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Honda Dealer Pilot Study
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Transcript of Honda Dealer Pilot Study
C A S E S T U D I E S
Honda Dealer Pilot StudyResults with Search Engine Ad Management
2
Honda Dealer Pilot Study Results...with Search Engine Ad Management
© 2009 The Reynolds and Reynolds Company. All rights reserved. 1075648 8/09
To gain a more thorough understanding of the program’s benefits, Reynolds also examined a comparable Honda dealership (Dealer B), located within the same metro area and conducting a competitive paid search campaign.
Extraordinary Results: Comparing Year-Over-Year
Following the completion of the pilot program, Reynolds compared metrics from the paid search time frame to the same period over the previous year. Dealer A’s Web site realized significant increases in total visitors, unique visitors, and lead submissions while using Reynolds’ Search Engine Ad Management.
In this new age of marketing, effectively managing all lead-generating avenues can be the difference between a success and struggle. Through industry-leading solutions and award-winning support, Reynolds works with dealers to make their business better.
Search Engine Ad Management provides paid search ad management for dealerships on search engines, such as Google™, Yahoo®, and Bing™. As part of the service, your ads and key advertising terms are constructed and managed by Reynolds, so your Web site sees more traffic.
Web Traffic, Leads, and Opportunity
Successfully capturing and converting leads is critical to dealership success. Yet, reaching consumers online requires more than a dynamic company Web site. A fantastic site does little if average Internet users can’t easily find it. When it comes to being found online, search engines like Google and Yahoo are the key. In fact, 79% of car shoppers use search engines to find information, making them an increasingly important part of any dealership’s marketing strategy.*
To assess the performance of its comprehensive search engine marketing service, Search Engine Ad Management, in generating dealership Web traffic and leads, Reynolds initiated a four-month pilot program. Using a Honda dealership (Dealer A) as the pilot subject, Reynolds’ program specifically included:
•Initialadspendoflessthan$500thefirsttwomonths,withanincreasetoslightlylessthan$1,000thefinaltwomonths.
•PayperclickadsplacedonGoogle,Yahoo,andMSNLive.
•PaidsearchcampaignrunningfromNovember1,2008throughFebruary28,2009.
Measuring Performance
In evaluating the results of Dealer A, Reynolds examined three areas:
•Year-over-yearWebsiteperformance.
•Competitiveperformancecomparison.
•Individualmonthlyperformance.
By tracking these different areas, Reynolds took various elements, such as regional differentiators, industry trends, and economic conditions, into consideration when determining perceived value.
Honda Dealer Pilot Study
Results with Search Engine Ad Management
Clear Definitions
Lead submissions are digitally submitted
lead forms that consumers actively
engage in filling out and submitting. The
following categories were not tracked or
calculated in the lead submission figures
displayed in this review:
Phone Calls – While many paid search
management services track and claim all
phone calls as leads in their calculations,
Reynolds feels this is a misleading
practice. Performance can widely vary
from dealer to dealer, region of the
country, and manufacturer. In addition,
many phone calls received by a dealer
are from current clients, vendors, and
other sources.
Maps and Directions – Many paid
search management services track
when prospects click on a dealership’s
directions or map page and calculate it as
a lead.
While Reynolds considers phone calls
and clicks to directions to be positive
actions, and something to measure, they
do not qualify as leads.
*Source:R.L.PolkStudy2008
3
Honda Dealer Pilot Study Results...with Search Engine Ad Management
© 2009 The Reynolds and Reynolds Company. All rights reserved. 1075648 8/09
•DealerBexperienceddecreasesintwoofthethreeperformanceareas,mostnotablyleadsubmissions.
•DealerAcontinuedtoexperiencegrowth,despitetheautomotiveindustry’sdownturn.
It is important to note that during this time frame, total searches conducted for Honda vehicles declined at both the national and regional levels. While overall Honda searches had declined, Dealer A’s Web site saw significant increases in all measured performance areas.
Comparing Dealer-to-Dealer Results
In order to ensure a fair comparison, Reynolds also reviewed Honda Dealer B, a dealership located in the same region and utilizing a competing paid search management service.
