How tracking your customers’ purchase journey can help your marine dealership
By Nicole Schantz
VP of OEM and Strategic Initiatives, Trader Interactive
The introduction of online research and digital retailing tools has revolutionized the shopping experience for consumers, making it increasingly nonlinear. This means that fewer customers start their journey in the dealership. In fact, a survey conducted by Boatline revealed that 86% of marine buyers shop digitally. This means that when consumers shop online for units, they leave behind a digital footprint that you can use to your advantage. In this article, Boatline explores why tracking your customers’ purchase journey is important and the lessons you can take away from it.
Why Tracking Your Customers’ Purchase Journey Matters
Today’s shoppers are well-informed on the benefits of technology, with 44% of buyers stating that they consider themselves to be digitally savvy. Consumers may come across up to 24 distinct digital channels throughout their purchase journey, learning more information about a unit at each touch-point. There are many digital resources to help understand which touchpoints work best for leading to a sale at your dealership. This investigation into the multiple interactions that bring in leads is referred to as “attribution analysis” or simply “attribution.” It is an important part of lead intelligence that should inform your advertising decisions.
Consumers utilize a variety of online sources to help them find and purchase the right unit. According to our data, dealer websites, search engines and online classifieds are among the most commonly used search tools for marine consumers. By tracking attribution data, you can gain insight into which of these touchpoints are bringing you the most leads, as well as which sources are providing the highest quality leads. If your website is seeing increased traffic, it could be an indication that your marketing approach is successful and should be kept up. On the other hand, if the amount of visitors you are getting from your advertisements is not desirable, it would be beneficial to make sure your listings are properly optimized with images and accurate pricing, as well as the products’ proper year, make and model criteria. This knowledge allows you to make informed decisions when it comes to allocating your marketing budget, helping you increase your sales.
Three Important Takeaways To Consider
- Develop a Plan to Achieve Maximum Engagement with Customers
Having an online presence is essential in order to succeed, as more and more of your customers are turning to the web for guidance in making their decisions. By recognizing your customers’ shopping behavior, including which digital channels are most likely to draw them to your website, you can better understand which strategies are most efficient and cost-effective in broadening your reach and creating stronger relationships with them. You can use this invaluable data to make your sales talk tracks even more powerful by incorporating data from their purchasing journey into your follow-up conversations.
- Pinpoint What Strategies Are Not Producing Desired Results
By tracking your buyers’ sales journey, you can gain valuable insights into what is working and what needs to be changed or omitted from your current strategy, as well as which services are not providing value and can no longer be prioritized. This information can help you better understand your customers and the routes they take to find your marine inventory, allowing you to create the most advantageous outcomes for both your business and your customers.
- Consider Tools Like Lead Enrichment to Create More Informed Conversations
Tools like Lead Enrichment help inform how consumers are browsing your inventory. After a consumer submits a lead on Boatline, dealers are able to see each piece of inventory they continue to browse. By looking at a consumer’s browsing history on a marketplace, you can understand time in market, brand preference and price range. All of this creates a more informed conversation and can guide that lead to quicker closed sales.
By leveraging data and technology, your dealership can better understand your customers and provide them with a personalized experience that meets their needs. This attention to detail can result in higher customer satisfaction, greater loyalty, and ultimately more sales.
For more information about Boatline, visit BoatMediaKit.com.
Nicole Schantz is the Vice President of OEM and Strategic Partnerships at Trader Interactive, parent company of Boatline. She has been a valuable member of Trader Interactive for 18 years and played a vital role in the launch of Boatline.com in 2021. Nicole and her team are continually optimizing the online marketplace experience for both dealers and OEM partners. Much of Boatline’s success can be attributed to Nicole’s leadership and determination.
