Posts Tagged ‘ Auto Parts Marketing Strategy ’

Automobile Dealers: OEM Auto Parts SEO is Different Than Automobile SEO

OEM parts marketing is different from marketing automobiles. Here’s why, plus tips on how to pick a digital marketing agency. More auto dealers find selling car parts online an attractive way to grow sales at the dealership. Online parts sales not only opens up the entire world as a marketplace, the profit margins are attractive, too. According to the National Automobile Dealers Association (NADA), dealership profits from selling new cars is dropping, while profits from fixed operations including parts sales are growing. Google Partners recently quoted NADA that new car sales have a profit margin of 6%-8%, while car...

If you’re looking for ways to increase sales, here are four ideas that can increase sales from your existing customers. Sales from existing customers are much more profitable than sales from new customers and we’ll show you why in this article. Marketing to new customers is important to grow your business, however, it’s just as important to retain existing customers to grow your sales, and impact the bottom line. (Also see our next article, Database Marketing Part 2 on lifetime value) Customer retention definition Customer retention is the process to reduce the number of customer defections. These defections are also...

Emails can quickly reach thousands of customers

For years, marketers have been contacting automotive consumers through direct mail. Direct mail was an essential part of most automotive marketing campaigns, but due to the rise of email marketing, it has been falling through the cracks. Email marketing is the trend that has been widely adopted by many automotive marketing campaigns of late. Over the first 15 years of the 21st century the major trend has been new technology. People have a desire to do everyday tasks through their computers, phones, and tablets. Online shopping has been on the rise, social media has entered the lives of most Americans, and even personal relationships are being formed through technology....

If you’re optimizing a website for auto parts SEO (search engine optimization), or even if you’re trying to optimize your paid search campaign keywords, knowing how enthusiasts search online for products and services is very important. Knowing these basic categories is critical when trying to reach auto enthusiasts online through Google, Bing or Yahoo. A well-optimized website will be found for consumer organic searches performed on a variety of words, including long-tail keywords, which are searches using three or more words. 1). Part type searches with part type modifiers Enthusiasts may look for parts based on part type so...

Here are our 5 Google automotive SEO and paid search predictions for 2014. Regular readers of this blog may be familiar with our previous Google predictions for the SEMA industry, which we’re proud to say, have mostly been on target. Prediction #1 for 2014: Automotive SEO and paid search continues to be a battle for real estate, not just position We made this prediction a year ago and it’s an even more important auto industry trend SEO efforts, or paid search (PPC) marketing. A few years ago automotive SEO and paid search was all about position—marketers wanted to be...

Google Product Listing Ads (PLAs) can help increase your online sales of auto parts and accessories this holiday season and we’ll tell you why and how to advertise on Google using PLAs. They make your online paid search/pay per click (PPC) campaigns more cost effective. The holidays — the time of the year when online shopping booms and customers seem to spend endless dollars buying more and more products online. But are the customers spending those dollars buying your products? Are they even finding your products online? Here are Google Product Listing Ad methods and strategies to help your...

Why advertise on Google: If you’re in the automotive specialty equipment industry, learn about digital advertising for manufacturers. Here are 6 important reasons to advertise on Google or Bing right now. Paid search, or pay per click (PPC) advertising, is a cost-effective way to reach consumers on the Internet when they’re making buying decisions. Today more than 4 out of 5 automotive consumers turn to search engines first when deciding what to buy. Reason #1 to advertise with Google or Bing: Take control of your brand. If you’re an aftermarket manufacturer, you probably ‘Googled’ your brand name before. Chances are...

Increase Relevance (and Sales!) with Email Segmentation

One of the most popular channels to reach consumers is through email marketing, yet countless marketing messages go ignored and unread. We’re all bombarded with thousands of marketing messages throughout the day, and people run avoidance measures in an effort to escape many of these messages. So how do you keep consumers interested and engaged in your emails? One word: segmentation. Why email segmentation is important Email segmentation lets you cut through the clutter by staying relevant and providing material your audience is interested in. You send email with one type of content to a group of customers, based...

Trend 32: The Consumer’s Definition of Performance

A large portion of the automotive aftermarket offers products that improve “performance,” but what exactly is performance? In 2009, Hedges & Company originated market research on how automotive enthusiasts define “performance” as part of the original Opinion Leaders Program for the 2009 SEMA Show. We released a report on our findings and completed another Opinion Leaders Program study again in 2010. Here is what we found: Almost universally, enthusiasts associate “performance” with “an improvement in function” and not necessarily with “speed.” This is worth noting because the aftermarket industry often associates the word “performance” with horsepower. In fact, many...

