Earn the Business of Millennials
What is your dealership currently doing to attract millennial trailer buyers? If you think these young adults are not yet part of your target audience, think again – the millennial generation is defined (by most) as those who were born between 1985-2000. Not only is that an enormous pool of people, but it also puts the age range between about 18 to 32. If these people aren’t buying from you already, it’s only a matter of time before they become your dealership’s bread and butter.
It’s time to market to millennials, but to do that you need to get their attention first - and keep it. There are a few ways that are unique to this generation to best accomplish that goal.
∙ Members of this age group have grown up with endless amounts of information and content to absorb on the Internet, so it’s no surprise that they are easily distracted online. Simply keeping a prospect on your website long enough to consider a trailer purchase is an impressive feat. One way to guarantee a quick bounce rate? A website that isn’t up to par. To earn millennials’ attention online and keep them on your website, it needs to meet certain standards.
Millennials have seen it all when it comes to business websites – the good, the bad, and the ugly. They feel justified making purchases from businesses that have a well-designed, visually appealing, and well-functioning website – especially one they can navigate on their smartphone. But they’ll be quick to dismiss a website with a bad layout, broken images, outdated links, or one that is not optimized for mobile access.
∙ Social media will be your best bet in getting through to millennial customers. Not only do they spend a huge amount of time on social media, but these platforms also create an opportunity for them to discover new businesses and brands through sponsored content.
In order to nurture your existing social media audience (likely your current buyers) as well as earn new customers, you need to invest in social media in two ways. First, with your time – posting on your dealership’s pages every day and responding in a timely way to comments and messages. Second, with your money – paid ads on social media will help you target new potential customers who are likely to be in the market for your products. With 90% of young adults using social media, you can be sure that a huge portion of the prospects that come from your ads will be millennials.
∙ One major asset that will help earn the business of modern millennials? Good, old-fashioned top-notch customer service. With so many different dealerships to buy from and ways to find even more options online, the best way to earn the business of millennials once you’ve reached them is to offer unparalleled customer service.
Beyond the quality of your staff’s service in-store, offer digital assistance methods like on-website live chat, and create accessibility to your team through social media channels. Go above and beyond in post-sale customer service and follow-up as well – this can be managed easily through a CRM system. Millennials have made it clear that they prefer authenticity over price, so it’s crucial that your team is genuine in their customer service efforts.
While the digital world has created fundamental differences in the way businesses connect with millennials, they make up a valuable demographic that is becoming more important to your bottom line every day. By changing your methods of marketing to this group from traditional to digital, you will likely find them easier to reach than many of their older counterparts. The online world makes them more accessible, but because they are so digitally-savvy it’s also harder to earn their business. Adjusting your online marketing efforts, plus putting a strong focus on authentic relationships and stand-out service, will get you far in winning over your millennial market.