The document discusses how consumers often say "I'm just looking" when visiting dealerships. It notes that more consumer research is now done online. It provides tips for dealerships on how to better engage with consumers who say they are just looking, such as asking more open-ended questions, emphasizing vehicle options, and offering test drives. The document also recommends that dealerships explore using text messaging to communicate with consumers as texting is more popular than calling among most demographics.
2. No thanks, I’m just looking
Scott Pechstein
Scott Pechstein | Autobytel | Vice President Sales |
Scottp@autobytel.com
3. Scott Pechstein | Autobytel | Vice President Sales | Scottp@autobytel.com l
Copyright (c) 2014 Autobytel Inc.
• What “I’m just looking” really means
• How it relates to online behavior
• Best Practices to increases sales opportunities
• Give you consumers the option to Text
Overview
4. Scott Pechstein | Autobytel | Vice President Sales | Scottp@autobytel.com l
Copyright (c) 2014 Autobytel Inc.
How do you respond to
“I’m Just Looking”
5. Scott Pechstein | Autobytel | Vice President Sales | Scottp@autobytel.com l
Copyright (c) 2014 Autobytel Inc.
• “I’m “just selling.”
• “Your time is valuable. Let me point you in the
right direction”
• Avoid the “yes or no” question.
• Are you looking for a new or used car?
• Are you looking for a car or a truck?
“I’m Just Looking”
6. Scott Pechstein | Autobytel | Vice President Sales | Scottp@autobytel.com l
Copyright (c) 2014 Autobytel Inc.
• Two Key Reasons
• Avoidance of being sold right now (key is RIGHT NOW)
• Legitimate fact finding visit
• The Reality
• Dealership visits are down
• More fact finding is conducted online
Why are they saying “I’m Just Looking”
7. Scott Pechstein | Autobytel | Vice President Sales | Scottp@autobytel.com l
Copyright (c) 2014 Autobytel Inc.
• Industry Influences
Purchase behaviors continue to change
More research done online
Brand
Parity Merging of
Brands
Less Loyal
Consumers
Product
Parity
Increased
Marketing
spend
Industry
Quality
Awards
Improved
Content
Website,
Inventory
Research
Ratings and
Reviews
8. Scott Pechstein | Autobytel | Vice President Sales | Scottp@autobytel.com l
Copyright (c) 2014 Autobytel Inc.
• New car buyers spend 11.5 hours online
• (R.L.Polk/AutoTrader.com Automotive Buyer Influence Study)
• 37% of shoppers enter market without a specific brand in mind
• (Compete Vehicle Cross Shopping Analysis, July 2012)
• 59% of consumers don’t decide which vehicle to buy until final week
• (JDP 2012 New Auto Shopper Study)
• New-vehicle shoppers consider an average of 3.3 vehicles
• (JDP 2013 Avoider Study)
• Baby Boomers only visit 1.9 dealers. All generations want to avoid
salespeople in the future
• (AutoTrader Next Generation Car Buyer Study)
Industry Studies
9. Scott Pechstein | Autobytel | Vice President Sales | Scottp@autobytel.com l
Copyright (c) 2014 Autobytel Inc.
Where’s the Funnel?
From Funnel…to Funnel Cake
The buying funnel isn’t dead, just different.
10. Scott Pechstein | Autobytel | Vice President Sales | Scottp@autobytel.com l
Copyright (c) 2014 Autobytel Inc.
Dealership brand is featured
• Test drive, vehicle features,
professional walk around
• Sales Consultant = Vehicle Consultant
• Who, how, what?
Consumers offered personalized vehicle
presentation
• New, used, CPO / models, trims, colors,
optional equipment
Dealership Advantages
11. Scott Pechstein | Autobytel | Vice President Sales | Scottp@autobytel.com l
Less visits = more burden on the internet lead process to drive visits
Based on their dealership experience, in the future
they will avoid salespeople:
56% Gen Y
49% Gen X
37% Baby Boomers
Dealership Experience
(AutoTrader.com Next Generation Car Buyer Study Sept 2013)
Copyright (c) 2014 Autobytel Inc.
