Driving Traffic in Times of Uncertainty

For the automobile dealer, it has always been about getting your share of the pie. After the tariff-induced April buying rush, May was measured as ‘off’ for vehicle sales, but many of our dealers held a positive trajectory for one reason:  they utilized available tools to drive traffic in these uncertain times. 

“No Stone Unturned”

The need for reaching and enticing more potential buyers is critical.  Utilizing unique Strong Automotive tools such as Retain, creating social media giveaways that appeal to market lifestyle, or crafting distinct broadcast messages for specific buyer needs, here are snapshots of what Strong Automotive is doing to help dealers drive traffic.

Reaching Where You Never Reached Before

Retain is our audience management platform utilized by a growing number of clients to effectively engage potential customers who have visited trade-in pages, but only partially completed a trade-in form on the clients’ sites.

Since the creation of the trade-in audience for Yonkers Honda in Brooklyn, NY, Retain has enabled this dealer to capture valuable contact information such as names, email addresses, and phone numbers from roughly 335 individuals who had interacted with trade-in pages on the dealer’s site. This audience will continue to grow moving forward as more customers visit the trade-in page.

Utilizing Retain, these newly tailored lists were specifically targeted with Yonkers Honda campaigns across Meta, Google, and email platforms. By accessing this data, Yonkers Honda followed up with personalized outreach efforts, effectively converting leads into sales opportunities, ensuring that no potential customer could fall through the cracks.

The integration of Retain with Meta and Google platforms is allowing Yonkers Honda to deploy optimized campaigns that resonate with their audience, driving higher engagement and conversion rates, facilitating meaningful connections and driving sales growth.

Connecting with Local Lifestyle

Charlie Clark Automotive Group has turned routine vehicle deliveries into share-worthy moments by pairing each purchase with a high-value, lifestyle giveaways. During key tent-pole weekends—Memorial Day and, most recently, their June 14 “Father’s Day Celebration”—every shopper who drove off the lot got to choose between a Weber grill or a 52-quart RTIC cooler.

The offer tapped into South Texas’ cookout culture and gave new owners an immediate, share-worthy perk to photograph alongside their fresh ride. Social teasers counted down the hours, while on-lot livestreams and short-form videos kept the sizzle alive, leaning into the group’s signature high-energy brand voice. This strategy did more than collect likes.

By weaving product-adjacent incentives (coolers for road-trip adventures, grills for weekend cookouts) into the buying experience, Charlie Clark subtly tied its brand to leisure and celebration.  The buzz drove foot traffic from shoppers who had seen the posts, and it gave store teams an easy conversation starter that lowers sales resistance: “Which cooler or grill are you taking home today?”

In short, the campaign converted a simple thank-you gift into a flywheel of social engagement and showroom momentum, reinforcing Charlie Clark’s reputation as both a community partner and a dealership that understands what makes life after the purchase more enjoyable.

Listen Up!  We Have What You Need…

Jay Hodge has been the talent for his dealership’s radio spots for years, and his friendly, conversational style does a great job of delivering timely hooks. His Chevrolet store in Sulphur Springs, TX, recently began marketing their status as the exclusive Car Bravo dealer for the market. Response has been more than expected for his inventory of Certified Pre-Owned vehicles that come with a 6000-mile warranty.  But by giving his market even more incentive to shop and buy, Jay’s radio spot featured not only a doable price range, Jay came with a buy-down interest rate of 3.9% APR for used vehicles, just what that buyer needs to hear.

Jay has consistently employed a local radio presence, producing one spot each month for his best Chevrolet offer, and one focused on used vehicles. His brand identity slogan – Don’t Overpay, Come See Jay –  has reached the point of becoming a greeting from his customers when he sees them at the store, and around town. 

Great News as We Go to Print

With an early deadline to meet our July 1^st delivery, sharing an email from AutoNews.com dated June 17, that reads as follows:  “About half of U.S. consumers in the market for a new vehicle said they planned to move up their purchase earlier to avoid tariff-induced price hikes, according to a new survey by Cars.com.” 

The durability of car buyers in America cannot be underestimated.