Santa's Way Of Helping Out Your Dealerships Marketing

Season's Greetings from all of us at Auto Marketing Profits.
What is that ringing sound you hear?  It is the sound of cash registers everywhere ringing up sales thanks to Santa Claus.

Just because Santa's old, overweight, long-haired and unshaven and dresses funny, don't overlook his business acumen. Santa is a marketing and sales generating expert and you can become one, too, if you follow his proven methods.

It is true that Santa is mythical - but ask anyone what Santa does or who he is and you will quickly find out that everyone you ask knows exactly about him. 

Let us have a look at why he is a marketing genius:

Uniqueness
Be it that red suit, way different way of transportation or his big belly laugh - Santa is simply one of  a kind.

Free Publicity
He seems to be a master of receiving free presss being mentioned all over the media during winter - with many movies, books and songs being written about him.

Customer Focused
Santa is not focused on himself and does not talk about how long he has been in business or how much he works and what a workload he has.  Rather - he only looks to learn what the everyone else wants.

Giving Away Something For Free
While most gifts in homes are from  the family or close relatives, in most house's with youngsters there are many gifts that have the name Santa on them.

How can your Dealership grab some ideas from Santa?

1) Clarify how your Dealership is unique and what seperates you from your local competitors.

2) Grab the media's attention during the holidays but also all year long.

3) Ask your previous customers and leads what they want and look to provide some services / inventory that fits their exact need and want.

4) Give something away for free - articles, free reports, a workshop for women.

5) Know what you are selling - yes, you do know about your vehicles and Dealership but start selling your customers on achieving their exact dream or hope and deliver to them results they can achieve.

It does not matter if you celebrate Christmas - but start marketing like Santa and you will be seeing more happy customers and leads at your store.

From our families to yours; may you have a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. - See you in 2012!

Tip # 3 - Push Your Customer's Emotional Hot Buttons

Grabbing your Dealership customer's hot buttons is where research really pays off.  Kowing where to push those buttons needs to be known first if you wish to get any results.

This is where research really pays off. Because in order to push those buttons, you need to first know what they are.

Listen to this story first, and I’ll tell you what I mean: Once upon a time a young man walked into a Chevrolet dealer’s showroom to check out a Chevy Camaro. He had the money, and he was ready to make a buying decision. But he couldn’t decide if he wanted to buy the Camaro or the Ford Mustang up the road at the Ford dealer.

A salesman approached him and soon discovered the man’s dilemma.

“Tell me what you like best about the Camaro,” said the salesman.

“It’s a fast car. I like it for its speed.”

After some more discussion, the salesman learned the man had just started dating a cute college cheerleader. So what did the salesman do?

Simple. He changed his pitch accordingly, to push the hot buttons he knew would help advance the sale. He told the man about how impressed his new girlfriend would be when he came home with this car! He placed the mental image in the man’s mind of he and his girlfriend cruising to the beach in the Camaro. How all of his friends will be envious when they see him riding around with a beautiful girl in a beautiful car. 

And suddenly the man saw it. He got it. And the salesman recognized this and piled it on even more. Before you know it, the man wrote a nice fat check to the Chevy dealership, because he was sold!

The salesman found those hot buttons and pushed them like never before until the man realized he wanted the Camaro more than he wanted his money.

 

I know what you’re thinking…the man said he liked the car because it was fast, didn’t he?

Yes, he did. But subconsciously, what he really desired was a car that would impress his girlfriend, his friends, and in his mind make them love him more! In his mind he equated speed with thrill. Not because he wanted an endless supply of speeding tickets, but because he thought that thrill would make him more attractive, more likeable. 

Perhaps the man didn’t even realize this fact himself. But the salesman sure did. And he knew which emotional hot buttons to press to get the sale.

Now, where does the research pay off?

Well, a good salesman knows how to ask the kinds of questions that will tell him which buttons to press on the fly. When you’re writing copy, you don’t have that luxury. It’s therefore very important to know upfront the wants, needs, and desires of your prospects for that very reason. If you haven’t done your homework, your prospect is going to decide that he’d rather keep his money than buy your product. Remember, copywriting is salesmanship in print!

