Automotive dealerships use many different methods to obtain quality leads for their sales associates. Standard methods include referrals, organic traffic on the internet, and paid advertising, among others. One of the most overlooked and under-estimated means of getting better quality leads on a regular basis is through the FCR from your website’s trade-in tool.

Form Conversion Rate (FCR) is the percentage of site visitors that have completed and submitted a form on your website. The majority of trade-in tools on the market have a contact form that is presented to the potential buyer at some point during the process of obtaining a trade-in value. This contact form is where the lead is generated. The better your FCR is, the more leads you will have.

Understanding the form conversion rate that your trade-in tool’s form is producing can give you an excellent idea of how well the tool is doing overall. If potential car buyers are leaving the form and your website halfway through the process consistently, you will want to analyze the problem by examining your trade-in tool’s step-by-step procedure and identifying where it could be breaking down.

Four Biggest Reasons for Form Abandonment

Form abandonment is when the potential buyer leaves your site midway through the process of filling out a form. If you don’t have their contact information before they leave the site, they have abandoned the form, and you have lost the lead. If the FCR for your trade-in tool is performing poorly due to a high abandonment rate, examine your trade-in tool for the following:

• Visually Unappealing - Consumers are visual. Numerous studies have been conducted on the appeal of graphics and how they affect the consumer’s overall impression of the information they receive from the trade-in tool.1 A good trade tool provides customers with the information they are seeking in a way that catches their attention and keeps them interested.

• Multiple Steps or Page Format – Consumers want to get things done quickly. No one wants to spend a lot of time filling out page after page of information. A good trade tool should provide all the preliminary information the potential car buyer needs to know about their trade-in from a one-page submission. The process must be fast, simple, and easy to use.

• Does Not Use Range-Based Values – A range-based trade appraisal provides better middle ground between a customer and the dealer. Trade tools that offer only static pricing or a limited range force the customer to accept the price at that point. It is valuable to sales associates because it gives them a starting point and multiple condition levels in which to begin when evaluating the vehicle in person.

• Not Mobile Friendly – With so many consumers using their smartphones on a regular basis, it is imperative that your trade-in tool is mobile friendly. The entire trade-in appraisal, graphics and fill-in forms should be just as easily interpreted on a tablet or smartphone as it can be on the computer. This mobile-friendly design makes it easy for a consumer to get a trade-in value on their vehicle wherever they are.

Conclusion

Consumers can be very flighty when it comes to filling out forms even if they want the information. The faster, simpler, and easier it is for them to 

get the information they are seeking from the trade-in tool, the more likely they are to complete the form, provide their information and become a complete lead in the system. That quality lead can turn into a sale.

Your trade tool must ensure that the consumer does not have to jump through hoops to get a trade-in value on their vehicle. In fact, they should have the information they are looking for within seconds in a visually appealing, easy-to-read manner that will leave them with a positive impression of the trade process, your website, and ultimately, your dealership as well.

Choosing a trade-in tool that focuses on these essential points will improve your FCR and increase the number of complete leads you receive from the tool. It is this form conversion rate that will determine whether the trade-in tool you have is the one that will result in good form conversion rates that will result in quality, complete leads. And remember…better leads = more sales.

References
1 - https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/visual-content-marketing-strategy