Post-Sale Marketing Returns Customers to Your Dealership
Vehicle Service Contracts (VSC) are an excellent way to solidify future touch-points with your customers. They also provide multiple opportunities for customers to come into your dealership, experience positive interactions with your service team, and therefore build customer loyalty. VSCs sold by your dealership offer a sense of security for your customers by protecting them in the event of a mechanical breakdown, keeping their repair costs low.
A VSC also gives customers the confidence that your dealership will be there in issues that should arise with their vehicle. It is a promise that the dealership is invested in this relationship for the long haul, not just the sale of the vehicle. That goes a long way in building a lasting relationship with your customer that will have them coming back again and again. In fact, F&I Magazine confirms that customers who purchase a VSC are more likely to frequent the dealership and spend more there than customers who don’t have coverage.
Anytime a customer visits your dealership is an opportunity to add another building block to the foundation of the relationship with them. For example, a customer may wander through your showroom while their car is being serviced, stop to look at the newest model, ask a few questions, and fall in love with a new car. In that case, not only do they have one car that is returning to your dealership, but they may potentially buy a secondary or new vehicle that will also be returning for service. In addition, once a customer has a VSC on one car, they will be more inclined to purchase one for another car, again allowing for more opportunities for positive touch-points with the customer.
Through VSC’s sold later in the vehicle lifecycle, your dealership can easily build customer relationships and establish your dealership brand as a reliable and trustworthy business partner.
How to Post-Sale Market Vehicle Service Contracts
Post-sale marketing, including VSCs, maintenance reminders, and special offers, help dealerships sell more products and create future touch points with customers.
Using lifecycle marketing based on various touchpoints in a customer journey, customers are likely to have higher response rates. A customer with an expiring factory warranty is more likely to buy a VSC than a customer who still has a year left on factory coverage. Customers who have recently had to visit your service department are also great candidates for post-sale marketing, as those without service contracts usually realize their importance after dealing with unexpected maintenance issues.
Using post-sale marketing to establish communication with customers during key points in their vehicle lifecycle gives customers a reason to continue to return to your dealership, and building those relationships is imperative to your dealership’s growth. Even before customers partake in the benefits of your dealership’s F&I products, post-sale marketing helps customers to understand the benefits offered by VSC’s and other protective products, and how these often go above and beyond what a customer could afford for their car without coverage
Customers will also develop relationships with your dealership team members in the showroom and service drive, and will be more likely to continue to return repeatedly, as they feel comfortable with your team, and by extension, the entire dealership. Auto Dealer Today confirms that post-sale marketing helps to drive customers back into dealerships.
The Power of Post-Sale Marketing
Post-sale marketing helps to build lasting relationships with your customers and builds your dealership’s reputation and brand throughout the community. Learning how to effectively use post-sale marketing leads not only to better customer relationships, but other benefits such as increased revenue, higher reinsurance reserves, and more vehicle sales.
At Automotive Product Consultants, we offer automotive post-sale direct mail marketing programs at no-cost to dealers. These programs market to your customers and educate them about the benefits of buying additional coverage from your dealership.
We encourage dealers and agents to contact us to learn how Automotive Product Consultants can power a post-sale vehicle marketing program that will drive sales and revenue for your dealership. Reach out to us today for a free program demo.
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Data Privacy for Automotive Marketers
Customer Loyalty, Data Security, Dealership, MarketingData is the fuel that powers targeted marketing strategies in the automotive industry. From understanding consumer demographics and driving habits to predicting purchasing behavior, consumer information is the foundation of successful marketing campaigns.
Until recently, data acquisition was less about following strict rules and more about getting the most out of the information available. However, as regulatory frameworks tighten and buyer concerns about privacy intensify, automotive marketers must adapt and enforce best practices.