AutoSuccess March 2016 Success Story

SUCCESS STORY APRIL 2016 · NO 4

WORKING AS A

TEAM 30% TOYOTA OF TRI-CITIES HAS

INCREASED SALES VOLUME BY

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Success Story Ä CONTINUED FROM THE COVER

Founded in 1997, Toyota of Tri-Cities is one of three stores operating under the Summit Auto Group Holding. Located in Kennewick, Washington, the dealership’s location can be an advantage — the nearest competing Toyota store is more than 30 miles away.

They provide a full-service facility six days a week so they can manage every customer’s needs, and have built a loyal following in the past two decades. The dealership’s leaders, however, knew that there was more that could be done to build for the future.

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“our business has changed in recent years and it demands that you go to market with a more strategic approach… data is the new currency” Carmen Marquart Director of Marketing Toyota of Tri-Cities

Two years ago, Toyota of Tri-Cities decided that they had to become more forward thinking, and that they couldn’t grow to the level they wanted to without bringing in some outside help. They decided to make some changes and really focus on finding good-quality vendor partners. First, they upgraded to a new CRM company that updated their day-to day activities. As Carmen Marquart, Director of Marketing, explains, “our business has changed in recent years and it demands that you go to market with a more strategic approach…

Toyota of Tri-Cities Perfect Prospect™ map allows the dealership to see which zip codes offer the highest conversion rates with the lowest cost per sale

data is the new currency.” Then, they partnered with a company who helped monitor new leads so that the dealership’s salespeople were on a rotation and knew when new customers were coming in and out of the dealership and could better prepare and make the most out of each new lead. TriCities believes in the 4 P’s - People, Process, & Partnerships. With the right People, good Processes, and Partners like Team Velocity Marketing, they are able to achieve the 4th P - Profits. This is what helped Tri-Cities grow their dealership to a year-over-year 51 per month unit improvement.

Here’s how they did it...

CONSISTENCY

Marketing is a science, and can be a tricky one, at that. Finding the right formula to get the most consistent message to your audience is something that many dealerships find themselves unable to achieve on their own. Whether it is through radio, direct mail, TV or any other media, one of the main components of a dealership’s marketing should be consistency. The ad on the radio should reflect the tone and philosophy of the TV marketing, which should echo the message of the direct mail, and so on. Dealers are great at many things, but selling cars should always be the primary

focus; other details can be outsourced to experts in those fields and together, the team can grow the dealership. After an extensive agency review, it was clear that Team Velocity Marketing was the best strategic marketing partner for the dealership. “For us, becoming the marketing partner for Summit Automotive Group’s Toyota of Tri-Cities dealership, is a perfect fit. They understand and embrace the data-driven strategies our company delivers”, says Justin Byrd, President of Team Velocity Marketing.

Once Toyota of Tri-Cities sent a constant, consistent message to their targeted audience, they were able to see results. In fact, over the past 14 months - since Team Velocity Marketing was brought on board - the dealership’s sales volume has increased 30 percent.

TAKING IT TO THE NEXT STEP

The number of loyal customers Toyota of TriCities has developed is unbelievable, and most are achieved through the dealership’s new Upgrade Department. Toyota of TriCities has two designated “concierge experts,” whose sole job is to put the customer who is in for service at ease. They invite them to the Owner Loyalty Lounge, which is equipped with iPads, a library, TV, refreshments, and other amenities. Taking

TOYOTA OF TRI-CITIES customer service and hospitality to the next level, they embrace an Omotenashi culture in their store, a Japanese philosophy which means act of providing detailed service in a variety of ways to allow guests to spend a relaxing and memorable time by putting customers first. The experts make sure that their needs are met before the subject of equity trade-in and vehicle upgrade is even mentioned. Their motto is to treat the customer like they would a guest at their own house; the feeling of “family” is crucial to the dealership’s sales attitude. Once a customer is comfortable, the concierge expert will talk with the customer about their upgrade options. Most of the time, they can help them move from their current vehicle to a new or certified used car at no additional cost to them. “We are selling 30 additional cars a month by establishing the Upgrade Program — 21 new cars and 9 certified used cars,” said John Manterola, General Manager of the dealership. With the Upgrade Program, Toyota of Tri-Cities generates more trade-ins, which not only helps the used car department, but also

keeps loyal customers happy, which prevents them from shopping competitors. Because of the Upgrade Program, their certified program has soared to 7 out of 71 dealers in the months this has been implemented.

TEAM WORK

One of the main keys to a successful dealership is the people. “Most of our team has been here for years,” Manterola said. “We treat them right. We offer them a 401K program that is second to none.

We show them what we expect and we deliver.” When people go to work for Toyota of Tri-Cities, they do not want to leave. The dealership’s leadership make the processes and standards tight, so some are not cut out for it; but the ones who are, are there long-term. This allows not only for a more satisfied, and therefore happier and more productive staff, but it also ensures that the experience of the employees stays at the dealership, and provides more support and more professionalism for its customers.

Selling more cars and more service with help Online Display Ads

from their marketing partner, Team Velocity Marketing, makes for a really fun environment and keeps employee retention high.

UNDENIABLE RESULTS With a strategized, consistent marketing plan in place, a bulletproof Upgrade Program and a dedicated team to help get Toyota of Tri-Cities to the next level, the dealership has seen a 30 percent increase in volume and a 37 percent increase in bottom line profit over the last 14 months since putting Team Velocity’s marketing services in place. Eight of the last 12 calendar months, they have set record numbers. “This is the best profit year in our history because of our consistent message through marketing, our on-target Upgrade Program and because our people are having fun,” Manterola said.

To learn more about Toyota of Tri-Cities and the strategies outlined in this article email: successstories@autosuccessonline.com

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Mobile Responsive Offer Site All of Toyota of Tri-Cities targeted marketing is managed from a single platform. This allows them to deliver consistent branding and offers across all of their media channels and monitor the results from all of their campaigns from a single, web-based dashboard.

Success Story

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Success Story

TOYOTA OF TRI-CITIES

This is the best profit year in our history because of our consistent message through marketing, our on-target Upgrade Program and because our people are having fun John Manterola, General Manager, Toyota of Tri-Cities

IN A NUTSHELL

In just 14 months, John Manterola and team have increased sales volume by 30% and a 37% increase in bottom line profits.

•Consistent Message — Whether you are putting your money into TV, radio, direct mail or other media, being consistent with your message is the key to the best results.

•Upgrade Department — Offering Upgrade options to customers visiting your service lane daily is a way to quickly grow new and certified pre-owned sales tremendously.

•Partnerships — Finding the right partnerships with vendors will allow you to concentrate on what you do best — sell cars — and outsource the rest to help your dealership grow.

•Long term Employees — Creating a family-like atmosphere for your team will keep the turnover rates low and the experience level high.

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