At Stratosphere Studio, one question we’ve gotten many times is, “How do I use email in my auto dealership marketing?” Lots of people in the automotive industry are aware of the benefits of email in their marketing, but they’re simply unsure of how best to use it. Luckily, this is one of our specialties at Stratosphere Studio, so we have been able to produce full-scale email marketing campaigns for our top auto body shops and auto dealerships.
Are you ready to develop a successful email marketing campaign for your car dealership? Here are the basic guidelines for how you can get started:
· Establish plenty of great content on your website. When we talk about content marketing, what we’re really trying to say is that you need to provide plenty of useful content on your auto dealership website. This is not only the best way to get visitors to your site, but it will also help to establish your website as a resource for answering customer questions. It’s important to blog regularly and input the right keyword phrases in order to boost your search engine rankings.
· Post calls to action. Next, you’ll want to encourage your auto dealership website visitors to provide their contact information, so be sure to offer valuable discounts in exchange. You can list coupons, downloadable materials, or enable online appointment scheduling and request their names, phone numbers, and email addresses. This is one of the best ways to build up your email contact database.
· Follow up immediately. As soon as someone responds to a CTA (call to action), it’s very important that you follow up with them immediately. Send them the coupon they requested or schedule their appointment—no matter what it is, time is of the essence here. People want to know that your website is reliable, since it’s a reflection on how reliable your auto dealership is.
· Follow up again. Once you’ve sent your initial follow-up email, schedule a series of additional emails to go out after a designated timeframe. You could apply various tactics, such as sending out new coupons, tell-a-friend incentives, or even a “did you know?” email with auto dealership news. The goal is to be frequent enough to stay relevant to the customer, while not overwhelming their inbox. There are plenty of excellent email marketing tools available to help you with automating this process, so do your research. Hubspot is one that we’ve used frequently, as well as Constant Contact.
Be sure to follow the rules of email marketing.
With the CAN-SPAM Act in 2003, laws for email marketing have become more stringent and it’s crucial that you follow them carefully. For example, you are required to include an opt-out link and honor unsubscribes immediately. For a list of additional rules, visit our Email Marketing page.
Need help with your auto dealership marketing?
If you are looking for a digital marketing agency to handle the email marketing for your dealership, then give Stratosphere Studio a call. We can develop a strong campaign to boost your business. We are experts at automotive marketing and are proud to represent some of the top shops in the country. We would love to increase the sales for you, too.
