Speakers to share advice on how to battle a downturn with AI-driven consumer lifecycle marketing
Outsell announced today that it is co-hosting a webinar with Automotive News titled, “Your Best Defense in a Downturn – AI-Driven Consumer Lifecycle Marketing,” taking place today, Dec. 3, 2019 at 2:00 pm ET. Moderated by Automotive News, the event will feature speakers Jon Petron, Vice President of Advanced Services at Outsell and Jason Harper, founder and CEO of RXA.
A recent comprehensive, multi-year study conducted by Outsell, RXA, and Experian showed that AI-driven consumer lifecycle marketing leads to:
- 23% increase in repeat sales
- 31% increase in service visits
- 24% greater brand loyalty
Dealers and brands alike benefit from using applied artificial intelligence across the consumer lifecycle. Learn how to AI-driven consumer lifecycle marketing can help:
- Increase loyalty
- Reduce attrition
- Capture a larger share of sales and service revenue
Who:
Jon Petron, Vice President of Advanced Services at Outsell and Jason Harper, founder and CEO of RXA
What:
“Your Best Defense in a Downturn – AI-Driven Consumer Lifecycle Marketing”
Where:
Online
When:
Dec. 3, 2019 at 2:00 pm ET
AI-driven marketing found to increase loyalty, repeat business and service visits
Outsell announced today the results of a comprehensive, multi-year data study conducted with RXA and Experian. The study encompassed 5.6M consumer relationships across 960 dealers, and 18.7 million vehicle transactions – leveraged data from Experian’s Auto Response Analysis – including 2.5 million sales and 16.2 million service visits over a three-and-a-half year period. It examined the effect that AI-driven marketing has on customer loyalty, repeat business and service visits, and calculated the incremental lifetime value of customers due to AI-driven lifecycle marketing.
The study found that engaging a customer with AI-driven lifecycle marketing results in:
- 65% higher odds of that customer repurchasing at the same dealer
- A 25% increase in service visits over three years
- $427 in incremental profit per customer
“The study confirmed what Outsell has been telling dealers for years: that AI-driven lifecycle marketing improves customer engagement, revenue and profitability,” said Mike Wethington, Founder & CEO of Outsell. “This is the clearest picture we’ve seen yet of the impact that AI-driven lifecycle marketing has on the Automotive consumer. This concept is particularly important now, when auto sales are softening and dealers are looking for ways to increase retention, boost service and profitability.”
“The results are crystal clear: the best time to start AI-based personalized lifecycle marketing is yesterday, and the second-best time is today,” said Jason Harper, Founder and CEO of RXA. “The data shows that AI-driven marketing, like Outsell’s, increases customer value no matter what stage the customer is in.”
Wethington and Harper will be presenting additional details on the study at the 2019 Automotive Analytics and Attribution Summit, taking place Nov. 17-19 in Palm Beach, Fla. In a session titled, “Winter is Here: How AI-Driven Customer Lifecycle Marketing Is Your Best Defense in a Downturn,” Wethington and Harper will speak about how dealers can increase loyalty and profitability with personalized AI-driven marketing automation.
To learn more, contact marketing@outsell.com or download the infographic.
Outsell to Speak at Kain Automotive’s 15th Annual Clients & Friends Digital Success Workshop Taking Place Nov. 12-14
Outsell’s founder & CEO Mike Wethington to share best practices on transforming the way brands engage consumers
Minneapolis, MN – Nov. 12, 2019 – Outsell, which offers the first AI-driven marketing automation platform for the automotive industry, announced today that company founder & CEO Mike Wethington has been invited to address an audience of the nation’s most innovative automotive dealers at Kain Automotive’s 15th Annual Clients & Friends Digital Success Workshop. The event, taking place Nov. 12-14 in Lexington, Ky., is an exclusive workshop featuring industry leaders and training from Kain’s own team of experts, and draws hundreds of dealers each year.
Wethington’s presentation, scheduled for Nov. 13 from 9.30-10.10am local time, is titled, “People Buy Experiences. The Key to Transforming the Way Brands Engage with Consumers.”
Wethington pioneered the concept of applying AI-based marketing techniques to automotive sales and marketing. “AI technology is absolutely essential for auto dealers in today’s competitive sales and service environment,” said Wethington. “I look forward to a lively discussion on digital marketing best practices – and speaking with great minds in the auto industry.”
Outsell helps dealers better understand the impact of every dollar spent
Outsell announced today that while US auto sales continued to weaken in Q3, Outsell’s year-to-date revenue kept growing – up 7 percent compared to prior year, while direct sales increased 19 percent year-over-year.
“Historically, weak auto sales translate into growth for Outsell,” said Mike Wethington, co-founder and CEO of Outsell. “We saw it in the 2008 downturn, and we’re seeing it now. That’s because in a challenging market, dealers have to be more careful about how and what they spend, and Outsell’s platform helps them determine what’s working and what’s not.”
Highlights from the quarter:
- Launched Mileage Estimator, a predictive model that helps dealers more accurately target consumers in their customer journey.
- Sponsored and spoke at Digital Dealer 27, one of the auto industry’s preeminent events.
