F&I and Showroom Feb 2010

F&I and Showroom
February 2010

COVER STORY
Digital Battlegrounds – by Justina Ly
With the battle for customers going online, dealers are racing to get their hands around this budding marketing medium. Three dealers provide a peek into their strategies.

George Grubbs III – Grubbs Infiniti
Like many dealers last year, George Grubbs, a third-generation dealer, became a disciple of the online marketing craze, with 100 percent of his dealership’s advertising going digital. “We made a big transition last year toward online and we’re going to make an even bigger one this year,” he says. “The biggest thing we noticed was we were spending all this money trying to get people to come to our store. What we realized was that it’s more important to reach people where they are.”

Name: George Grubbs III Title: Executive Manager Dealership: Grubbs Infiniti Location: Dallas, Texas Average Monthly Ad Budget: $50,000 Type of advertising: Internet, e-mail marketing, direct mail and billboard

In January, Grubbs was hard at work on his ad budget, which, despite a $15,000 increase for online ad spending, will not exceed $50,000 per month this year. His strategy includes Website upgrades, banner ads, search-engine marketing and paid-search listings for his inventory. Grubbs also was weighing the possibility of hiring a social-networking coordinator, a consideration many dealers are struggling with these days.

“I’m excited about it because for the last year I’ve been the Twitter guy and I’m tired of Tweeting,” he says.

One thing Grubb’s budget won’t include is radio and TV spots, a decision that was based on the Internet’s ability to track the effectiveness of his campaigns. “Online is much easier to track for return on investment,” he notes.

Tracking Car Shoppers and Ad Dollars

According to the J.D. Power and Associates’ 2008 New Autoshopper.com Study, 75 percent of new-vehicle buyers that year used the Internet during their shopping process, up from 70 percent in 2007. The study also found that shoppers spent a total of six-and-a-half hours online researching automotive information.

In a survey conducted by Edmunds.com, 75 percent of online auto shoppers said they read dealer reviews, with one out of four saying that dealer reviews and ratings do weigh into where they purchase their vehicle. It’s one of the reasons why dealers are flocking to the Internet.

“My sense is that smart dealers are really focusing more on the [Internet], because that’s where the shoppers are,” says kbb.com’s Bell. “It’s just more cost-effective because they can monitor what they’re spending. It’s not just a shotgun approach.”

more….

About Grubbs Infiniti
Grubbs Infiniti is a DFW area Infiniti dealership that specializes in new and pre-owned Infinitis. Our pre-owned lot features not just Infinitis but a wide range of luxury vehicles. Let us know how we can help you. Located at 1661 West Airport Freeway, Euless, TX 76040. 817-318-1200

Contact:
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www.grubbsinfiniti.com