| Three Ways to Make Mobile Work for You |
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| Written by Brian Epro |
| Friday, 20 November 2009 00:00 |
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According to ClickZ, more than 22.4 million people access mobile information on a daily basis—a number that has more than doubled in only a year’s time. In January, 2008 the number of people who accessed the web through mobile phones daily came in at 10.8 million and increased 107 percent to 22.4 million in January, 2009. Clearly it’s time for dealerships to decide not just when they are going to reach these 22.4 million potential car buyers, but how. Below I’ve outlined three of the top mobile techniques you can use to rock mobile and grab more customers while they’re on the go.
Mobile eNewsletters
In addition to coupons, eNewsletters are a great way to build loyalty among your customers and up-sell services and repairs. When you push your eNewsletter to your user’s smart phones, it’s like having 24/7 access to that customer. By adding video, coupons, online promotions, and other mobile tools within the eNewsletter, you double the chances of catching your readers’ interest and keeping their business.
Test drive requests
Give your customers a way to contact you when they’re ready to buy. By building a test-drive request into all communications you send out, you’re nearly guaranteeing that the recipient will come to you first. Give your eNewsletter subscribers a direct link so they can instantly connect to your sales department when they’re ready and ensure you have test drive request buttons on every communication you send out.
Service appointment scheduling
Finally, perhaps the easiest and most effective mobile technique enables the recipients of your eNewsletter to connect to your service department directly from their phone. Whether it’s a coupon for a service special or an eNewsletter article about the importance of winterizing a vehicle, a direct line to your service department for scheduling is a must-have.
Imagine a busy executive running errands on his lunch hour. While driving around town, he receives your dealership’s monthly eNewsletter which includes an oil change special. The executive needs his oil changed and figures if he’s going to get it changed, it might as well be at the dealership with the promotion. He pulls into the dealer’s service drive and gets his vehicle serviced. With mobile, the dealership had access to the customer at a critical time—when he was ready to buy.
In addition to electronic coupons and specials, automated reminders sent to service customers’ phones will aid in reducing the number of no-shows.
You don’t have to throw thousands of dollars at mobile marketing to make it effective. The mobile techniques that work the best make both your current and your prospective customers’ lives easier. Take some time to think about how you can offer mobile solutions from your dealership—22.4 million daily users are waiting to hear from you.
Brian Epro is the director of the automotive services group at IMN. Brian can be reached at 781-890-4700 ext. 245 or
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
. Visit www.imnloyaltydriver.com for more information.
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