OVERVIEW:
As the second-oldest Buick dealer in the U.S., Curry Auto Center of Bloomington, IN, had a century-long history as a family-owned, single-location business. Over the years, the dealer added more brands, including Cadillac, GMC, and, most recently, Chevrolet. Historically, Curry Auto Center marketed to a specific demographic: primarily male, higher income, low price sensitivity, well educated, and likely to pay cash instead of using financing. The addition of the Chevrolet brand opened up a new audience with a very different demographic profile: younger, more price sensitive, internet-savvy, and more likely to use financing. Curry found itself losing Chevrolet sales over several years and set out to kick its sales into high gear with a geographically targeted video advertising strategy.
STRATEGY:
Curry’s Chevrolet campaign was particularly focused on truck sales, with the campaign featuring country music singer Clayton Anderson. The dealership worked with Effectv to identify the ideal networks and times of day for Chevy truck ads, based on alignment with key demographic characteristics. That research led to a mix of TV networks that included AMC, A&E, the Big Ten Network, Bravo, CMT, CNBC, CNN, Comedy Central, Discovery, ESPN/ESPN2, FOX Sports, FX, Golf Channel, History, NFL Network, Syfy, TBS, and TNT.
SUCCESS:
Over the course of a four-month advertising campaign, inquiries about the Chevrolet Silverado pickup truck increased 14.8% year-over-year, with total Silverado sales up 5%. In addition, total new- and used-car sales increased 9.5%, total new-car sales for all General Motors brands grew 15.3%, and Chevrolet sales increased 13%.