Do you, or have you, advertised on TV or radio? Do you, or did you, do it with the intention of branding your dealership, creating increased awareness and consideration in your market?
I’m not sure there are many dealerships that can answer “no” to those questions. And if you did answer yes, I applaud you. Branding your dealership, creating awareness and consideration are critical marketing goals and for years both TV and radio have been compelling mediums to achieve your goals. The best dealerships have used smart media buying methods to manage and measure the value of their buys and have seen success in local markets.
In my prior life running marketing for a large (26 rooftops) privately held dealer group, I have overseen many substantial TV and radio buys. We would work with our media buyer to make sure that we were always reaching at least 40% of our target market (which was usually Adults 25-54 in the cable zone, DMA or radio territory) a minimum of 4 times in a given month to achieve at least 160 GRP’s (Gross Rating Points) to ensure that our buy had enough weight to do the job. While it was always expensive (anywhere from a $30 to $50 CPM), it allowed us to broadcast our brand messaging at scale.
Along comes targeted Online Video Advertising and now you have a new option to achieve these goals by either replacing your TV or radio campaigns or by complimenting them with additional online video media and extending reach, increasing frequency and most importantly adding a new level of measurability to your branding efforts.
So how does Online Video Advertising work and how does it compare to its traditional counterparts?
Video has changed the internet. It is the fastest, most compelling and easiest way for people to consume content on the web. Whether it’s the regional sports highlights, political pundits and other talking heads blowing hot air, the latest weather video or the ubiquitous viral video, your customers and prospects are consuming online video at a tremendous rate. And before they can enjoy the video content they desire they are also seeing targeted Online Video Ads.
Typically, :15 second or :30 second ads, Online Video Advertisements are not only more targeted than TV and/or radio, but more cost efficient as well.
At Octane Powersports Marketing, we have partnered with Oracle to acquire 3rd party data sets that we run through theTradeDesk Demand Side Platform (DSP), which is a fancy way of saying an Ad Exchange or Online Auction, to target and buy Online Video Media. theTradeDesk is considered one of the leading DSP’s in the online ad world. More importantly, by utilizing Oracle and other premium data providers, we are able to target owners and shoppers of specific makes and models based on registration data and online shopping behavior. Above and beyond all of that we will place a retargeting pixel on your website so everyone who visits and shops on your website will also get to see your video ads online.
So why does this matter and what value does it bring to your marketing budget?
Well, imagine telling your best salesperson that this month they only could talk to people behind one of two doors that were in front of them. Behind Door #1 you have 40% of the population in your cable zone or TV DMA and they could talk to each person 4 times. That 40% may or may not contain in-market shoppers and you have no knowledge of what they drive or if they have shopped at all recently.
Behind Door #2 you have everyone who has been to your website in the last 30 days, owners of the makes and models you sell in your market, online auto shoppers who have been shopping the units you sell on CycleTrader.com and other 3rd party endemic shopping sites and people who have spent money servicing the makes and models you sell in your market at independent repair shops. Your salesperson would get to talk to these people about 5 or 6 times.
Which door would they choose?
I think for most, the answer is incredibly easy, they would choose Door #2. And I didn’t even have to tell you that the cover charge for Door #2 could be as much as half as expensive as Door #1. That’s right CPM’s (cost per thousand impressions) for TV and radio are sometimes double (or more) than that of online video. At least when you work with Octane Powersports Marketing. I have seen many media companies sell online video for the same CPM’s as TV and/or radio and if that’s the case I recommend you run, not walk to a more reputable seller of Online Video Ads.
If this article has piqued your interest, please don’t hesitate to contact me and my team and we will be happy to show you how we can not only save you money but also supercharge your brand and your go to market messaging with online video.
