Data—what is it and how can we use it? The simple answer is, it’s everything and we can use it virtually any time. Too broad? Let us break it down for you.
The wonderful Ms. Merriam Webster defines data as, “factual information (such as measurements or statistics) used as a basis for reasoning, discussion, or calculation.” In the digital marketing world, our data is the location you share when posting to Instagram, the content you search for on Google, the company Page you follow on Facebook, the clothing store you use your credit card at (you get the idea!). Data is collected every day, on almost every platform, in every medium, whether you realize it or not.
Digital advertisers use a combination of this “factual information” data to “calculate” target audiences for different ad campaigns. When used correctly (and responsibly), data can be used to hyper-target a dealership’s digital advertising dollars on an almost individually customized basis to in-market vehicle intenders for very little investment.
The best example of how hyper-targeted data is used today in digital advertising is Programmatic Display. What’s that, you ask? It’s the automated serving of digital ads in real time to in-market customers when they are most likely to engage with the advertisement and dealership. Advertisers can now follow the consumer’s journey (both online and offline) using specific metrics to pinpoint the most opportune route and time possible to serve low-funnel, about-to-buy, advertisements to the intended audience.
For example, if someone is searching for a Jeep Cherokee on J.D. Power and is located in your general area, an ad for your dealership listing Cherokees you have in stock will be served up on that web page. Here is a real programmatic display ad example from a dealership CBC Automotive Marketing works with, Lee Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram in Wilson, North Carolina:
Every important metric of the consumer’s journey is then tracked using a Pixel placed on the dealership website, allowing advertisers to know the exact number of people who viewed an ad, interacted with it through a click, and/or turned into a concrete lead.
Ah…leads…the magic word for dealerships! How do we quantify a lead digitally, you ask? At CBC, we use machine learning technology processed by IBM’s Watson computer to track and evaluate over 20 post-click user signals that strongly correlate with dealership sales. A few of these metrics include important user actions like total VDP views, chats submitted, payment calculations, media gallery interactions, and more.
As the consumer is tracked post-ad click using these metrics, audiences are then evaluated and optimized to achieve that quality audience that all advertisers want… the highest click through rate for the lowest cost per click.
If your dealership’s interested in learning more about our programmatic display advertising program, fill out the form below to request a free consultation with our Digital Team. We’ll audit your website’s analytics and determine what strategy would be best for your dealership moving forward!