Why do auto manufactures create more than one car?  Because there is more than one type of buyer.  Then why do we send one message to all car buyers?  Take the Automotive Marketing World.  There are probably 100 companies out there that advertise some sort of “Saturation piece” for .39 cent if you buy 100,000 and saturate the area. 

What if you broke those 100,000 “mail boxes” up into 70 Acxiom Life Stage Segments or Clusters?  You would find “Apple Pie Families”, “Savvy Singles,”  “Established Elites,” “Suburban Seniors”, “Soccer and SUV’s,” “Trucks and Trailers,” and many more.  So if you send one message to 100,000 households, it better be pretty simple. 

Henry Ford once said, he knew half of every dollar he spent on advertising was wasted.  He just didn't know which half.

Well, Henry Ford would be pleased to know that we now know.  Thanks to serious data marketing improvements, you don’t have to wonder.  Every life stage and societal status is documented, fine tuned and improved upon by the minute. 

This information helps Dealers locate the best prospects among all consumers and better understand their automotive needs, desires and even buying habits.  We all know every consumer is different so how do you structure your marketing strategy?  How do you ensure your targeting works?  You work with an Intelligent Company that will organize your customers and prospects into groups with similar needs, motivations, likes, dislikes, and behaviors.  That is Marketing Segmentation…

What does all this mean?  It means Marketing Segmentation will help you:

Spotlight marketing assets where they will produce the greatest market penetration and highest ROI Specifically improve marketing programs to match the needs and wants of customers and prospects Personalize offerings and go-to-market strategies Optimize the design, delivery, pricing and promotion of Direct Marketing products over time based on their success rate with targeted segments

The message is just as important as who it is sent to.  The purpose for Marketing Segmentation is to break up the consumer so that you can send a message that means more to the consumer reading it.  The more specific the customer is, the more specific the message can be.  For example, if you are hitting “Soccer and SUV’s,” we obviously are going to push SUV’s and should concentrate on Room, Style, Safety, and so on.  The mailing may not be huge but it will be SPECIFIC.  No wasting money here…

A possible small mailer leads to the last point.  If this is all so effective why don’t more companies push it?  First, most companies in the Automotive Marketing world unfortunately are followers not leaders.  Very few companies take a leadership role.  The other reason is just good old fashion money.  If you do a mailer that is only 2,800 pieces, it is tough to earn much money on 20% commission.  Since most Automotive Direct Mail companies have 100% commission salespeople, they are selling the most mail possible because it raises their pay check.  The more pieces of mail they sell, they more they earn. 

Find a company who focuses on quality not quantity. Also, look for experience.  Selling a Saturation Piece with no real thought is easy, that’s why everyone does it.  Putting together a well thought out message that matches the coordinating Cluster Segmentation goes together like a nice suite and tie.  So, make sure you do your homework and it will pay off with less waste and much more ROI.