SMS case study – Nimnicht Family of Dealerships

January 27, 2010

Name and city and state of marketer
Nimnicht at The Avenues, Jacksonville, FL

Name and city and state of agency or marketing services firm
Ballyhoo Mobile Marketing Inc., Jacksonville, FL

Campaign/program name
SMS Leveraging of Traditional Mediums and Double Opt-in

Duration
Eight weeks

Common short code and keywords used
GMC to 72239, AVENUES to 72239, CHEVY to 72239

Objective(s)
1. Utilize targeted keywords on multiple radio stations to gauge ROI
2. Build a large mobile database for service specials, event pushes
3. Utilize double opt-in campaigns to generate warm leads and thus earn sales

Target audience
Adults ages 18-40 who are open to a new/used vehicle purchase

Strategy
Utilize text-to-win opportunities that fit the car brand on local radio. Examples during the promotional period include:
- A text to win Taylor Swift ticket giveaway to target potential Pontiac buyers on a top rated CHR station
- A text to win GMC Sierra on a local country station
- A text to win Pro Bowl tickets on a local talk radio station

Call to action
Text to Win tags were added to current radio spots.

Tactics
Energetic radio commercials were recorded, which listed the keyword and short code a minimum of two times per ad.

After a significant database was built, an offer was pushed that was valuable only to those people genuinely open to purchasing a new or used vehicle.

These people were then considered tangible leads for the dealership; each was called and personally invited in for a test drive.

Results
The dealership generated 4,000 mobile opt-ins. After the double opt-in request, the program created 370 workable leads (9.25 percent).

In addition, because of the targeted use of keywords and planned promotions, Nimnicht dealer group was able to effectively gauge dollars spent on radio, thus allowing them to plan their marketing more efficiently.

What next
The dealership has now begun to include mobile in its newspaper ads so customers can instantly search their inventory in more depth.

Ballyhoo Mobile Marketing created a template in the software so the dealership can update this weekly with ease.

Additionally, the dealership is utilizing mobile at their upcoming auto show to stand out from other show participants and capture leads.

Lessons learned
The more broad a giveaway’s reach, the more filtering has to be done.

Surprise finding
When the value of 370 double opt-in participants specifically interested in the purchase of a new car was analyzed, the ROI for the campaign (even when combined with radio dollars spent) was extremely high.

Executive’s name, title and company for response attribution
David Nies, CEO of Ballyhoo Mobile Marketing Inc.

Strategy quote from brand executive
“The Nimnicht Family of Dealerships wanted to use mobile to grow a database and reach our customers in the way they communicate,” said Lauren Dozier, director of marketing and advertising, Nimnicht Family of Dealerships.

“Utilizing mobile has allowed us to build a stronger and deeper brand relationship with potential new customers,” he said. “As an added bonus, we were able to analyze the strength of our radio partners by judging the mobile response, which has helped us plan our marketing more efficiently.”

What challenge did mobile address quote
“Mobile addressed several challenges for us,” Ms Dozier said. “First, simple SMS helped us build a one-to-one relationship with both current and new customers.

It allowed us to communicate with them and actively drive sales,” she said. “Second, mobile helped us stand out from surrounding dealers; our advertisements stood out, had fresh call-toaction
statements, and generated immediate tangible leads.

Finally, mobile has helped us monitor our advertising and measure each ad’s effectiveness.”

Senior Editor Giselle Tsirulnik covers advertising, video, messaging, search, commerce and video. Reach her at giselle@mobilemarketer.com.