It’s disruptive out there and it’s only going to get worse. It was poignant message on which to start the second day of the 2014 DrivingSales Executive Summit, but one that dealers and businesses need to understand.
Technology is changing the way we think, the way we act and the way we shop. Mike Hudson a former journalist and now Lead Digital Auto Analyst and Writer at eMarketer, Inc., talked about the changes that are rapidly happening in the shopping experience and yet inspite of them, dealers can still take control of the sales funnel.
“The consumer is disrupting on their own,” he said “but there are forces out there that see things differently.” Hudson cited Tesla Motors as an example that is impacting auto retailing, not only via its product (electric vehicle) but it’s approach to retailing (factory owned outlets) instead of independent franchises.
“It is different, it is electric and because of that it has an appeal to the new consumer.” Nevertheless, Hudson believes that despite this rapidly changing world, there are advantages for car dealers. “In the mobile enabled world, the dealer has a greater value proposition.”
Hudson talked about the fact that the dealer, not the OEM is the customer’s connection to the product. “You don’t go to Dearborn to look at a Mustang, you go to your local dealership.”
Jeff Kershner
Mike Hudson
He said that despite the fact dealerships currently rank at the bottom when it comes to online influence it really doesn’t make sense, because they are the ones that provide access to the product, the car.
“Think about the value proposition — the ideas you can have to get customers to spend time with you — to have fun, save money and create a relationship by coming into the showroom.”
Hudson said that OEMs know this and at Ford Motor Company, Marketing Chief Jim Farley pointed to the fact that mobile traffic to Ford.com is still largely driven by people actually on dealer lots with their mobile devices.
“Consumers are telling you what you need to do. And if you do it, the sky’s the limit.”
The vendor hall was busy during networking breaks
THE TABLET IS YOUR FRIEND
During the morning workshop sessions, Canadian auto dealer had a chance to hear Jeff Kershner, founder of DealerRefresh talk about mobile showrooming.
Kershner said that a tablet can be the single most useful tool for salespeople. “Everybody is using mobile devices,” he said. “So give your salespeople the right tools so they can be good at their job.”
He said that when it comes to the modern car buyer, some of the biggest concerns revolve around time and trust, which is why consumers tend to believe a screen that’s in front of them over a salesperson. And it’s why if left to their own devices they will tend to showroom while in your dealership.
Kershner said the reasons for doing so can vary, from seeking online reviews about your dealership, shopping different model and trim options or the fact that they simply aren’t having that great of an experience. Kershner cited a personal case where he wasn’t satisfied with the experience and vehicle options presented to him at one dealership, so he “showroomed” on his mobile device; found another store that had the exact car he wanted and went there instead.
Kershner said dealers can use tablets, not only to keep customers engaged during busy periods (such as Saturdays when many salespeople have to handle multiple prospects) but to also promote both the store and themselves. “Make the tablet your best friend,” he said, “post your dealership reviews so they are on there, post your individual staff reviews and have a Trade-In marketplace — all these things are going to get the customer involved.”
Kershner also said that a great way to build trust, certainly on the used car side is to employ video reviews where trade-in customers (original owners) talk about the vehicle they traded in, especially if it’s in good condition and well maintained. Kershner says that by doing so, by having a testimonial, it will enable a dealer to set and get a higher transaction price for the vehicle. “If I have a testimonial from a previous owner on video, who is going to argue the price after that? I wouldn’t.”
“Get Bumped” refers to Bumper a new offering from Toronto based Glovebox, which exhibited at DSES this year as well as providing sponsorship for the Canada Breakout
NEW NAME, NEW FOCUS
Monday’s Fireside Chat centered on CDK Global (formerly ADP Dealer Services) and what the new name and new company structure likely means for its dealer customers. Steven Anenen, CEO, CDK Global and Malcolm Thorne, Chief Strategy Officer, talked with DrivingSales Founder and CEO Jared Hamilton about CDK Global’s commitment to building platforms that are able to scale to the needs of the auto retail industry and creating an ecosystem that fosters innovation and the creation of a simplified process at the dealer level.
“Building relationships that last a long, long time and staying engaged with our clients is our focus,” said Thorne.
There’s never a shortage of topics concerning the changing face of marketing and yet, Adam Justis, Director of Product Marketing for the Adobe Marketing Cloud posed some interesting pointers. Firstly, that today all marketing is digital, even if you are using print, since you want an online response from your target audience so you can track it.
