These marketing strategies don’t have to work independent of each other.  Collaborative efforts are quite common, attempting to reach potential customers and drive them towards the purchase of a vehicle.  For example, most television ads now include the dealer’s website. Within an online marketing campaign the phone number or location of the dealer may be incorporated.

Why not take this partnership a step further? Consider leveraging the physical marketing material in conjunction with the steady increase in the number of Smartphones used by those potential customers.  According to a June 1 report by Nielson, 21% of Americans owned a Smartphone in Q4 2009. That number is significantly higher than the 14% in Q4 of 2008.  Is there a simple way to connect 1 in 5 potential customers that are exposed to both online and offline marketing campaigns?

Using a Quick Response (QR) code is a mobile-friendly way to link the offline material to an online resource.  A QR code is a two-dimensional code that can be scanned by Smartphone cameras to automatically pull up text, photos, videos, and Urls on their phone’s browser.  While already popular in Japan, consumers in the United States are just now becoming more familiar with QR codes and what to do with them.

Examples of simple ways to integrate QR codes:

• Include a QR code in a large print advertisement and instantly attract people to the dealer’s website.
• A QR code on a vehicle’s window sticker could direct the smartphone to a video of that vehicle.
• QR codes on posters, postcards or any print material that links to the dealer’s testimonials.
• Use the QR code to promote discounts on Service, i.e. scan this to receive $5 off an oil change, etc.

Quick Response (QR) codes can be generated simply with the help of any number of online resources.  A quick search in Bing reflects a ton of services out there to assist in the creation of QR codes.  iCandy is an example of one that allows dealerships to create, print, scan, share and track QR codes.   Most Smartphones, such as the iPhone and Android, have applications that will scan these QR codes. A basic search in either application store for “barcode reader” or “QR code” will also return a number of choices.

Remember that new technologies and habits take time to become a part of “normal” activity.  Keep in mind that most people still consider interacting with QR codes to be a very foreign activity.  Dealers should show how to scan the QR code, and help instruct customers on where they can grab scanner applications. Point them to applications that they can download onto their phones.  Also it is important for the result to give the potential customer some form of value.  Instead of directing the codes only to the home page, make it more interactive to keep the customer’s interest.  The more engaged the person is, the higher the likelihood the dealership may gain a new customer.

“The redesign of our vehicle inventory will push our dealers ahead of their competition. Consumers can find what they are looking for faster, and dealers can tailor their inventory to look more like the rest of their website. After conducting extensive research, we determined that although we offer one of the better inventory displays on the market, we felt it was time to utilize the latest technology and push the product to the cutting edge,” said Joe High, group general manager for Dominion Dealer Solutions.

XIGroup now offers a visually appealing user interface and many new features, including:

-          Custom inventory page layouts

-          Custom search results layouts

-          Custom detail page layouts

-          Inventory, search results and detail pages all branded for manufacturer compliance

-          Social network integration

-          Photo and video galleries available on search results pages

-          Enhanced lead generation

-          New car comparison feature allowing buyers to compare details of up to four (4) cars

-          Specials and coupons themed to match dealer websites

-          One click access to all contact forms

-          Deeper filtering criteria

“The launch of this new inventory display propels XIGroup into an era of unprecedented customization for dealer inventory.  Gone are the days of each dealer’s inventory looking exactly the same,” said Sean Stansell, Product Development Manager for XIGroup.  “Now the dealer can tailor the display to match their site and their brand, while providing their prospective customers with an easier, more intuitive interface.”

Dealers choose from three primary inventory formats, which are adjusted to match the dealer’s main website. Further customization resides in the search results and detail page layouts, where dealers can choose between several styles, selecting a default for how the vehicle information is displayed. Prospective car buyers can switch between styles when viewing information in the inventory, allowing for both dealer and customer flexibility. With every layout branded to match the dealer’s website, the car buyer experiences a seamless transition between the rest of the dealer’s site and the vehicle inventory.

The new inventory manager will be included as part of the XIGroup website package for all new and renewing customers. For more information, go to: www.xigroup.com/inventory-design

XIGroup’s mobile websites are customized to match the dealer’s current website.  Dedicated and extensive testing on a broad range of mobile phones resulted in mobile websites that universally translate into the highest quality possible while taking advantage of each phone’s individual features. XIGroup mobile websites are compatible with nearly all mobile devices and feature a superior user experience.