It’s been said many times: People don’t like to be sold.  

But they do like to buy.

And they buy based on emotion first and foremost. Then they justify their decision with logic, even after they are already sold emotionally. So be sure to back up your emotional pitch with logic to nurture that justification at the end.

And while we’re on the subject, let’s talk a moment about perceived “hype” in a sales letter. A lot of more “conservative” advertisers have decided that they don’t like hype, because they consider hype to be old news, been-there-and-done-that, my customers won’t fall for hype, it’s not believable anymore.

What they should realize is that hype itself does not sell well. Some less experienced copywriters often try to compensate for their lack of research or not fully understanding their target market or the product itself by adding tons of adjectives and adverbs and exclamation points and big bold type.

Whew! If you do your job right, it’s just not needed.

That’s not to say some adverbs or adjectives don’t have their place…only if they’re used sparingly, and only if they advance the sale.

But I think you’d agree that backing up your copy with proof and believability will go a lot farther in convincing your prospects than “power words” alone. I say power words, because there are certain adverbs and adjectives that have been proven to make a difference when they’re included. This by itself is not hype. But repeated too often, they become less effective, and they take away (at least in your prospect’s mind) from the proof.

 

Stay tuned for our next post and tip to assist your Car Dealership.  Be sure to have a peak at our

Car Dealership Marketing Website To Attract More Customers.

Tip # 2 - Emphasize Benefits of Your Dealers & Vehicles, Not Features

Does what I wrote make sense to you?  What exactly are features? They are descriptions of what qualities a product possesses.

Here are a few examples:

·        The XYZ car delivers 55 miles per gallon in the city.

·        Our ladder’s frame is made from a lightweight durable steel alloy.

·        Our glue is protected by a patent.

·        This database has a built-in data-mining system.

And what are benefits? They are what the actual features mean to your prospects:

•  ·        You’ll save money on gas and cut down on environmental pollutants when you use our energy saving high-performance hybrid car. Plus, you’ll feel the extra oomph when you’re passing cars, courtesy of the efficient electric motor, which they don’t have!

·        Lightweight durable steel-alloy frame means you’ll be able to take it with you with ease, and use it in places most other ladders can’t go, while still supporting up to 800 pounds. No more backaches lugging around that heavy ladder. And it’ll last for 150 years, so you’ll never need to buy another ladder again!

·        Patent-protected glue ensures you can use it on wood, plastic, metal, ceramic, glass, and tile…without messy cleanup and without ever having to re-glue it again—guaranteed!

·        You can instantly see the “big picture” hidden in your data, and pull the most arcane statistics on demand. Watch your business do a “180” in no time flat, when you instantly know why it’s failing in the first place! It’s all done with our built-in data-mining system that’s so easy to use, my twelve year-old son used it successfully right out of the box.

 These examples are simply made up - use your own imagination to see how YOUR Dealership showcases only Features...  And now turn those into Benefits.

By the way, did you notice in the list of features where I wrote “steel alloy?” But in the benefits I wrote “steel-alloy” (with a hyphen). Not sure off-hand which one is correct, but I know which one I’d use.

Here’s why: you are not writing to impress your English teacher or win any awards. The only award you’re after is your copy beating the control (control being the best-selling copy so far), so take some liberty in grammar, punctuation, and sentence structure. You want it to be read and acted upon, not read and admired!

But—back to benefits…

If you were selling an expensive watch, you wouldn’t tell your reader that the face is 2 inches in diameter and the band is made of leather.

You show him how the extra-large face will tell him the time at a glance. No sir! He won’t have to squint and look foolish to everyone around him trying to read this magnificent timepiece. And how about the way he’ll project success and charisma when he wears the beautiful gold watch with its handcrafted custom leather band? How his lover will find him irresistible when he’s all dressed up to go out, wearing the watch. Or how the watch’s status and beauty will attract the ladies.

