Tag Archives: Internet

Many dealerships offer their customers the added convenience of online shopping for parts and accessories. With so many sites offering the same products, it can be a challenge for a dealership to find success in the e-commerce arena.

I was utterly shocked when I recently received an automated email response from a dealer’s information email address that said because of the high volume of emails that are sent to that account, I may not get a response for up to 72 hours.

You work hard to bring customers through the doors of your brick-and-mortar store by running ads and specials, through direct mail campaigns and email blasts and by hosting events. Are you also focusing your efforts on increasing traffic through your online front door?

Over the past few years, the traditional method of sending your message out to the masses has seen a steady shift toward a new inbound approach of social engagement and relationship building for marketing a business or product.

In the auto industry, we recently learned that industry-wide 36 percent of customer inquiries over the Internet remain unanswered after 24 hours.

Monitoring your website’s analytics and knowing how to use the data provided is key for the optimum performance of your website.

More than 80 percent of today’s motorcycle shoppers visit a Web site before visiting a dealership, so we shouldn’t be surprised as more and more shoppers’ first contact with a dealership is by Internet/e-mail too. Successful dealerships have a defined process in place to handle Internet/e-mail leads, but is the “best practice” to respond by e-mail or by telephone?

Those of you in holiday preparation mode, a reminder to not forget about your online shopper.

The majority of a website’s search engine traffic comes from Google, Yahoo or Bing. Have you checked recently to see how your site is ranking with these search engines? If you are looking to improve the ranking, there are steps that you can take to optimize your site.

What percentage of your dealership’s Web leads are answered within 24 hours?