XIGroup’s websites automatically detect if a visitor is using a mobile device and seamlessly adjust the content format for smartphones.  Everything from inventory, coupons, contact forms and directions can all be easily navigated by mobile users. The mobile website allows users to navigate the inventory with as much detail as the dealer’s website, including the ability to define searches by make, model, trim, year, color, and price.

XIGroup mobile websites harness simplicity in navigation and design, combining ease and speed to give car buyers a rewarding shopping experience. For more information, visit www.XIGroup.com.

WHITE MARSH, Md., Sept. 10, 2009 – XIGroup, the automotive industry’s leading provider of revenue-generating websites, and a division of Dominion Dealer Solutions, has introduced XIGroup Conversion Reports that show its automotive dealer clients where their website leads come from with unprecedented detail.

The new feature tracks how each customer got to the dealer’s website, whether from a search engine, an OEM site, a third-party lead provider, or by typing the URL directly into their browser.  For customers that came from search engines, it also tracks whether they clicked on an organic or paid link, shows the keywords they searched for, and whether the click was from a map search.

“This type of conversion data is incredibly valuable to dealers.  It doesn’t just show them how people get to their site, but how people who submit leads get to their site,” said Joe High, XIGroup general manager. “The combination of sales data and XIGroup’s Conversion Reports allows dealers to measure actual return on investment (ROI) on pay-per-click campaigns, SEO efforts, and third-party lead providers. The data allows dealers to focus their marketing efforts on the traffic sources and keywords that actually turn into leads.”

For more information, visit www.XIGroup.com or call 888-924-6448.

Inventory updates-such as a change in price, photos or dealer comments -made using any Dealer Specialties tool will appear automatically on the dealer’s website(s).

“For years the industry buzzword has been ‘real-time’-now it’s a reality,” said Joe High, XIGroup general manager. “Dealer Specialties is the largest provider of inventory collection services in the industry and we are proud to offer our clients instant updates of their data and photos.”

Al Hess, general manager of Dealer Specialties, said of the integration, “In choosing Dealer Specialties inventory management and XIGroup websites, dealers now do not have to worry about manually updating their website with mid-day price and inventory changes. Those changes on a dealer’s XIGroup website will be seamlessly done through the Dealer Specialties IVM tool. We believe this makes the combined offering between our two companies the most unique in the marketplace today.”

Real-time inventory updates are available free of charge to all XIGroup website clients using Dealer Specialties for their inventory and requires only a confirmation call from the client to turn on the service. Interested clients should call 888-924-6448

About XIGroup

XIGroup is an industry leader in providing website value and customer support. For more than 10 years the company’s proven online services have empowered franchise and independent dealerships by helping them interact effectively with potential Internet car buyers. Easy-to-use, SEO friendly and cost-effective tools and superior customer service are the hallmarks XIGroup. For more information, visit www.XIGroup.com.

About Dominion Enterprises

Dominion Enterprises is a leading marketing services company serving the automotive, enthusiast and commercial vehicle, real estate, apartment rental, and employment industries. The company’s businesses provide a comprehensive suite of technology-based marketing solutions including Internet advertising, lead generation, CRM, Web site design and hosting, and data management services. The company has more than 45 market-leading Web sites reaching more than 16.7 million unique visitors, and more than 450 magazines with a weekly circulation of 4.3 million. Headquartered in Norfolk, Va., the company has 5,400 employees in more than 200 offices nationwide. For more information, visit http://www.DominionEnterprises.com.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
 
BALTIMORE, MD - October 15, 2008 - XIGroup proudly announces the release of Elite SEO. The company’s newest solution utilizes the power of multiple micro-sites and content pages to accelerate search optimization results.  As part of the package XIGroup offers dealers dedicated single page websites (with a unique URL) for all models any one manufacturer offers. Dealers will also receive dedicated model landing pages for their inventory and five additional SEO friendly content pages. The Elite SEO package will give dealerships the ability to make use of this entire showcase for a very manageable monthly price.

XIGroup’s Search Engine Specialist Kevin Doory explains; “targeted content will assist dealers by increasing rankings for specific geographic and model searches. It will also provide helpful content to prospective car buyers.” 
 
For more information about how you can add the Elite SEO package to your current website please contact XIGroup today at (410) 276-0010 or bmulcahy@xigroup.com. Through October 24th we will waive all setup fees! 

