First Gear: Volvo launches Web sites for new models in a multimedia effort
volvo Cars of North America is using the Web as the primary lead generation medium for the launch of two new car models.
Prospects can visit two Volvo Web sites – www.thenextvolvo.com and www.volvocars.com – for information on the S40 sedan and V40 wagon. They can then communicate with the firm as part of a one-to-one marketing effort called the Personal Shopper.
“The Personal Shopper is the umbrella for all the relational database marketing at Volvo,” says Mike Kelley, director of sales operations at VSI Holdings, Inc., a Bloomfield Hills, MI-based marketing services agency responsible for managing Volvo’s Web sites and direct marketing programs.
Here’s how it works. Web site traffic is generated with space advertising and Internet search engines. By clicking on icons, the visitor can find dealer showroom locations and get details on financing, optional accessories, parts, warranties, owner clubs, road service and travel routes. The firm tracks online sessions to generate data and statistics. However, it is only the start of the customer dialogue.
Consumers initiate contact with customer service reps by sending an e-mail message or phoning a toll-free number.
Volvo’s 800 number is heavily promoted on Web pages. Customer service reps are responsible for asking inbound callers about seven prequalifying questions and entering their responses into the database.
VSI maintains the Volvo database at a customer dialogue center in Livonia, MI. Volvo’s U.S. headquarters in Rockleigh, NJ, has online access to marketing reports detailing Web site statistics and inbound teleservices reports.
VSI has assigned about a dozen customer service reps exclusively to Volvo, according to Kelley. VSI also runs similar marketing programs for other companies, including automakers such as General Motors, Ford, Volkswagen, Audi, Toyota, Daimler-Chrysler and Jaguar.
Phone survey questions are used to determine interest in particular models and features, likely time-frames for leasing or purchasing a vehicle, and the type of vehicle the caller presently drives. The average call length is about 90 seconds.
Additional data from third-party sources is acquired to enhance Volvo’s database. In states where release of motor vehicle records remains unrestricted, the names of prospects are purged from the database when they purchase vehicles from a competitor, Kelley says.
Depending upon phone survey responses, the prequalified leads are coded to receive additional information by either e-mail or direct mail. The content of communications varies depending on the interests expressed by prospects, says Kelley. It may, for example, focus on accessories or special regional promotions.
Mostly direct mail is used, but e-mail is sent if the prospect prefers. “We select target audiences and usually go after them by mail,” Kelley says. Outbound calls are never made unless requested by the consumer or to confirm appointments made to test- drive vehicles, he says.
Cooler prospects likely to make a purchase or buying decision within two years typically receive information about design and safety. A more accelerated series of communications is sent to consumers further along in the marketing cycle.
When a consumer is likely to make a decision in 60 to 90 days, the frequency of communication increases. “Research tells us the content of the communications is essential. We know, for example, that at a certain point in the buying cycle, people are interested in competitive features,” Kelley says.
Hotter prospects are sent printouts comparing the features of Volvos with models sold by competitors. Volvo also offers to set appointments for test-drives, and some dealers will even bring the vehicle to the prospect’s home or office.
