Running a successful dealership involves much more than just advertising your vehicles. Yet many dealerships are caught in a cycle of ineffective marketing strategies, making the same mistakes over and over. These mistakes can waste valuable resources, time, and opportunities.

Let’s dive into the biggest mistakes dealerships make and how to fix them to ensure you're putting your best foot forward.

Mistake #1: Not Having a Unified Marketing Strategy

Most dealerships manage multiple vendors for different marketing needs—SEO, paid ads, social media—but without one cohesive plan, these efforts often don't align. Without clear ownership and a unified strategy, your messaging becomes inconsistent, and your resources get spread thin.

Solution:

• Consolidate Your Marketing Efforts: Instead of juggling multiple vendors, consider working with a Fractional CMO. This expert can manage everything, from ads to SEO, ensuring your marketing channels are aligned.
  

• A Fractional CMO takes the lead on your marketing plan, keeping everything coordinated and ensuring your messaging is consistent across all channels.

Mistake #2: Focusing Too Much on Quantity Over Quality

Many dealerships chase after as many leads as possible, regardless of quality. They spend on third-party leads or cast a wide net through ads, hoping for volume. Unfortunately, this approach often attracts low-quality leads that aren't ready to buy.

Solution:

• Target High-Intent Shoppers: Shift your focus from quantity to quality. Rather than buying generic leads, use first-party data to attract people who are actively searching for cars in your area.
  

• With first-party strategies, you can target high-intent customers who are more likely to convert into showroom visits and sales.

Mistake #3: Ignoring Follow-Up Processes

Dealerships often overlook the importance of timely follow-ups. Leads can go cold quickly, and failing to follow up in a timely and personalized manner is one of the most significant missed opportunities in dealership marketing.

Solution:

• Develop a Follow-Up System: Implement a clear and systematic follow-up process that ensures every lead receives a timely response.
  

• Automating follow-up emails and texts or using a CRM system will help you stay on top of all your leads and increase conversion rates. Having this system in place helps turn leads into loyal customers.

Mistake #4: Not Tracking What Actually Matters

Many dealerships focus on vanity metrics such as clicks and impressions. While these metrics provide insight into visibility, they don’t tell you whether the marketing effort is actually driving sales.

Solution:

• Track Showroom Visits and Sales: Shift your focus from clicks to more meaningful metrics like showroom visits and sales conversions.
  

• With a robust CRM integration and the help of Dollars to Deals, you can track how every marketing dollar is contributing to your overall sales performance.

Mistake #5: Lack of Consistent Messaging

Consistency is key to building trust with customers. If your ads say one thing and your sales team says another, you create confusion. Inconsistent messaging will only make customers hesitate and lose trust in your brand.

Solution:

• Tell a Consistent Story: Ensure your marketing efforts are in sync across all channels—ads, website, sales floor. Work with a Fractional CMO to make sure your messaging is clear and consistent across every touchpoint.

Conclusion:

Avoiding these common mistakes can make a huge difference in your dealership's marketing success. By focusing on quality leads, developing a consistent and cohesive strategy, and tracking what truly matters, you’ll see real results that will keep your showroom busy and your sales strong.