DEALER GUIDE MOTABILITY EVENTS · MOTABILITY EVENT Holding an event is a great way of getting your dealership known in the local community, as it provides an opportunity to have conversations

MOTABIL ITY EVENTS

DEALER GUIDE

D E A L E R G U I D E | M OTA B I L I T Y E V E N T S M OTA B I L I T Y D E A L E R . C O . U K2 3

MOTABIL ITY EVENTS

BOOST YOUR SALES WITH A MOTABILITY EVENTHolding an event is a great way of getting your dealership known in the local community, as it provides an opportunity to have conversations with potential customers in a relaxed and fun environment. This can really help people get a better understanding of the benefits of the Scheme. Events are also great for business with many dealers reporting sign ups on the day and in the weeks following.

“The ‘Under One Roof’ Motability event we held this year was a great success. We promoted it on local radio and in the local press, plus we sent over 5,000 invitations. About 450 people came along and 10 signed up on the day. We’ve seen an increase in new business each month as a result. Are we running the event again next year? Of course – and we’re making it even bigger!”

Douglas Small, Group Motability Specialist, Eastern Western Motor Group Limited


2. When and where should you hold your event?4 From our experience Motability events can be successful on any day of the week. So if

your retail business is busy at the weekends, hold your Motability events on weekdays4 Try to not clash with any major sporting events and also avoid any big soap storylines

on TV4 For some of our customers, getting out and about in bad weather conditions or the

dark can be difficult, so don’t hold your event on a dark winter night. Spring and summer are better times of year

4 If you’re planning an event away from your dealership, check the venue has adequate disabled facilities, plenty of level concrete for your car displays and lots of accessible parking

3. What should you do in the run up to your event?4 Work hard at promoting your event 4 Order any Point of Sale material you need well ahead, so you can be sure it’s all

available for the day and makes a real impact 4 Invite local adaptation, WAV, scooter or powered wheelchair companies to support

your event. They can help with advice on the day and invite people from their own databases too

ADVICE ON PLANNING A SUCCESSFUL EVENTHosting a great event is all about planning and starting early enough to get everything done. Start by creating a time plan of key tasks and don’t forget to allocate lots of time to promoting your event, as well as the planning.

1. How to make your event stand outPeople are getting more and more invitations to retail events these days, so the key to making your event a success is making sure it stands out from the crowd. Here are some ideas to help with this:4 Promoting competitions, special offers on the day, free prize draws or free gifts at your

events are a great way to encourage people to attend4 Want a ready made prize draw? Then use our free prize draw cards that give everyone

who attends your event a chance to win a great prize (paid for and sent out to them by Motability). These are available from the Point of Sale website or in the ‘Event in a Box’ pack (see page 7 for more details)

4 Hold your event in an interesting location, such as a local tourist attraction or a sporting venue

4 Promoting free refreshments or entertainment on the day is always a crowd pleaser4 Why not persuade a local celebrity, sports person or dignitary to attend? At the very

least their presence should gain you some PR coverage in the local press4 Invite other Scheme partners or local disability organisations to attend. A relevant

expert such as WAV, adaptation or powered wheelchair and scooter companies will help attract more guests and they can help promote the event too


4. How we can support youOur Dealer Resource Centre, motabilitydealer.co.uk provides one easy place to find all your Motability support. So, if you need help go to motabilitydealer.co.uk to access everything from ordering Motability merchandise, logging your event on our website, downloading marketing templates and much more.

• Post your event on our websiteBy logging details of your event on our website it will be advertised online. We also promote this website in all our customer mailings. Once listed, your dealership will then receive a FREE ‘Event in a Box’ pack that contains loads of goodies (including our free prize draw cards) to help you promote your event. You are able to purchase more of these packs at motabilitydealer.co.uk.Submitting your event is simple, just go to motabilitydealer.co.uk and click the ‘Events’ icon (shown below).

ADVERTISE YOUR MOTABILITYEVENT FOR FREE!

ADVICE AND SUPPORT FOR PROMOTING YOUR EVENT1. Attract your target market4 You’ll need to let people know you’re holding an event at least two to three weeks

ahead of it. Send invitations to your own database of contacts and don’t forget to invite your existing customers and encourage them to bring friends and family along

4 Contact local disability organisations including your local Shopmobility to see if they will promote your event to their members

4 Contact your local doctor’s surgery to see if you can put up a poster or leave invitations in their public waiting areas

4 If you’ve asked other companies to support your event make sure they also distribute invitations to any mailing lists they may have

4 Use our marketplace data to see areas of high potential near you that may be worth targeting with a door drop of your event invitations. This is available on our dedicated marketing site, simply click the ‘Marketing’ icon at motabilitydealer.co.uk

2. Getting coverage in the local press4 Try and get press coverage in your local papers – don’t forget we have event press

release templates which you can personalise and send to local newspapers4 Don’t forget to also make your local radio station aware of what you have planned.

You never know they may decide to plug your event or even come along! 4 Consider also sending your event press releases to local online ‘What’s on’ guides 4 Getting coverage is all about whether your event has something special to offer. Names

and faces make an event more interesting to write about, so include pictures with your press releases. If you’ve persuaded a local celebrity, sports person or dignitary to attend this will really help generate coverage

3. What to include in your event promotion4 When promoting your event remember to highlight all the extras that you’ve added to

make your event stand out4 Also consider the type of people that may attend; they will be encouraged if they are

reassured they are coming to an accessible venue with good disabled facilities and plenty of free parking close by

4 As many of our customers are also nervous about visiting a dealership for the first time, make sure your invitation looks as friendly and welcoming as possible. Pictures of the friendly staff they’re going to meet on the day can really help

MARKETING ADVICE AND SUPPORT


• Use our marketing event templates to help promote your eventsTo find our dedicated marketing site click the ‘Marketing’ icon (shown below) at motabilitydealer.co.uk. Here you’ll find a range of pre-designed event templates for you to use, including press adverts, pre-recorded radio adverts, direct mail, web banners and press releases all designed to help promote your events. They’re simple to use, just download and then add your own dealership and event details to complete the template.

