A car is one of the biggest purchases most people make, and for the few weeks around it your dealership has their full attention. Then they drive off, and the next thing many of them get from you is a "Summer Sales Event!" email eleven months later. No wonder they end up at the quick lube down the road.
Email is still the cheapest way to stay in front of a customer between purchases, but only when the emails are about them and their car. We build automotive marketing and CRM systems at BeetleRim, so we understand what automotive dealerships are getting wrong. If you want to skip all the intro stuff, scroll past
Email is still the cheapest way to stay in front of a customer between purchases, but only when the emails are about them and their car.
Why do car buyers stop engaging with dealerships after the sale?
Because the dealership stops at first. During the sale, the customer hears from you daily. After delivery, the salesperson moves on to the next deal; the service department doesn't know the customer exists yet, and nobody owns the relationship between. From the buyer's side, it looks like the store got what it wanted.
There's a practical reason, too. A new car needs nothing for months, so there's no natural excuse to talk about. We helped dealerships hold on to customers by inventing a process by keeping them in the loop. An example email is “how-to on the tech features in week one”, a “check-in” email at 30 days, or helping them set up their first service booking before the customer has thought about it.
What causes low open rates in dealership email campaigns?
Usually three things, in this order. First, the list. Years of addresses typed in at the desk and never cleaned, with customers who sold the car in 2021 still getting oil change coupons for it. Mailbox providers notice when nobody opens, and they start filing you under promotions or spam. Second, the sender. An email from "no reply" or "Dealership Marketing" gets skipped where one from a named service advisor gets a look. Third, the subject line. "HUGE SAVINGS THIS WEEKEND" tells the reader it went to everyone. "Your Tacoma is due for its 15,000-mile service" tells them it's theirs.
| Order | Cause | What it looks like |
|---|---|---|
| First | The list | Years of addresses typed in at the desk and never cleaned |
| Second | The sender | "no reply" or "Dealership Marketing" gets skipped; a named service advisor gets a look |
| Third | The subject line | "HUGE SAVINGS THIS WEEKEND" vs. "Your Tacoma is due for its 15,000-mile service" |
Why do generic email blasts fail for automotive customers?
Because almost nobody on the list is in the market on the day you send. People replace a car every several years. A new model announcement sent to 20,000 customers reaches the one who bought last month, the one with four years left on a loan and the one who moved out of state. For nearly all of them it's irrelevant, and every irrelevant email teaches them to stop opening. Some will unsubscribe, and then the lease-end offer they'd actually have wanted never reaches them.
One Announcement, 20,000 Customers
- The one who bought last month
- The one with four years left on a loan
- The one who moved out of state
What is customer engagement in the automotive industry?
It's everything that happens between a customer and the store when they aren't standing in it. Emails, texts, service reminders, follow-up call after a repair, the review request. The point of all of it is that when the car needs brakes, or the lease is nearly up, yours is the first name they think of. We'd skip the fluffier definitions and measure it by behavior: do customers come back for service, and do they buy their next car from you?
Measure it by behavior: do customers come back for service, and do they buy their next car from you?
What types of email campaigns work best for car dealerships?
The ones triggered by something real. A welcome series after purchasing, covering who to call and how to pair the phone. Service reminders tied to time and mileage. Recall and warranty notices. A "we haven't seen you" note to customers who skipped a service. Equity and lease-end messages when a trade-in starts to make financial sense. Birthday and purchase anniversary emails are fine too, as long as there's a real offer attached. Notice what's missing from that list. Keep the monthly newsletter if you like it, but don't expect it to carry out the program.
Want emails that are about the customer and their car?
We build automotive marketing and CRM systems that turn dealership data into the right message at the right time.
How often should a dealership email past customers?
There's no magic number, and anyone who quotes one is guessing. We'd set a ceiling and a floor. The ceiling is a couple of promotional emails a month for anyone who isn't active in buying or service cycle. The floor is something useful once a quarter, so the list doesn't go cold. Triggered messages such as a service reminder or an appointment confirmation sit outside that count, because the customer expects them. Then watch the unsubscribe rate. If it jumps after a send, you have your answer.
| Limit | Rule of thumb |
|---|---|
| Ceiling | A couple of promotional emails a month for anyone who isn't active in buying or service cycle |
| Floor | Something useful once a quarter, so the list doesn't go cold |
| Outside the count | Triggered messages such as a service reminder or an appointment confirmation, because the customer expects them |
| The check | Watch the unsubscribe rate. If it jumps after a send, you have your answer |
What is the customer lifecycle for a car buyer?
