25 Creative Automotive Marketing Plans & Suggestions

1. Give Out Pre-loaded Gift Cards for Service Discounts

Robert Campbell, Analyst, WithumSmith+Brown, PC

There are a couple direct marketing companies out there that will mail plastic gift cards which work and look exactly like what a customer would buy. This is fundamentally a new twist on a $25 off coupon. Obviously, those without a minimum purchase amount possess the best response rates, making it more like a real gift card. The email piece copy should underline the value, for example:”Use this gift card to get an oil change and pay just $14 instead of the normal cost of $39.”

2. Post’How-to’ Videos into YouTube to Establish Your Authority

Kent Lewis, President and Founder, Anvil Media, Inc..

Specifically, create videos for all four stages of the purchasing cycle: awareness, interest, intent and buy. By way of example, make”how-to” videos to educate car buyers as part of their awareness stage. As a result, develop content which reveals why your dealership is different and better than rivals. While for intent, talk through particular brands, makes and models to help buyers decide. Finally, for (post) purchase, make videos to direct your new clients to your dealership, so they understand how service and components work in addition to an introduction to possessing their own new automobile (ideally by version ). Since YouTube is the planet’s second-largest search engine by volume and movie content ranks well on Google, there is no time to waste.

3. Become a Hub for the Automotive Community

Mike Satterfield, Founder, Satterfield Group

No matter if your company is a parts merchant, dealership or repair shop, you need to participate in the local automotive community. Hosting car club satisfies or a monthly”Cars & Coffee”-type event is a fantastic way to receive key automotive influencers from the community to develop a relationship with your brandnew. The people who come to these sorts of events are not only your clients but they’re also the trusted”car guy” (or even”car woman”) who their friends turn to for recommendations on everything from tires to exactly what car dealership to purchase from. Plus, through interpersonal media, you are able to increase the reach of the occasion with photo competitions and hashtags.

4. Use Cloud-based Communication Tools for Outbound Marketing Calls

Mckay Bird, CMO, TCN, Inc..

To run a promotion campaign for about 400 people, an auto trader could spend close to $200 via USPS mailing ($0.44/mailer), and approximately $150 for manual dialing ($10/hour for staff). However, conducting similar outreach through cloud-based communications tools could be significantly cheaper and would diminish the expense of outreach by 75 to 90 percent. Having the most up-to-date and flexible automotive contact centre software for auto industry entrepreneurs such as TCN’s advertising tools can help auto dealers and repair shops market and expand their company by delivering time-efficient and cost-saving automated outreach. Contact center marketing tools also help dealers will save time, resources and money with faster and more direct ways to communicate with their clients.

For example, some of TCN’s advertising tools incorporate an”Agent SMS,” made for auto dealerships and repair shops to alert individuals of promotions, recalls or oil changes instantly via text messages and also an interactive voice messaging service that enables dealers to produce automatic calls with interactive customer response features.

5. Subscribe as a Advertiser on Waze

Daniel Rosenfeld, CMO, HearMeOut

Another interesting tactic for little automobile businesses to use for promotion is a geo-based ad campaign. By way of instance, Waze has ads when you stop in a traffic light having your ad appear at a particular location, like the light prior to the business, is a fantastic way to offer an in-the-moment ad. It could read something like,”Ford X currently on sale, why don’t you exchange your old car to get a new Ford now?” And the potential client sees it as they approach. Because Waze is geo-focused, it may teach people about businesses while they’re driving and at the moment. A real-time act just like a telling that there is a sale going on in the company offers users a much better experience because it’s personal to them. The user sees the advertisement, and they are right there to grab the chance. All business owners must do is sign up as an advertiser on the Waze website and open an account to market.

6. Send Out Postcards in Anticipation of Seasonal Changes

Joy Gendusa, Founder & CEO, PostcardMania

Mail postcards to your prospects prior to a major weather change so that when someone’s A/C breaks down or down need fixing, automobile owners are going to think of you rather than the competition. You can mail to those prospects by targeting a radius enclosing your automobile shop, and you can target prospects that are demographically quite similar to your current, ideal customers. Advertising your store with postcards works. A customer of mine who owns an agency store generated 80 new customers and $28,000 in revenue after one campaign.

7. Celebrate Your Dealership’s Anniversary

Sophia Borghese, Car Advisor, Superior Honda

When dealerships are open for several years as a strong company, they deserve to have their own birthday celebration. Therefore, when observing, the 45th anniversary of the company, by way of example, make sure you generate all marketing revolve around that. Even if the dealership or repair center doesn’t intend on having a sale or advertising, letting folks know that they have been around for such a long time is a good way to get in touch with people. To celebrate the following year with advertising, create a cool video that revolves around that number, have an occasion or share something special on social media. People love to look at the evolution of cars, even if it does not mean getting a discount on a car. Request the dealership how old it is, and even if it’s been in business for only five decades, that’s still a reason to celebrate.