- Outsell assembled its Customer Advisory Board at Outsell Headquarters, bringing together industry leaders to discuss the company’s 2020 product roadmap & objectives, and how it can continue to improve its value to dealers.
“With our best-in-class ROI attribution, Outsell quickly pays for itself by providing dealers with the data they need to make smarter marketing investments,” said Wethington. “With Outsell, dealers stay top-of-mind with consumers, retain more customers, and earn more market share.”
October 21, 2019
Getting ahead of the data quagmire
NADA’s recent article on the complicated data quagmire plaguing the auto industry is spot on. For auto retailers to truly leverage data to benefit their customers, the industry absolutely must find a way to securely and efficiently integrate data flows across all channels.
This means across technology partners, DMS providers, your OEM— everyone. And in the age of Amazon where a seamless flow of data is crucial to providing the dynamic, personalized experience customers expect (and receive in virtually all other industries), this isn’t a problem that can be ignored.
The good news, as the NADA article stated, is that some OEMs are finally turning a new leaf on how they approach data. The bad news is that many technology and DMS providers are making data integration even more complicated or hoarding data for themselves to use in ways that abuse customer privacy and hurt vendor integrity.
As Peter Welch, NADA President and CEO, said, “Dealers need partners—OEMs and vendors alike—willing to embrace this reality and work with dealers, not against them, in service of consumers.”
Hear, hear!
At Outsell, we truly believe what’s right for the dealer is right for the customer. In order to provide the best customer experience, vendors must embrace an open ecosystem in order to capture the data coming from all different directions.
It’s also time to stop abusing the data needed for our success and to start being more accessible and collaborative to achieve that success together.
Speakers to address how to personalize the customer experience and increase engagement
Outsell announced today that it is presenting with customers on a panel at Digital Dealer 27 on the topic “4 Tips to Conquest & Retain More Customers with Personalized, Cross-Channel Marketing,” taking place August 20, 2019 at 10:00 am. The panel will feature speakers Charles Paul, Marketing Director at Scharmach Automotive Group, Chris Mathis, Internet Director at Jackie Cooper Imports and Valerie Vallancourt, Vice President of Marketing at Outsell, who will discuss how dealers can provide personalized experiences across multiple channels.
The customer journey today often includes a variety of devices and channels – and no two customer journeys are the same. Consumers that shop both online and in the dealership have a 30% higher lifetime value than those who shop using only one avenue when searching for a vehicle. Additionally, companies that employ a cross-channel customer engagement strategy retain on average 89% of their customers. It’s imperative for dealers to provide personalized experiences across channels, especially in a slower market. During this panel, attendees will walk away with a better understanding of how to improve customer engagement with new cross channel marketing methods.
Key takeaways that the panelists will share:
- Understand what customer experience means to consumers today and how to personalize the customer experience at scale.
- Learn how to create an omnichannel approach to meet consumers wherever they are in their lifecycle.
- Learn how to orchestrate an end-to-end experience to increase overall customer engagement.
Who:
Charles Paul, Marketing Director at Scharmach Automotive Group, Chris Mathis, Internet Director at Jackie Cooper Imports and Valerie Vallancourt, Vice President of Marketing at Outsell
What:
“4 Tips to Conquest & Retain More Customers with Personalized, Cross-Channel Marketing”
Where:
Mandalay Bay J, Mandalay Bay Resort & Casino, Las Vegas
When:
Tuesday, August 20 from 10:00-10:50 am
Outsell will also be at booth #841 showcasing the newest enhancements to the Outsell platform. Click here for more details and to sign up for a demo.
To register for Digital Dealer 27 and learn more about the agenda, please visit, https://www.digitaldealer.com/conference/education/agenda/
Dealers are tightening belts but continue to invest in Outsell
Outsell announced today that it hit its revenue plan for the first half of 2019, despite a weakened auto industry environment.
In the first half of 2019, U.S. auto makers posted six straight months of decline in new car sales after a historic bull run. That has naturally affected dealers’ spending in areas such as technology. Outsell however still managed to complete two strong quarters, with revenue on plan and bookings at 99 percent of plan.
Outsell makes dealers’ lives easier with AI-driven, automated marketing communications across channels. Outsell sends personalized communications on dealers’ behalf through various channels specific to each consumer’s lifecycle stage. Each communication is tailored to individual preferences, including specific inventory matching their needs. Outsell also helps dealers identify which consumers are in market (or back in market as it relates to previous customers).
“In a weaker sales environment, dealers need Outsell more than ever,” said Mike Wethington, founder and CEO of Outsell. “Outsell helps them be more efficient and effective with marketing dollars and has built-in reporting to show dealers how much return they are getting on every dollar spent.”
Just after the close of Q2, Outsell announced several enhancements to its core platform intended to help dealers improve the accuracy and efficacy of marketing campaigns, including:
- A Mileage Estimator that allows dealers to better predict what consumers might need so they can provide timely automotive service and vehicle offers and provide a better customer experience.
- Single Sign On (SSO) for security and a better user experience.
- A lapsed servicer preset filter to help dealers quickly identify consumer and vehicle information (including number of visits and VINs) and then easily download a quick call list that staff can use to drive visits to their service departments.
