18. Certification Gives Peace of Mind Cars.com/Experian Automotive Consumer Purchase Behavior Analysis Certified leads close at a higher rate than used leads Lead Type Certified leads close almost a week faster Days to Close
Hello and welcome to our workshop: A Matter of Trust: Online Advertising Builds Credibility and Drives Sales As part of our discussion today, we’re going to look at the importance of building trust with car buyers and how that trust can help you drive more traffic to your store and close more deals. We’ll look specifically at how you can leverage your online assets to build that trust, examining real-world situations and sharing with you proven strategies to build trust—and avoid eroding trust—that you can begin using today. As I said, this is a discussion. If you have any questions or comments about the issues raised in today’s presentation, please hold them until the question-and-answer session following the presentation. Don’t worry: We have plenty of time set aside.
Tell the people a little bit about yourself… This is me, Kathy Kimmel. Before I joined Cars.com as a training manager, I… Discuss DaimlerChrysler: Discuss AutoNation BDC role Understanding of what drives customer satisfaction and loyalty; identified customer concerns and then helped the stores implement processes necessary to improve these scores Reference progress: last in the country to third place Since coming to Cars.com approximately 18 months ago, I’ve had the pleasure of working with hundreds of dealerships and _____ dealers across the United States to refine their internet advertising strategies and internet sales processes. We also hear a lot from consumers. We see a lot of data. We know what works, and we can bring this insight back to you so that you can incorporate them into your advertising and sales processes.
Tell the people a little bit about yourself… This is me, Kathy Kimmel. Before I joined Cars.com as a training manager, I… Discuss DaimlerChrysler: Discuss AutoNation BDC role Understanding of what drives customer satisfaction and loyalty; identified customer concerns and then helped the stores implement processes necessary to improve these scores Reference progress: last in the country to third place Since coming to Cars.com approximately 18 months ago, I’ve had the pleasure of working with hundreds of dealerships and _____ dealers across the United States to refine their internet advertising strategies and internet sales processes. We also hear a lot from consumers. We see a lot of data. We know what works, and we can bring this insight back to you so that you can incorporate them into your advertising and sales processes.
Tell the people a little bit about yourself… This is me, Kathy Kimmel. Before I joined Cars.com as a training manager, I… Discuss DaimlerChrysler: Discuss AutoNation BDC role Understanding of what drives customer satisfaction and loyalty; identified customer concerns and then helped the stores implement processes necessary to improve these scores Reference progress: last in the country to third place Since coming to Cars.com approximately 18 months ago, I’ve had the pleasure of working with hundreds of dealerships and _____ dealers across the United States to refine their internet advertising strategies and internet sales processes. We also hear a lot from consumers. We see a lot of data. We know what works, and we can bring this insight back to you so that you can incorporate them into your advertising and sales processes.
Tell the people a little bit about yourself… This is me, Kathy Kimmel. Before I joined Cars.com as a training manager, I… Discuss DaimlerChrysler: Discuss AutoNation BDC role Understanding of what drives customer satisfaction and loyalty; identified customer concerns and then helped the stores implement processes necessary to improve these scores Reference progress: last in the country to third place Since coming to Cars.com approximately 18 months ago, I’ve had the pleasure of working with hundreds of dealerships and _____ dealers across the United States to refine their internet advertising strategies and internet sales processes. We also hear a lot from consumers. We see a lot of data. We know what works, and we can bring this insight back to you so that you can incorporate them into your advertising and sales processes.
