Do you follow up a Marktplaats lead in a different way than your own lead?

We all know that a post on LinkedIn must be different from a post on Facebook. At least, that’s what I’m going for. Another example: if you want to sell a typical men’s product, do you opt for a commercial on RTL8, on RTL4 during a show hosted by Linda de Mol or rather right before Voetbal Inside starts? And if you want to advertise on different channels, do you do this with exactly the same message or do you adapt the message to the audience? Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat, Facebook: they all have their own target group and therefore also have their own form of communication. We know that and adapt our message to the audience of the platform.

Marktplaats versus your own website

Moving on to Marktplaats. I talk to a lot of sellers, but I hardly encounter any sellers who are completely passionate about a bid on their car via Marktplaats. And then I’m not even talking about what people think about bids of half the asking price… Most sellers prefer a lead from their own website. That is fine, of course, because a lead from your own website must have a higher conversion to a sale than any other lead. But what is the real value of such a Marketplace bid? I regularly discuss this with my wife. She has a shop with brocante and advertises a lot on Marktplaats. And that results in daily bids. Reasonable bids, but, of course, also those nonsense bids. What do you do with that? Treat the same as other leads? I don’t think so.

A bid is a starting point for a dialogue

For the buyer at Marktplaats, making a bid has always been an important way to get in touch with the seller. It is part of the process that the Netherlands has been using for 15 years to get rid of new and used items. The only goal behind making such a low bid is getting a response. If you get a reaction in the form of ‘give me twenty for that price’, then you will be gone as a buyer. This does not work. As a seller, you will have to start a dialogue, because that is what the bidder actually expects.

That works just like that with our brocante. On a cabinet that we offer for 400 euros we get a bid of 100 euros. We give a neat answer. Not to say that the bid is ridiculous, but to thank the customer for the interest and explain why we want to sell the cabinet for 400 euros. We do not pay attention to the bid of 100 euros, but see the answer as a starting point of a dialogue, in which we try to convince the buyer to buy the cabinet.

Each platform has a different conversion and working method

So, if you get leads from a platform such as Marktplaats, Autotrack or your own website, choose the right follow-up for each lead. You will treat a lead from Autotrack differently from that of your own website. The visitor of Autotrack has chosen the car and is not yet immersed in your company, while the visitor of your own website has chosen the car as well as your company. In the first case, in your reaction you give some information about your company, where in the second case you can focus more on the car. With bids on Marktplaats you should understand that bids are meant to come into contact with you as a seller. If the customer does not respond to your e-mail, then chances are that it is up to you. Take a critical look at whether you can improve your reaction to a reaction that works. If it works with cabinets, it also works with cars.

About Paul de Vries

Paul de Vries became a Key Automotive Spokesperson at eBay (Marktplaats) after selling Nieuweautokopen.nl to eBay back in 2015. Paul is the founder and CEO of the #DCDW Academy and the presenter of the #DCDW Podcast. He is also a by dealers and importers frequently asked speaker in the online automotive industry. Paul is the winner of the prestigious Lighthouse Award 2016 in the U.S.! `Lead the Way op de digitale snelweg’ is Paul’s new book, which can be used as a guide in the online automotive industry. More information is available at: DCDW.nl.