Tracking ad effectiveness lowers costs for dealership

1400 Motors of Nashua achieves significant reductions in ad spending
Located in New Hampshire, about 45 minutes northwest of Boston, 1400 Motors of Nashua draws customers from an eclectic mix of New England towns and cities. 1400 Motors of Nashua is one of several independent dealerships clustered in an area known to locals as "The Automotive Village." Competition is fierce and constant. This kind of competitive environment requires fast reflexes and nerves of steel.

"It's actually a neat market," says Ray Sousa, the dealership's GSM. "We're part of a very vibrant automotive community. We're all vying for business -- and that keeps us on our toes."

In a typical month, 1400 Motors of Nashua sells between 80-100 vehicles, attracting customers from a 30-miles radius. Capturing the attention of those customers requires lots of advertising, in various media. The question keeping Sousa awake at night was maddeningly simple: Which of my ads are working and which aren't?

"I suspected that the print ads weren't doing the job," he recalls. "About a year ago we began using Who's Calling to track all of our inbound calls. Within six months we had the evidence we needed to be certain. We went ahead and trimmed about $10,000 a month from our budget for print ads - and the customers kept on coming."

Who's Calling helps Sousa allocate his marketing dollars more effectively and with more confidence. Armed with detailed reports from Who's Calling, he's more likely to use targeted media such as direct mail and email. With targeted media, results can be tracked in real-time and campaigns can be modified on the fly.

Sousa describes himself as an avid user of Who's Calling products and services. "Who's Calling sends me email alerts when there's a missed calls or an after-hours call so we can follow up on while the lead is fresh. Who's Calling sends me weekly reports so I can see for myself where the leads are coming from. Who's Calling also records the inbound calls so I can listen to them, play them back for my staff, and work with them to improve their telephone technique."

This "soup-to-nuts" utilization of Who's Calling enables the dealership's BDC to focus on fresh leads, allowing the sales force to concentrate on building deeper, more profitable relationships with existing customers. The detailed reports generated by Who's Calling have also helped Sousa pinpoint problems in the BDC and make personnel changes to improve the center's operations.

"How has Who's Calling benefited us? In two big ways: We trimmed our advertising budget by $10,000 a month. We do a better job of targeting our ads." Ray Sousa, GSM 1400 Motors of Nashua

Challenge: 1400 Motors of Nashua competes in an eclectic market drawn from a large surrounding area of towns and cities in New England. It wrestled with the question of how to allocate its marketing dollars most effectively.

Solution: Who's Calling enables the dealership to measure the impact of its advertising - accurately, without guesswork. Armed with timely data, the dealership targets its advertising with confidence and precision.

Result: 1400 Motors of Nashua has trimmed its advertising budget significantly in some areas, while focusing more resources on targeted media such as direct mail and email. With its objective approach to advertising, 1400 Motors of Nashua achieves superior returns on its marketing investments.

Call 1-866-688-9300 for a free consultation with your local Who's Calling consultant and find out why it pays to know Who's Calling.

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