How Dealerships Can Get The Most From Their Old CRM Data

Why Reviving Your Dead CRM Data is Worth It

If you’ve been having a hard time finding new leads, you may actually be sitting on some pre-existing leads that you’ve been overlooking. Chances are that you’ve had several people come to your dealership and seem interested in buying a car, but who then didn’t follow through with a purchase. Those same people may actually be thinking about buying a car now, and you just don’t know it.

Have you checked your customer relations management (CRM) data lately? An effective CRM system can increase customer retention by 27%, and seemingly dead leads can present a surprising amount of opportunity. If you have just 10,000 leads in your CRM program that were previously tossed because they didn’t buy a car within 2-3 months, you could revive those leads. Getting just 1-2% of those leads to return and convert could mean millions in sales. Working with and re-nurturing leads that you already have in your system costs far less than generating completely new ones, and it’s pretty simple and effective using our CRM Revive program.

CRM Revive examines prior CRM prospects that didn’t make any purchases. First, we remove old and inaccurate data from your prospects. Next, we append  valid data to your records, and then target these revived leads with email, social, and mobile marketing to get them back to your showroom.

Why Is It Worth It to Revive Dead CRM Data? Are Older Leads More Likely to Convert Than New Leads?

It’s simply more cost-effective to work with the leads that you already have, and CRM Revive makes this process very easy. But think about the “R” in CRM: the relationship aspect. A brand new lead isn’t as likely to warm up to you right away. They know that you want to sell them a car, and you do. But in the modern era of digital marketing, you need to cultivate trust and relationships with your customers first.

By sharing useful content about car safety and maintenance, and forming partnerships with related businesses such as car accessory sellers, you’re providing more value to your leads and keeping them interested. A local angle can also be easily worked in depending on weather and road conditions where you do business that will keep prospects hooked on reading your content. Three out of four customers return to a business where they had an excellent experience, and you want this experience to continue well after they leave the lot. By leveraging the relationship that already exists with these old prospects, it will be easier to convince them to return and purchase a vehicle when compared to sourcing and enticing a brand new lead. It could be as simple as attracting prospects who now have the money to upgrade their vehicle a year after they initially came into contact. You’ll want to make sure that your lot will be the place where they spend that money.

Context is also key. A potential car buyer who was previously looking at a brand new sports car with a high price tag when they were first entered in your CRM system may now be looking for a vehicle more suitable for a family. CRM Revive strives to keep updated data on your previously-dead leads filled with insight, so that your marketing will be relevant to your leads whose circumstances may have changed since they last came to browse at your dealership.

It’s still important to source new leads and maintain a relationship with them over time- new leads are, of course, an essential part of your sales pipeline. It is, however, worth noting that you may be sitting on a gold mine of prospects. These leads that you’d thought had decided not to buy from you may just need to be reminded months, or even years, down the road.