Top 5 Car Dealership Growth Strategies

In an increasingly competitive industry, auto dealerships that want to thrive in the modern retail landscape must adopt aggressive growth strategies. Today’s modern consumers increasingly expect a seamless and digitally integrated car buying experience. The old ways of doing business are not enough to drive real sales and profits in 2018’s competitive and low-margin environment. Dealerships must adapt and evolve.

If you’re a dealership owner or manager, you must be willing to pursue new avenues for growth and adopt modern ideas. Dealerships that do embrace the future will see continued profits and relevance in the coming years. Those that do not will find themselves squeezed out of a tightening landscape. Below you’ll find 5 critical first steps to a modern car dealership growth strategy.

Adopt Digital Retail. Today's consumers are craving digital retail and buying a car is no exception. Your website and overall digital presence should be consistent with your dealership experience. You should have rich and compelling information about your dealership online, including a detailed catalog of vehicles, your services, and easy options for users to get in touch. Investing in a modern and mobile-friendly website is key to meeting consumer demand in 2018 and beyond.

Improve Service Department Experience. Frankly, many dealerships today are not offering a friendly and compelling service department experience. Service technicians may lack training in dealing effectively with customers. Processes may not be in place to optimize for a positive customer experience. This leads to lost sales not just on parts and services, but on new vehicles as well. Train your service team to deliver a great customer experience every time and you’ll find new paths to growth within your existing customer base.

Sell Parts Online. It is easier than ever to implement an e-commerce store on your website. Selling parts online is an effective way to grow your geographical reach, move more inventory, and begin mastering online sales overall. Car dealerships must begin the process of becoming internet retailers as soon as possible, or risk eventually being displaced by the looming threat of online car sales.

Invest in Online Advertising. Many car dealerships still have marketing strategies that focus mostly on traditional advertising channels like radio and print. It should be clear at this point that attention has moved to digital devices and will continue to move in this direction. Allocate a larger portion of marketing spend to new media efforts like social, PPC, and search engine optimization and you’ll find new efficiencies and develop new competencies.

Build a Great Team. Investing in employee training, retention, and happiness is critical to growth and success for your dealership. Too many dealers treat employees as replaceable without considering the cost of employee turnover. A motivated, positive team is your greatest asset in building competitive advantage for your business over the long term.

These 5 strategies represent important starting concepts in planning for growth and success. As the automotive retail industry changes, you and your team must be proactive in seeing the future and implementing growth strategies to meet market demands. If you’re looking for a complete game plan to dealership growth in 2018 and beyond, Max Zanan and his team can help. Contact Max today for a free car dealership growth consultation.