Incidentally, did you notice how I brought up not squinting as a benefit? Does that sound like a silly benefit? Not if you are selling to affluent baby boomers suffering from degrading vision. They probably hate it when someone they’re trying to impress sees them squint in order to read something. It’s all part of their inner desire, which you need to discover. And which even they may not know about. That is, until you show them a better way.

The point is to address the benefits of the product, not its features. And when you do that, you’re focusing on your reader and his interests, his desires. The trick is to highlight those specific benefits (and word them correctly) that push your reader’s emotional hot buttons.

Now for your challenge - Take 10 minutes to yourself and start coming of ways that your Dealership, staff and inventory can benefit your customer.

Job well done!

Looking for other ways to increase sales and profits?  Be sure to ask for your FREE PREVIEW of our great book:
"52 Free / Low Cost Marketing Strategies Guaranteed to Attract New Customers & Clients Into Your Auto Dealership In Any Economy".

Tip 1 - Focus On Your Customer, Not Your Inventory & Dealership

When a potential prospect reads your advertisement / letter, or brochure., the one thing they will be wondering from the start is: “what’s in it for me?” 

And if your advertisement doesn’t tell them exactly.... it’ll land in the trash faster than he can read the headline or lead. 

Most every advertiser makes this mistake. They focus on them as a company. How long they’ve been in business, who their biggest customers are, how they have the best vehicles... 

Actually, these are important, but they should be expressed in a way that matters to your potential customer. Remember, once they thrown it in the garbage, your sale is lost! 

When writing your sales copy, it helps to think of it as writing a letter to an old friend. In fact, I often picture a friend of mine who most closely fits my prospect’s profile. What would I say to convince this friend to try my product? How would I target my friend’s objections and beliefs to help my cause? 

When you’re writing to a friend, you’ll use the pronouns “I” and “you.” When trying to convince your friend, you might say: “Look, I know you think you’ve tried out every "thing" out there. But you should know that…”  

And it goes beyond just writing in the second person. That is, addressing your prospect as “you” within the copy. The fact of the matter is there are many successful ads that weren’t  written in the second person. Some are written in the first person perspective, where the writer uses “I.” Other times the third person is used, with “she,” “he,” and “them.” 

And even if you do write in the second person, it doesn’t necessarily mean your copy is about them. 

For example: 

“As a top rated Dealer you can take comfort in the fact that I’ve bought over 10,000 vehicles in the past 10 years and mastered the tricks of buying only the best vehicles”

 Although you’re writing in the second person, you’re really still focusing on yourself.

So how can you focus on them? Stay tuned for our next post.

"52 Free / Low Cost Marketing Strategies Guaranteed to Attract New Customers & Clients Into Your Auto Dealership In Any Economy".

Top Adertising Tips For Car Dealerships and Sales

You may be a Dealer Principal - but do you know what advertising is?

Is it clever slogans or amusing prose? Is it workmanship to be judged for an award or recognition?

No - it is none of the above. Advertising is salesmanship multiplied. Nothing more. 

And advertising copy, or copywriting, is salesmanship in print.  The purpose of a copywriter’s job is to sell. Period.

The selling is accomplished by persuasion with the written word, much like a television commercial sells (if done properly) by persuading with visuals and audio.

 As Claude Hopkins wrote in his timeless classic, Scientific Advertising:
“To properly understand advertising or to learn even its rudiments one must start with the right conception. Advertising is salesmanship. Its principles are the principles of salesmanship. Successes and failures in both lines are due to like causes. Thus every advertising question should be answered by the salesman's standards.

“Let us emphasize that point. The only purpose of advertising is to make sales. It is profitable or unprofitable according to its actual sales.
“It is not for general effect. It is not to keep your name before the people. It is not primarily to aid your other salesmen. Treat it as a salesman. Force it to justify itself. Compare it with other salesmen. Figure its cost and result. Accept no excuses which good salesmen do not make. Then you will not go far wrong.

