The auto industry is perhaps one of the most competitive fields out there. You’re competing with dozens of local salespeople, as well as a new online market.
In order to succeed and stand out from your competition, you’ll need to take a look at your marketing. You may have a solid marketing strategy right now, but people are finicky, especially when it comes to ads.
That’s why it’s critical to use both strategic and tactical techniques to boost sales. But aren’t they the same thing? You may think so, but it’s a far more complicated issue.
Read on to discover the differences between strategic and tactical car marketing.
Tactical Car Marketing: What is it?
Think of tactical marketing as marketing with a purpose. Yes, all marketing ultimately has a purpose — to increase sales — but it’s about more than that.
Instead, think of tactical marketing as the smallest element of your marketing campaign. It’s the ‘how’ instead of the ‘what’.
Keep these questions in mind when you’re working on your tactical car marketing.
- How do you want to achieve your goals?
- Are your goals simply to drive sales or increase your visibility?
- What kind of customer are you looking for and how can you create content with them in mind?
If you’ve got a website with a large blog and high volume traffic, that’s great! But your content needs to serve the overall purpose of driving customers (no pun intended) to buy.
Serve your customers instead of your ego, and you’ll notice a difference. People don’t want to be sold something, they want to be informed.
Create content with a voice instead of an ad.
So What is Strategic Car Marketing?
In contrast, strategic marketing is all about how you can achieve goals. While tactical marketing focuses more on the microcosms of the ad world, strategic marketing is all about the big picture.
Your strategy will ultimately serve as the foundation for your marketing plan.
Without a clear picture of where you want your dealership to go, you’ll struggle far more than needed.
The first step is to set some goals for your dealership. What specifically is it that you want your marketing to achieve?
Take a few minutes to really ponder that question.
Some considerations for your strategic marketing plan may include:
- Your audience
- Unique sales goals for your dealership
- Demographics, including sites and media your audience partakes in
- How you can reach your goals
- Online access to your dealership, including a My Business page so you can build up your reputation through reviews
Can You Have One Without the Other?
Not if you want your dealership to succeed.
Strategic and tactical marketing techniques go hand in hand. One is the foundation of the home, the other is the interior that fleshes that home out.
Make sure you’re using both types of marketing technique in your business strategy.
Marketing Matters
We understand it can be tough to figure out how to market your dealership. But with some tactics, strategy, and creativity, you’ll be on top in no time!
If you’ve got ideas of your own, don’t forget to sound off in the comments below! We’d love to hear what you think.
And if you could use some help with your business, don’t be afraid to get in touch for an instant quote!