Today we’re unveiling three things you didn’t know about 2005-2013 Mustang owner demographics, one of the most important vehicles in our industry. The fifth generation, or S197 platform, Mustang market is a large and healthy segment for the automotive aftermarket industry and here are some vehicle registration statistics. 1). The typical 2005-2013 Mustang owner owns his or her home. 2). 2005-2013 Mustang owners have an annual household income of $72,115. For comparison the average US annual household income in 2012 is around $51,000. 3). 68% of 2005-2013 Mustang owners are male and 32% are female. Thanks for following our...

New Auto Market Research: Secrets of Parts Buyers Revealed

New BuyerZoom and BrandZoom research reports are available through the Hedges & Company Market Research Store. We’ve added new reports covering engine bearings, carburetors, connecting rods, cylinder heads, engine blocks, performance fasteners, fuel and oil pumps, gaskets, lifters, pistons, push rods, rocker arms, valves, and valve springs. For the first time in the automotive aftermarket it is possible to obtain affordable research reports focused on buyers of specific types of parts. BuyerZoom reports give you extensive behavioral data on consumers who shopped for or purchased specific types of parts, while BrandZoom reports show consumer perceptions and opinions on brands...

As a business grows, it goes through major, distinct phases of growth. These phases have unique characteristics and challenges and require some strategic planning. Recognizing these characteristics (even better, preparing for them) will help you manage your business through these challenges, or “growing pains.” Growth Stage One: $1 million (manufacturer) or $2 million (distributor) The first stage typically hits when your business reaches around $1 million in sales for a manufacturer, or $2 million in sales for distribution. Your business is building momentum, but you’re overworked and need additional help. You’ve been adding employees and now need to face...

(Note: if you just need to calculate gross margin or mark up, please scroll down.) If you want to increase gross margin with a price increase, you should know how gross profit is calculated and assuming a drop in unit sales, how many unit sales are needed to maintain the same gross profit. On the other hand if you’re considering a sale you should know how many additional unit sales are needed to maintain the same gross profit. You need to know how total unit sales can drop (for a price increase) or need to increase (for a price...

Why do some companies thrive and dominate their market segment, only to later become an afterthought? Market dynamics and the Rule of Three explains how some companies succeed and some fail. Most industries and market segments, including the automotive aftermarket, will have market share dominated by three competing companies. This article will take that a step further and show how companies using the Rule of Three can plan a market share strategy that will help ensure profits in the future. Rule of Three marketing defined To revisit an October 2003 article we wrote for SEMA News, market share is...

Here’s how the 80/20 principle can be used to manage your business, reduce costs and increase your profits. You’ve probably heard about Pareto’s Law or the 80/20 principle, although most people only understand 20% of it, 80% of the time (rim shot!). This simple principle can be used to increase sales, profits and increase effectiveness of your marketing, and is easy to use. Vilfredo Pareto was an Italian economist and sociologist born in 1848. His big discovery in 1897, “Pareto’s Law,” claimed that in any society, 20% of the people would earn 80% of the income. Pareto’s observations, now...

Why Was This Recession Different? It Was the Double-Dip In Auto Parts Sales

When looking at the auto parts retail segment of the economy, the Great Recession not only lasted longer than previous recessions, but our market research shows auto parts retail sales also had a double-dip. For all the talk in the news media earlier this year whether the recent recession would fall into a double-dip recession, the automotive aftermarket already had one.* And ironically sales for the aftermarket went into negative territory June 2009, when the current recession is now officially defined as ended. Confused? Read on. The start of the Great Recession and the auto industry From December 2007...

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Posts Tagged ‘ Auto Parts Marketing Strategy ’

Automobile Dealers: OEM Auto Parts SEO is Different Than Automobile SEO

4 Ways to Increase Sales With Customer Retention Strategies | Database Marketing Part 1

Direct Mail or Email: Which is More Effective for Your Automotive Business?

Auto Parts SEO: 6 Important Search Types to Know

Google Product Listing Ads: Boost Your Paid Search Campaigns This Holiday Season

6 Reasons Why Manufacturers Should Advertise on Google or Bing With Paid Search Ads

Increase Relevance (and Sales!) with Email Segmentation

Trend 32: The Consumer’s Definition of Performance

3 Things You Didn’t Know About 2005-2013 Mustang Owners

Stages of Growth in a Company and ‘Growing Pains’

How A Price Increase/Decrease Affects Gross Profit vs. Unit Sales

Rule of Three Marketing: Market Share and Market Dynamics

Using the Pareto 80/20 Principle to Analyze your Business and Increase Profits

Why Was This Recession Different? It Was the Double-Dip In Auto Parts Sales