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I am writing this article on January 15, 2025, and how grateful I am for the past ten years! During this period, I have worked in various roles at Marktplaats. Today marks exactly ten years since I sold my company, Nieuweautokopen.nl, to the eBay Classified Group, and suddenly, I was successful online. The ten years […]

Just a few more weeks, and then it’s time again for the pinnacle of retail automotive: the NADA, a conference organized by the American National Automobile Dealers Association. This time, the event will be held in New Orleans. I’ve lost count, but it must be at least the fifteenth time I’m attending. I never skip […]

The first blog of the year – 51 more to go before we can evaluate 2025. Then we’ll see which New Year’s resolutions were achieved and which ones were quickly forgotten… 2025 is starting in a strange way for me! At the Ligier Store Doesburg – Experience Center, I’ll be working alone this month. The […]

It’s the second day of Christmas, and like every Thursday, it’s time for a new article. I’ve been posting these articles on Thursdays for years, but publishing on a Friday once in a while is fine too. Finding a topic remains a challenge at times. After more than 200 articles on lead follow-up, each with […]

Okay, this year has been quite turbulent, and next year will be even more exciting when it comes to automotive leads, especially in new car sales. In the past few weeks, I’ve visited three major dealers and OEMs, and they’ve all raised the storm flag. Despite this, the right questions still aren’t being asked, and priorities are being mishandled. You don’t need a new lead management system to process extra online leads if the process for handling those leads doesn’t exist or isn’t being followed!

December is a time for recalculating and reflecting: what went well, and what could be improved? At Ligier Store Doesburg – Experience Center, it’s no different. With access to the beta version of Google Vehicle Listing Ads (VLA), we must rethink our marketing strategy. Although the beta version is not yet optimal and generates few […]

As 2025 approaches, I can’t help but look back nostalgically to 2018! That was the year I first met Forest Ward and Koby Jackson from Calldrip. It was in Amsterdam, at Marktplaats. As Marktplaats’s automotive spokesperson at the time, I scheduled all my #DCDW meetings there. It made the Marktplaats office feel like my own, […]

At Ligier Store Doesburg, we don’t stand still. Starting January 1, we are switching to a completely new approach for following up on online leads. What makes this change so special? With one less salesperson (50% less capacity), we will follow up on more leads and make more sales. This may sound like a challenge, but we see it as an opportunity.

How will we achieve this at the Ligier Store Doesburg – Experience Center? In a series of articles, I will explain our approach and strategy step by step. Topics will include smart automation, the use of the right tools, and optimizing the customer journey. Today, I’ll give an overview of the main points; in the upcoming articles, I’ll dive into the details.

During last week’s #DCDW event, I delved deeper into how we calculate ROI for car portals at Ligier Store Doesburg – Experience Center. I used Marktplaats as an example, but this method can also be applied to the other three portals.

The core idea behind assessing ROI is that, as a marketer, I need to determine whether my investments yield the expected return. Suppose I receive 50 leads from platform Y, but my sales team fails to follow up by calling, emailing, or messaging. As a result, they sell very little. Does that mean it’s a poor marketing investment? Or is it a problem in the sales process?

The marketing team provides opportunities, while the sales team is responsible for converting at least 13%. Both departments have their own responsibilities. A “bad” existing lead has a better chance of converting with a solid process than a “good” lead with a poor one.

I’m not a fan of road pricing and don’t understand why we, as the automotive sector, seem to actively ask the government for it. Road pricing first appeared on the radar during the last Rutte cabinet. The plan was to implement it by 2030 as a replacement for vehicle ownership tax. However, the proposal has […]