AS THE winter weather arrives and with Christmas just round the corner, Motors.co.uk has offered some advice for generating end-of-year sales.
The guide was produced by Peter Watts – pictured above – who is director of dealer insight at Motors.co.uk, and used insight on consumer buying patterns and market conditions to outline the key areas on which to focus as the year comes to a close.
1. Bringing stock in; moving stock on: Watts says: ‘With demand increases kicking in from Boxing Day onwards, now could be a really smart time to acquire your ideal stock profile to pre-empt those sales.
It clearly pays to have good value, good quality vehicles at the low end of the insurance and running cost spectrum promoted clearly on your forecourt and online platforms in order to keep customers coming through the door.’
2. Understanding the finance life cycle: ‘While there has been much said about pre-registration potentially impacting upon the positive new car figures in recent years, it is important to look at the wider market trends also.
‘The significant jump in PCP deals on new deals in 2012 meant that this year, as the three-cycle came to its end, there were plenty of manufacturers offering strong incentives to retain customers and support the them into a new car. So, instead of struggling to find customers and pre-registering new vehicles, there was a real market.
‘The volume of part-exchanges means there has also been a growth in ageing stock available, (which) isn’t always so good for the retailer. Beware the dealer who sells too quickly in December and is faced with buying the same stock back in January at £500 more.’
3. Aligning the experience to buyer behaviour: ‘There is a key challenge for dealers around aligning their online and offline experience.
‘Consumers want to be able to turn up at a dealership in much the same way they would a restaurant after making a booking online. This means that the showroom should be expecting them, the delivery date of their next car already finalised.
‘Often, consumers will have conducted extensive research before they set foot in a dealership and, as a result, the role of the dealer is to validate the decision they have already made. Being quick, attentive and responsive can help a dealer to mitigate any other hurdles that might be in the way of a purchase, such as price differential or a missing accessory or feature.’
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