Location-based marketing has endless uses across a wide range of industries. From restaurants to retail and even political campaigns, the effectiveness of geofencing is undeniable. One of its best applications is with businesses that depend on foot traffic. This makes auto dealerships the perfect place to implement location-based marketing strategies.
Geofencing with Thumbvista makes it possible for dealerships to serve mobile ads to potential customers based on where they live, where they are, or where they’ve been. These tailored ads are delivered straight to the consumer’s phone by way of popular mobile apps, such as the Weather Channel, NBC Sports, or even gaming apps like Sudoku. Here are just a few ways that geofencing can help auto dealers become more effective marketers.
See Auto Industry Case Study Here
Target Your Most Profitable Areas
Location-based marketing allows dealerships to strategically target areas where their best customers live. You can use you own historic data and local knowledge to find out what areas have the highest concentration of past buyers, and then send specific messages to those areas. Whether you cast a wide net and target a ZIP code or go hyper-local to target a neighborhood, this ensures that the right message gets to the right people.
Target and Retarget Visitors
It also allows you to geofence the dealership itself and market to potential customers that are already at or have recently visited the showroom. You can advertise a specific vehicle or current promotion to someone who might be walking the lot or sitting in the waiting area, making them more engaged with the vehicles on-site.
Geofencing is also great for retargeting those who have already visited the dealership. Buying a car is a big decision so shoppers often visit multiple dealerships and take their time deciding which one to purchase. Being able to remarket to anyone that has visited the store, even those whose contact information you weren’t able to gather, keeps you top of mind and gives you a major leg up on the competition. For example, you can send a limited-time promotion for recent guests offering $1,000 off vehicles purchased in the next three days.
Geo-Conquest the Competition
The same principles and benefits can be applied through a technique known as geo-conquesting. This is when a business puts a geofence around its competitors as a way to engage people they know are considering purchases within their niche. Geo-conquesting is the perfect way for auto dealerships to ensure that their dealership makes its way into a potential buyers decision-making process. Auto dealers can deliver personalized messages to potential buyers that have visited or are on the lot of their biggest competitors and incentivize them to come in with a promotion. Is your lot on a “dealer’s row?” Geofence the whole area and make sure car shoppers visit you too. Don’t forget about the service and parts departments either. Geo-conquesting can also be used to fence their competition and bring new customers into the dealership.
Boost OOH Ad Effectiveness
It can even be used to enhance existing out-of-home advertising like billboards or other signage. These types of OOH ads can be effective on their own, but data shows that they become even more effective when paired with mobile advertising. With geofencing, dealers can see who has been near their OOH ads and then retarget them to reiterate and enhance those messages. You can fence your own billboard, a manufacturer’s billboard, or events like auto shows or a sporting event sponsored by a manufacturer. Even geofencing the intersection or dealer’s row where your store is located can help bring new customers into the showroom.
No matter how you use it, geofencing and location-based technology will take your mobile advertising to the next level. For auto dealers, it gives them a powerful tool for targeting the best prospects. Thumbvista provides the perfect platform to add geofencing to your marketing arsenal.