Automotive Incentive Management
The automotive aftermarket provides a wide range of parts, products and services needed to keep cars on the road after their initial sale to the consumer.
The automotive aftermarket provides a wide range of parts, products and services needed to keep cars on the road after their initial sale to the consumer. Although the aftermarket does not manufacture the original vehicles — instead trading in replacement parts and accessories — it still plays a large role in the automotive industry.
In 2016, the average light vehicle on the road in the United States was 11.6 years old, an age that has been rising steadily since 1995. To keep older vehicles comfortable and in working order, consumers rely on aftermarket parts manufacturers, dealers, and installers. Unfortunately, the increased opportunity also means increased competition for your business.
To succeed in the automotive aftermarket, you need to stand out from the crowd. Running incentive programs could help you do just that, boosting your sales and encouraging customer loyalty. Incentives allow companies in the automotive aftermarket to influence consumer behavior and collect the data they need to make smarter business decisions.
Learn more about automotive aftermarket incentive programs and the benefits of working with an automotive incentive management company like Incentive Insights below.
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Automotive Aftermarket Incentive Programs
An incentive program is a sales and marketing strategy that rewards behaviors that benefit your business. For example, you might provide a cash rebate for a consumer who purchases your product or offer a travel incentive for salespeople who push your product over a competitor’s.
Because of the automotive aftermarket’s competitive nature, incentive programs have the potential to significantly increase customer loyalty, build brand awareness and grow a company’s market share. Some types of incentives commonly used in the aftermarket include:
Aftermarket parts manufacturers use dealer loader incentives to encourage dealers or distributors to stock certain parts. This usually involves offering a discount on specific products, although you may also include resources that dealers can use for pull-through promotions to customers.
If you want to encourage a channel sales partner or business to buy more of your products, buy certain volumes or use your product instead of a competitor’s when repairing vehicles, you might offer a business-to-business incentive, such as a rebate. With a rebate program, customers that meet certain requirements receive a discount or cash reward.
Consumer demand can also influence which products are offered at repair shops. To raise awareness of your brand, you might offer an incentive for customers who request your products or services from installers. Consumer incentives can give your customers a positive association with your brand, increasing the likelihood they’ll buy from you again.
Sales representatives and installers promote and use aftermarket products more effectively when they receive training that tells them about the products’ benefits and traits compared to competing options. Offering some type of incentive makes people more likely to complete the training you provide, and loyal sales reps can bring in business for years after the initial investment.
Managing Automotive Aftermarket Incentives
Once you’ve decided what kind of automotive aftermarket incentive program you want to pursue, you need to set up a system for processing and fulfilling online and mail-in submissions. This can pose a challenge if your organization lacks the internal bandwidth to handle incoming data from customers, dealers and business partners.
If you want to benefit from an incentive program without the stress of processing, consider working with a professional automotive incentive management company.
At Incentive Insights, we can manage your campaigns, verify the data you collect and ensure timely fulfillment for your customers. We can also create custom incentive technology, software and portal solutions to meet your unique needs. Whether you’re running a body shop incentive program to encourage training or a repair shop sales program to get your product into more vehicles, we can help you meet your goals.
Data You Can Use to Improve Your Business
Boosted sales are only one side of automotive incentive management. A well-planned and well-managed campaign can also provide tons of valuable consumer data. Simply ask customers to provide some information about themselves and their shopping habits before they claim their rewards.
The data you receive will come directly from customers, not from third parties. You can use it to:
- Improve targeted marketing campaigns
- Evaluate the performance of channel sales partners
- Offer more enticing sales incentives moving forward
At Incentive Insights, we work hard to ensure you receive accurate data from your automotive aftermarket incentive programs. We carefully review every data point and provide customized reports in language that’s easy to understand, so you can get the insights you need to improve your business.
Let Incentive Insights Manage Your Automotive Incentives
Incentive Insights has been in business for over 20 years, so we know what makes an incentive campaign successful. We listen closely to your needs and recommend custom solutions designed to help you meet your goals in the automotive aftermarket. To get started with Incentive Insights, reach out to us online, call 914-290-4234 or request your free offer setup today.