Predictive analytics help dealers tailor dynamic content to consumers
Outsell announced today that it has added a new Mileage Estimator predictive model to the Outsell platform. The Mileage Estimator allows dealers to better predict what consumers might need so they can provide timely automotive service and vehicle offers and provide a better customer experience.
Vehicle mileage is an important data point for helping dealers pinpoint where consumers are in their automotive lifecycle. Most dealerships however either don’t have access to the data for vehicles they don’t service, don’t regularly collect mileage when they do service it, or may not have the expertise to analyze the data they have. That leaves a data gap – one that’s now filled by Outsell’s new Mileage Estimator model, which establishes mileage patterns for every make and model and combines them with unique data it has for each consumer to more accurately calculate current mileage for a vehicle identification number (VIN).
“Enhancing our models and implementing the Mileage Estimator has had a major impact on the platform,” said Litded Davis, Vice President of Product and Program Management at Outsell. “We’re able to fill in missing information for dealers and consumers to better predict their service and vehicle needs. This helps the dealer drives sales zeroing in on the right consumer, which results in higher engagement for a happier and more loyal customer.”
Davis said that before adding Outsell’s Mileage Estimator, most dealers see between 60-70 percent of their database records unassigned to a consumer lifecycle stage. After adding Mileage Estimator, that typically drops to 30-35 percent, meaning hundreds or thousands of additional consumers are now eligible for communications across channels relevant to their individual lifecycle stage, personalized for them.
Other new Outsell enhancements include Single Sign On (SSO) for security and a better user experience, and a lapsed servicer preset filter to help dealers quickly identify consumer and vehicle information (including number of visits and VINs) and then easily download a quick call list that staff can use to drive visits to their service departments.
Speakers to share advice on turning data insights into actionable sales
Outsell announced today that it is co-hosting a webinar with DrivingSales titled, “4 Tips to Influence Buyer Behavior,” taking place June 6, 2019 at 2:00 pm ET. Moderated by DrivingSales, the event will feature speakers Gray Scott, Marketing Director for Muller Honda and Muller Honda of Gurnee, and Jon Petron, Vice President of Advanced Services at Outsell, who will discuss intent to purchase versus consumer intelligence and how to turn those insights into actionable sales.
Attendees will learn how to pursue in-market car shoppers effectively. What truly motivates car shoppers to their next purchase? How should your BDC/Sales teams follow up when shoppers are in market and throughout the rest of their purchase lifecycle to stay top of mind? Webinar attendees will learn the difference between consumer intelligence vs intent to purchase, what motivates auto shoppers to buy, how to pursue in-market shoppers effectively, customer lifecycle management after purchase, and best practices for influencing future buyer behavior.
Key takeaways:
- Drive more leads down the sales funnel with consumer intelligence
- Use buyer detection to engage in-market shoppers before competitors
- Pursue in-market shoppers with timely, personalized communications
- Refine customer lifecycle management after purchase
Who:
Gray Scott, Marketing Director for Muller Honda and Muller Honda of Gurnee, and Jon Petron, Vice President of Advanced Services at Outsell
What:
“4 Tips to Influence Buyer Behavior”
Where:
Online
When:
June 6, 2019 at 2:00 pm ET
Register for this event at: https://register.gotowebinar.com/register/5014280296530654220
Turk instrumental in scaling Outsell’s Dealer Success and Account Management teams to support company’s rapid growth
Outsell announced today that Tricia Turk has been promoted to Vice President, Customer Success, overseeing the company’s Dealer Success and Account Management teams. A three-year veteran of Outsell, Turk was previously Director, Customer Success.
“Tricia has been a great collaborator with others throughout the organization to do the right thing for Outsell’s customers,” said Mike Wethington, founder and CEO of Outsell. “Her skills in hiring, staffing and developing her team have resulted in multiple associates being promoted within the organization. Her ability to assess and rapidly implement process improvements has had a direct impact on our high customer retention rates.”
After joining Outsell in 2017, Turk was quickly promoted to Director of the Customer Success team, which supports Outsell’s rapidly growing customer base. She implemented new processes and lead a hiring campaign that helped scale the team’s size and capabilities to support the company’s growth while maintaining strong support for, and relationships with, its customers.
In addition to managing the Customer Success and Account Management teams, Turk also leads Outsell’s Customer Advisory Board, a steering committee comprised of Outsell customers that helps ensure Outsell is listening to the voice of the customer and taking actions to continuously improve its solutions.
Prior to joining Outsell, Turk was Supervisor of Direct Accounts for UnityWorks! and Director of Business Development for Saxton-Ferris-Global.
“I joined Outsell because of its customer-centric values – I knew customer success was an important function here, and felt I could make a difference,” said Turk. “Together, we have built a fantastic team. I’m proud to represent Outsell to our customer community, and thrilled to keep working side-by-side with our customers to help drive marketing innovation for them.”
Turk is the second addition to Outsell’s senior leadership team so far in 2019. The other is new CFO Jon Ochetti, who joined Outsell from the Star Tribune Media Company in March.