If price is the #1 reason a car buyer picks one dealership over another, and your strategy isn’t to be the lowest priced vehicles in town, how do you overcome that?
Urban Science surveyed over 3,000 US consumers who said the price is the # 1 reason they’d choose one dealership over another. Reputation, trade-in value, and desired vehicle configuration are 2, 3, and 4 respectively.
What the study fails to take into account are the many modern day frustrations of the car buyer, that when alleviated, make price less important.
Even if you’ve got the cheapest price, your buyers will abandon you if:
- It takes 30 minutes on your website to get a trade-in value or a monthly payment estimate, a process initially should just take seconds
- Your follow-up is canned, pushy, and impersonal
- They can’t find all of the information they’re looking for about their vehicle of interest, and have to visit 10 other websites to piece it all together
So what should you do instead?
- Make the initial trade-in valuation and payment estimate process quick and painless. There’s time later to send them into the full “buy a car online” experience.
- Make sure the buttons on your website do what they say they do. Don’t mislabel your buttons to say “Get a trade-in value” only to drop someone unexpectedly into a chat
- Send personalized video follow-up to your leads and customers. Our customers routinely tell us that buyers drive past other dealerships to visit their location, simply because they built that human connection early in the sales process with video.
- Make it easy for your customers to do all of their vehicle research in place: with you on your website. Everytime a buyer has to visit other dealerships or 3rd party websites to piece together all the information they want about a car, you risk losing that business.
Sure, price may be #1, but overcoming that objection before you even have to discuss it is always possible with the right people, process, and products.
Frequently Asked Questions
How can a dealership overcome price objections if they don’t offer the lowest prices?
Dealerships can overcome price objections by alleviating common frustrations that car buyers face. Streamlining the trade-in valuation and payment estimate process, offering personalized follow-up, and providing comprehensive vehicle information on their website can make price less of a deciding factor.
What are the key factors that influence customers to choose a dealership besides price?
Aside from price, customers are influenced by a dealership’s reputation, the trade-in value offered, and the availability of their desired vehicle configuration.
How can a dealership improve the trade-in valuation and payment estimate process for customers?
A dealership can enhance this process by making it quick and painless, allowing customers to get an initial trade-in valuation and payment estimate in seconds, without unnecessary delays or complicated steps.
What should dealerships avoid in their follow-up communications with potential buyers?
Dealerships should avoid canned, pushy, and impersonal follow-up communications. Instead, they should focus on personalized interactions that build a connection with the customer.
How can personalized video follow-ups enhance the customer experience?
Personalized video follow-ups can create a human connection early in the sales process, making customers feel valued and recognized, which can lead them to choose your dealership over others.
What strategies can a dealership use to keep customers engaged on their website?
Dealerships can keep customers engaged by ensuring all information about vehicles is available on their website, minimizing the need for customers to visit multiple sites to gather information.
Why is it important for all vehicle information to be easily accessible on a dealership’s website?
When all vehicle information is easily accessible, customers are less likely to look elsewhere, reducing the risk of losing them to competitors and simplifying their purchasing decision.
How can a dealership build a human connection early in the sales process?
Using personalized communication methods, such as video follow-ups, and ensuring a seamless and informative online experience can help build a strong human connection with potential customers right from the start.
