I used to be a huge wrestling fan when I was growing up. I backyard wrestled. My friend and I ordered every pay-per-view. I even had a short career as an amateur wrestler in my early 20′s. [EDITOR'S NOTE: The bowtied gentleman seen in the picture above is, in fact, Justin Roberson (AKA Pretty Boy Rob AKA PBR). Yessiree, Boy Howdy, DOM has quite the eclectic staff.] However, it had been a long time since I actually watched and cared about wrestling. On a whim, I purchased Wrestlemania XXIX (the first PPV I had bought or watched in 12 years). I was excited. IT’S WRESTLEMANIA!!!! The biggest spectacle in all of sports entertainment. Even though I hadn’t fully followed the year-long lead-up to the event, or the sport itself for years, I was excited.

Then I watched it.

Then I was disappointed.

Then I wanted my money back.

Then I never wanted to have anything to do with WWE ever again.

What Can Your Dealership Learn From My Experience?

Consistency

The first takeaway is ensuring that there is consistency. It had been years since I watched a WWE PPV event, which is similar to someone who may return to your dealership to buy another car. Obviously, some physical changes like a remodeled showroom or new location may have happened, but hopefully the pillars of your dealership haven’t. For me, there were new wrestlers I wasn’t familiar with, some I was familiar with. I expected change and adaptations … but getting bombarded with Slim Jim commercials and musical performances was something I was not prepared for. This WWE was not the WWE I knew from years before.

If you built your brand on a core value, make sure that pervades everything your company does. Doing so will ensure that there is consistency at your dealership throughout the years of growth and personnel changes. For someone who had previously pleasant experiences with WWE, I now swore them off. Advertisements? Extended music performances? This was not the same company that I used to love. I didn’t like it one bit.

Customer Experience is Key

Second, customer experience is key. We all know that. But, what can sometimes happen during (sales) “events” is that the onus is put on the offers to drive the sales. That may bring in the customers, but that doesn’t ensure they have a good experience once they are there, which is just as important to the sale as having inventory or specials to begin with. I was already sold on Wrestlemania. I paid the $70. I was promised excitement and entertainment. However, what I ended up with was nothing close to that. That negatively affected my perception of the WWE brand.

Literally everything your company does affects customers’ perception of you, from your website to your lot. The tiniest things can turn potential customers away. Spend time on your own website and ensure that those “Live Chat” pop-ups aren’t intrusive and that your links work. How easy is it to search inventory? How long does it take to get someone on the phone? Maybe those tracking numbers are taking a long time to forward or your employees aren’t answering the phone quick enough. You may only get one chance to impress a customer. Don’t make it difficult for them to give you their patronage. The only way you’ll know these things is to audit your system. DOM routinely secret shops our clients’ dealerships to find inefficiencies and areas of improvement.

Don’t rest on the laurels of your dealership’s name. That only leads to stagnation. Make sure the customer is taken care of and treated right, or lose your competitive advantage. WWE allows Wrestlemania’s reputation to do the selling for them, but it’s ultimately the quality of the event itself that will keep fans coming back and happy. They failed on that front for me, and I can assure you I won’t be making that mistake again.

Side Note: How is Undertaker still wrestling despite not being able to do anything but punch and fall down? Does he have a Lazarus Pit?

If you have any questions about how to improve your dealership’s customer experience, give DOM a call: 864-248-0886.

Dealer Online Marketing is proud to be exhibiting at the 14th Digital Dealer Conference & Exposition this May 7-9 at the Rosen Shingle Creek Resort in Orlando, FL. We’ve been to this conference before and had the opportunity to meet many current and future clients, and we hope you’ll take the time to stop by and visit us at Booth #329.

If you haven’t been to Digital Dealer before, you really owe it to yourself and your dealership to attend, especially if you’ve had trouble navigating the sometimes tricky terrain of today’s digital landscape. The conference and expo offer innumerable sessions, workshops, case studies, learning labs and roundtables, all of them focused on improving your operations and becoming a digital leader in your market. Whether you’re looking to better utilize social media, auction used vehicles digitally or move your fixed ops process online, top automotive and entrepreneurial strategy professionals will be on hand to guide you and help your dealership take the next step.

