As we wind down the first half of 2025, auto retailers face one of the biggest strategic shakeups in recent years. Headline-making tariffs and inventory volatility are steering both consumer buying and servicing behavior into uncharted territory. In our recent Analytics Unfiltered webinar, C-4 Analytics experts Luke Jonas (VP, Analytics & Reporting) and Art Pier (VP, Media Strategy) broke down the data and outlined clear tactics for dealers to adapt, excel, and own more market share—especially via pre-owned retail and fixed operations.
C-4 Analytics’ national consumer insight surveys make one thing clear: digital research is the undisputed starting point for both new and used vehicle shoppers. But as tariffs inject uncertainty into new car pricing, many buyers are shifting their focus toward used and certified pre-owned vehicles.
What does this mean for a dealer’s digital strategy? It’s no longer enough to be merely visible online—dealers must merchandise inventory down to the individual VIN, with a laser focus on price, selection, and availability. Your used inventory is a finite, perishable resource, and as new vehicle supply tightens, battles will be won (or lost) based on how aggressively—and creatively—you source and market pre-owned stock.
As Pier put it, “It’s a one-to-one market now. If someone sees that you have a blue 2020 [Honda] Pilot, they need to know it’s available now.” VIN-specific campaigns, driven by dynamic ads that update inventory and specials in real time, are crucial. That means leveraging automation to keep your listings fresh, but also ensuring your marketing spend is ruthlessly efficient, showing real prices and promoting the vehicles most likely to move.
Even as the spotlight swings to used, don’t ignore new inventory. Some buyers, especially those less price-sensitive or committed to a particular OEM, will still shop new, so your marketing must clearly convey the breadth of your full inventory.
Both Jonas and Pier sounded a clear warning: economic jitters and market swings are not the time to fade from view. Dealers who cut ad spend during COVID lost ground—they struggled to catch up when demand rebounded. The same will be true in the next market cycle. Consumers may be hesitant, but many are still ready to buy (our research showed 68% are planning some vehicle purchase within a year, tariffs or not).
One actionable takeaway for dealers: Maintain a strong omnichannel presence. Stay top-of-mind for fence-sitters and educate local consumers on how tariffs or pricing changes could impact them. This is the moment for dealerships to generate high-value, optimized SEO content—explaining how their brand or local market is affected—gaining both Google authority and shopper trust.
As pre-owned inventory contracts, the most successful dealers will adopt a “hunter’s mindset”—relentlessly acquiring from local trade-ins, digital auction platforms, and existing customer bases.
Jonas highlighted how C-4 Analytics’ digital tools can target equity-positive shoppers, prompting trade-ins with compelling offers. At a time when a better trade-in value can be the deciding factor, campaigns that use data to identify and motivate the right prospects will convert browsers into sellers, and sellers into next-gen car buyers.
Economic uncertainty means people are holding on to vehicles longer, driving up demand for maintenance and repair. For dealers, that’s a double win: more ROs, plus greater opportunity to reacquire vehicles downstream.
But in a time rife with price-sensitive customers and fluid brand loyalty, fixed ops conquest and retention campaigns become make-or-break tools. Jonas and Pier detailed the need to target not just loyalists, but recent defectors and local owners of your brand. Use digital conquest (including streaming, social, and even credit card-sourced audiences!) to overcome the “dealers are expensive” myth, offer transparent pricing, and highlight perks like loaners and fast service.
Additionally, consider that while fixed ops discounts and price incentives draw clicks, true magic comes from selling the complete service experience (convenience, online schedulers, trust, certified techs, testimonials). The service lane is not just a retention lever but a powerful channel to reactivate lost customers and even drive vehicle acquisition.
One standout from the webinar: how Amazon’s Garage data and predictive modeling can empower dealers to target service, retail, and acquisition ads at key in-market audiences. By leveraging Amazon’s accurate, first-party garage/inventory data, and combining it with dynamic video creative, dealers can deliver fresh, always-updating offers with persistent, scannable QR codes, maximizing engagement while minimizing downtime or stale campaigns.
This level of cross-channel data activation fills the top of the funnel (awareness/demand) and then uses search/social retargeting to capture high-intent buyers, ensuring more ROs and sales.
In 2025’s evolving market, the winners will be those who out-work, out-acquire, and out-market their competitors, across every channel. Is your dealership ready to compete on those terms?