Powersports dealerships everywhere are looking for smart ways to improve their digital marketing strategy. During and after the current public health crisis, having a powerful digital marketing strategy will help improve your brand awareness and help your business weather the uncertain economic times ahead. 

We’ve all had those days where we have back-to-back meetings from 9 to 5, yet still have a huge to-do list (like sending out a bunch of emails to our prospects and getting new blog posts up), and we know there is just no way that we can ever get it all done. These days can be stressful and exhausting, and they lead to burnout. Here at Beyond Creative, we make sure Powersports dealers have no days like that while maintaining a powerful, winning marketing strategy.

The Basics of Dealer Digital Marketing

Like everything, digital marketing starts with clear goals. Most dealers are clear on their yearly and monthly revenue targets, but not many know the number of internet leads it takes to hit their goals. To determine how many leads you’ll need, divide your revenue goal by the average sale amount to calculate how many sales it will take to hit your target. 

To hit that goal, first, you’ll need to determine your ideal Customer Avatar, also known as your Client Persona. Determine and map out your customers’ demographics, pains and frustrations, fears and implications, and goals and desires. As Brian Tracy said, “If you can see Joe Jones through Joe Jones’s eyes, you can sell what Joe Jones buys.”

Building Your Brand

Digital success is about more than Social Media Marketing and display ads. To be successful, you have to consider how your brand is viewed. Reputation management is a key component—part of your Search Engine Optimization (SEO) strategy must include diminishing the number of negative search results associated with your dealership.

To engage with potential buyers in your local market, building brand awareness is critical. That means that your digital advertising campaigns should not all be about managing leads and conversions—particularly if you run a new dealership. You’ll need to make sure people in the community know about you.

With Search Engine Optimization (SEO), you can make sure that when people search for a Powersports dealer, your business will show up at the top of the results on popular search engines like Google, Yahoo!, and Bing. SEO strategies are only one part of the big picture, though. Social Media Marketing, display ads targeted based on interest and location, and other forms of digital advertising will spread the word about your dealer and what you have to offer. If you build brand awareness, you’ll exponentially increase your door-swing count with potential buyers.

Converting Leads

To hit your revenue targets, you need to convert traffic into leads and leads into sales. Once you’ve built your brand, smart marketing campaigns combined with marketing automation can help your sales and BDC departments hit your sales and revenue goals. 

First, you need to acquire leads. Social Media Marketing and Google Ads is an awesome way to do this. You must not forget that a good website is at the heart of conversions. Capturing leads real-time when potential buyers visit your website or are exposed to your ads is critical. As each lead comes in, immediate automated email marketing, SMS (text messages), and ringless voicemail drops will help you convert them.

With the right software, your team won’t waste precious time following up with potential buyers that are going nowhere. Instead, you and your sales and BDC team can focus on improving customer experience and pursuing the prospects most likely to buy Powersport, Marine, or RV products from you. At Beyond Creative, we really like and use DealerLeadPro as our automation software. DealerLeadPro automates over 90% of your dealership’s marketing activity flawlessly in one simple, easy-to-use dashboard.

Adapting to a Changing World

The days of building your brand with advertisements in the local newspaper, radio, and even TV ads are over as we know it. With the growth of digital marketing, potential buyers can find the Powersports products of their dreams on the internet—they can even buy from dealers on the other side of the country. That means you’ll need to have a smart digital marketing campaign to compete, even if you’re the only dealership in town.

Luckily, we have decades of experience in digital marketing. Whether you’re an established Powersports dealer looking to take your next big step online or an emerging Powersports dealership looking to break into the local market, we have solutions to meet your needs, help you hit your revenue goals, and improve customer experience across the board.