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The weeks between Thanksgiving and Christmas are extremely important to annual sales in many industries, including automotive sales. Potential customers are buying in greater numbers than in the rest of the year, giving car dealerships a larger audience to market to. The holiday shopping crowd is also in “buying mode,” ready to purchase items not only for friends and family, but often for themselves as well. Shoppers with extra available holiday capital are more easily persuaded to treat themselves to a new car than at other times of the year. Whether a customer’s new car purchase is a special treat just for him or the perfect gift for the whole family, the holiday shopping season is a great opportunity for automotive dealerships to boost sales.
To take advantage of the holiday shopping season, your auto dealership must have a solid marketing plan! Thanksgiving and Christmas provide lots of fun, new ways to promote vehicles and special offers, so get creative. The more unique your marketing strategies, the more likely they are to be successful.
These four holiday marketing ideas are great ways to kickstart your auto dealership’s holiday sales season.
1) Celebrate! Show off your dealership’s holiday spirit by making your show floor and lot look bright, inviting and festive. Nothing draws the eye like bright Christmas decorations. Buy a 20′ Douglas fir, place it in the center of your outdoor space and decorate it with twinkling white lights, tinsel and decorations. Hang fresh garland, red bows and lights from building eaves and light poles. Serve hot chocolate on the show floor. Unless you already have a talented person on staff capable of completely outfitting the exterior and interior of the rest of your dealership, hire a decorator to come in and do so. Show potential customers that your dealership is in the holiday spirit and make your show floor sparkle with holiday cheer.
2) Offer a “12 Days of Christmas” holiday sale. Everyone loves a lot – so why not package 12 great vehicle deals into one Christmas-themed event? Instead of having an unrelated series of holiday sale events, run a 12-day Christmas sale with an easy day off offering a different type of sale. Start with small promotions and older vehicle models and work your way up to “The Twelfth Day of Christmas” with bigger deals, ending with a grand finale!
3) Get creative with holiday-themed direct mail. Christmas is not the time to send out the same old stock postcard mailer. Send your direct mail list a little holiday cheer with authentic-looking Christmas cards or present-sized cards, complete with bows. Put down some “dealership cash” to send an extra merry message.
4) Run a social media contest. Offer a contest for a significant % discount, or a door prize giveaway (if your applicant pool is large enough for this). Ask people to engage with you in a specific way: Have them finish the phrase “All I Want for Christmas” in a photo, tweet or video, then ask them to either post their response on your dealership’s Facebook wall Ask for or Tweet you using this. a specific hashtag. Whatever your contest, be sure to create a specific landing page on your website (or Facebook event) that outlines contest details – link it to your social media accounts.
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