Everything we do in life depends on trust, from personal and professional relationships to the products and services we buy. Without trust, we don’t know upon whom or what we can depend. Will my friends and family be there for me? Is my food safe to eat? Will the lights turn on when I flip the switch? Is the car I see in the ad the same one I’ll see on the lot? Will the car actually be on the lot, or was it “just sold five minutes ago,” before I arrived? By the time the average car shopper arrives at your store, he or she has completed several hours of research, reading about the cars they’re considering and the dealers who have them in inventory. You can trust that this person is in the market to purchase a car; in fact, studies show that once prospects reach this point in the sales process, they usually purchase within the next [ timeframe ]. Car shoppers, meanwhile, are accustomed to advertising that promises more than the product can deliver. They can see past the hyperbole—usually—to get the features and benefit information they need. Staying at a Holiday Inn Express, for example, may be a smart decision, but it doesn’t mean you’re now smart enough to fly a helicopter. Can the same be said about your online advertising and sales processes? What’s interesting about car shoppers is how they use the internet to both identify and eliminate options. Not only are they narrowing the list of vehicles until they arrive at the car they will purchase, they’re also trimming the number of dealers they’ll visit. They make these decisions without ever leaving home, thanks to objective reviews they read online and the impression they form from reading your online listings or your response to their quote requests. As with the other purchases they make, car buyers want to know they can trust you to a) treat them professionally and b) sell them the right car at a fair price. Yet a significant number of them begin the process with trepidation; one-third of lead senders tell us they’re afraid of dealers and dread the process. I know some of you don’t like to hear this statistic, but with 70 percent of car shoppers using the internet as part of their shopping process, it bears repeating. You probably don’t like to hear it because you hold yourself and your store to a high standard: The car in the ad IS the car on the lot. You respond to each and every quote request you receive—in one hour or less. The phone number(s) and email address(es) in your ads are consistent and accurate. The price on each of your listings is competitive. Even the doughnuts and coffee in your waiting room are fresh. At the same time, you see the opportunity in this statistic: The dealers who create for these prospects the shopping experience they want instead of the one they expect now have customers who are afraid of every other dealer, save them. And they’re now busy with both the immediate sale and the repeat/referral business these buyers bring their way. - - - - - Transition: We’re now going to take a look at how you can use your online advertising to build trust.
Ten years ago, “being on the internet” essentially meant tasking a salesperson with managing the emails and quote requests that came into your store. In the decade since, the internet has come into its own, helping millions of car visitors each month research the vehicles they’re considering and identify the dealers who have them in stock. While email and quote requests remain popular, perhaps the greatest shift in internet shopping has occurred in the role third-party sites play in qualifying prospects. (Advance slide)
When car buyers research vehicles online, they hope to save time by getting the information they need from internet listings to narrow down the list of cars they want to see in person. While every car on your lot may not merit 32 photos, many do – especially hard-to-find or unique cars. The idea is to use these photos as your opportunity to demonstrate that the vehicle is what you claim it to be and demonstrate how it meets the prospect’s needs. Keep in mind that the sales process already has begun; what the customer is doing and looking for in your virtual showroom is no different than what he or she would do or want to see in your actual showroom. To that end, you’ll want to show the car from every exterior angle and showcase its interior. For example: Seating capacity (with seats folded down or removed, as appropriate) Cargo capacity (with seats folded down or removed, if applicable) Audio system Navigation system Odometer Dashboard Cupholders Various electronic systems and accessories Other innovative photos: Owner’s manual Complete service records, if available Photo of the internet sales manager or this car’s lead salesperson Photos of your store Each of these photos contributes to the overall message of trustworthiness, albeit in a subtle way, that you want to be convey. - - - - - Transition: Now, what about things that are, shall we say, less than perfect? Do you show these pictures in your listings or let customers discover them for themselves when they take the car out for a spin?
If you’re not advertising certified cars as certified, then you’re not getting the added benefit of a certified program. Otherwise, these cars are just used cars from the consumer’s perspective. If you’re selling certified at the time of sale, you’re not getting the upfront benefit of bringing in these shoppers. CNW: $1700 premium on certified cars, March 2007 (Mention somewhere in the presentation, but not on this slide.) These shoppers are farther down the purchase funnel.
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Within each of these points, - - - - - Transition: Thank you for joining us today to discuss “A Matter of Trust: Advertising Builds Credibility and Drives Sales.” I’ve enjoyed being with you today and look forward to any questions or comments you may have.