I just cancelled CDK (cobalt) PowerBrand here's why

[Alex.Lemoing]

Thanks @JoePistell I will check it out.
@brianpasch this is a great tutorial, thanks for sharing with us.

 

[Brian Pasch]

@JoePistell thanks for suggesting the video. Yesterday I created a video to show dealers how to inspect their email marketing campaigns for similar concerns. For most email marketing reports do not have any data to judge the quality of the data. So I created this tutorial that should help DealerRefresh members audit their email marketing campaigns.

 

[DrewAment]

This is a screenshot from CDKs Analytics tool. While good for quick top level stats, it is rarely 100% accurate as I have found that alot of the PPC/SEM (Search, Banners, Videos, etc) campaigns run outside of a CDK campaign tend to get thrown into the "organic" bucket in CDKs reporting tools.

IMO - You would much better serve yourself and and your dealerships to measure/use ONE platform for Analytics. I prefer Google Analytics, as it will pull in PPC, Webmaster tools, display, etc...the choice is up to you... but pick one and stick with it and use it as your primary outside of the CDK reporting.

This is our Organic traffic curb.

 

[Alex.Lemoing]

Thanks @DrewAment I will double check on that. I wouldn't be surprised at all.

 

[joe.pistell]

Alex,

@DrewAment insights are hard earned and always valuable. I bet there's 1000 hrs behind that observation. Give it great weight in your research!

 

[JSouth]

@Alex.Lemoing, the PowerBrand requires tweaking to determine landing pages that won't bounce. Everything in on the initial PowerBrand setup comes with out-of-the-box settings. The program isn't bad, it just has some limitations - starting with how savvy your digital analyst is. I've gone through the gambit to optimize my account, and I'm currently at $1.35 cpc and a $9.79/call. You have options though I caution against moving away from CDK too quickly. I made that mistake before and it hurt. Message me if you want to discuss on a call.

 

[Alexander Lau]

There's an interesting new product out there from Clarivoy, who offer a multi-touch sales attribution solution. Connect the dots with accurate knowledge of how your marketing investments are working so you can make changes, maximize ROI, and cut under-performing initiatives.

It'll tell you exactly who to keep and who to question. The next phase of the game for most vendors (whether they like it or not) is transparency.