Digital data plays an increasingly crucial role in providing the best customer experience possible. However, with many dealerships still lacking a formal digital marketing strategy, the retail automotive sector remains ill-prepared to face the future of e-commerce.
On this episode of Driving Solutions, anchor Jim Fitzpatrick is joined by Jade Terreberry, senior director of strategic development at Cox Automotive, and Noah Lee, director of product consulting for Dealer.com. Terreberry is a dealership veteran who began accumulating insight into the car business at a young age. During her time with Cox Automotive, she has leveraged resources such as Autotrader and Kelley Blue Book to provide invaluable updates on the trends affecting retail automotive. Lee has gained an expansive understanding of automotive marketing and digital strategy from his years with Dealer.com. He is currently focused on preparing the industry’s next generation of marketing professionals for an all-new industry landscape. Now, Terreberry and Lee join the show to discuss digital data in automotive retail and the strategies dealers will need to learn to prepare for the future of e-commerce.
Key Takeaways
1. Bridging the gap between dealers and the digital data services they use will be crucial for the future of automotive retail.
2. To reach the right customer with the right message at the right time, dealers must leverage their digital data to effectively connect with customers and give them a customized shopping experience.
3. Car shopping has grown since the COVID pandemic, but car owner satisfaction has declined; dealers who use their digital data to pair consumers with better models can attract and retain more business than those who fail to offer a personalized experience.
4. Digital data can be used to serve distant customers who are searching for alternatives to their local dealerships.
5. Dealers must focus on connecting and activating the right digital data for their marketing strategies. Many retailers will need better data organization to identify the most relevant and useful information.
"To reach the right consumer with that right message at the right time, you really need to bridge that gap between your digital marketing solutions, and connect your disparate data to create a better shopping to buying journey for consumers that leads them right to your digital front door." Noah Lee, Dealer.com
Autotrader, Kelley Blue Book and Dealer.com have created a new on-demand video and audio learning series to deliver the latest automotive trends straight to their Dealer Partners and industry on a hot topic, data! More specifically how to connect and activate it to leverage its true power and potential to drive profits. The name of the series “Bridging the Gap” is more than a catchphrase…It’s a strategy. And in this series, they’ll share those strategies that can help modernize how dealers operate when they learn what their gaps are, and how to bridge them for a more successful road forward. Sign up today! https://b2b.autotrader.com/
