AUTOMOTIVE ADVERTISING & MARKETING

Overstuff Commercials

Don’t Overstuff Commercials with Information

JKRAdvertising / Uncategorized /

May 19, 2015

Resist the urge to overstuff commercials with information. You may have the largest dealership facility, the biggest inventory, the most knowledgeable salespeople, the greatest cars and the most responsive service staff in your market (or at least some of them). So how do you get all that information into one advertisement, where you have a very finite amount of time to get your message across to potential consumers? The answer is … you don’t. If you try to overstuff commercials, you could end up leaving your audience bored and bewildered – the exact opposite of what you really want to do.

In each of your ads, limit the subject matter to one or two things that make your dealership the best, and stick with those throughout the production. Depending on what you choose to run, you have a scant 15, 30 or 60 seconds to make your point, present an offer, and properly close your ad. (If you have co-op stipulations to which you must adhere, you have even less time to make the case for your dealership.)

If you overstuff commercials – telling your audience about too many things – there is never a chance for the viewer/listener to focus on any one thing. But when you limit your commercials to one or two key details, the audience responds. They are able to concentrate on your message because your commercial has retained its focus. As long as you get the consumer to effectively think about what’s in your ad, it doesn’t matter that they don’t yet know about the other positives at your dealership … because they’ll get such a good reaction from it they’ll believe the rest of your dealership is just as great.

The End of Overstuffed Commercials

Would you like to find out if your marketing dollars are being spent efficiently? Do you know if your dealership is overstuffing its commercials with too much information? Contact JKR Advertising & Marketing, and we will be happy to let you know, providing you with a no-strings-attached, FREE Advertising Review. We’ll examine what you (and your competition) are doing, and then we will give you our expert feedback. Call Eric Tigner at (321) 397-0777 today to get the process started.

JKR Automotive Advertising: We Move Cars.

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Post-Pandemic Dealer Gross Profits are Down – But They Don’t Have to Stay There!
March 13, 2024
It is no secret that dealer gross profits per vehicle are down sharply in the post-COVID automotive world. According to a recent article in Automotive News, gross profits of the six largest publicly traded dealership groups plunged significantly from Q4 2022 to Q4 2023. One of them was actually down 35% per vehicle!

The article explains: High interest rates, more expensive vehicles and a steadier post-pandemic supply chain continue to soften demand and bring it closer to pre-pandemic levels. Still, new-car buying has remained strong overall …

This means that, while sales volume is similar, overall bottom lines are lower for many dealers due to the reduced gross profits. What about your dealership?

Being Realistic
It’s time to turn the page! The time for dealers to simply be order takers for people willing to pay MSRP for a vehicle (and in some cases more) has passed and dealers have to work hard once again to achieve acceptable gross profits.

Selling a high volume of cars doesn’t control gross profits, no matter how much you wish this was the case. Correct processes and menu pricing – and strict adherence to them – do!

What kind of processes?
∙ Slow down the transaction! Your sales staff has to once again sell the customer on the features and benefits of every new and pre-owned vehicle on your lot.

∙ Your salespeople and managers should devalue the customers’ trade-in value (politely, of course) as much as possible. After all, if the customer expects you to lower your price, shouldn’t you be able to do the same on their trade? Remember, you’ll have to fix it up, put your name on it and resell it to someone else with all the tenacity you would a brand-new car. So make sure you buy it right … because the profit is made when you buy it, not when you sell it!

∙ To that end, management should be ready and willing to leave the desk and do thorough walk-arounds on each trade to ensure the best outcome for the dealership.

The Cure for Low Gross Profits
If you are like a lot of dealers these days, you could use some good news. Here it is: while you may not have the capability to achieve profit margins similar to those you enjoyed during the pandemic, they could likely be improved. JKR’s clients enjoy the benefit of attracting not only more customers, but better ones, too!

If meeting and exceeding your sales goals (and increasing gross profits at the same time) sounds great to you, you need to call us. Don’t settle for reduced gross profits when help is out there to get you closer to where you’d like to be.

Want to know how we do it? Reach out to Senior Partner Richard Brauns (407) 701-4233 or Partner/Vice President Jon Albert (407) 718-2494 today.

JKR Automotive Advertising: We Move Cars.

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