How can a dealership drive sales using Facebook Messenger ads and virtual BDC operators? It is no surprise that advertising with a direct messaging component would have great success. Messenger ads are one of the most effective ways to open a conversation with a potential customer lead.
Extensive testing of Messenger ads with dealerships has shown consistent positive results, across the board — lower cost per lead, higher lead conversion rate and even a lower cost per sale in most cases.
• 1.3 billion people use Messenger every month (Facebook Data, 2017)
• 10 billion messages are exchanged between people and businesses every month (Facebook Data, 2018)
• Was estimated that 78% of people using smartphones will message every month by end of 2018 (Messaging App Usages Worldwide: eMarketer’s Updated Forecast, Leaderboard, and Behavioral Analysis” by eMarketer, July 2017)
Test Driving Messenger Ads to Push Courtesy Vehicle Sales
Celebrity Motor Car Company is a dealer group in New Jersey that sells luxury vehicles including Lexus, BMW, Mercedes-Benz, Maserati and Alfa Romeo. As a luxury retailer, there are more courtesy loaner vehicles taking up space on the dealerships’ lots than most dealers experience.
In efforts to turn more business through selling these fleets and make room for the next generation of vehicles, the Celebrity Group launched a Courtesy Vehicle Sales Event at their BMW and Mercedes stores.
To push a short-term campaign to more relevant local buyers, Celebrity Motor Car Company used Facebook Messenger ads with a strong offer, coupled with an immediate sense of urgency. Customers in market for a luxury brand were targeted with messages like “Message us now to be one of the 30 people to receive a $120 dining out card when you make an appointment for a test drive.” This singular ad campaign drove in numerous requests for test drives. In fact, Celebrity saw 42 direct event leads within the first 24 hours of the campaign launch!
“Social has become a core component of our overall digital marketing strategy,” Celebrity Motor Car Company Vice President of Marketing Melanie Borden said. “I was surprised and delighted to see how many leads for loaner vehicles we were able to generate in such a short time through Messenger ads. We look forward to continuing to implement innovative social ad strategies.”
Thirty days after the campaign’s launch, Celebrity’s results were nothing less than astonishing. The BMW dealership had received 126 leads at a cost of just $7.93 per lead. BMW also sold 12 units with a 10% lead-to-close ratio, resulting in a cost per sales of only $83.33. Mercedes-Benz saw incredible results too. That dealership sold seven units with an 8% closing ratio. With a cost per lead of $10.10 and cost per sale of $142, this was absolutely the most successful and cost-effect element of their marketing mix.
This is one ad type that is definitely worth including into a regular digital marketing strategy. However, in order to experience a high lead-to-sale conversion, a Messenger ad campaign is not complete without a proper program in place to respond to all of the incoming messages. Dealerships will perform best using an expertly trained virtual BDC team to respond quickly and knowledgeably to each Messenger lead inquiry.
Jeff Clark
