AUTOMOTIVE ADVERTISING & MARKETING

Keep Advertising

Keep Advertising No Matter What’s Happening Today

JKRAdvertising / Automotive Advertising, JKR Advertising News /

December 23, 2014

You need to keep advertising, even when things are good! Right now, a lot of car dealers are feeling pretty good about themselves and their dealerships. It looks like the industry’s best year in the last five. Gas prices are down, meaning consumers are buying more expensive cars because fuel efficiency isn’t quite as important as it once was. In fact, IHS Global Insight reports that “consumer spending on gasoline will be about $750 per household” less in the coming year than in 2014.

Keep Advertising!

But there are some things you should remember … and these things will help reinforce why you need to keep advertising! First, more sales equates to more customers … and that means more customers that could walk through the double doors of your dealership! Next, as you well know, there is no guarantee that this customer bonanza is going to continue. Third, your competition isn’t going to stop their advertising efforts, and you don’t want to fall behind them. Finally, you also know the likelihood of gas prices remaining this low is not good.

So do yourself a favor here at the end of 2014 – and well into 2015 – and keep advertising! Today, you should be promoting your seasonal sales to spark urgency. You may even be able to piggyback off something going on with your brand(s) at a national level – by putting a local twist on it.

Once you’re through the holidays, keep the momentum going. After all, is there ever a point where a car dealer says, “I have too many customers?” Of course not! If that day ever occurs for you at your store, let us know!

From the JKR Automotive Advertising family to yours, we wish you a happy and prosperous holiday season!

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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