At a time when no news is good news, dealers should be pleased to hear that the government has boosted the scrappage scheme by £100million, offering retailers another chance to lure customers back to the forecourt. HPI’s Prospect Leads offers dealers a cost-effective way to get the best out of the scrappage scheme and renew their enthusiasm for the extra funding.

“The first time the scrappage scheme was announced, the industry seemed excited, but the extension has been met with little fanfare,” says Daniel Burgess, Director of Automotive at HPI. “The qualification for the scheme now includes cars registered on or before 29 February 2000 and the qualifying time for light vans has been reduced to eight years. This means dealers should be queuing up to bag extra sales, however that’s not the overall feeling.

“Maybe there hasn’t been enough publicity for the extension or the profit on new car sales has proven to be less than hoped. However, in a tough market, a small margin is better than no margin at all. The scrappage scheme is an opportunity to boost new car sales and with that comes the ability to up sell service and maintenance programmes, which will provider longer term revenue opportunities, ultimately helping dealers boost customer loyalty and retention.”

HPI’s Prospect Leads offers access to over 1.2 million customers who are likely to take advantage of the scheme and they have all been credit screened for CCJs and credit worthiness. The important thing in attracting new car sales in the first place is to talk directly to potential customers. Advertising on TV is a costly affair, and blanket press advertising can reach a wide audience, but not necessarily the right one. However, HPI’s prospects list helps dealers hit buyers who are most likely to respond positively, in the right area, looking to buy the type of car they sell and who are most likely to afford it.

Burgess concludes, “The scrappage scheme is offering a small window of opportunity which needs to be taken advantage of now. There is already speculation that once this window closes the industry could well see a return to the sales levels seen before the scheme commenced, if not lower. So dealers need to use quality, screened customer data to help them communicate with those most likely looking to buy right now and stay one step ahead of their competitors.”