How do we find ways to improve our methods and sell more RVs? Our RV Sales Survival Guide includes 5 proven strategies to make selling RVs easier, faster and more efficient for both you and the consumer. These strategies are from decades of practice and experience within the RV industry. Let’s dive in.
1. Data Quality and Segmentation
Selling more units goes hand and hand with having a quality and segmented database of prospects. A prospect who indicates they are ready to buy in 7 days has different needs and questions than a prospect who indicates they are ready to buy in 360 days.
So, how do you easily segment your database of prospects?
Based on customer research data, approximately 94% of customers enter digitally through local organic search, social and email marketing, and pay-per-click advertising. So, when a prospective customer lands on your website, you need to be very intentional with your lead forms. Collecting prospect data from forms on your website is some of the best data you can gather, and these leads are often highly motivated. You need to be strategic with where you place these forms and with the data you request to decrease abandonment. We recommend some combination of the following:
- The customers' full contact information
- Their level of interest
- Estimated purchase time frame
- Any trade-in information
- How they plan to use the RV
- Any specific questions they would like answered
Once the lead form logic has been established, a good marketing and sales automation solution, such as Aimbase or SalesDriver, will collect, score, and process each lead and assign the prospect to the appropriate list for outbound communication.
2. Benefits of Delivering a Transparent Price
One of the keys to selling more RVs is delivering a transparent customer price. It’s critical to connect with each prospective buyer within minutes of lead submission to develop a personalized buying experience, which prevents customers from going elsewhere. In fact, customers that are contacted and provided a transparent price are 46% more likely to purchase.
This opens the door to set up a comprehensive communication strategy with phone, text, and email to let the buyers know you are ready to deliver an excellent buying experience that is personalized to their needs. Setting up automated emails to let a consumer know you are going to contact them soon is a great way to keep the lines of communication open and give you a buffer period to get the quote they requested.
Rollick provides dealers and OEMs a simple solution to connect with the customers immediately and deliver a seamless buying experience. Dealers can even log in from their phone, see all the available dealer incentives, and send the consumer a quote worksheet that they can then use when they visit the dealership.
3. Salesperson Follow-Up Cadence
42% of consumers reported they did not receive a follow-up call from a dealer. Consumers expect follow-up in a timely, reasonable manner. Make sure your dealership has a contact strategy in place to ensure every lead you receive is contacted within the day. Dealerships that follow-up within an hour are twice as likely to connect with the customer and make the sale.
On the initial contact, be sure to establish the preferred method of contact. If the consumer sent you an email, use email to build the relationship and if you are unsure of how to best contact them, ask during your next interaction.
4. Nurturing Leads to Sale
The sales cycle in the RV industry is 198 days on average, from the lead submission to the delivery of the unit. Compared to other similar industries, this is a longer cycle and can be challenging. However, this provides RV dealers the opportunity to create a comprehensive nurture strategy that builds strong, lasting relationships that can last through several other purchases.
One of the most effective nurture strategies is to filter leads by their readiness to purchase. Have a cold, warm and hot nurture stream, which targets communication by answering questions and bringing up information pertinent to exactly where that consumer is in the purchase funnel. This keeps your brand or dealership top of mind for consumers throughout all stages and lets them know you are invested in helping them choose the perfect RV for their needs.
With help from Rollick and our dealer solutions, you can continually engage customers through automated nurture emails tailored for wherever that individual is in their buying process. Below is an example of a nurture email we send to customers interested in buying a product through one of our certified Rollick dealers:
Additionally, through SalesDriver, Rollick's dealer-specific technology, dealers have access to tools that help them continually stay engaged with the consumer during the entire buying cycle, such as a concierge call center, lead nurturing capabilities and responding to, replying to or interacting with calls, texts and emails all in one place.
Always being engaged with your consumers is not only the best way to overcome the longer buying cycle in RV, but it is what customers want and expect from their dealers.
5. Leverage Relationships with In-Market Customers
As a Rollick Certified Dealer, you have access to millions of customers through our partner relationships. What do we mean by this? Powered by the GoRollick vehicle buying platform, Rollick has built partnerships with leading and trustworthy brands such as AAA, Progressive, Allstate, NADAguides, Sam's Club, Active/Veteran Military and over 2,000 of the nation’s largest employers. Rollick delivers ready to buy, in-market members through its SalesDriver program. When you partner with Rollick, you get access to a sales funnel that is already filtered with the hottest in-market leads, potentially increasing your close rate by 93%.
Another feature Rollick offers RV OEMs and dealers is customer reviews. You can send post-purchase surveys to consumers to find out what they did and did not like about their purchase experience. These reviews can be automatically posted to your website to show other potential customers how great their customer experience is. You can also use the negative reviews to try to alleviate any issues a customer might have and to improve your methods for selling RVs.
Conclusion
Selling RVs starts with a well-thought-out marketing strategy and continues even after a consumer purchases a unit. Your marketing strategy needs to be continually adapting and growing to accommodate the needs of the consumer and the advancements in technology and strategy. The tools mentioned here are an excellent game plan for supercharging your marketing efforts and bringing in more qualified customers for life.
