It was the talk of NADA in San Francisco: The service revenue upside is enormous, and dealers need to pay attention. Why? Thousands of local service shops have closed since 2001, while 47 million more vehicles have hit the road. With the average car being driven for 11 years or more, the need for service and parts has never been greater.
Today, local independent service shops are eating dealer’s lunch, to the tune of $225 billion dollars. That’s how much money U.S. dealers left on the table last year alone according to NADA data.
With service generating 70% gross margin on labor sales, every vehicle you roll through the lane generates revenue at a 100% close rate. In comparison, vehicle sales bring in about 4% gross at an average 25% closing rate. Dealers can get their billions back by being assertive with their digital marketing outreach to enhance their retention rate, and lay the groundwork for future vehicle sales over the long run.
Service Marketing Opportunity
Every month more than 70 million searches for local service, parts and accessories are entered into Google. Search volumes have increased 400% in just five years.
You know who’s showing up? Local service shops. Your archenemies are dominating the attention of your customers today. Dealerships appear in less than 5% of these searches in a strong position (top three) according to Google.
Do an Internet search for service, parts, tires, brakes, batteries, or oil changes. Your rooftop is either completely invisible and sending prospects to your competition, or worse, you may be sending people to poor-performing webpages on your site that aren’t effectively turning clicks into appointments.
You need to be there when service customers search online for the products and services you sell, and convert them into new RO’s. No marketing tool is more cost-effective and targeted than online advertising to start reclaiming lost market share immediately.
Your Service Solution
It’s time to add a dedicated fixed ops marketing campaign to your digital advertising mix to get your billion back. Reach out to an elite Google Premier Partner who can deliver quick results with a proven marketing intelligence platform for auto dealers. You want to invest in a new service marketing campaign that harnesses the collective learnings – ad placements, keywords, geotargeting, bidding strategies – of an extensive network of dealers across North America to make proactive decisions for your dealership. Your investment will go farther and you’ll have data to prove the return on investment.
The key is sending purchase-ready customers from your digital ads to tailored landing pages for service and parts, tires, brakes, batteries, and oil changes. These pages, tailored to your dealership and special offers, can be embedded by your marketing partner right on your website in a matter of seconds. Be sure the content is responsive so it looks great across every screen, from desktops to mobile phones, leading to more customers for you.
The bottom line: Stop giving away service dollars to your competition. Recapture lost market share by being assertive online to get more service appointments and boost your bottom line. Watch my video at http://bit.ly/1Ej74ur to learn more, and please email me with your questions, insights, and experiences going after this opportunity. Thank you!
Source: NADA 2014 State of the Industry Report
