If you think about it though, what customers want today hasn’t really changed. What has changed is consumers’ access to the right information and the ability to attain real leverage in the buying process. Dealerships that are genuinely responsive to this are the winners.
The challenge though is “how”?
When I look at the Automotive Search Marketing products and techniques out there, I don’t see this “consumer interest” truly being met the way it should be. A lot of the reason why has to do with the fact that most providers are not responding to the consumers’ true needs and interests. They provide technology for dealers to manage a process, or, they provide marketing that caters to old-school dealer sales techniques. What confuses dealers is that they have outdated marketing strategies wrapped around complicated technology.
Blogging of course is changing this. Blogging not only addresses the SEO need. It also addresses the 32% factor, that is, the 32% of buyers that do not buy within 90 days of submitting their first web inquiry. A good blog that is incorporated effectively should accomplish what a newsletter does except that it works for you ALL MONTH LONG, not just one week a month.
If you break it down to the bare bones benefits (SEO and CRM), it shouldn’t be confusing to dealers.
My message today with dealers is that when leads and prospects come into their realm,
“The goal should be to attain a relationship, not a sale.”
Dealers need to demonstrate to customers that they can and will assist them with their immediate automobile needs and interests as well as their long-term interests.