DOM CEO Robert Donovan and DOM President Darryl Thompson will be at the show to answer your questions and provide unbiased insight about the current marketing strategies that are winning in the digital space. DOM is here to offer you the perfect selection of Internet marketing services and solutions designed to increase your Web traffic, your leads and your sales. Make a point to visit Booth #329 and say “Hi” and we’ll make sure you’re glad you did!

Our staff threw together this “Harlem Shake” video as a team-building exercise this past Friday. Any inherent embarrassment is buffeted by the fact that this is no better or worse than 95% of the “Harlem Shake” videos already out there, and that at least a couple of the guys made an attempt at doing a proper Harlem shake, old-school ‘80s style, yo. (Much love, Al B!) Think you can do better, dealers? Bring it on!

Greenville, South Carolina (Feb. 15, 2013) – Automotive marketing professional Connie Gundrum has joined Dealer Online Marketing (DOM) as the new Director of Account Services in an effort to further fortify the company’s internal operations and client relations.

In a continued effort to further expansion and development, DOM welcomes Connie as its new Director of Account Services to refine and enhance the company’s day-to-day workings. Through this role, Connie will help cultivate DOM’s account services department as it continues to grow and evolve by mentoring current and new team members and strengthening client relations. Connie’s experience will also facilitate DOM’s transition from a Digital Automotive Marketing Agency to a full-service marketing resource for automotive dealers who are seeking traditional advertising opportunities, as well. “The thing I love most is being a consultant to clients and helping them build their businesses,” Connie said. “Basically, I want to hire, train and coach so that we can maximize our potential.”

Connie brings more than 14 years of experience to the table. Her resume boasts an impressive track record in traditional marketing and account services, and her career has also been invested in the automotive industry, making her an invaluable asset to DOM’s team. Much of her experience with account services comes from her time with Zimmerman Advertising where she grew from Account Coordinator to Senior Account Executive, Account Director and, ultimately, Group Account Director. Following that, Connie then worked at Dealer.com, a leading provider of digital marketing and operational products and services, as their Regional Director.

Dealer Online Marketing (DOM) is a full-service digital marketing agency located in Greenville, SC, that is dedicated to helping its clients meet their full potential. DOM creates, executes and amplifies digital strategies for automotive dealerships throughout the country—helping its clients increase web traffic, leads, walk-ins and, ultimately, sales.

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If you’d like more information about this topic, or to schedule an interview with Connie Gundrum, please call Adriana Dominguez at 864-248-0886 or e-mail Adriana at adriana@dealeronlinemarketing.com.

Greenville, South Carolina (Feb. 8, 2013) – Digital automotive marketing agency Dealer Online Marketing (DOM) recently named Darryl Thompson its new President.

In careful planning with Founders Adriana Dominguez and Robert Donovan, Darryl has stepped into this role to facilitate continued growth and prepare the company for its next phase of advancement. Darryl plans to aid the company in its development internally by further optimizing its operations, and he will also work to establish relationships with Tier 1 and Tier 2 clients. “We want to strategically increase our competence and capacity,” Darryl said. “It’s about developing an internal mastery to better serve our customers and grow more intelligently. We will continue to help dealerships get better results and their people win.”

Skills that groom Darryl for this new position come from a variety of sources. Darryl’s career over the past 35 years boasts a proven track record of management and leadership that has helped companies—some Fortune 500—become more efficient and effective. Past positions include President of EQM, Inc., Corporate Director of Business Systems at Interface, Inc. and Vice President of Organizational Learning at InterfaceFlor.

This restructuring also positions the founders to best serve DOM during its next phase of growth. With Darryl focusing primarily on Tier 1 and Tier 2 contacts, Robert and Adriana will be able to direct their attention to Tier 3—automotive dealers. While maintaining relationships with current and future Tier 3 partners, Robert will work with these dealers to constantly develop cutting edge marketing strategies relevant to the industry. “Being in the dealerships is where new innovations come from,” Robert said. “It’s there that we can come up with the best new standards for marketing in the automotive industry.”

Dealer Online Marketing (DOM) is a full-service digital marketing agency located in Greenville, SC, that is dedicated to helping its clients meet their full potential. DOM creates, executes and amplifies digital strategies for automotive dealerships throughout the country—helping its clients increase web traffic, leads, walk-ins and, ultimately, sales.

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If you’d like more information about this topic, or to schedule an interview with Darryl Thompson, please call Adriana Dominguez at 864-248-0886 or e-mail Adriana at adriana@dealeronlinemarketing.com.

