Text is king because the recipient typically sees it right away, but they must opt-in.
Calls are invaluable to connecting with a customer, but they have to pick up the phone.
Videos are wildly beneficial to being memorable, but they need to click play and watch it.
Emails have become second-class citizens in the sales world yet are still a great way to stay top of mind with your prospects. “Hey… but they need those emails to be opened” you say? This is much easier when you’re personalizing emails.
Personalizing emails is nothing new or revolutionary. We (the collective ‘we’) has been preaching (and certainly the singular ‘I’ have been training) the need to create customized emails for each customer, lead source, lead type, and shopper intent since I was a much younger man (with far less gray in my hair than now). Unfortunately, though, it seems as our industry has gravitated to these newer mediums of text and video (as they should), they have forgotten the finer points of the latter mediums of the phone and emails (as they shouldn’t).
Here are the 6 techniques to personalizing emails:
- The Subject Line is for Them, Not You
A recent study found that using the customer’s name in the subject line increased open rates to 39% across all industries. At the same time, incorporating your business name into the subject line is a common way for Gmail to determine your message is a better fit under the Promotions tab than in their standard inbox. Making the subject line more about them (with their name, their vehicle of interest, or their trade-in) will yield you more opens than using the salesperson’s name or the dealership name. - Create the Context with Vehicle Merge Fields
Much like in the subject line, the body of the email must identify what it is regarding and there is no better way to do this than using the merge fields for the exact same Year, Make, Model, (and Trim if possible) of the vehicle in which they submitted their inquiry. Rather than a “the vehicle you like is in-stock”, it goes a lot further, and provides more context clues, when your template merge fields (or manually written response) includes “that beautiful, CarFax-One-Owner 2021 GMC Yukon Denali with the advanced technology package”. Sometimes the merge fields can help, but a little research by your rep does a lot of heavy lifting when connecting with customers. - Make it Visual
Shoppers are visual creatures. If they have submitted inquiries into several dealerships or on several vehicles, we need to remind them which exact vehicle we’re referring to, and the easiest way to do that is with an image (or a thumbnail) of their vehicle of interest. We need to show people what that vehicle looks like as a reminder with an image of that exact vehicle, not that of a stock photo with limited to no information. Every first response back to a customer should show a live image of that vehicle on your lot. - Reference Customer Data Insights
Let’s face it – your salespeople are not A.I. controlled robots, but by simply reading the lead that the customer submitted, it is often possible to glean information from their inquiry that they can use. Whether it be a business email address, a city/state, a zip code, their area code, or even something more subjective like their vehicle of interest versus their trade type, if you can reference this in the body of your email, it shows you’re paying attention. “I see you are stepping up from a sedan to a larger SUV. May I ask, what is appealing to you about the larger vehicle?” Or, “I noticed you live in [STATE], is that right? We work with customers from there all the time.” Trying to create conversations based on insights you pick up from their submissions is a great way to make yourself stand out. - Leverage the Power of Video
Just like above, people are visual creatures, and more videos are watched every day in America than videos are opened. I started sending videos to customers in 2004, so 20 years later, there is no reason you cannot do it. And while videos of all types have value, in the early stages of customer correspondence, using the customer’s name when speaking to the camera is a tried-and-true method to personalizing emails. It lets them know you’re taking your personal time to create this for them, and only them. That goes a long way to building your credibility as someone who goes above and beyond. - Address Their Specific Question
This is utterly ridiculous that I even need to mention this, as foolish as it is that I am placing it at the end of my list. Nonetheless, customers have questions ,and we need to at least address it, if not answer it. Some shoppers ask questions in the comment box, while others indicate to us what questions they have based upon what button they clicked to submit their inquiry. Regardless, it is your job to make a note of that, in written form, acknowledging you know they have a question or seek that information and you will provide it for them. Whether you answer it right then and there determines the level of information we have available to do it, but by personally (read: manually) writing an addressment to their question or inquiry again shows you are personally trying to serve them. That is what makes you an authority and not someone selfishly requesting them to “come on in”.
Think about your own email inbox. Not your work, but your personal. What do you open? What email subject lines catch your eye that cause you to take that action of a click. When reading emails, is it the pretty colors and professional formatting that makes you think it is just for you? Of course not. It is how it was written. How it appears. What is included in the body of the email is what determines if it was crafted specifically for you. Emails as a medium may not be as powerful as they once were, but they still play a role in connecting with customers if done right. Going one step farther by making a concerted effort when personalizing emails, and that is what helps win them over.
Want to learn how best to gain insights on your prospects? It starts with Reading the Lead. Want to improve your lead handling? Connect with us at DealerKnows.