Roughly six stages, and they loop. Research when you're one of several browser tabs. Purchase. The honeymoon, the first 90 days or so, when they love the car and will happily leave a review. The long ownership stretch, where service is the only reason to talk. The decision window, when the loan is nearly paid, the lease is ending, or the repair bills are climbing. Then repurchase, or defection.
Research
One of several browser tabs
Purchase
Where most emails are aimed
The honeymoon
The first 90 days or so
The long ownership stretch
Service is the only reason to talk
The decision window
Loan nearly paid, lease ending, repair bills climbing
Repurchase, or defection
And the loop starts again
Most dealership emails are aimed at the first two. The opportunity is in the long stretch and the decision window, which is exactly where many stores go quiet.
How can dealerships personalize emails by vehicle, purchase date or service history?
Start with the three fields every DMS already holds. Vehicle: put the model and year in the subject line, and show accessories, tires and service menus for that car only. Purchase date: it drives the welcome series, the anniversary notes and your estimate of when the loan or lease ends. Service history: it tells you who's due, who's overdue, and who has never been back since delivery. That last group deserves its own message.
| DMS field | What it lets you do |
|---|---|
| Vehicle | Put the model and year in the subject line, and show accessories, tires and service menus for that car only |
| Purchase date | Drives the welcome series, the anniversary notes and your estimate of when the loan or lease ends |
| Service history | Tells you who's due, who's overdue, and who has never been back since delivery |
None of these need's clever technology. It needs the sales and service records for one customer to sit in one place, which is harder than it sounds.
When is the best time to send service reminders and trade in offers?
Service reminders work best as a short sequence: a first notice about three weeks before the estimated due date, a nudge a week out, and one follow-up if the date passes. Base the estimate on the customer's own mileage where you have it. A commuter doing 20,000 miles a year shouldn't be on the same schedule as a retiree doing 5,000.
1. First notice
About three weeks before the estimated due date.
2. A nudge
A week out.
3. One follow-up
If the date passes.
Trade-in offers have natural windows. Six months before the lease ends. The point where a financed customer probably has equity. The month the factory warranty runs out. The week after a large repair estimate. With enough history you can use machine learning to predict who's approaching that point, but the dates already in your DMS get you a long way.
Natural Trade-In Windows
- Six months before the lease ends
- The point where a financed customer probably has equity
- The month the factory warranty runs out
- The week after a large repair estimate
How do you segment dealership customers for email marketing?
Four cuts cover most of what a dealership needs. By lifecycle stage, a new owner and a five-year owner never get the same email. By vehicle, including new versus used, and brand if you sell several. By service behavior: loyal, lapsed, never returned. And by finance position, meaning lease, loan or cash, with the maturity date. Add distance from the store if you draw from a wide area. Then stop. Six segments you actually write for beat forty, you don't.
| Cut | What it separates |
|---|---|
| Lifecycle stage | A new owner and a five-year owner never get the same email |
| Vehicle | New versus used, and brand if you sell several |
| Service behavior | Loyal, lapsed, never returned |
| Finance position | Lease, loan or cash, with the maturity date |
| Distance (optional) | Add distance from the store if you draw from a wide area |
How can automated email journeys nurture leads who are not ready to buy?
Most internet leads aren't buying this week, and a salesperson calling every day will only chase them off. A journey takes over where the calls should ease up. Day two, a short email answering the question they asked. A week later, similar vehicles were in stock. Later still, a note when the price drops on the car they viewed or a comparable one arrives. Each email has one job and one link.
Day two
A short email answering the question they asked.
A week later
Similar vehicles were in stock.
Later still
A note when the price drops on the car they viewed or a comparable one arrives.
The part that matters most is the exit. The moment the lead clicks on a vehicle, replies or books for a visit, the automation stops and a person picks up the phone.
Back to all articlesThe moment the lead clicks on a vehicle, replies or books for a visit, the automation stops and a person picks up the phone.
