Living Up to the Conference Hype

I recently attended the Dealer Synergy Internet Sales 20 Group conference in Boston. I left with that unique feeling that comes after you have opened yourself up to really learning, and have attained clarity with clear direction. The event was attended by the majority of Toyota dealers in the New England / Boston Region (as well as some folks from the Toyota corporate office), several Massachusetts State Automobile Dealers Association dealers, and of course the Dealer Synergy consulting team and their partner vendors (we at CarsDirect are proud to be such a partner).

We all know that many auto conferences tend to be light on content. The Internet Sales 20 Group workshops are different, offering an intense three days of real working groups tackling the digital space with a passion for improving and advancing the industry. I was part of a panel that discussed CRMs and digital media / advertising consisting of a group that represented a phenomenal amount of industry experience. I also led a session on Mobile Strategy that was met with great interest, and Mobile continued to be a strong theme over the course of the conference. Indeed, the passion and energy from the dealers who attended was palpable – and no one was afraid to speak his mind and address the tough subjects.

If you really want to learn, and have a passion for improving your Internet / Digital Sales department, I highly recommend you consider an upcoming Internet Sales 20 Group conference.

Todd Dearborn
VP Sales, CarsDirect
(310) 280-4282
todd.dearborn@carsdirect.com

An Addition to the CarsDirect Family

CarsDirect’s parent company, Internet Brands, recently announced that it has acquired High Gear Media, a next-generation publisher of automotive news, information, and tools for in-market car buyers. High Gear Media joins the Internet Brands Automotive Group, which includes CarsDirect and our collection of more than 130 auto enthusiast websites.

Founded in 2007, High Gear Media has grown to operate some of the fastest-growing online automotive brands, including The Car Connection (research content and e-commerce) , Motor Authority (luxury and performance news and enthusiasts), and Green Car Reports (clean environmental news and enthusiasts).

The combined Internet Brands Automotive Group / High Gear Media audience will number more than 35 million unique monthly visitors, making it one of the largest automotive networks on the Internet. As a dealer, you’ll benefit from even more organic new and used car sales opportunities. Robust advertising options including display ads and new / used car leads will allow you to precisely target your desired market segments.

“We have always admired the quality of digital content produced by High Gear Media,” said Todd Dearborn, Vice President of Sales at CarsDirect. “Our dealers will benefit greatly from more sales opportunities as we integrate High Gear into our growing automotive portfolio. We’re truly excited about the innovation we’ll uncover and achieve in the days ahead.”

To find out how you can start benefiting from this exciting addition to our portfolio, contact your CarsDirect representative or e-mail us today!

Take Texting to the Next Level

There’s no doubt that text messaging has permanently changed the way people communicate. For better or for worse, texting is here to stay. But can texting actually help you sell more cars?

As we covered in previous Dealer Reports, one-third of mobile inquiries are either buying this weekend, on their way to a dealership right now, or actually at a dealership shopping. Savvy dealers have been texting with customers to set up appointments, answer questions, and negotiate deals for quite some time now.

Here at CarsDirect, we saw an opportunity to take the power of texting and mobile devices a step further – to engage customers via text whether they’re seeing one of your ads at home, browsing your inventory while on the go, or actually on your lot. This month, we’re officially unveiling CarsDirect Mobile Connect, a cutting-edge, turnkey mobile marketing solution designed to maximize sales opportunities among mobile customers.

Here are some highlights of the new capabilities CarsDirect Mobile Connect is pioneering:

Unique Text [Code] Functionality

At last, a quick and easy way to enter the world of text marketing. CarsDirect Mobile Connect makes it simple to get unique text codes for your entire vehicle inventory. These codes can be promoted in all marketing channels, such as vehicle listings in print ads, as well as on special inventory decals provided by CarsDirect:

Each text inquiry receives an auto-text response with a link back to a corresponding mobile-optimized landing page (vehicle detail page, dealer page, offer page, etc.):

Meanwhile, customer information is instantly sent to your CRM, providing a new source of qualified leads and an easy way to track ROI on marketing campaigns:

Highly Optimized Mobile Landing Pages

The mobile-optimized landing pages to which text inquires are directed are professionally designed and incorporate your dealership’s branding:

These landing pages feature an automated vehicle inventory feed featuring VIN details, and photos. Customers can text your dealership for more information directly from the page. Landing pages also make use of clean, responsive design that renders correctly on virtually all mobile devices.

