Digital Dealer - January 2018 - 45

By Bud Torcom
CEO and Co-Founder,
Mazama Media

Is Your Dealership's
Advertising Stuck in the '60s?
Dealerships offer a
dizzying array of vehicle options absolutely
bursting with technologically advanced attributes.
Between backup cameras, blind-spot detection,
and lane-keeping assist,
cars have just as much
in common with computers as they do with the
Model T.
Every manufacturer
tries to outdo its current
models by pushing at the
leading edge of modernity. But this forward-thinking environment stands
in stark contrast to the
dated marketing efforts
of most car dealerships.
While television, newspaper, radio, and billboards
might have worked back
in the 1960s, this mindset
is in desperate need of an
evolutionary time warp.
So many dealers fixate
on old-school marketing
tactics because they don't
understand the power of
digital marketing platforms.
We worked with one
auto dealer who was
spending about $50,000
on traditional media
several years ago. He accepted Google AdWords
as a viable lead generation source, but he distrusted social platforms.
At our urging, he agreed
to spend $2,000 in one
month on a Facebook
campaign. In that month,
he managed to sell 22

DESPITE THE ADVANCED OFFERINGS
ON YOUR AVERAGE DEALERSHIP
FLOOR, IT'S EASY TO GET STUCK IN
A 'MAD MEN' MINDSET OF PRINT,
RADIO, AND TELEVISION ADS.
more pre-owned vehicles
than he had in the six
months prior. Needless to
say, he embraced digital
advertising and never
looked back.
His situation isn't
unique, though. Like so
many other dealers, he
sank money into advertising essentially negated
by the products he sold.
Most people want cars
with Sirius XM access
and Bluetooth connections that allow them to
avoid listening to radio
stations. So why would
dealers spend copious
amounts of money on ra-

dio ads? They're basically
killing their radio ad buys
with every sale, which is
a losing proposition.

ADOPTING A
MODERN MEDIA
MINDSET

The need for improved
social media digital
marketing extends
far beyond boosting
Facebook posts or
pushing out sales
notifications on Twitter.
Dealerships must learn
to create advertisements
that change based on
their audience's needs.
Remember the
morphing billboards in

"Minority Report?" The
advertisements adjusted
based on the person
looking at them, changing
their messages on the
fly. As is the case with
most science fiction,
those far-fetched visions
have become reality.
Dealerships can use
social media to customize
advertisements to suit
vastly different buyers.
A mother of three kids
cares about something
completely different than
a single 30-something
guy when looking at a
Toyota 4Runner advertisement. Digital advertising can ensure people
see ads that speak to
their demographics. The
mom hears about the vehicle's exceptional safety
record, and the adrenaline junkie is intrigued by
the 4Runner's off-roading
capabilities.
Platforms like Facebook and Instagram are
constantly rolling out
new features. Members
of the auto industry, in
particular, could benefit
from Facebook Lead
Ads. Using this emerging
technology, dealerships
can automatically collect
a potential buyer's name,
email address, and
phone number whenever
someone signs up for a
test drive. Facebook also
introduced Store Visits
(facebook.com/busi-

D I G I TA L D E A L E R . C O M

Continued on pg. 46
JANUARY 2018

45
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Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Digital Dealer - January 2018
