Using Incentives to Increase Showroom Visits

In today’s digital age, an online presence is a must for any business. Whether you are selling cars, carpet, or furniture, you know that most customers’ journeys start online. Yet, there is one big question - how do you get the person visiting your website to come in to visit your showroom?

A savvy dealer uses incentive marketing to solve the problem. Here are some ideas to use incentives to increase showroom visits.

Incentives

In 1887, the Coca-Cola company sent a coupon for one free drink to thousands of Americans. Those free coupons resulted in 8 million free drinks being consumed, winning the company lifetime customers. The idea of freebies leading to business expansion went down in the annals of sales history.

Customers responding to a marketing incentive often feel a need to offer some kind of reciprocity. Putting that into simpler terms, people unconsciously feel the need to repay a kindness.

New vehicle sales may end at the dealership, but today they begin online. Getting customers to the dealership from your website is imperative. By offering incentives like test-drives or gift cards, you can guide the customer from being an online browser to walking into your showroom. Not only can a simple test drive incentive bring customers into the showroom, but such incentives are easily traceable and attributable.

Nothing gets a potential customer revved up like the word “free”, but it need not be a free gift card. You may, for instance, offer a certain amount off of the manufacturer’s price.

The right giveaway or contest can also work in your favor. We’ve seen several dealerships gain traction in their local area by sending out keys to contest cars, giving away iPhones and iPads, offering Amazon gift cards, and other perks. The small up-front investment in marketing and prizes can yield amazing results.

Information As Incentive

Before the dramatic increase in Internet usage, the salesperson was the main source of information for most people. They had to come to the dealership or read specialist publications to get information.

Now, customers expect to find everything about a new model online. They don’t want to have a salesperson explain it. If your dealership’s site can give that information to them in advance, it’s an incentive to get the visitors to come in.

When a customer is shopping for a vehicle online, they’re looking for specific information such as pricing, trade-in value, model comparison, finding the vehicle they want for sale, and finally, the right dealer. By providing your customer with this information you are being useful, which can convert your online traffic to showroom traffic.

You can further incentivize your customers by providing an ideal in-store experience. You’ve already done the hard work of getting them from your website to the dealership. Providing excellent customer service will help to close the deal.

When you give to your customers, they give back. By providing good information, a special reason to come in, and providing great service, your visitors will convert into customers.