Coming up with car marketing ideas can be difficult when everyone’s trying to stand out. Are you looking for new promotional ideas for your dealership? Look no further! AutoJini has compiled 9 creative auto dealer promotion ideas for you to try.
1. Raffle or Giveaway
This is the classic promotion that goes without fail. Whether it be an iPad, a computer, a new car, tires, etc. people love getting free stuff. You can use this to your advantage to collect customer information as well. Place a raffle box at your dealership with slips of paper asking for your customer’s name, phone number, and email address, or use an inventory gateway page.
2. Free Car Wash with Service Appointment
Bring more customers to your service department with a free car wash. This is a great promotion because it is a low risk for both you and your customers. If your customer enjoyed his or her experience, you may create a regular service customer from this experience!
3. Dog-friendly Test Drive
Dogs are family members for many customers. People want to bring their beloved dogs with them when they go out for a drive. Show your customers how much you care about them with dog-friendly test drives or designated days for customers to bring their dogs.
4. Kids’ Poster Contest
If you have a service department, you likely have a waiting room. Many clients are busy and end up having to bring their kids with them to their service appointment. Take advantage of this with a kids’ poster contest! Some ideas can be a drawing of your dealership, an ad for your business, etc. All you have to do is set up a table with some crayons, markers, and paper. Kids love contests like this, and parents want activities for their kids to do. Plus, it’ll look great on social media or on your website to post entries/winners and help you connect to your local customers.
5. Pre-loaded Gift Cards for Your Service Department
One way you can keep your customers coming back to your dealership is through your service department. When a customer purchases a vehicle at your dealership, consider offering them a pre-loaded gift card for service appointments. It is a great deal that will grab the attention of potential car buyers, and it will also help create loyal returning customers.
6. Celebrate Your Dealership’s Anniversary
Throw a birthday party for your dealership. By celebrating your dealership’s anniversary, you reinforce your community presence. It is also a good way to have something to talk about in your email campaigns, social media posts, and coupons.
7. Offer Referral Incentives
Word of mouth marketing is very useful because people trust the opinions of their friends and family more than they trust car dealers. When you offer referral incentives, you are also helping your word of mouth marketing by promoting previous customers to spread the good word about your dealership.
8. Prepaid Gas Cards
The reality is that people can get very serious about gas prices. There are people who are willing to drive across town to save 3 cents per gallon on gas. So, when you give out prepaid gas cards with car purchases, you will really stand out to your customers and the word will get around quickly.
9. Give Presents to Car Buyers in December
This is a fun and festive way to promote your dealership during the holiday season. Some gift ideas can include prepaid gas cards, restaurant gift cards, coupons to your service department, kitchen appliances, or electronic devices. It’s even more fun when you individually wrap your gifts and hand them to your customers personally after they purchase a car from your dealership!
Which idea was your favorite? Get more unique ideas for automotive marketing from AutoJini today! Visit our blog for tips and the latest automotive marketing news. have been serving auto dealerships for 18 years through automotive website design, automotive marketing, and search engine optimization. Our expertise will give you the competitive edge – call us today at 515-232-2024 to learn more!