Byline: Cliff Banks
The channels creating the most interest - and angst - are blogs and podcasts. (See stories below.)
Should dealers throw all of their marketing money at the Internet and rush to develop their own blogs and podcasts? David Leider, category development officer for Yahoo!, says, "Talking about blogs and podcasting is so far down the pike."
Yet dealers cannot just rely on shoppers finding them. Dealers must use imaginative ways to get their message in front of them.
They are ahead of most dealers. But having a good website only goes so far. Dealers must make sure people who are in the market for a vehicle can find their websites, using search engine marketing with tools such as Google, Yahoo or MSN. (See story on page 28.)
Miller is considering creating a blog for the dealership itself.
This shift is going to change advertising spending - not just moving money to the Internet, but also how that money is spent online.
The number of people blogging and podcasting is climbing.
Specifically, it is the future of Internet advertising. This isn't another report on advertising dollars shifting from newspapers and TV to Internet companies. But there is a cultural shift in how people communicate with each other, how they shop and how they get their news and entertainment.
Internet technology has progressed to a point that average people are able to take control of the Web and create their own personal media worlds. People will be able to avoid the traditional advertising. The challenge for businesses and advertisers is to find ways to get invited into these new channels.
Why? First, broadband usage is reaching the tipping point, says a PricewaterhouseCoopers study. Nearly 39 million households will have broadband access by the end of the year. That is half of the households with Internet access.
That change already is happening for some dealers. Others will take their time. It took almost 10 years before most dealers had websites. It will not take nearly as long for a massive shift in advertising strategy.
Capital Ford in Raleigh, NC, sponsored a blog by a local newscaster who did an online diary of her pregnancy while on maternity leave.
"It got about 15,000 hits in the two weeks," says Paul Miller, the dealership's sales manager. "I think it worked for us."
"I don't see any slowing down of the trend toward the personalization of media," Denise Chuddy, Google's head of automotive, tells Ward's.
Overwhelming is the need for general education regarding the Internet and just the basic blocking and tackling of things such as good websites and sound strategies for lead acquisition and search engine marketing.
Blogs are published web versions of people's thoughts and opinions. They have been around for a while, but gained popularity in the last couple of years through the introduction of automated published systems.
This means people will increase their time spent online as the days of intermittent dial up access become an ancient memory.
Some dealers may say: "We already include our URL in all of our advertising, we have a user-friendly website with strong content and we're selling cars online. We're in good shape."
"There are a lot automotive enthusiast-type blogs that have thousands of members," he says. "If we can start sponsoring some of them, we might be able to extend our reach."
It also means people are going to be able to do more online.
It is the future of advertising. It's a future that, in many ways, already is here.
Newer, podcasting, deriving its name from iPods, makes audio files available online in a way that allows software to automatically download the files for listening at the user's convenience. That content can include advertising messages.
"Consumers are creating their own content online and you're going to have to connect to them through that content they create," Gayle Troberman, director, branded entertainment and experiences for MSN, tells a group of automotive executives at a Microsoft meeting.
Leider believe dealers can spend 10% of their effort on new things, as long as 90% is spent on the basics.
Whether it is blogging and podcasting or some other channel of the future, marketing experts believe personalization is the future.
Dealers are still are feeling their way, Leider says.
Is your dealership googling? What about blogging? No, it's not baby talk.
Dealers spent 6.7% of their advertising dollars online in 2004, up from 5.3% the year before, according to the National Automobile Dealers Assn. That percentage keeps increasing.
"A blog would be a powerful tool, if written correctly, but there are a lot of things to consider," he says. "I really wanted to do it. We had some great ideas, but you don't always think about the repercussions."
Previous article: 18 September 2006
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