The information era has transformed the way people buy products, and the auto industry isn’t immune to this revolution. Modern consumers have instant access to the prices and inventory of every nearby dealership. In this highly competitive market, improving your automotive merchandising strategy is the key to standing out and staying relevant.
Why Automotive Merchandising is More Important Than Ever
The Growth of “Showrooming”
“Showrooming” is a term used to describe when customers shop prices on their smart devices while in your showroom. They’ll test drive a vehicle at your dealership just to buy it cheaper from another dealer.
Trying to undercut every competitor is a losing strategy because there will always be someone who can lower their prices to beat yours. Dropping your prices too much will also destroy your profit margins.
When they showroom, shoppers aren’t really looking for the lowest prices — they’re looking for the best value. You can win these customers by using your merchandising strategy to highlight the value in your vehicles.
Your online ads, VDPs, and on-floor sales strategy should be built around price justification. Highlight features, packages, and other aspects of the car that show that it deliver the greatest value for the price, even if other similar models are priced lower.
Changing Shopping Trends
The days of consumers going to their nearest dealership to find their next vehicle is long gone. Now most consumers do extensive online research to find the best dealership, and they’re willing to travel some distance for a great deal. Often, they’ve already decided which vehicle they’re going to buy before they step foot on your lot.
With older customers slowly aging out of the market and more people who grew up with information technology starting to buy their first cars, this trend will only increase.
Effective digital automotive merchandising is necessary if you want your dealership to stand out of the crowd.
But what should auto merchandising look like in the modern era? With most customers making their decisions online, you want to make sure your online merchandising gives them the information they’re looking for. This info should include:
- Vehicle history
- OEM Information
- Reviews
- Awards
How Automotive Marketing Tools Can Help You Improve Your Merchandising Strategy
Developing a marketing strategy that will help your dealership stand out isn’t easy. Ideally, any plan will have ways to reach customers at each stage of the car buying process. This includes taking actions like:
- Getting detailed ads to the right website
- Including important vehicle information in your online content
- Having attractively designed content
- Preparing your sales team for market changes
You can take a lot of the work and tedium out of the process by using MAX Digital’s suite of automotive marketing tools. We offer tools that help you optimize your online content, create relevant ads, and arm your sales staff with the vehicle information they need to make sales.
To see how our automotive marketing tools can help your dealership, sign up for a live demo of MAX Digital’s software platform.
