When it comes to your messaging, touch on the fact you grew up there and care about the people in your community. Use local landmarks and local lingo in your creative material.

Within this great industry that we have come to love, we understand there is tradition and a certain way things have been done for years, and we respect that. But in a world where the 800-pound gorillas are beginning to dominate and in an era where your potential customers have been programmed to tune out more than 90 percent of any marketing effort put in front of them, don’t you think it’s about time to start doing things differently?

Some feel like they have been quite successful simply by knocking on doors and do not need one; or, in many cases, the website is not taken seriously and acts as an online brochure just to give the dealer a presence.

Having a hard time trying to come up with a perfect marketing campaign to penetrate a tough vertical? Or have you ever wondered why you haven’t heard from that large account you pitched over a week ago?

If you’re taking the time to read this article, congratulations! You have taken your first step on a journey that we can guarantee will be like no other.