No existing mobile site, or not happy with your current mobile site? No problem. CarsDirect Mobile Connect can easily become your mobile site, and even use your existing domain.

We’re Just Getting Started

All of us at CarsDirect are very excited about the mobile capabilities that CarsDirect Mobile Connect is bringing to dealerships across the country. We plan continuous upgrades and enhancements to the products as the mobile customer continues to evolve.

If you’d like more information about CarsDirect Mobile Connect or have specific questions about how this texting technology can help your dealership sell more cars, please get in touch at any time at connect@carsdirect.com or (800) 260-5857.

Cross Shop Close-Up: 2014 Lincoln MKZ

When Lincoln’s MKZ debuted in 2006, it impressed buyers with a luxurious interior that featured an array of standard equipment. What didn’t please anyone was its resemblance to the mass-market Ford Fusion. If not for its Lincoln grille and tail lights, the MKZ’s exterior styling made it a dead ringer for the Ford. That made it hard for the MKZ to compete with both entry luxury stalwarts like the Lexus ES350, and with more performance-luxury oriented competitors like the BMW 3-series and Cadillac CTS.

A 2013 restyle of both the MKZ and Fusion brought greater differentiation. Although many components remain shared with the Fusion, the MKZ now looks and feels like a distinct automobile, especially with its optional sliding glass roof.

Are these distinctions ringing with consumers, or does Lincoln continue to compete with itself and other vehicles in the Ford family stable? To find out, we used exclusive CarsDirect cross-shopping data from the past three months to take a look at the top five vehicles currently cross-shopped against the 2014 Lincoln MKZ.

(The percentages refer to the percentage of total MKZ shoppers who also cross-shopped the alternate models listed. For example, 10.5% of buyers who shopped an MKZ also shopped a Fusion.)

Lincoln MKZ Hybrid: 21.6%

Ford Fusion: 10.5%

Honda Accord: 10.2%

Cadillac ATS: 9.8%

Cadillac CTS: 9.3%

CarsDirect’s take: It’s perhaps no surprise that the primary model cross-shopped against the MKZ is the hybrid version, since it delivers 45 mpg—tops among all luxury cars—and costs exactly the same as the base non-hybrid V6. However, the next most cross-shopped model continues to be its Fusion cousin, followed by the mass-market Honda Accord. Offerings from Cadillac – Lincoln’s closest traditional rival – round out the top five.

These findings indicate the Lincoln still has some work to do in terms of capturing attention from entry luxury shoppers considering the dominant German and Asian competition. A recent advertising campaign might help jump-start such consideration, and as the striking MKZ continues to hit the streets in larger numbers, we wouldn’t be surprised if this cross-shopping data changes significantly over the next year.

Want custom cross-shopping data for your vehicles? Contact us at 866.852.3784 or connect@carsdirect.com for a customized cross-shop report.

Survey: The State of Mobile Shoppers, Part II

In our last Dealer Report, we shared results of a CarsDirect survey of mobile customers designed to gauge where they stand in the purchase process. The results we shared last month revealed interesting findings about the kind of information car shoppers are looking for when they use their mobile devices, and about how close these customers are to a purchase (hint: it’s closer than you probably think).

Below are some additional interesting tidbits and takeaways from CarsDirect’s Mobile Survey that we think are worth sharing.

Takeaways: It’s official: customers are using their smartphones as much as they are using traditional computers when car shopping, and a growing number are using tablets as well. We expect to see tablet use grow over the coming years. In the meantime, consider the fact that many customers are interacting with your store from their phones. Is your site optimized for mobile devices? Does it render correctly regardless of which device a customer is using? If it’s not, you might be missing out on sales opportunities.

Takeaways: As we explored in our last Dealer Report, mobile customers are generally very close to purchase, so they’re hungry for pricing information. More than half of mobile shoppers want pricing information from dealers. Additionally, they overwhelmingly want that to receive this information electronically, with almost 70% of mobile shoppers saying they want to receive prices via e-mail or text message. Make sure you’re equipped to respond to mobile customers using the means they prefer. And don’t play games with pricing, such as the classic “come by the store for a price.” It could lose you the sale, as mobile customers want immediate information they can act on.

Takeaways: It’s interesting to note that customers are most active on mobile devices in the evening and on weekends, whereas desktop is busiest when most customers are in front of a computer at work. Evenings and weekends are of course prime car-buying time, so you’re likely to see a surge of mobile customers when your store is at its busiest. Remember to not neglect responding to these mobile customers when your store is busy – they could be just blocks away ready to make a purchase.