8. Concentrate on the Customer Experience to Drive Loyalty

Mark Nicholson, Marketing Director, Absolute Results

The automotive industry is due for a change in regards to marketing, with more attention required on customer experience. This would be a transformation within the sector yet essential. Car dealers can be hard-pressed to compete on cost but a powerful customer experience can differentiate a business, drive referrals and make word of mouth, along with enhancing retention of customers. The automotive industry has its own challenges, and there’s no lack of dealers borrowing ideas from other people. In the long run, this can erode effectiveness and make most of the dealerships seem the exact same to the consumer. It is the customer experience that’s the new battlefield. While some may try to emulate what they observe, exemplary customer experience isn’t easy to mimic.

9. Participate in Old-fashioned Networking

Jim Milan, SEO Manager, AutoAccessoriesGarage.com

Networking is another fantastic tool no matter your industry, but I think it is even more critical in the automotive world. The automotive accessory business nearly seems perpetually a generation or few behind up to integrating new ideas like a good site and Internet presence. While you should certainly aim to get the best site and web presence you can, you can even make a great deal of headway by meeting with others in the industry face-to-face, shaking hands and building associations. Old-fashioned media remains the ideal way to build your standing by word and, in regards to auto accessories, a trustworthy reputation can go a long way.

10. Send Out Press Releases

Keri Lindenmuth, Marketing Manager, Kyle David Group

When it comes to advertising in the automotive sector, many little automotive businesses can send out press releases. That is something we perform together with our own automotive customers on. Press releases which connect back to your site about solutions, products, events and information are fantastic ways to increase web visibility and traffic through organic search and search engine optimization. Many of these press releases are not written with the intention that they’ll get picked up by local news organizations, though a number of them perform. Rather, their objective will be distributed through the web, boosting key words, sharing links, thus spreading site and new visibility.

11. Utilize a Powerful CTA for Your Own Paid Social Media Advertising

Marco Camacho, Primary, The Automotive Advertising Agency

Paid social media ought to have a powerful call-to-action and also be served to a highly targeted audience developed from specific demographics. Effective social media marketing for dealerships is dependent upon accurate understanding of their customers’ interests, behaviors and geographic location. With greater insight in to demographics, dealers can develop a loyal customer base and serve them specific and effective promotions across numerous social media stations.

12. Share’Behind-the-Scenes’ Content on Social Media

Scott Bishop, CEOUp And Social

Social networking platforms like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube are gaining popularity and momentum as time goes on. A fantastic digital marketing strategy would be to dedicate a concentrated effort to engaging customers and prospects on these social networking platforms. Post behind the scenes videos, fix clinics and how to videos, photos of new automobiles, thoughtful responses to testimonials and reviews and submitting relevant content consistently. Take it a step further by advertisements.

13. Host On-site Vehicle Care Clinics

Tami Belt, Brand Builder and Chief Storyteller, Blue Cube Marketing Solutions

Business is personal. It’s about trust and relationships. To present themselves to prospective customers, automotive business owners must host on-site practices to exhibit proper care, maintenance, prevention tips, etc. Inviting vendors and many others connected with your company that your clients also need like insurance, automobile painting and traveling companies to join you in the onsite event assembles a standing even more as a source. Allow it to be useful for the audience, not just all about the company. By building trust and being useful, you will stay high in mind not only for the individual attending or watching videos of your event but as a referral source as well.

14. Make Your Advertising Short — Truly Short

Gary Galloway, Senior Product Marketing Manager, Netsertive

As the marketing industry continues to change its attention from tv to digital platforms, marketers must adapt. Used to the usual 30- or 60-second place on TV, automobile marketers are currently tasked to communicate powerful, similar messages in a shorter time frame. Today, that gold number hovers about 6 minutes, thanks to support from advertising giants such as Fox, Facebook and Google. As you can imagine, this creates a huge challenge for those seeking to repurpose the present content and storylines they used on TV. Living in the era of short attention spans, people in the automotive industry must dedicate time brainstorming and discovering new strategies to succinctly tell a story that resonates with the ideal audience.

15. Use Well-placed Signage to Inform Your Clients of Your Services

Shelley Grieshop, Creative Writer, Entirely Promotional

Signage can be an affordable and effective tool for any small business. You are aware that waiting place where your clients twiddle their thumbs as you work on their Toyotas? It’s the perfect place to put a banner stand with information about the many services that you provide. Despite the fact that you have their entire attention, allow the banner tell them the importance of rotating tires or the way they can snag a free car wash when they buy a pair of brand new tires. A colorful banner will market your automotive shop longer and cheaper than any other method.

16. Be Consistent With Your Brand

Tom Endean, Group Head of Marketing, Autodata

The consequences of your brand is important however big or small your company is. If your clients see one style, logo and color on your site, after which it is different above your door, it automatically generates apprehension. Ensure that you’re promoting the same phone number, email, logo, pictures, colors and text in the exact same font and style. It will cause a far wider picture of your enterprise.