Secondly, that today, what defines a successful strategy is creating a good customer experience with your brand. “In the digital world,” consumers will not discriminate where and when they want to have a good experience with your brand,” he said. “Think of the expectations you now have on your business and the expectation of consumers. Not only do you want something that’s relevant, you want to be able to share it.”
Following on from Sunday’s Best Idea Contest, Monday saw the Best Innovation Contest where again, finalists were invited to submit their innovative solutions before a panel of judges to claim the title of Innovation of the Year. This year’s finalists consisted of Gubagoo Behavioral Engagement and Scoring Technology (B.E.A.S.T) and chat and call centres; Lead Launch from CarWars; Lot Linx’s Vehicle Display Network; Mid-Interval Communications from DMEautomotive and NewCAR IQ from Pearl Technology Holdings.
You can see who the actual Best Innovation winner is, along with that from the Best Idea Contest, in our final instalment of this year’s DrivingSales Executive Summit coverage, which will be posted on Wednesday, October 15.
Judging panel for Best Innovation
Adam Justis
THE NEXT CHAPTER
With consumer’s expectations changing so rapidly, what does the future hold for auto retailing? That was the question DrivingSales Founder and CEO Jared Hamilton posed to an attentive audience in Bellagio Ballroom 2.
“The message I’m about to deliver is very heavy,” Hamilton said. “I’m going to talk about the future of automotive retail and it’s something that is really going to be a challenge.”
Hamilton said that after being absent from the dealer world for a number of years, is now back in the thick of the action having acquired a Honda store. “I feel your pain,” he said talking to dealers, “the challenges we face and what the future holds for us.”
Hamilton said that among the many challenges on the horizon, the one the dealer can most impact right now is the customer experience. He talked how some very well, non automotive companies, such as Blackberry, Borders, Amazon and Starbucks rose and fell and the reasons why it happened.
He said it was important for dealers to understand what their customers actually want and that a good experience in automotive retailing doesn’t necessarily equate to luxury. “Research your goals,” Hamilton said. “See what actions lead to engagement or kill the opportunity.”
He provided actual video feedback from real customers that DrivingSales surveyed and the responses were varied and in some cases quite surprising. “We hired three research firms to conduct analysis and when the information came back, our industry earned a F+. He said that auto retailing, as an industry is still getting a failing grade amongst the general population and a lot of that is to do with a perceived lack of trust.
Hamilton said dealers really need to build processes designed to suite their customers and not try and get their customers to fit around them. He said that because the auto retail business is a mature industry with a legacy stretching back over 100 years, there’s been too much emphasis on management and too little on leadership. “We need change and we need to implement it.” He said dealers need to take the time to implement change and to not get consumed in management practices. “Learn to implement your ideas otherwise they will fail.”
Workshop sessions on Monday afternoon included how Wearable Technology Will Change the Way Dealers market to their customers. Eric Miltsch, President of CommandZ Automotive Consulting shed some light on the growing popularity of wearables and how some, such as Google Glass, will enable dealers to use video in new ways to hook buyers, such as test drives and video walkarounds on VDPs.
Rand Fishkin
Jared Hamilton
SEO: HARDER STANCE, GREATER OPPORTUNITIES
The final keynote of the day was Rand Fishkin, co-founder/author of The Art of SEO, Inbound.org and Moz. Since he last addressed an audience at DSES in 2012, Fishkin said there had been some big changes in the world of Search Engine Optimization (SEO).
He said that both online users and search engines have become very picky and SEO strategies in the past no longer work effectively. “Google has started putting annotations in search results,” he said. “We are moving from emphasizing key words to topic association” — in other words Google will bid on closely associated matches, not exact matches in key words — so if you type in “Oregon Bird Watching” sites, it is likely a society related to that topic will pop up, or “movie with time travelling phone booth” will lead to Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure.
He said that as search has become more intelligent, it’s also become more difficult for small and medium sized sites to access key analytical data from Google. “Our analytic software is not reporting the key words that would send us traffic. And it’s getting worse.”
Fishkin did say there was light at the end of the tunnel however, namely that by grouping key words in targeting and ranking ability and anticipating the creation of fresh content with the same key words and phrases, dealers can still stay ahead of the competition.
“Overinvest in the things you are insanely good at,” he said, “whether it’s blogging, Instagram, networking or photography. SEO is getting harder but more people are investing in it. A higher barrier to entry actually means greater opportunity for those who succeed. And that is exciting.”
For more DSES coverage click here.