Visit Us at NADA in Orlando Feb. 8-11, Booth #A193

Hopefully you’re getting ready for the big NADA Convention & Expo coming up Feb. 8-11 at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando. I know we are. Last year’s show in Vegas was a great opportunity for us to meet up with old friends and make new ones. We left Vegas with the strong sense of a revitalized auto market after years of slipping sales, and that positive outlook proved to be accurate. We’re hoping that this year’s show will have everyone coming away similarly reenergized.

We hope you’ll take the time to come visit us at Booth #A193 during the show to find out how Dealer Online Marketing can help your dealership reach the next level. Of course, we look forward to seeing our current and past clients, as well. As an added enticement, we’re giving away Google Chromebooks each day of the show.

Just text “domnada” along with your full name and company name to 35350 to enter for your chance to win one of our Google Chromebooks (one entry per contestant). You don’t have to buy anything. We just want the opportunity to show you how Dealer Online Marketing can boost your digital presence, leads and sales, so you do need to be present to win. We hope to see you at the show!

It’s The Most Wonderful Time of the Year!

The final week of December has traditionally been the strongest week for car sales in the United States. Customers are typically looking for extra savings on vehicles from the soon-to-pass model year, and dealers are eager to move inventory to make room for models for the new model year. This is usually coupled with additional incentives on vehicles for the new model year, which have now been in the showroom for a few months.

Now is a good time to start planning accordingly for the expected influx of customers by boosting your advertising budget. If you’ve contemplated doing a Search Engine Marketing campaign in the past but held off, this month is a great time to test out a limited text search or display campaign. Retargeting campaigns can also keep your dealership at the forefront of customers’ minds.

If you usually make a point of increasing your traditional media buys as the holidays near, take a moment to consider the benefits of allocating additional funds to your digital campaigning, as well, or even shifting some of that traditional media money toward digital media. Eight of 10 new car shoppers now start their search online, with 70 percent checking prices online, and having a strong digital advertising presence (whether text or display) nearly doubles the likelihood that a given shopper will make a purchase from your dealership.

So don’t get caught short this holiday season. Plan on boosting your digital campaign now, at the beginning of December, so that your ads already have traction when the final week arrives.

Channel selling involves hosting your inventory on multiple third-party websites. Popular sites for this include Amazon.com, eBay.com and Buy.com. Selling your products in this way – whether they be parts, accessories or automobiles – provides greater visibility for your wares, thanks to the prominence of those sites on the Web. This visibility, however, can come at a steep cost. Third-party fees can run as high as 20 percent of the total sale price on some sites, so you’ll be cutting into your profit margin and/or selling your products at a higher cost than you might otherwise.

Selling by means of a shopping cart on your own website, however, affords you a greater degree of control over how you showcase your products, rather than having to conform to another site’s standards. What’s more, utilizing a pay service like Paypal.com or 3DCart.com is far less expensive than the third-party fees you’ll find with channel-selling sites. The tradeoff here, of course, is that these sites have far greater visibility and market saturation.

Using a combination of both of these methods is perhaps the most effective way to get the word out about the products you are offering, as it affords you both the visibility needed to attract first-time customers and the flexibility of offering better pricing to return customers now that they know where to find you. It’s also the best way to ensure that your products will be visible to those that are comparison shopping, be it using a committed price-comparison site (like FreePriceAlerts.com), a search engine utility (like Google Shopping) or a browser application (the aforementioned Free Price Alerts offers one).

Whatever avenue you choose to drive direct online sales, Dealer Online Marketing can help. Whether you’re looking to build out a shopping cart site or just want to promote your monthly specials, we offer the expertise that will allow you to make better use of the Internet to drive additional sales. Call us today to find out more how DOM makes e-commerce easy.

Our clients have been fortunate to avoid the Pre-Election Slump, still seeing their usual success online and in their dealerships this month. We’ve been successful by being in constant contact with consumers via the Web, ranking consistently at the top of organic searches and launching compelling retargeting campaigns.

When your Internet marketing becomes stagnant, it’s easy to ride out the waves with the rest of businesses — a strong month here, a crest there, ultimately hoping to make up any losses when December rolls around. But at Dealer Online Marketing, we want to see you get out of the red and put yourself and your business on a different track.

When the Pre-Election Slump hits hardest, it’s time to fight back.