You Don't Need More Traffic: Acquire Inventory From Existing Customers

• Most dealerships don't have a traffic problem. They have a conversion and tool problem on the traffic they already pay for.

• A website trade tool should be mobile friendly, take under 30 seconds, and keep shoppers who don't buy engaged with monthly value tracking.

• Leads, past customers, and service customers in your CRM can become new acquisition opportunities with a monthly email about their car, not about your dealership.

• The service drive is where your most loyal customers are, and an automated text when an RO opens can help you buy the 2019 and 2020 units you'd otherwise chase at auction.

• Salespeople posting on social need a link that funnels shoppers into inventory, trade valuations, and buying power, with every lead tracked in the dealership CRM.

Every dealership Mike Crothers talks to says the same thing: we need more leads, we need more traffic, because we want to sell more cars. His answer is that it's just not true. You can sell more cars with the traffic you already have, and you can acquire inventory from existing customers who are already on your website, in your CRM, in your service lane, and following your salespeople on social. What's missing is the right system.

Mike breaks that system into four parts. Each one targets a place where your store already has attention but isn't turning it into trades, leads, or purchases.

Is your website a traffic problem or a conversion problem?

Your website is where all of your traffic gets sent. Most stores spend thousands of dollars on ads to get people there. Mike's point is that you have good traffic. What you have is a conversion and tool problem.

A trade tool that converts has to be consumer friendly and built for mobile. With MOTO(convert), a shopper can complete it in under 30 seconds, get a valuation range, and request a firm offer right there. It also includes the free buying power tool.

The part most stores miss is what happens when the shopper decides not to buy. Instead of that lead going cold, they get a value tracking email every month letting them know whether their vehicle is going up or down in value, until they're ready.

How do you acquire inventory from existing customers in your CRM and service drive?

Your CRM

You spent the money to get that traffic, and the leads it produced are sitting in your CRM next to your past sales and service customers. Mike's suggestion is to send them a value tracking email every month showing whether their car has gone up or down in value. That keeps your dealership top of mind, so when they're ready to buy, they're thinking about you.

The email is about the customer. It's not about your dealership in any way. And they can take action right from that email, which gives you another lead and another opportunity to buy their car and sell them another one. MOTO(retain) value tracking emails have a 36% open rate and 99.5% deliverability.

Your service drive

This is where your most loyal customers are, and Mike says a lot of stores just ignore it. He calls it the best place you can acquire inventory. Managers go to the auction saying they need a 2019 or 2020, while those exact cars belong to customers doing business with the store every day.

The approach is simple. As soon as an RO opens, the customer gets a text message asking if you can put a value on their vehicle. When they say yes, the process takes off from there. It's fully automated and 100% customizable to your dealership, and it's one of the most direct ways to reduce auction dependence by buying cars from consumers you already know. MOTO(drive) stores consistently buy about 1% of their repair orders without dedicated service acquisition hires.

Where does your sales team's social media traffic go?

More and more salespeople are posting online, and it's getting them leads and traffic. The problem, as Mike puts it, is they have nowhere to funnel that traffic. Messages get lost in the DMs, or customers just walk into the dealership and there's no attribution and no tracking.

MOTO(social) gives each salesperson a link in their bio where customers can shop inventory, get trade valuations, and know their buying power. When a customer submits a lead, it lands directly in the dealership CRM. All the traffic that salesperson generates becomes fully trackable.

How MOTO(acquire) supports this system

Each part of Mike's system maps to a MOTO(acquire) product: MOTO(convert) on the website, MOTO(retain) for your CRM and past customers, MOTO(drive) in the service lane, and MOTO(social) for your salespeople. MOTO(drive) uses DMS data, pushes VIN and miles to your inventory tools, and alerts the sales team when a customer is ready.

MOTO(acquire) integrates with all major DMS platforms and many others, including Tekion, Dealertrack, CDK, Reynolds, and Auto/Mate. If your DMS isn't one of those, we will build the integration.

For more on this approach, visit our Used Car Sourcing Without Auctions hub, watch how to source used cars without the auction, and see why your dealership doesn't need more traffic, it needs to stop the leaks. When you're ready to see it for your store, book a demo.