I know you want more leads, BUT -

[ed.brooks]

If you concentrate on driving leads from sites that are primarily Price driven (one of the New Four Ps of Automotive Marketing), are you missing out?

For more insights download The Cars.com Guide to the New Four Ps of Automotive Marketing:
https://dealers.cars.com/blog/2017/...e-to-the-new-four-ps-of-automotive-marketing/

and check out What Sells More Cars; Being Found or Being Chosen? on DealerRefresh:
https://www.dealerrefresh.com/sells-cars-found-or-chosen/​

 

[ryan.gerardi]

That's not moving the goal post. That's Ed (Cars.com) calling out lead providers using price as a means to an end, and alluding to the idea that other factors come in to play - People, Product, and Person (alas the "4 P's" ).

And he did it craftily too I must say. Way to go Ed!

 

[ed.brooks]

That's not moving the goal post. That's Ed (Cars.com) calling out lead providers using price as a means to an end, and alluding to the idea that other factors come in to play - People, Product, and Person (alas the "4 P's" ).

And he did it craftily too I must say. Way to go Ed!

It looks like the original response has been deleted - If anything, I'm talking about moving the goal posts closer and spreading apart them to make it easier to score. Encouraging and enabling shoppers to see beyond price and look at value and helping them choose you will get you more wins!

 

[Steve Stauning]

I'm curious: are you saying dealers shouldn't buy new car leads from Cars.com New Leads Plus? Last I checked, these are all "price driven."

(Quick caveat: Yep, not all leads are equal ... they're also not mutually-exclusive. Dealers can and should cast a wide net and acquire all the leads they can that drive an acceptable ROI. I think it's irresponsible to suggest otherwise.)

 

[ed.brooks]

I'm curious: are you saying dealers shouldn't buy new car leads from Cars.com New Leads Plus? Last I checked, these are all "price driven."

(Quick caveat: Yep, not all leads are equal ... they're also not mutually-exclusive. Dealers can and should cast a wide net and acquire all the leads they can that drive an acceptable ROI. I think it's irresponsible to suggest otherwise.)

Stop with the crazy talk!

Right off the bat, I want to make clear that I'm not offering this response as a representative of my company.

What I'm saying is, that dealers should prioritize lead generation first to sites that encourage a conversation about more than just price. Sites that give dealers the opportunity to talk about their Place (reputation, location, amenities, etc.), their Product -- the car (not just a generic car, but their specific car), their People (allowing and encouraging consumers to choose the salesperson they want to work with is a new element), and finally their Price (in context of condition, equipment and to the market).

After that, many dealers may desire to, or need to, buy additional leads that may be more 'price driven'. My advice would be to continuously monitor those leads, not so much individually, but grouped as a whole by provider by both closing percentage and gross. Some sites are notorious for appealing to bargain conscious shoppers resulting in less profitable sales.

Also, please note, I am NOT talking about working leads less diligently AFTER they have been generated. Work them all! I'm talking about seeking out the opportunities to generate leads that have chosen your car and your dealership first, and fill in with the leads that are just looking for a price on a car (not necessarily your car).

I think this represents the most responsible course of action for most dealers.

 

[yagoparamo]

Ed,

That is IF they have a reputation, a good location, and amenities. Maybe they don't. Maybe because they don't have those they can sell the car for $1000 less and they don't care. Maybe there is a customer out there that doesn't care either. He just wants to save the $1000 and he will service at his local lube shop anyway.

Not disagreeing with you but to point out that for every dealer problem there is a solution and for every solution there is a totally different solution and that in the end it all works, you just have to line up the right path all the way from the lot attendants to the GM, stick to it, and promote to those particular customers.

 

[ed.brooks]

Ed,

That is IF they have a reputation, a good location, and amenities. Maybe they don't. Maybe because they don't have those they can sell the car for $1000 less and they don't care. Maybe there is a customer out there that doesn't care either. He just wants to save the $1000 and he will service at his local lube shop anyway.

Not disagreeing with you but to point out that for every dealer problem there is a solution and for every solution there is a totally different solution and that in the end it all works, you just have to line up the right path all the way from the lot attendants to the GM, stick to it, and promote to those particular customers.

The dealer you just described could differentiate himself by staking out his place as the low price dealer in the market. It's still bringing the Place into play - the dealership's branding. I personally think this is harder if you don't a have decent reputation to go with the discount pricing.

A dealer I work with locally took a hit to their star ratings - they fell to the mid 3's. It was turned around very quickly with a little bit of hard work and attention. Within 30 days they had moved back to the high 4s. And go figure, their leads DOUBLED.

 

[yagoparamo]

Yes yes Mr. @edgetsit

What I meant is that we always argue don’t play with price play with reputation and this and that and I’m saying that the car biz has its way to cook the same sale a hundred different ways.

I do agree to the extreme with you on one important thing; whatever strategy that is, what is your value proposition? What defines you? And play that all the eay to the end.

 

[ed.brooks]

Yes yes Mr. @edgetsit

What I meant is that we always argue don’t play with price play with reputation and this and that and I’m saying that the car biz has its way to cook the same sale a hundred different ways.

I do agree to the extreme with you on one important thing; whatever strategy that is, what is your value proposition? What defines you? And play that all the eay to the end.

Hell yes, a dealer can sell a car by only appealing to one of the Four Ps. But what I'm saying is, a better strategy would be not thinking about it as Price vs Reputation, but rather price AND reputation AND the right car AND the right salesperson. On the whole, I think you will sell more cars more profitably.