12. Scott Pechstein | Autobytel | Vice President Sales | Scottp@autobytel.com l
Copyright (c) 2014 Autobytel Inc.
• What demographics and buying behavior trends
do we know about this consumer?
• How committed are they to my brand?
• Do we stop at price or do we start asking
questions?
Online Experience
13. Where are shoppers Buying
Over 6 million Autobytel internet leads sent to Polk
annually
Polk matches leads to State Registration data for all
50 states
TPL close rates are 18 to 25%
Scott Pechstein | Autobytel | Vice President Sales | Scottp@autobytel.com l
Copyright (c) 2014 Autobytel Inc.
14. Scott Pechstein | Autobytel | Vice President Sales | Scottp@autobytel.com l
Copyright (c) 2014 Autobytel Inc.
Leaving sales on the table
Dealer had a
10% close rate
but lost at least 7
additional sales
Dealer Name Number of Leads Total Purchased
Purch Assigned
Dealer
Purch. Assigned Dealer- Make
Model Year
Purch Other
Dealer
Purch. Other Dealer - Make Model
Year
Purch Unknown Dealer – Make
Model Year
Anytown VW 40 11 4 6 1
Anytown VW VOLKSWAGEN | PASSAT | 2014
Anytown VW VOLKSWAGEN | JETTA | 2014
Anytown VW VOLKSWAGEN | BEETLE | 2013
Anytown VW VOLKSWAGEN | JETTA | 2012
Main Ford FORD | FUSION | 2014
Village Nissan TOYOTA | COROLLA | 2012
Main Used FORD | FUSION | 2011
Other VW VOLKSWAGEN | PASSAT | 2014
Main Hyundai HYUNDAI | GENESIS COUPE | 2011
Another VW VOLKSWAGEN | BEETLE | 2013
CHEVROLET | S TRUCK | 1996
Purchases based on 1 month of leads and up to 3 months registration period
Lead Date Period: MARCH 2014
Sales Match Period: Lead Date + 90
15. Copyright (c) 2014 Autobytel Inc.
• Bought Used – any
make
•44.17%
Submitted a
New Car
Purchase
Request
New to Used Defection
16. Copyright (c) 2014 Autobytel Inc.
Why Buy
from Me
1
Vehicle
of
Interest
2
Alternative
Vehicle(s)
1 New & 1 Used
3
Quick response times and continuous follow up
are key.
Traditional Best Practices
17. Scott Pechstein | Autobytel | Vice President Sales | Scottp@autobytel.com l
Copyright (c) 2014 Autobytel Inc.
Why buy
from me
2
Vehicle
of
interest
3
One size fits all does not work – emphasis needs to vary for each deal!
Internet Best Practices
Alternative
vehicle(s)
4
All used
options
5
Why Buy
Brand
1
18. Copyright (c) 2014 Autobytel Inc.
How do I engage the consumer?
• Phone Challenges
How many times do I call? At different times? Do I sell
the car or the appointment?
• Email Challenges
Automated responses and how often? Do they seem like
auto responses? Do I offer pricing?
Internet Leads (“Just Looking” Equivalent)
19. Scott Pechstein | Autobytel | Vice President Sales | Scottp@autobytel.com l
Copyright (c) 2014 Autobytel Inc.
Communicate Differently
• Reinforce the brand.
• Mention various trims and similar models.
• Explain CPO / used inventory (all models).
In Review
20. Scott Pechstein | Autobytel | Vice President Sales | Scottp@autobytel.com l
Copyright (c) 2014 Autobytel Inc.
Explore New Opportunities
• Texting
• Virtual Showrooms (With audio interaction)
The Road Ahead
21. Scott Pechstein | Autobytel | Vice President Sales | Scottp@autobytel.com l
Why Mobile?
Copyright (c) 2014 Autobytel Inc.
22. Scott Pechstein | Autobytel | Vice President Sales | Scottp@autobytel.com l
Copyright (c) 2014 Autobytel Inc.