“The difference is only in degree. Advertising is multiplied salesmanship. It may appeal to thousands while the salesman talks to one. It involves a corresponding cost. Some people spend $10 per word on an average advertisement. Therefore every ad should be a super-salesman.
“A salesman's mistake may cost little. An advertiser’s mistake may cost a thousand times that much. Be more cautious, more exacting, therefore. A mediocre salesman may affect a small part of your trade. Mediocre advertising affects all of your trade.”
These points are as true today as they were when they were written nearly one hundred years ago!

So the goal then becomes: how can you make your Dealership's advertising as effective as possible.

The answer to this is to test. Test again. And then test some more. 
If advertisement “A” receives a two percent response rate, and advertisement “B” receives three percent, then we can deduce that advertisement “B” will continue to outperform advertisement “A” on a larger scale.

Testing takes time, however, and can be expensive if not kept in check. Therefore, it’s ideal to start with some proven tested known ideas for your store - and work from there.

For example, if testing has shown for decades or more that targeted advertising significantly outperforms untargeted advertising (which it does), then we can start with that assumption and go from there.

If we know based on test results that crafting an ad that speaks directly to an individual performs better than addressing the masses (again, it does), then it makes little sense to start testing with the assumption that it does not. This is common sense.

So it stands to reason that knowing some basic rules or techniques about writing effective copy is in order. Test results will always trump everything, but it’s better to have a starting point before you test.

This is the intro for your the top 10 Advertising tips for your Dealership - that have been time-tested and known to be the most effective.

Stay tuned for our first post

What questions to ask to defining your Dealership's proper target market?

What are the most important questions you need to ask when it comes to defining the proper target market for your Dealership?

I know that that most every business or Dealer has not thought about who is their target market is. PLUS, they figure out elaborate concoctions as to why their product and service is needed by everyone in their city.. or Country.

But what I found, is that if you think that everyone can use your vehicles and service, you are simply throwing your money away by not finding the proper niche for your Dealership. What is a niche? How do you find your target Market?

1. The best way is to survey the people who have already bought a vehicle from your store. Be sure to exclude friends and family who were obligated to buy from you.
2. If you are a dealer, I urge you to go and sell 2 people that you do not have a relationship with.
• You want to know that you can sell someone because as a dealer principal, that is your best skill for growth in the beginning stages
• You need proof that have viable vehicles and service
3. Then, Survey your new customers and review the following
• What age is your customer?
• Where do they live?
• What sex?, family size?
• Occupation, education level
• Nationality
• Lifestyle
4. If you are just starting and need to find what makes a good niche for your dealership then take a good look at the list below and carefully answer these questions
• Are you in a growing area for sales?
• Do these prospects have money to buy? Why target poor college students?
• Can they afford your vehicles and or auto service?
• Does your location support a large enough population and / or nich to sell to?
• Where are they located? Specific geographic region? Selling low end / high mileage vehicles in an affluent area?
5. After determining a market, start thinking about why they would buy? What keeps your prospects up at night? Are you solving your prospects problem - vehicle wise or credit wise?
6. Is there a related Dealer that is selling successfully in your area? Can you piggy back off of their success?
7. Is there as similar Dealership selling to your niche that you can “copy” the strategy or advertise in the same media outlets since you see they are successful?

The obvious point here is the importance of developing a proper sales messages that this speaking directly to your proper market. They identify with your message and want to buy. When you talk directly to your prospect, you as the Dealer Principal, stop chasing and begin attracting the right clients because you are focused on your market.

As a last point, “use any information from your previous customers” so look at any information for your customers to find their existing data to find your target market, then construct all of your marketing messages to go hand in hand with this target.

Once you can answer these questions, you’re very likely to have true competitive advantage over your local competition in your city.

Looking for more ideas to increase your success: Go to http://www.automarketingprofits.com/automotive-marketing-books.html
to order "52 Free / Low Cost Marketing Strategies Guaranteed to Attract New Customers & Clients Into Your Auto Dealership In Any Economy".