That’s right, my opinion has every dealer displaying actual inventory and some dealers displaying actual inventory and a vehicle builder. I have heard a number of different reasons why dealers don’t think they should display their actual inventory. The most common reason is because they are a small dealer without a lot of inventory. My response to that would be that until the car buying process has become completely automated and the difference between buying a car from one dealer online vs. another is just financing or service, the customer is going to eventually visit your dealership before buying the car. If you have presented your dealership differently than you actually are, you may have just lost that sale on a lack of trust alone.

Both methods have their pro’s and con’s. Actual inventory lets the customer know that they can come to the dealership and buy the exact car they were looking at online. A vehicle builder or form allowing the consumer to request a specific type of vehicle makes your inventory limitless and could increase your number of leads significantly higher than you would have seen with actual inventory alone. Both methods will gather leads from different types of buyers.

The best thing you can do is to do your homework, find out what types of cars people are buying and stock them. Otherwise you may lose a future customer when you have to tell them you can’t find the F-150 with Navigation, DVD, Rear Spoiler, 22” wheels and the talking Knight Rider feature that even a 100% accurate Build-A-Car tool will allow them to create.

You should also keep in mind that not all buyers are the same. For example, if I were going to start looking for a new car to buy my first task would be to go to Google and search for that type of car. I would be looking for local dealers that stock that particular model. Once I found a site I would “build” the vehicle I am looking for just so I have an idea of what options are available, what the differences are between trims and what MSRP is for the vehicle. I would take notes and I would not submit a lead (sorry, that’s how I am). Now that I know what car I want, I would search actual inventory for that vehicle. If it isn’t on the site I am searching, I will go search somewhere else. Once I have found the vehicle of my dreams online, I would call the dealer to confirm that the vehicle was actually in-stock, if it isn’t I am done shopping at that dealer. If it is, I would go to the dealer, test drive and make my decision to buy or not to buy. You may notice that I never submitted a lead. I just don’t want anyone to call or email me at all in the process. If I could swipe my license in a candy machine that spit out the keys for me to test drive and swipe my credit card when ready to buy, that would be my ideal buying experience.

I hope you enjoyed my opinions. If you are curious to discuss this with me in more detail, please feel free to call me at XIGroup.

Joe High

General Manager, XIGroup

Additional article here – http://www.heraldtribune.com/article/20071024/BUSINESS/710240690

CarBiz Inc. (OTCBB: CBZFF) (“Carbiz”) announced a partnership with XIGroup to provide professional websites to independent automotive dealers. The websites will integrate seamlessly with the CarBiz DMS system, allowing dealers to easily market inventories online and readily update site content, eliminating the need for costly programmers. More than 35 third-party data distribution channels – such as AutoTrader, Cars.com and EBay Motors – are included with the package.

“XIGroup offers a solid, scalable product at a price point that will appeal to our entire customer base,” says Carl Ritter, chief executive officer of CarBiz. “This service expands our efforts to be a solutions provider for the independent dealer market.”

“XIGroup is extremely excited about this partnership,” says Bill Mulcahy, sales manager of XIGroup. “CarBiz has an excellent reputation in the automotive industry and they bring a tremendous knowledge of the independent market to the table. The integration of our services will provide dealerships of all sizes with more exciting options.”

About XIGroup

XIGroup based in Baltimore, Maryland, specializes in building automotive websites for franchise and independent car dealers. Founded in 1998 and then acquired by Dominion Enterprises in 2005, XIGroup has earned a strong reputation providing quality products and a top level customer service. The company’s websites have been developed by using the requests and feedback of actual automotive dealers and allows dealerships to show a professional presentation of their inventory on-line. Using this winning combination of products and service, XIGroup continues to be well-respected for providing engaging websites, personal service & proven technology at an unmatched value to the automotive industry.

About CarBiz

Based in Sarasota, Florida, CarBiz owns and operates the nation’s fourth-largest chain of “buy-here pay-here” dealerships through its CarBiz Auto Credit division. The company is also a leading provider of software, training and consulting solutions to the United States automotive industry. CarBiz’s suite of business solutions includes dealer software products focused on the “buy-here pay-here,” sub-prime finance and automotive accounting markets. Capitalizing on expertise developed over 10 years of providing software and consulting services to “buy-here pay-here” businesses across the United States, CarBiz entered the market in 2004 with a location in Palmetto, Florida. CarBiz has added two more credit centers since – in Tampa and St. Petersburg – and recently acquired a large regional chain in the Midwest, bringing the total number of dealerships to 26 in eight states. For more information about CarBiz and its services, visit CarBiz’s web site: www.CarBiz.com.