• Hire our event equipment to give your event a real boostNew this year, we have a range of stands available to hire at very competitive rates, to support your events.

Hire charges:1 day basic hire £2952 day basic hire £3953 day basic hire £495

Hire of these stands includes delivery, full set up and collection. Additional collateral is available to order at an additional cost.For more information or to book a stand visit motabilitydealer.co.uk/eventhireAvailability is limited (especially at peak times), so book early to avoid disappointment.

• Post your event on our Motability Events Facebook pageOur Motability Events Facebook page can also help advertise your event. Simply ‘like’ our page and you can share details of your events directly on the Motability Events wall. Why not share photos of previous events you’ve held to encourage more people to come along?

• Order Motability merchandise to make your event stand out To see the full range of material available go to motabilitydealer.co.uk and click on the ‘Point of Sale’ icon (shown below). Alongside our standard range of merchandise there’s a wide range of event items available to order. Ordering is simple, just go to the website, click on the items you want and place your order, lots of items are free. For chargeable items and postage, you simply pay for your order by Direct Debit.

GET MOTABILITY POINT OF SALE FOR YOUR DEALERSHIP

Car topper

Silent salesman

FlagsMotability gives us the ability toenjoy great days outMr and Mrs Wilcox

Talk to a specialist here today

Servicing and

maintenance included

2,000cars to choose from


Servicing and



Motability gives me the ability to enjoyworry-free motoringAlan Ison

Motability gives us the ability toenjoy great days outMr and Mrs Wilcox


Servicing and




Servicing and



Motability gives me the ability to enjoyworry-free motoringAlan Ison

PVC Banners

Indoor stand

Outdoor stand(4m x 4m suitable for a car display)

D E A L E R G U I D E | M OTA B I L I T Y E V E N T S M OTA B I L I T Y D E A L E R . C O . U K10 1 1

F INALLY, ON THE DAY OF THE EVENT. . .4 Put your event signage up all around your dealership so people can easily see

where to go. You may also encourage people passing by to pop in 4 Highlight Advance Payments on your Motability models so guests can clearly

see what’s available through the Scheme4 Make sure you capture all the leads you generate on the day. Events cost

money and making sure you capture leads will help you get the most from your investment

4 Take photographs for future event promotions, press releases and newsletters but remember to get people’s permission to use their photo

4 Have plenty of trained Motability specialists on hand to answer people’s questions. Why not draft Motability specialists in from other dealerships or train all your staff to answer Motability questions?

4 Make sure you have plenty of parking spaces available on the day and make sure the disabled toilet facilities are easy for guests to access and clearly signed

4 As you’re hosting a disability event make sure you make it as easy as possible for guests to get into your venue. Leave plenty of space around the cars for people with wheelchairs

GOOD LUCK WITH YOUR EVENT!

•Want a Motability ambassador to support your event?We have a Motability ambassador (who’s both a Motability employee and a customer of the Scheme) who may be available to come along and support your event.Our ambassador is a great person to talk to your guests about the Motability Scheme and answers any questions they may have. They can also share their experiences of being a Motability customer themselves.

If you are interested in our Motability ambassador attending your event please email the details of your event to [email protected] availability is limited please send your requests through as early as possible to avoid disappointment. We’ll review every request to see if our ambassador is available.

“I just wanted to say a heartfelt thank you for allowing Chris Edwards to attend my “Party in the car park” event on Sunday 16th September. What a wonderful guy he is and so helpful. I don’t think there is anything he doesn’t know about Motability and he was a real asset to our day.”

Cheryl Ashton, Gordons Ford

Vers

ion

1 (12

/201

2)

HOW TO GET IN TOUCH

Ask a question Our online virtual assistant is there to answer any questions you may have and is available at: motabilitydealer.co.uk

City Gate House22 Southwark Bridge RoadLondon SE1 9HBEmail: [email protected]: 0870 111 8885 (Lines are open 8.30am – 5.30pm Mon to Fri)Fax: 020 7928 1818motabilitydealer.co.uk

Bristol Park HouseBuilding 610, Bristol Business ParkColdharbour Lane, Bristol BS16 1EJEmail: [email protected]: 0870 6000 288 (Lines are open 8.30am – 5.30pm Mon to Fri)mfldirect.co.uk

RSA Motability (RSAM)Customer ServicesPO Box 4, New Hall PlaceOld Hall Street, Liverpool L69 3SDTel: 0500 37 37 37 (Lines are open 8am – 8pm Mon to Fri, and 8am – 4pm on Sat)motability.rsagroup.co.uk

Glass Repair/Replacement(managed by RSAM)Tel: 0500 355 355

RAC Motability AssistCustomer Services, Thomas Street, Stretford, Manchester M32 0HXTel: 0800 73 111 73

Kwik-FitTel: 0870 054 5396

Epyx 1linkTel: 01676 571001 1link.co.uk

DEALER GUIDE MOTABILITY EVENTS · MOTABILITY EVENT Holding an event is a great way of getting your dealership known in the local community, as it provides an opportunity to have conversations

Documents

DEALER GUIDE MOTABILITY EVENTS · MOTABILITY EVENT Holding an event is a great way of getting your dealership known in the local community, as it provides an opportunity to have conversations