The Important Questions To Ask At Your Dealership

Most Dealer's don’t understand they are in the business of marketing their Dealership. Because, quite frankly, without marketing to attract new customers and to bring back old ones, you really have NO business.

There are so many other Dealers selling what you sell, you have to have a really good reason for actually being in business… and be able to answer a certain question when asked, effectively.

I always tell my members and clients, “The last thing you ever want to be compared to is just another Dealer.”  The country already has too many of you out there. So, why should I use you?

So, first question is,

“What is your compelling reason for being in business?” 

You can’t ignore this, or otherwise, you’re just another “average” Dealer.

Second question, which is the most important question to your future and/or current customers is:

“Why should I (your customer) choose to do business with you versus any and every other Dealer available to me?”

Dan Kennedy’s copyrighted question, in marketing terms is called a “Unique Selling Proposition” (or “USP” for short). A USP is made up of all the things that you have to say and offer. But a true USP is the thing or things that differentiate you, that you do differently, that are different by personality, price, offer, guarantee, whatever, so you stand out in a positive way.

Why should you create a USP? Here are several good reasons:

• It gives you an incredible marketing advantage
• Those that create a true USP experience huge growth
• Without one, you’re are vulnerable to competition
• It allows you to achieve “your own” clarity in your business (What you’re about; What you want people to think about your Dealership)

So, now that you understand WHY you should have a USP, can YOU answer the question that’s on the mind of all your prospective clients and customers?

I understand it’s not an easy question by any means and requires a lot of thought and work. But, then again, if every business truly could answer it, then we’d have a lot more businesses staying in business, wouldn’t we?

If you’re truly committed to increasing your profit at your Dealership, I want you to answer just one question:

•  “Why should your prospects/customers choose to do business with your Dealership versus any and every other Dealer available to them… ?

Once you can answer these questions, you’re very likely to have true competitive advantage over your local competition in your city.

Looking for more ideas to increase your Dealership's success?

Go to http://www.automarketingprofits.com/automotive-marketing-books.html
to order "52 Free / Low Cost Marketing Strategies Guaranteed to Attract New Customers & Clients Into Your Auto Dealership In Any Economy".

Creating A Game Plan For Your Car Dealership To Increase Sales

Ever consider developing a game plan for your Car Dealership?  If not, that this is a must read that would help you to double new customers in your Store.

It's simple; the more new customers that you have, the more successful you will be at your Dealership.

Developing this kind of idea is one way to be on top of your area for sales.

So how do you create a game plan? The answer to this is that you should come up and set for goals. Some goals to set for are:

#1: Setting Goals for How Many New Customers You Want:
Setting goals on how many new customers you would like to have can be one of the very helpful ideas. Set the number of new customers that you would have, let’s say, for a month. Having this number in your mindset can help you target a specific number of customers at a fixed rate in a month (let’s say 100 customers in a month). Then as time passes by, you will be able to add more new customers to those fixed numbers of new customers ( let’s say from the fixed number of 100 customers, you will be able to have 120 customers in a month, etc.).

#2: Setting Goals for What Type of Customers You Want To Attract:
Deciding on what type of customer you would want to attract can also be helpful to increase sales at your Dealership. These could vary from customers from different kinds of status and professions (lawyers, accountants / financial status / location, etc.). Having these ideas would help you in setting up the income that you would like to have in a month; as to how much you would charge for this type of customer, etc. depending on their status and professions.

#3: Setting Goals for How Many Referrals You Want To Generate:
As you will be able to satisfy your new customers with your services, there would be a very big possibility that the number of customers that you have set for in a month will increase in number.. through their referrals. They would come up with ideas of introducing you to their friends, relatives, etc. Your customer would say, “Hey, I’m very satisfied with the services that my Dealer gives me… so maybe I would introduce them to my family and friends!” Through this, you would be able to increase sales at your Dealership.