Forward-Looking Statements

All statements, other than statements of historical fact, in this news release are forward-looking statements that involve various risks and uncertainties, including, without limitation, statements regarding the future growth plans and objectives of CarBiz. There can be no assurance that such statements will prove to be accurate. Actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements as a result of known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors. Such factors that could cause actual results and future events to differ from those anticipated in such statements include, but are not limited to, the market acceptance of CarBiz’s Auto Credit Centers, CarBiz’s ability to measure the default rate of its borrowers, competition, the impact of any changes in applicable government regulation and general economic conditions. These and all subsequent written and oral forward-looking statements are based on the estimates and opinions of management on the dates they are made and are expressly qualified in their entirety by this notice. CarBiz assumes no obligation to update forward-looking statements should circumstances or management’s estimates or opinions change.

Contacts:

Jennifer Downey

1-800-654-4955 ext 1203

Website: www.CarBiz.com

By: Brian Page, General Manager of Dealer Data Services at Dealer Specialties

“To capture the ever-increasing Internet market, it helps to have a thorough understanding of the online car shopping experience. Consumers typically go through five steps before making a final decision about the type of vehicle they want to purchase, including where they plan to purchase it.”

Know the Five Steps Online Shoppers Take  (click on link to view full article)

Dealer Marketing Magazine – July 2007

By: Cameron Healey 

XIGroup, a division of Dominion Enterprises, just launched a customer advocate program designed to help its dealer customers get the most out of their Web solutions.

XIGroup has staff members called “customer advocates” that proactively monitor dealer Website usage and other metrics, and then based on these results calls the dealer to offer suggestions, methods for improving results, training tips, and other ways to remain effectively engaged in the Internet marketing process. “One of the biggest challenges in this industry is when dealers make a large investment in tools such as lead generating Websites, inventory management products, or search engine marketing, and then don’t use them or use only a small fraction of the features, thereby never realizing the full potential return on investment,” says Brian Burns, general manager of XIGroup.

Additionally, many dealers don’t call vendors when they encounter problems, which is why XIGroup implemented a proactive approach. “We have a genuine interest in our customers’ success, and by having our customer advocate connect with dealers on a regular basis, we hope to sustain long-term partnerships,” says Burns. There are companies out there that offer in-dealership and Webcast training, but many dealership employees use only a small portion of what the products offer. The customer advocate program is designed to determine whether a dealer is using all the tools necessary to succeed.

Customer advocates work with the dealers to look at historical information and determine whether the changes made to their marketing programs worked, and why. XI’s advocates also analyze lead quality, quantity and process, monitor Website traffic, and compare vehicle-pricing statistics.

If dealers are generating a high ratio of inventory views but few leads, it could indicate their pricing is too high. If a consumer sees the same car on two different dealer sites and one has a rebate or coupon and yours doesn’t, he or she will likely visit the other site. Advocates make recommendations to dealers to ensure their prices on the Websites remain competitive and often recommend what words and verbiage dealers should include on the welcome page to help search engines find the dealers’ Website. XI’s advocates also look at the Website’s ‘live stats’ that include how many people visited the site, how many page views, where they visited (i.e. inventory page or parts and service department), and the average time that is spent on the site.

Downward trends could indicate a problem. This could mean that the dealer isn’t updating the site enough, or conversely, could mean they are updating it too much.

Advocates will recommend keeping the site neat, clean, and user-friendly and will inform dealer clients of new product features that can enhance their Web solutions. They will proactively contact the dealer and schedule Web demos of the new features or additions. Gary Peters, general manager of Ken Pollock Nissan in Wilkes-Barre, PA is a fan. “When I had a few questions about updating our Website, I called XIGroup and our customer advocate drove out to see us in person to do a training session. He has called us since then on a regular basis to offer additional suggestions and ideas. It’s nice to have that personal service.”

While this is not a new concept, wouldn’t you rather have a Website company who is on your side, understands your goal of moving iron and making money without worrying about all the “bells and whistles?” The customer advocate program is complimentary and available immediately to all XIGroup customers. For more information, please visit www.xigroup.com.