The Automotive industry is colossal and has a huge presence worldwide. Not to mention the number of world-class vehicles that are manufactured by the automotive industry. As companies compete for greater market share and increased penetration, auto companies marketing budgets have shot up tremendously in the last 2 years as increasing regulatory issues continue to plague the industry not to mention the advent of alternate technologies like self driven car, electric and hybrid cars including fully autonomous vehicles (AVs), machines that can drive themselves anywhere, under any traffic and weather conditions, without a human ever having to take the wheel, a reality within a relatively short time, as little as five or 10 years.
That, in turn, would open huge new markets, it is hoped, as buyers — large fleets as well as individuals — flock to driverless vehicles and associated services.
However compared to other industries like retail, banking, and finance, the automotive sector has not yet warmed up to the concept of the mobile messaging platform as aggressively as its peers.However as the industry grapples with auto recalls and strict regulatory norms on emission, it’s only a matter of time when automobile industry embraces the power of SMS marketing.
Here are 5 ways how mobile messaging can be used in a powerful way across the automotive sector. One of the innovative ways to use this platform (mobile messaging) is for ‘pre-purchase phase’ and ‘post-purchase phase’.
Pre-purchase phase:
1. When you want to test drive a vehicle that you want to purchase: Here you can directly book an appointment with the car dealer by directly texting TEXT to book for a test drive.
2. To locate a particular dealer: If suppose you want to locate a dealer in a particular area then you can just text Volvo/Toyota/Honda, and get the required address of the dealer.
Post-purchase phase:
1. delivery status check: When you book a vehicle of your choice, there is a certain time period after which the vehicle will be delivered to you. The customer on the other end can check the status of the delivery by simple texting TEXT (booking receipt number).
Further scope for Automotive companies to use mobile messaging platform included but not limited to
• Information on new vehicle launch
• Inviting premium customers for a test drive.
• Sending customized greeting and festival related messages to the existing customers.
• Sending messages pertaining to service confirmation details.
• Safe driving tips to the existing customers.
• Alerts and reminders pertaining to EMI’s.
Among the Four factors that can positively empower mobile messaging in the automotive domain are driven by the following facts
1. Consumers are restless: This means that most of the consumers don’t have the time to listen or respond to any marketing activity that is time-consuming. On the contrary, Mobile messaging is fast, reliable, secure and easy to respond. Lastly, the time consumption is way too less compared to other marketing tactics.
2. SMS versus emails: The numbers clearly say that SMS marketing dominates e-mail marketing. Open rate for email marketing is just about 20 to 40% compared to SMS marketing which stands at a stunning 98% open rate. This means that around 98% customers read their respective SMS within ten minutes of receiving it.
3. SMS versus phone calls: There is no doubt that telecalling has got its own importance in the marketing domain, but when compared to SMS marketing, it ranks a distant low
4. The speed of SMS: SMS as a medium has the highest response time and recall value. 80% of SMS are seen and read within 180 seconds of the message being sent. Now compare that with emails and phone calls.How many of us respond to SMS in the same way we respond to mailers and personal calls. Latest data shows that emails are read every 6.5 hours, and when it comes to phone calls, customers don’t respond to certain numbers, if those very numbers are not listed in their call list.
For example, Ford Motor Company in order to increase the number of their prospective customers to buy the new ‘Taurus’ and ‘Escape’ models came up with a mobile call-to-action strategy. The SMS text was ‘For more information, text FORD to 63611’.What was really astonishing was that the prospective customers responded quickly and the conversion rate was 15.4%.
