How to Attract Quality Traffic

Written for AutoSuccess Magazine
July 2002

By Scott Joseph

If you had hundreds of people in your showroom, what would happen? The extra people would generate a sense of excitement, for one. They would also create a sense of immediacy for people who were hot prospects- the prospects would want to claim the car that they wanted immediately, and avoid loosing it to another person. They may even provide social proof that the dealership is offering incredible deals. Why else would all those people be there? But, any dealer who has been in the business more than twenty minutes knows that this is the limit to the usefulness of a huge number of people in the showroom. Admit it. Sometimes lookey-loos just drain your sales resources.

So, how do we define that illusive “quality traffic” that everyone talks about? Well, most dealers define it as people who are genuine in their interest to purchase a vehicle (a buyer), and traffic they can get financed. One thing that almost all dealers tell us is that they don’t want their store flooded with “gift seekers.” So, the only question is how to get that quality traffic in the door. Direct mail can be a remarkably effective tool in driving this type of traffic- as long as it is done well!

First let me say that general advertising is fine, and name recognition is very important in business, but this is not what direct mail is for. Leave the top-of-the-mind-awareness campaigns to TV, radio, and the newspaper. Direct mail must carry a specific, powerful offer to the correct audience. Think of it as a motivating tool- it must elicit an emotional or logical response, and immediately move the customer to act.

So, how is this accomplished? First, the offer must be genuine and unique. What you are offering must be valid in the eyes of the consumer, but it must be remarkable enough to attract their attention. This will involve the consumer logically. If the offer is too ordinary, the consumer will dismiss it. However, if the offer is too incredible, the consumer may dismiss it as hype.

Similarly, the offer must appeal to the consumer’s emotions. Generally, this means appealing to the customer’s need to feel important, fear of loss or exclusion, and appealing to their sense of pride and privilege, while keeping them in their comfort zone.

We have spent years testing direct mail marketing to see what motivates people (emotionally and logically) into purchasing. There are several simple techniques that you can easily use in creating and organizing your promotional pieces that will improve not only the amount of traffic that you see in your showroom, but will also guarantee you higher-quality traffic, while drastically reducing all those gift seekers.


• If you are using a giveaway or free gift, bury it more than half way down in the letter. If the consumer has already read four or five paragraphs in the letter about buying a car, they are genuinely interested in purchasing. A gift or giveaway at that point will encourage someone with interest into coming into the showroom, but won’t advertise to gift-seekers.

• Create a sense of urgency for the consumer to attend the event by limiting the promotion to only a few hours. This suggests the possibility of exclusion to the customer- they may be left out if they do not make plans to attend! Continue this exclusive atmosphere by stating that only a select few people have been chosen for the event. This feeds the customer’s need to perceive themselves as important, receiving deals that the general public can’t get.

• Comfort your customer by ensuring them that their purchase will be easy. The lowest prices will be offered, and no difficult, uncomfortable negotiation will be required. Make the experience appear painless and simple, and keep the reader in their comfort zone!

• Personalize every letter with the customer’s name. The easiest and quickest way to establish a connection with someone is to refer to them by name.

• Explain why this event is being held, and why the customer should expect a genuinely good deal on a vehicle.

• By having an outside company host the event, it disassociates your dealership from the event, and suggests that the promotion (and therefore the lower pricing) was required from a source higher-up than the dealer. If this can be seen as a nationwide event, or if it can be implied that it originates from the manufacturer, so much the better.

• Consider an RSVP, which will ensure early calls to the dealership from genuinely interested, motivated customers by offering them another high-quality gift. Dealers frequently sell vehicles before the event even begins with the inclusion of an RSVP.

• Don't overwhelm your audience with different options as to what the mailer is about. Give them a main offer, give them one or two more reasons to come into the dealership, and then stop.

Finally, make sure your offer is aligned with your list. Once your offer is solid, then consider the type of person that would respond to such a mailing. If you are trying to increase your secondary financing sales, target people with sub-prime credit scores. If you need to reduce your trade-in inventory, target used vehicle buyers. If you are overstocked on minivans, target families with kids.

Utilize all these tips with your next direct mail piece, and you will guarantee a higher quality of traffic in your showroom. Remember- you don’t need traffic in your showroom. You need buyers in your showroom.




Next month: How to Make Money on Your Sales Event
Before it Even Begins!

Read another AutoSuccess article:

April 2001:
Seven Advantages of Direct Mail for the Automotive Industry

June 2001:

Testing and Measuring the Effectiveness of Your Advertising to Improve Your Profit

July 2001:

Killer List Strategies For Your Direct Mail Promotion

September 2001:
How to Make Them an Offer They Can't Refuse!

October 2001:
The Secret of Out-Performing All Your Other Advertising!

November 2001:
The Number One Strategy to Out-Market Your Competition

December 2001:
Creative That Gets Results!

January 2002:
Secrets to Improve Your Sales and Profit With Direct Mail

February 2002:
How to Sell One to Two More Deals for Each 100 Pieces of Mail You Send!

March 2002:
The Seven Biggest Marketing Mistakes Everybody is Making, and How to Avoid Them!

April 2002:
Business Rules to Grow By!

May 2002:
The Only Three Ways to Grow Your Business

June 2002
Your Customers Are Speaking to You. Do You Hear Them?

August 2002
Make Money on Your Sales Event Before it Even Begins!

September 2002
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