• It’s not just Millennials
• Note the income levels and prime demographics
Who’s Texting
23. Scott Pechstein | Autobytel | Vice President Sales | Scottp@autobytel.com l
Copyright (c) 2014 Autobytel Inc.
Click to call is very popular on
smartphones…
Call Volume vs. Text Volume
…But note how text volume out
paces call volume in all age groups
21 to 1 12 to 1 7 to 1 5 to 1 3 to
1
24. Scott Pechstein | Autobytel | Vice President Sales | Scottp@autobytel.com l
Copyright (c) 2014 Autobytel Inc.
Not Far from the Truth
25. Scott Pechstein | Autobytel | Vice President Sales | Scottp@autobytel.com l
Copyright (c) 2014 Autobytel Inc.
• Text adoption is growing
98% of text messages are read (vs. 22% emails, 29% tweets and 12%
Facebook posts). (Frost & Sullivan 2010, Slick Text)
• Character limits lead to conversation
• Consultative approach leads to conversion
Two way dialogue
• Ability to respond to consumers on the lot
Your lot and others
49% of automotive smartphone users made a purchase related to that interaction
(The xAd/Telmetrics Mobile Path to Purchase Study)
Get Ready to Text
26. Scott Pechstein | Autobytel | Vice President Sales | Scottp@autobytel.com l
Copyright (c) 2014 Autobytel Inc.
Get Ready to Text
27. Scott Pechstein | Autobytel | Vice President Sales | Scottp@autobytel.com l
Copyright (c) 2014 Autobytel Inc.
Recent Text Message Cases = Multi-Million $$$
Settlements:
• Lithia Motors - $2.5 million class-action settlement
(Between $175 and $500/phone number)
• Twentieth Century Fox - $16 million class-action settlement
($200/ phone number)
• Simon & Schuster - $10 million class-action settlement
($175/ phone number)
• Timberland Company - $7 million class-action settlement
($150/ phone number)
Tough TCPA Regulations
28. Scott Pechstein | Autobytel | Vice President Sales | Scottp@autobytel.com l
Copyright (c) 2014 Autobytel Inc.
What if This Happened?
$1,500
$1,500
$1,500
$1,500
29. Scott Pechstein | Autobytel | Vice President Sales | Scottp@autobytel.com l
Copyright (c) 2014 Autobytel Inc.
• Communication should be logged and
saved (legal compliance)
• Hierarchy rules in place to hide phone
numbers
• Opt-in consents and opt-out STOPS
must be managed and stored
• Should load easily into CRM
Text Gateway (LMS for Text)
30. Scott Pechstein | Autobytel | Vice President Sales | Scottp@autobytel.com l
Copyright (c) 2014 Autobytel Inc.
• The traditional buying funnel has changed
• Allow consumers to communicate with you the way they
prefer!
Higher engagement with more efficient communication
Capture the high % that leave without filling out a lead form
• Avoid “just looking” – while at your website / your virtual lot.
Summary
31. Scott Pechstein | Autobytel | Vice President Sales | Scottp@autobytel.com l
Copyright (c) 2014 Autobytel Inc.
Today it is not about generating
more leads…
It is about generating more engagements
(conversations) that lead to more sales.
“I’m Just Looking”
Autobytel has been working with R.L.Polk for over 3 years to ensure the quality of our core leads product. This is just one of many processes, some proprietary to Autobytel, that we have in place to monitor and ensure we deliver quality leads and in fact we have encouraged many of our fellow competitors to put similar initiatives in place for our industry. We also use Neustar applications as part of our quality process.
Using state vehicle registration data, Polk analyzes 100% of the leads sold each year by Autobytel to our dealer and manufacturer customers (over 5.1M in 2013)
We use the resulting data to ensure and improve the quality of our internal lead generation activities, which accounts for over 70% of our total lead volume, and for the 30% we purchase from our trusted partners.
We ensure consumer privacy by only reviewing aggregate data.
As a subset of this data, we can also see the crossover between Brands and New and Used, for example.
We even drill down to the dealer level to help our member dealers better understand where they are losing sales in their local market.