The dealers compete in the same market, where their locations do not give either a significant competitive advantage. However, there were some competitive advantages for Dealer B, with regard to their aggressive pricing practices.
Both dealerships conducted similar off-line advertising programs, with the significant differences being that Dealer B emphasized discount pricing and offered price coupons on new vehicles, while Dealer A did not utilize either practice.
Upon observation of the data:
•Intheprioryear,performancenumbersweresimilarbetweenDealerAandDealerB,withtheexceptionbeingDealerBreceivedmoreleads(19.6%).
•Bytheendofthepilotperiod,DealerAhadseensignificantgrowthinallmeasuredperformanceareas.
Dealer A Year-Over-Year Comparison
Total Visits
UniqueVisitors
Total LeadsSubmitted
0 0
3,000
6,000
9,000
12,000
15,000
100
50
11,104
14,441
8,644
11,372
+30.1%
+31.6%
350
300
250
200
150
214
3022008
2009
+41.1%
Total Visits
UniqueVisitors
Total LeadsSubmitted
0 0
3,000
6,000
9,000
12,000
15,000
100
50
8,4788,082
-4.8%-4.8%
350
300
250
200
150
214
230
2008
2009
-10.2%-10.2%
10,31610,962
+6.3%256
Dealer B Year-Over-Year Comparison
Total Visits
UniqueVisitors
Total LeadsSubmitted
0 0
3,000
6,000
9,000
12,000
15,000
100
50
8,082
350
300
250
200
150
230
23.9%
10,962
30214,441
11,372
24.1%
28.9%
Dealer A and Dealer B 2009 Side-By-Side Comparison
Dealer A
Dealer B
4
Honda Dealer Pilot Study Results...with Search Engine Ad Management
© 2009 The Reynolds and Reynolds Company. All rights reserved. 1075648 8/09
These performance improvements occurred with no other changes made to Dealer A’s Web site or business practices. The gains can be attributed to Reynolds’ ability to dial in and perfect ad title, copy, design, and landing page messaging. With persistent efforts throughout the pilot period, Reynolds’ Search Engine Ad Management continually improved performance for Dealer A. Impressions and clicks for the ads placed on Google continued to increase through the final month of the pilot.
Case Review
The results of this pilot indicate that Reynolds’ paid search service, Search Engine Ad Management, delivered significant and superior results compared to another paid search service provider. Throughout the pilot period, Dealer A consistently realized more unique visitors, more interest, and more leads, in spite of the difficult economic conditions and an aggressive competitor pushing low price deals.
With these improvements, Dealer A is better positioned to sell more vehicles, generate more return service customers, and see continued operation and success.
Though both dealerships were using a paid search management service and operated within the same metro area, Dealer A was experiencing considerable success and marked growth using Search Engine Ad Management from Reynolds.
Reynolds’ Search Engine Ad Management was able to deliver significant performance improvements in every category during the pilot time frame, while the competing Honda dealership only saw improved performance in one area.
In reviewing the last month of the pilot period, we see an even greater disparity in performance between Dealer A and Dealer B. Just in the month of February, Dealer A experienced:
•41.8%greaternumberofvisitsthanDealerB.
•53.8%moreuniquevisitsthanDealerB.
•98%higherleadsubmissionsthanDealerB.
Google CampaignsDate Range: 2/2/09 – 2/28/09
Feb 2 to
Feb 8
Feb 9 to
Feb 15
Feb 16 to
Feb 22
Feb 23 to
Feb 28
0
1,000
2,000
3,000
4,000
5,000
6,000
7,000
0
40
80
120
160
200
Impressions
Clicks
Overall Gains/Losses Comparison
Total Visits
UniqueVisitors
Total LeadsSubmitted
-500
0
500
1000
1500
2000
2500
3000
3500 3,337
646
2,728
-396
Dealer A
Dealer B
100
80
60
40
20
-20
-40
0
88
-26
Dealer A saw performance
improvements of up to 41% with no
other changes made to their Web site
or business practices.