Have you ever had someone leave your dealership and wondered why you stopped getting leads from your website or classified site?  Or has someone left your dealership and then weeks/months later you find out that you haven't been receiving email leads from a particular lead source?  Believe it or not it happens more than you might think.  So, how does it happen?

Well, here's a story of a lovely lady, who was having a grand time handling email leads all on her own.  She had been asked to setup leads through her dealership's website and a few other classified type websites.  Things are chugging along nicely and she is showing you now and again the great leads she is receiving.  Then one day something happens and she leaves the dealership.  A few weeks later you overhear a conversation at the front desk that folks keep calling in saying that they've sent emails and no one is getting back to them.  Then it dawns on you...

So, how do you make sure that doesn't happen to you?  Simply use email aliases for your website or other places sending you leads.  For example setup a simple websales@yourdealership.com email alias that gets forwarded to the saleperson(s) email address you would like.  Then if that person ever leaves you only need to change where those email leads get forwarded.

Email aliases are super simple to setup and manage. Just ask your email admin to help you out if you don't already know.

Now, that you know how to proactively handle a potentially harmful email situation make sure you make it a part of your employee termination checklist.

Looking to hire an Internet marketing in-house?  Follow these simple suggestions to help make the process more efficient and get the best results.

Email Marketing – This is really huge.  You have a tremendous captive audience from previous customers and all your web leads. You have advantages over your competitors.  Get these in advantages in front of customers and prospects.  It will produce results.

Social Media Marketing – This takes time to do it right, but because of your market reach there is a large upside potential.  This includes blogging, content building, Facebook, social bookmarking, etc.

Optimization – We know that our websites have s a good SEO foundation as well as some advanced strategies already in place.  Things should always be progressing and having someone to build links both internally and externally would produce results over time.

Analysis – Having close eyes on your results and spending (ROI)  You’ll want to identify specifically what is to be tracked and also require actionable analysis.

The first three things I mention have elements that cross over to one another so it does make things easier and a blended strategy.

Finding the right person will be key.  If you are hiring someone with experience then you’ll want to get detailed explanation of what they been successful at AND have failed at.  Any good online marketer has failed and more than once.  They’ve tried things have haven’t worked which helps them find what doesn’t.  I’ve interviewed enough folks in this industry to know that knowing the buzz words and actually knowing how to accomplish something are two very different things. If you'd like help during the interviewing process let me know.

If you hire someone green you’ll spend less, but their ability to be productive will take some time.  We’ve found that you need to have a pretty aggressive pay scale over a two year period so that as they learn and apply you keep in sync with their marketability.  If you don’t you risk having to start over.  Like any hiring decision it’s the balance.

Don't be afraid, but don't do it blindly either.  It's about preparing for the results you want to achieve and then find the right person who can help you get there.

Credit Apps from your website to your lender in the blink of an eye.

InteractRV has recently launched a new credit application process that can save you time and in the end, money!

What if you could :

• Have a future customer fills out your secure website credit app
• Receive an e-mail or text notification letting you know the new credit app has arrived
• Open the new secure credit app as a PDF that..
  • Looks exactly like your lender approved form
  • You can print and/or fax directly to your lender

Secure, Simple and Fast!

Contact a team member at InteractRV today about getting your credit app process faster and more accurate!!

Contact us at (800) 515-9672!!

If you’ve put even a modest effort into your website, then you already know there is real potential for your website to produce leads and help increase sales.  So, how do you find the right ‘person’ to help with your Internet marketing efforts to produce the most return on investment?

I use the title website manager, but you may use website designer, webmaster, or just the person who does your website.  No matter what you call them, they have a increasingly important role in the marketing of your RV dealership and are either making you money or losing you money.

Who might be a website manager?

I’ve heard many explanations of who a website manager is, and here are a few of the most common types:

• '‘Parts Guy’ – This is the person, called the website manager, that also has other dealership responsibilities.  Generally, this person has taken an interest in the website as something new to learn, as a hobby, or was just given the task.
• Internet Department – You might have a full-time person or group of people with a leader that is your website manager.  This person usually devotes their
  time to collecting and following up with website leads while attempting to keep the inventory and other information current on the site as well.
• ‘Web Guys’ – Typically this is someone outside of your dealership that you hired to design, develop, or maintain your website.  They may be an individual contractor or a web company with multiple employees and specialized skills.

What does a website manager do?

The responsibilities of a website manager can be a mixed bag depending on who you have in the spot.  However, a productive website manager should be focused and really good at discovering what’s working, what’s not working, and what needs to change.

I’ve witnessed it myself…a single text link added to a web page increased leads by 100%.  A website manager looks out for your best interest, is knowledgeable about website marketing and an expert at pulling together the right people to make your website a productive member of your staff.

Where do I find a website manager?

First, create some criteria for reviewing what you currently have in place for website management.  For example:  Search engines have just recently begun beefing up what they call ‘local search’.  They are putting a huge effort and millions of dollars into it as more and more people use the Internet as the yellow pages.  If the person responsible for your current website doesn’t know anything about ‘local search’ and what needs to happen so your website is included in those rankings, then I might start looking for somebody who does know.

Second, you can look internally and see if there is someone on staff who meets the criteria.  You may find someone who can update inventory and make a few text changes, but they may not be knowledgeable enough to really make your website produce to its potential.  If you need to go externally, look for a website management company that understands your customers and your business.  There are enough companies that focus on RV dealer websites that you don’t have to ‘train’ someone about the industry.

What to watch out for…

Someone once said ‘All ships rise when the tide comes in.’  The Internet is growing all the time.  So, be careful not to automatically attribute success to your ‘web guy.’  Just simply ask them what they are doing to get better results.  If they don’t have an answer that makes sense, then you are almost guaranteed your website is under-producing.  Having a website manager that knows how to make changes to help increase sales is well worth it.  Having a website manager that knows what they are doing can generate similar results to having a qualified F & I Manager.

Promises.  Promises.  Be careful of those that promise you the world.  Don’t be afraid to check references.  It may just save you a lot of time and money.

Where do you go from here?

Before you move forward with your website plans you might want to pause and set some goals for your site.  I know it sounds cliché, but how can your web manager help you pursue success if there isn’t a definition of what that looks like?

If you haven’t looked at your website as a way to increase short term and long term sales, it might be time to take another look.  You could be losing out on the largest growing marketplace today.  With the right people in place to help manage your site, seeing an increase in sales, even during the off season, might be just around the corner.