#4: Setting Goals for How Much You Expect Each Patient To Be Worth:
For this part of the game plan, you should identify how much each new customer would be worth, or what the “lifetime value of each new customer is”. Say for example, you would come up with ideas that for your customer who is worth $1000, for your customer who is worth $1500 you would change your marketing plan, and so on and so forth for each style of customer. Having this kind of planning can help you set how much profit you would have within a month or a year.



Looking for more ideas to increase your success: Go to http://www.automarketingprofits.com/automotive-marketing-books.html
to order "52 Free / Low Cost Marketing Strategies Guaranteed to Attract New Customers & Clients Into Your Auto Dealership In Any Economy".

Car Dealer Marketing is Changing! How is the Strength of Your Dealership?

The other week I offered a few of my Dealer clients an opportunity to receive a FREE piece of marketing advice that uses a bunch of different Killer Marketing Strategies.

One of the questions I received from one client was:
“Sean, how do I know what strategy to start with using your marketing strategies?”

And

“How do I know if my dealership can be helped with marketing?”

Well, here’s a roundabout answer…and it explains what you REALLY need to think about instead of being misled by a consultant or marketing rep.

There are 7 specific measurements I like to look at that helps me “objectively” coach my clients on the “Strength” of their dealership!

Here are 2 of them:

1. Referral Ratio: you may be thinking to yourself, “What is referral ratio?”

This is simple…and you ‘really’ only need a general ball park.  Don't worry about 100% accuracy....

Simply take the total number of referrals you received last year and divide it by the total # of actual customers you had.

Example1: 300 referrals/ 1200 actual customers = 25% referral ratio.
This is “GOOD”, not great…but a good starting place.

Example 2: 120 referrals/ 1200 active customers = 10% referral ratio
If you fall in this range you have some MAJOR improvements to do. The good news is that at least you now know it…and we can go to work on it.

If you hit below a 30% referral ratio, then you would list it as one of your strategic objectives to improve on over the next 3 - 12 months.

If it is below 20%…then it is critical! You need immediate action!

2. Value of a New Customer!

Why You need it? You want to know what a customer is worth to your Dealership. But when first getting started, keep it simple.

The reason you want it is that it will tell you how much profit you are generating per each customer.

This will tell you: “What your Return on Investment Is Per Customer” or ROI

If the cost to acquire a new customer is $300…and your customer value
is $1500…then you know for every 1 dollar you spend…you get approximately 5 back.

That is a good start.

If your ROI is 3:1 or lower, then you are in DANGER…and need to bump it up ASA.!

Either way, even if you have a higher ROI. You are ALWAYS looking to improve this!

Value of a customer is a thing that you will never stop trying to improve. Okay?

Here are some simple steps to increase your customer acquisition ROI

1. increase referrals per customer
2. Bring in more service and improve customer spending
3. Improve your new customer experience
4. Start a customer newsletter so you are communicating with existing customers.
5. Offer more tailored services

etc…

There are more ideas, but this gives you a VERY good start!

Looking for more ideas to increase your success: Go to http://www.automarketingprofits.com/automotive-marketing-books.html
to order "52 Free / Low Cost Marketing Strategies Guaranteed to Attract New Customers & Clients Into Your Auto Dealership In Any Economy".

It Takes More Than Price For Your Dealership To Be Competitive

No longer is it possible for a Dealer to maintain a competitive advantage for an extended period of time because of simply their pricing and services.

Even if a Dealer can offer unique services, or perhaps even a lower price on similar vehicles or services that are currently being offered, it won’t be long until the competition finds a way to duplicate, or at least pretty closely match that Dealership’s performance. And that puts an end to the competitive advantage the original Dealership held.

So if a Dealership can’t depend on its products, services or prices for their competitive advantage, if they expect to survive, let alone thrive, that Dealers is going to have to perform exceptionally in a number of critical areas.

Marketing Is A Major Key To Success In Dealership

Contrary to popular belief and much misconception, designing, creating, building, and growing a successful and profitable enterprise that commands a dominating position in the marketplace doesn’t automatically require hard work, frustration, and enormous costs.

