Hyundai dealer revs up sales while cutting e-marketing cost per lead 70%

Since switching its Internet marketing from third-party lead services to a system that lets it manage its own search engine marketing campaigns, Coastal Hyundai, a Florida-based dealership, has increased Internet-generated sales while cutting its cost per lead to about $6 from $20, Wade Wahy, Internet sales manager, tells InternetRetailer.com.

Coastal Hyundai in Melbourne, FL, began to deploy search engine marketing tools from Dealer.com in late 2005, replacing its former reliance on third-party automobile web sites to which it had paid $20 or more per lead, Wahy says.

In the past, when online car shoppers would click on a Coastal Hyundai image or text box on a third-party site, that site would attempt to capture a shopper’s personal contact information and sell it to the dealer, who would then e-mail or call the prospect. “We were paying $20-$25 for these Internet leads,” Wahy says. “But they didn’t even bring the shoppers directly to our web site.”

Coastal Hyundai is now attracting shoppers to its web site with Dealer.com’s Dominator search marketing service, which includes data uploads to search engine indexes, automatic bidding on keywords, and search engine optimization services for making web pages appear higher in natural search rankings. It also tracks keyword performance and shows which search engine visitors used to arrive at CoastalHyundai.com.

While the Dominator service brings in new customers, Coastal Hyundai is also using Dealer.com’s Sales360° e-commerce and marketing platform to build customer relationships and produce sales, Wahy says. Sales360° provides customer-management and marketing tools on top of a dealer-branded web site, which includes features such as live chat and the ability to configure a car and see real-time updates to pricing.

As new customers arrive at CoastalHyundai.com, Wahy uses the Sales360° system to automatically generate pop-up coupons valued at $100 to $250 toward a car purchase. To qualify for a coupon, visitors enter their e-mail and/or phone number. “The coupons work well, they generate customer contacts,” Wahy says. He also uses the system to generate personalized e-mails, set up customer accounts and track ongoing communications with customers.

“While paying less per Internet lead, my number of cars sold via Internet leads has gone up,” Wahy says.