When times get tough, a lot of dealers like to employ the old adage “When it’s slow, lay low”. But is that what successful Used Car Dealers do? We talked to a few and here is what some of them do when those times come.
Make Dealership Enhancements – This is a great suggestion and one that has a lot of merit. A lot of dealerships are a bit lax when it comes to maintenance. Why not use the down time to wash the windows, paint the trim, add some decorations, or do a deep cleaning. Customers do notice the little things and if you spend the time, you will get more customers who write positive reviews.
Purchase Quality Vehicles – Instead of taking a risk on a vehicle that is cheap but may have been neglected and abused, why not spend a little more money per vehicle and get a more quality inventory. You will be building your reputation and probably receive more referrals in the slow times than the dealer that sells the lemons. It’s better to buy two clean $7,500 cars than three bad $5000 cars with $15k.
Get Social – Are you effectively using social media to engage your customers? Sites like www.pinterest.com, www.instagram.com, www.facebook.com, and www.twitter.com are all ways to engage with the public and just might get you that extra customer you are after.
Take Better Photos – Was that BMW dirty when you took pictures because you wanted it on the website right away? Why not look down the inventory list and pick a few vehicles where the lighting was bad, the car was dirty, or the recon wasn’t done completely and retake your photos. That just might make for a better showing for your customer and be the motivating factor to schedule a test drive.
Spend On Advertising – Just because it’s slow doesn’t mean you should cut your ad budget. If the other dealers do that, that will leave you with the customers when thing pick up, as your cars will be found and seen. See if there are other ways to trim your cost first, this one should be a last resort.