There’s no question, and you probably won’t get much debate, that there’s more competition, and stiffer competition than ever before, in nearly industry and profession.

But there’s also more opportunity. Especially for Dealer Principals and managers understand a few basic and fundamental concepts.

It really doesn’t matter if you head up the largest Dealership in your city or if you run a 3-person, small used car lot, there are just a handful of things you need to know to gain a competitive advantage in your marketplace.

And mastering just three of the most important of these things will enable you to write your own ticket to success.

You and I both know that the past few years, in both the U.S and Canada, , a huge number of businesses (including Dealers) have closed their doors, never to do business, or provide their products or services to their customers again.

Some analysts say that the major reason for business failure is under-funding – a lack of capital.

Others say it’s because of poor business management practices.

And there’s another school that teaches that many small used car lots are started by the wrong people… that certain people lack entrepreneurial skills, and would be better off working as technicians or employees, rather than trying to run their very own Dealership.

But when you get right down to it, for a Dealer to be in business, in the first place, that Dealership has to have customers… someone to exchange their dollars for the products and services the Dealership sells.

You can have all the funding in the world, you can have great management skills, and you can even have a tremendous entrepreneurial mindset, but unless / until you have someone to purchase your inventory and services in sufficient numbers, you’ll never have much of a successful Dealership; and only enjoy an average income, at best.

Here’s a fact worth considering:

Most Dealers fail because they don’t have  enough customers buying from them  on a regular basis.

Most Dealers either don’t attract a sufficient number of new customers, or they let their existing or current customers slip away. And, in most cases, it isn’t always because the owners, managers or even sales reps didn’t try.

Quite often, it’s a result of not understanding and implementing effective “customer-getting” and “customer-keeping” strategies.

The bottom line is…

If you really want your Dealership to be successful, you’ve 

got to make getting and keeping customers  your number one priority.

Let me put it another way. When was the last time you heard of a company going out of business because they had too many happy, satisfied customers buying from them? My guess is, never.

On the other hand, you can probably name quite a few businesses that are no longer around because they didn’t have enough people buying from them, coming back for more and referring others to them.

And that’s where “Marketing” comes in. Letting others know about what you have in such a way that they are compelled... nearly forced to find out more. And then, ultimately, to buy the products and services you offer from you, and not your competitors. Most businesses... no, not most… every business makes mistakes with their marketing efforts.

Some mistakes are worse than others. Some can even be deadly, and if done often enough, or severely enough, can put the very business out of business.

But so much for other businesses. What about you and your business enterprise? How are you doing? Which mistakes are you making that could be holding you back from making the income, and enjoying the lifestyle you’ve always dreamed about?

Take a look at these 20 Critical Mistakes Most Dealers Make. And, as you read through them, think about your Dealership, and see how you’re performing in each of the areas.

Remember, Marketing, or the ability to get your message to others about the goods and services you offer, in such a manner that it compels them… nearly forces them to do business with you, is one of the most fundamental, yet misunderstood areas in business today.

Properly utilized, effective marketing can truly skyrocket a business to new and undreamed of heights.

Not understood, or under-utilized, a business can sink like a lead weight.

If you can get control of your business and avoid making these costly mistakes, you can expect astounding results!

If you only can get a handle on a couple of them, you will still get much better results from your business than you are now getting.

But if you fall short on any of them, and your competition masters them… watch out! They’ll leave you in the dust. And you can’t afford that!

Want to know more?  Contact Auto Marketing Profits today on the many ways your dealership may lead the pack.

Marketing Mistakes That Cost Car Dealer's A Fortune

MISCONCEPTION #1: Common marketing methods don’t work in today’s competitive environment. Wrong! Common methods -- such as advertising, publicity, free give-aways and newsletters -- can be highly effective when used correctly. If they don’t work for you, assuming you reach your target audience, the problem is that you’re sending an incomplete marketing message. The method is only as good as the message it delivers. If your message lacks any needed components, you’ll lose prospective customers to other dealers who deliver a more complete message.

