Blog

I can hardly wait for 2024! Because lead follow-up will be crucial in the coming year as well; we need to maximize our efforts with online and telephone leads. Forget about the past two years, when ten buyers would walk into the store for that one car. Many sellers who started during that period, experiencing only those years, will have to fight for a deal, and there’s nothing unusual about that!

Tesla, known for minimal marketing spending, is venturing into automotive portals to sell its increasing inventory. Despite substantial price reductions, Tesla aims to clear its stocked cars. New Teslas are advertised on portals like Cars.com, marking a departure for the brand. In the Netherlands, where 16.7% of buyers use Marktplaats, OEMs benefit by showcasing new car stocks on these platforms. Visibility and recommendations on Marktplaats generate over 30% of leads, proving the effectiveness of online listings. Tesla’s move aligns with changing market dynamics, emphasizing data-driven investments in portals for positive outcomes based on various metrics.

A dealership faced challenges after prosperous years in used car sales, experiencing a significant loss. While service and new sales thrived, used car issues arose. Lax practices and extended holding times (91 days) contributed to financial concerns, exacerbated by low conversion rates. Cutting marketing isn’t the solution; instead, dealers must enhance sales processes and target new customers. The importance of maintaining at least a 13% conversion from leads to sales is emphasized. Overcoming challenges requires a proactive approach, focusing on efficient sales efforts and collaborative efforts with marketing to ensure long-term success.

In response to rising interest rates, dealerships focus on reducing Days in Inventory (DII) to cut significant costs. Brian Benstock suggests a seven-day optimal window for selling used cars, challenging the belief in a 60 to 90-day acceptable DII. Carmax’s success with a 28-day turnaround highlights the need for efficient processes. Recent NADA studies reveal the average daily cost to an American dealer for keeping a car in inventory is $86, emphasizing the importance of selling faster to avoid substantial expenses. Investing in marketing, especially during the initial 30 days, proves essential to avoid discounts and financial losses associated with extended turnaround times.

The average holding time for cars in the Netherlands is typically too long, but on Marktplaats, it’s only 55 days on average. Key insights include regional variations, VDP views, and different strategies for faster sales. Brands like Toyota sell faster, needing 41.6 days on average. Knowing the optimal views needed for a sale and understanding the relation between pricing and demand helps sellers tailor their strategies. Features like Premium, Plus, or upgrading enhance visibility and significantly impact sales, emphasizing the importance of maximizing views on platforms like Marktplaats.

Discovering the origin of online leads is crucial for marketers and sales leaders. Platforms like Marktplaats, Autotrack, and Autoscout influence website leads. Source Buster, integrated with Walcu CRM, provides insightful analytics.

One of the reasons to start the Ligier dealership was that I like to test in practice some things that I proclaim in articles that seem logical. I am often amazed at how we deal with the SRP and VDP page on our own website, for example. I definitely don’t want to say that my SRP and VDP pages are the best, there are so many good roads that lead to the same goal, but I would like to show why we make the choices we make.

The past few days I’ve been a few wisdoms further. A number of brand directors of new Chinese brands, but also of established brands, believe in fairy tales. The fairy tale that, after only 25 years of existence online, is suddenly a panacea! A powerful tool that suddenly presents itself as a tool with which you can sell cars. Those brand directors will sell their new cars via an online order button, without the intervention of dealers…

The concept of a Lead Distributor is a new trend emerging at many dealerships I have spoken with recently, primarily Asian brands. The Lead Distributor is someone who can see whether the lead is interesting and determines who best to forward that lead to. In my view, it is an expensive way to encourage a lower conversion and thereby destroy your marketing investments. In other words, a Lead Distributor does not work. I have several arguments to illustrate that.

How do you get the attention of the (online) customer? And I deliberately put ‘online’ in parentheses. After all, aren’t we all an online customer? Many researchers from reputable parties will tell you in the coming months: the online car buyer is coming.