Contrary to popular belief, when it comes to genuinely capturing the attention of your automotive audience, email is where you should put your focus. While social media is the current “talk of the town,” it is easy to forget how powerful email marketing can be when it comes to engaging your customer base.
Email marketing has an ROI of $44 for every dollar spent, and data shows that 77 percent of people prefer to get permission-based promotional messages via email (when compared to direct mail, phone, text, or social media).
Email allows you to collect insightful data on your customers, send messages directly to individuals within your audience, and produce personalized emails that will encourage them to click through links to get to your dealership website. So, what should you include in a weekly, bi-weekly, or monthly email newsletter at your dealership? We’ve got the answers to get you started below.
Include a Welcome Message for New Subscribers
If you have a customer who has just joined your email newsletter list, the most impactful thing you can do is “thank and welcome,” them. While it is polite, it can also strengthen those customer loyalty bonds. According to chiefmarketer.com, subscribers that receive a welcome note show 33 percent more long-term brand excitement. So, be sure to set up email automation that allows you to automatically welcome them once they join the list and inform them of the content they can expect to see from your emails.
Focus on Educational and Value-Added Content
Think about the recent content that has resonated with you. The chances are high that it offered something of value to you. Maybe it provided a free resource or taught you something. Either way, it was helpful. This feeling is what you want to establish with your dealership newsletter. Hubspot, a leading digital marketing company, advises that content should be 90 percent educational and 10 percent promotional. So, you can use your newsletter as a resource to provide quick lessons on automotive educational topics like vehicle safety and maintenance. Ultimately, your goal is to find out what your customers would like to know about and then use your newsletter to answer these questions.
Add Video When Possible
Video has become a marketing juggernaut. Over 75 percent of auto shoppers say that online video has influenced their shopping habits or purchases. Potential car buyers use video to make comparisons, learn about specific vehicle models, or make a decision about whether they want to visit a dealership or not. So, use this information to your advantage. If you have a new model of a car, embed or link to a video of a walkthrough. You can also use video to go along with the educational entry mentioned above.
Share Success Stories
Everyone likes a good success story. So, take the time to combine education with promotion by turning your dealership’s customer experiences into a narrative. Create case studies that you can link to in your newsletter that discuss how customers have benefitted from purchasing a car from you. Include photos (with their permission), quotes, and insight from your employees that worked with them. Customers enjoy hearing about how their peers have interacted with a product. So, give them that information through the newsletter.
Include Discounts and Incentives
Now, it’s time for the ten percent promotional part of the newsletter. This place is where you should discuss offers, discounts, and any upcoming incentives. You may even want to incentivize customers to sign up for the newsletter by offering a ten percent discount on repairs or maintenance. Include coupons they can redeem on their mobile phones, or create discount opportunities that are just for those who are a part of your newsletter lists. Whenever you have savings and discounts to announce, this is the perfect way to share them.
Final Thoughts
Email marketing is an excellent way to reach your customers while personalizing information to encourage them to make a purchase. Unlike social media, you can create individual messaging to resonate with customers while still being able to send messages to the masses. Also, email marketing is almost guaranteed to provide a return on what you put in, as the data above showed an average ROI of $44 for every dollar spent. In short, investing in email marketing should be a priority for you and your dealership team. For more insight into email marketing, be sure to check out this other article to help you get started.
