Dealerships are generating more leads from their own Websites than ever before. The question is: Does that mean it’s time to forgo third-party leads and have your Website go it alone?
With the economy in a tailspin and costs rising everywhere, it is imperative to control your budget, so cutting our third-party lead providers might seem like a good idea. The reality is, however, without the use of third-party leads your dealership will have a hard time bringing in a sufficient number of potential customers. There are several reasons for this.
Reluctant customers
Customers correctly view dealer Websites as an extension of the dealership, so customers that want to bypass the dealership will also want to avoid submitting a lead to a dealer Website. These customers still need cars, however, so they visit independent third-party sites, because of the perception that they will receive a more honest assessment of the vehicles they are searching, without the high pressure sales tactics for which dealers have a reputation. That is the beauty of third-party lead providers.
A third-party lead provider can get customers interested in specific cars and start the conversation, which helps alleviate customers’ fears of high pressure sales tactics. In addition to alleviating some of customers’ apprehensions about buying from a dealer, most leads from third-party lead providers are already interested in a specific vehicle, which means they’re farther along in the sales cycle. A customer that is interested in the blue 2004 Honda Civic Hatchback with 30,000 miles you have for sale is always much easier to sell than a customer that wants a medium sized car with good gas mileage.
You need more leads.
Unless your Website supplies you with more leads than your salespeople can handle, you need more leads. If you are selling cars faster than you can fill your lot, great, but I’ll bet that is not the situation for most dealers right now. With the downturn in the economy and the squeeze on consumer credit many dealers have a backlog of vehicles that they need to move. Those vehicles are just sitting in lots around the country costing dealers more in floor-planning expense every day. Third-party lead providers can help you move that metal.
Third-party leads can fill the gap between the number of leads you create yourself through your Website and advertising and the excess inventory you need to move. It is true that third-party leads cost more than organic leads, but recent advances in technology have enabled some third-party lead providers to charge as little as 13 dollars per lead; the question you need to ask yourself is: Which costs more buying leads or letting vehicles sit on your lot while your costs increase?
Ben Brigham is the president of AutoFerret.com. He can be reached at 888-337-7380 or email This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .