Digital Dealer
By John Holt
The recent launch of NADAdealers.com, the explosion of press coverage about online car shopping and the increasing consumer reliance on dealer Web sites all underscore the critical importance of dedicating adequate resources to manage your dealership's online business. The evidence about the drawing power of dealer Web sites is clear: If you build it they will come. But how do you handle online traffic once it comes your way? Simply having a Web site is no guarantee of success; it's how you manage it that makes or breaks profitability.
Let's face it, launching a dealership site is like waving a red flag in front of a bull. It's surprisingly easy to get the bull to charge, but you'd better have a follow-up plan once he does. What's the best solution? Hire a full-time Internet manager to handle your dealership's Web site, prioritize and direct leads, respond to customers and generally maintain the flow of online traffic and information.
Before you start imagining nightmares of having to put a computer nerd with a six-figure salary on the payroll, let me assure you, that's not necessary. This position can be filled for a very reasonable salary outlay and, as you'll see here, research indicates that money invested in an Internet manager is more than repaid by increased close ratios on Web leads. Let's take a look at some of this research and how it relates to your dealership's site management.
The services that a Web site provides can be separated into two important categories: "front end" services, loosely defined as your site's informational and promotional public face, and "back-end," loosely defined as fulfillment or customer service. In the May issue editorial, "What Do Internet Customers Want?" we were discussing the findings of a recent Friedman-Swift Associates' survey that asked 934 car shoppers to discuss what they want from dealer Web sites. (I'm going to throw some numbers at you for a minute. Bear with me, I guarantee it'll be worth it).
The Friedman-Swift study revealed that what customers overwhelmingly want from the front end of a dealer Web site is pricing information; 92% rated this "most important." But, what about the back end? A whopping 82% of shoppers surveyed said that they wanted a response to their e-mail requests to dealers within one day or less. And, significantly, the vast majority of them want an e-mail response, not a phone call. The clear message from online shoppers is, "Don't call us, send us an e-mail." Another important finding was that when shoppers e-mailed dealers to ask for more information, most dealers (55%) responded within 24 hours, but 19% of dealers never responded to shoppers' inquiries at all.
Is this response gap really that big a deal? Yes, it is. The Friedman-Swift study clearly shows that the vast majority of these shoppers are very serious about buying; 77% intend to purchase a vehicle within the next year, while 40% intend to buy within the next two months. Bottom line: If you're waiting more than a day to respond to e-mail or, worse yet, you're not responding at all, then you're missing out on quality leads and potential sales. Obviously, the dealers who are most responsive to these consumer preferences are the ones who stand to profit the most from their dealership sites.
The Friedman-Swift findings tell us a lot about how to manage the back end of a dealer Web site and how an Internet manager should be spending his or her day. In the words of Judy George, coordinator of the study and senior vice president of Friedman-Swift, "Rather than relying solely on salespeople with strong verbal skills to build relationships with customers, dealers will need people with strong writing skills. To keep online shoppers interested, dealers must respond in a way that makes those shoppers feel comfortable and do it in a timely fashion."
In other words, maintaining the site is a crucial component of profitability and should be the responsibility of a full-time Internet manager. As I mentioned before, this doesn't have to take a big bite out of your budget. Suggested salary: about $30,000. Yes, really. The ideal person would be in their mid-twenties, college educated, with good writing and organizational skills. This is fundamentally a service position, not a sales position. Let your sales people do the talking; let your Internet manager do the writing.
Your dealership Web site is like talking the talk. Hiring an Internet manager to make sure your customers and your dealership are getting the most out of your site is how you walk the walk.
John Holt is Co-CEO of The Cobalt Group, Inc. a provider of Internet solutions and business-to-business services to the automotive industry. Cobalt operates the automotive industry portal MotorPlace.com and the PartsVoice.com parts locator. jholt@dealeronline.com