MISCONCEPTION #2: Your marketing’s most important function is to promote your services. False! The most important function of your marketing is to establish that you can be trusted. Most of us don’t do business with people we don’t trust. While your prospect is considering whether to choose your dealership, they are also trying to determine whether he trusts you and your services.

MISCONCEPTION #3: All you need to do is get the word out. No! You must both get the word out and must get a response back. This is the meaning of “response marketing.”  As our media society grew in the 1950s and 60s, marketers had no need to measure direct results, so they used institutional advertising. But today, your marketing efforts must be built on proven principles of response marketing. Because if you don’t receive a response, you can’t be sure your prospect even received / heard or read your message.

MISCONCEPTION #4: A public relations program that generates feature articles and broadcast interviews will attract new clients to your dealership. Maybe not. In most cases, P.R. programs bring exposure, but exposure does not always bring new customers.  A good publicity program can be an important part of your marketing program. But whether your publicity program generates only exposure or solid marketing results depends on the experience and know-how of the person conducting your program.

MISCONCEPTION #5: The toughest challenge you face is to persuade your prospects. No! Your toughest challenge is to find prospects. Your marketing program should attract qualified inquiries so you start to build a trusting relationship with genuine prospects. You could have 100 new leads tomorrow if prospects knew how you could help them and where to find you. But, in most cases, prospects don’t know you exist. So you must assume the burden of getting your message into your prospects’ hands. That process begins with finding those prospects.

MISCONCEPTION #6: Word-of-mouth referrals will bring you a ton of new prospects. Usually not. Every dealer wants good, qualified referrals. But when you rely on referrals as your only source of new clients, you allow third parties (referral sources) to control your flow of new clients. In addition to attracting referrals, you should have an ongoing marketing program that generates inquiries directly from prospects.

MISCONCEPTION #7: The most effective time to start delivering your marketing message is when your prospect is in your office. Wrong! The most effective time to deliver your marketing message is when your prospect first thinks about his problem and wants to know what solutions are available.  You have a significant advantage over other dealerships when you have a packet of materials you can mail to your prospect. You can offer your information packet any number of ways, such as through advertising, publicity, newsletters or direct mail. When your prospect thinks about his problem, he sees that you offer material on the subject. He calls your dealership and requests your information. Then you send your materials by mail or e-mail. In many cases, this puts your marketing message into his hands before they call other dealers.

MISCONCEPTION #8: You should email your newsletter to clients and prospects quarterly. Not even close! In today’s over-advertised society, you’re fortunate indeed if you can create an impression in your prospect’s mind. If you hope to make your impression stick, you should send your newsletter at least monthly via email. The more often you mail to prospects on your mailing list, the more new business you will likely attract. The frequency with which you deliver your newsletter is much more important than its size.

MISCONCEPTION #9: Prospects will go out of their way to do business with you. Hardly! You must go out of your way to attract their business. Dealers often think a small obstacle, such as paying for a long-distance phone call, will attract calls from more qualified prospects. And this is true when your prospect comes to you by referral. But if your prospect does not have a personal recommendation -- and has not yet received your marketing message -- he may have no greater interest in hiring you as their dealer you than walking into a local competitor. So the small barrier that you hope will qualify him more closely actually causes him to turn away from you and call someone else. I urge you to provide an e-mail address, toll-free number, business-reply envelopes (where you pay return postage), and other conveniences. These increase the likelihood that your prospect will contact you before they contact another dealer.

MISCONCEPTION #10: To attract new clients, you should promote your services. No! When you promote your services, you take on the role of a salesperson, which undermines your credibility. This is called selling-based marketing. Instead, promote your knowledge using Education-Based Marketing. This allows you to attract new clients, increase referrals, strengthen client loyalty and build your image as an authority without selling. Education-Based Marketing gives prospects what they want, information and advice -- and it removes what they don’t want, a sales pitch.

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To Your Success,


Sean Patrick
Auto Marketing Profits
sean.patrick@automarketingprofits.com