17. Install Window Decals

Stanley Tan, Digital Marketing and Advertising Specialist, Selbys

In a whole marketing strategy, you need to attain your customers multiple times to get them to buy. So, when companies like Toyota start marketing because of its newest 2018 Camry, then it will run advertisements everywhere: TV, radio, Facebook, on their site, YouTube, brochures and, most importantly, advertisements in its own showrooms. This is the point where a printing company comes in. Thus, it is an omnichannel marketing strategy to achieve the most people and get the best outcomes. One of the most popular orders from automotive dealerships is window decals. The dimensions of the decal can be as big as you want it to be.

Should you purchase a banner in a similar dimensions, it will cost you a great deal of money. With decals, meanwhile, they’re very cost-effective due to their size and, due to the size, it is possible to catch the interest of almost any passers-by easily. Get a designer to look for a print-ready picture and don’t forget to ask them if they supply installation.

18. Use Customized Customer Receipts

John Burkhauser, Director of Educational Programs, BOLT ON TECHNOLOGY

Receipts should go into every customer’s hands, so why not use them to keep your customers engaged and returning? Build a receipt for your own brand with your logo, colour and a watermark that will be recognized from a distance easily and make it easy for clients to read so they will. List exactly what work was performed and what work will need to get done in the future whilst utilizing technology like QR codes for customers to scan with their telephone, placing a reminder on their phone calendar becoming them to return for these products.

Use coupons to get not only reductions, but to educate your clients on the costs of future services and also other benefits your store offers. Put affiliate icons on the receipt that show the companies you align with and the local sports organizations or teams that you support. List your active social media connections so clients can put the good word out about your store. Do not publish but send the receipt via email with active hyperlinks to your shop’s site and societal websites while amassing customer email addresses for potential advertisements.

19. Partner With Local Schools to Teach Students on Driving and Car Care

Jeannette Seibly, Owner, SeibCo, LLC

Boost your brand reputation by providing education-related to driving and vehicle care. Partner with schools like colleges, high schools and trade schools and community groups by engaging in school activities, sports events and parent-teacher conferences. You might also host events at the dealership or talk at career day. Teach students about driving security like not driving and texting or talking on your cell and driving. Provide automobile maintenance, driving and defensive driving tips and how to manage them. Forming partnerships with schools help students find out more about the automotive marketplace, career opportunities and driving hints. Not only do you establish yourself as the regional automotive pro, you also earn the trust of the local community. This may open up new opportunities for your business because you continue to participate in important community events.

20. Pair Up With Online Auto Repair Service Network

Lauren Fix, Automotive Expert, The Car Coach

Nowadays, being observable online no longer just means getting your own website. Service-oriented businesses like auto repair shops are now able to join one-stop shop networks where customers can visit when they need mechanisms. A little repair shop could tie in with apps that can help support sales. Openbay and RepairPal to mention some will send customers right for you. Create a business relationship to create future earnings. Being a”accredited shop” on these websites, your company gains more credibility and wider base for prospective customers. There might be a small fee or certification program but it is going to repay dividends.

21. Stay Abreast of Automotive Marketing Trends for 2018

The automotive sector is not immune to the consequences of technology which explains the reason why marketers need to learn how to accommodate and benefit from the new tools or get left behind. Regardless of whether your organization is in sales or fixes, your business performance will be significantly influenced by how electronic your advertising strategy has become. This article discusses the most recent advertising fad for the automotive industry that will help you maintain and maintain your share in the market.

22. Establish Marketing Inflatables When Participating in Events

Marketing inflatables are a common sight during occasions and for great reason. In the automotive sector, they are often used as big arches or tents which are visible to any participant at the occasion. The sheer size alone makes it memorable and can be adapted easily to match any occasion concept. If your target is to raise visibility into a point that your inflatable becomes an easy milestone for other institutions in the region, you might wish to think about this thought. Pay attention to the variety of automotive business marketing inflatables within this article and discover which one would do the job for you.

23. Constantly Measure Your ROI

Among the most important findings in the 2017 marketing data for the automotive sector is how significant quantifying return on investment would be to the true improvement of the results. It demonstrates that dealerships that included the easy habit of checking and documenting their advertising ROI are likely to observe a gain in their own ROI year annually. This and other educational automotive advertising and marketing priorities can help guide your marketing approach are introduced in this article.

24. Get Inspiration in the Most Innovative Car Dealership Marketing Suggestions

If it comes to new advertising ideas, most suggestions revolve around email marketing, responsive websites, social networking and other approaches that return to the basics. This report presents a number of marketing ideas that move beyond the usual — by partnering with firms like Uber to utilizing virtual reality in earnings. These plans, although not for everyone, clearly shows new alternatives that can truly inspire.

25. Research Popular Automotive Marketing Blogs

Professional writers create blogging look simple, but there are guidelines being followed that can show you differently. There’s an extensive selection of themes which can be covered for the automotive sector that can keep you writing for a long time to come, but without understanding how to capture your audience, fantastic content will be useless. If you need to understand how your blog is performing in terms of articles or just simply trying to find inspiration to your next post, visit the 20 most popular automotive sites listed in this article.