Win holiday car buyers today: The pre-market opportunity.

Between year-end sales events, holiday bonuses, and “new year, new car” shoppers, December consistently sees a surge in car buyer demand. The catch is that every other dealer in your market is counting on that same surge, and they’re all making their pitch to the same shoppers at once.

It’s tempting to hold your budget for December, when buyers are actively shopping. But by the time they’re browsing lots, most have already narrowed their options to a few models, and winning them over at that point is an uphill battle. The real opportunity is reaching them before their minds are made up.

Buying a car is rarely a spur-of-the-moment decision. Outside of buying a home, it’s the biggest purchase most consumers make. Most buyers take around 90 days to go from the first signal, whether that’s a life change like a new job or a new baby, or an automotive trigger like an expiring lease or a paid-off loan, to researching, shopping, and finally buying.

After analyzing and modeling car-buyer behavior, EMG established this 90-day Consideration Window and mapped it into three distinct audience groups:

• Pre-market (~60-day duration) – Something in their life has changed, signaling an upcoming need for a vehicle, but they may not realize they need a new car yet.
• In-market (~23-30-day duration) – They’re actively researching, comparing models, and building a short list.
• Conquest (~7-day duration) – They’re visiting dealerships, test-driving vehicles, and exploring trade-in options.

Now count back 90 days from December. That puts the start of the journey in early October. In other words, your holiday buyers are entering pre-market right now.

Pre-market is easy to overlook. These buyers are the furthest from a sale, and many don’t even know they’ll be car shopping soon, so the payoff from investing in them can feel far off.

But that’s exactly what makes them so valuable. They haven’t picked favorites, and your competitors haven’t found them yet. They’re not comparing models, tuning out car ads, or dodging sales calls from a dozen local dealerships. They’re highly influenceable, and they’re paying attention.

Reach them in October and through November, and by December you’re the familiar brand they already trust. Wait until they’re in-market, and you’re just one more option they’re trying to rule out.

A strong December comes down to a few smart moves this fall:

• Start in October – Pre-market buyers need time to experience a life change, recognize their need for a car, and start researching. Reach them at their first signal in October, and nurture them all the way to purchase.
• Make pre-market a priority – EMG recommends allocating over 60% of your campaign budget toward pre-market audiences, since they’re the most influenceable. Underfund them, and you miss the buyers who are easiest to win over.
• Fund your campaign fully – The more pre-market buyers you reach today, the more buyers will already know your brand when they’re ready to purchase in December.
• Commit to a 90-day campaign – Keep your campaign running through the fall and into the holidays so your brand stays top of mind as buyers get closer to purchase.

December buyers don’t appear out of nowhere. They start their journey months earlier, often before they realize it themselves. The dealers who reach them in October will be the ones they remember in December. Everyone else will be competing for attention in the most crowded month of the year.

We built pre-market audiences to find car buyers at the very start of their journey, using predictive life-event and vehicle data to identify who’s likely to buy in the next 90 days. Then we reach them where they’re already watching, across hundreds of top streaming apps, with foot traffic attribution that shows what’s driving results. This holiday season, get in front of your December buyers before your competitors even know they exist. Contact us today.