The landscape of sales and promotion at car dealerships is changing rapidly. Advances in technology, the rise of social media, and a shift in cultural values all have an impact on how your dealership interacts with customers. Many companies are currently grappling with learning to effectively market to different generations and cultures. It is likely that your target audience includes a generational mix of everyone from millennials to baby boomers, as well as people from different backgrounds. How do you cater to this eclectic mix?

Embrace technology…

When a new or previous customer is thinking about purchasing a vehicle, one of the first things they will likely do is to check your website. This is especially true of millennials. Be sure to create an informative, up-to-date website that provides genuine value to your customers. Being able to browse inventory online is an essential convenience for potential customers. Before they make the decision to physically come to your car lot, they want to know what is available. If your website fails to provide this information, customers will likely move on to another dealership. If possible, consider adding a chat feature to your page so that phone-phobic millennials don’t have to call your dealership with questions. In addition, utilizing social media platforms, such as Facebook orTwitter, is a great way to provide real time information about sales or events

… But don’t lose the personal touch

Courteous, effective customer service is just as important as technology. Older people still tend to prefer face-to-face contact or easy access to live people via telephone. Training your employees to provide great customer service to both new and old customers will help you build good standing in the community. Nothing hurts a car dealership more than gaining a reputation for pushy, rude, or dishonest sales people. Whether a customer is buying a car for the first time, is scheduling an appointment with your service department, or is asking questions about a bill, it is crucial that your employees provide top notch service.

Learn about your audience

One of the greatest qualities of the United States has always been that it is a melting pot of people and perspectives. As such, it pays to understand the groups of people who may shop at your dealership. For example, maybe your city has a large population of Latino people. If you want to attract this group, it is smart to learn about their values and employ a few people who speak Spanish. You can use this type of knowledge to build good will with different cultural communities, encourage return customers, and increase the chance of customer referrals. Conversely, failing to do business in a way that embraces and includes others could potentially earn you a damaging reputation.

Reward to retain

Although customers from different generations and cultural backgrounds may value different things, all customers enjoy rewards and saving money. Rewards programs are a great way to satisfy this need. By embracing the Reward to Retain program, it enables your customers to earn rewards points not just for purchasing a vehicle, but also for other interactions as well. For instance, you can customize your dealership’s Reward to Retain program so that you award points for things like visiting your service center, writing reviews, or providing referrals to friends or family. Rewards points can then be used to get a discount on an oil change or be put towards a down payment on the customer’s next vehicle. Another idea is to create a monthly newsletter which you email to customers who are enrolled in your reward program. This newsletter could include coupons, featured vehicles, and invitations to events hosted by your dealership. Reward programs are a great way to encourage customers to interact with your dealership regularly rather than every few years when they purchase a new vehicle.

Catering to a diverse group of customers can be tricky, but it is absolutely crucial if you want your business to succeed. Learning about the different ways people like to interact with businesses will help you facilitate those interactions and draw in customers. Hiring a diverse group of employees and marketing towards the values of different cultural groups in your area will help you build a reputation for being inclusive. Lastly, remember that all customers appreciate the added value of reward programs.

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