Black Friday and Cyber Monday might have already passed, but GWC Warranty contends that dealerships still can leverage consumers’ enthusiasm for spending to rake in some retail revenue via their finance departments.

“There are two ways to look at the holiday season,” the company said in a post on its blog, "Accelerate". “You can chalk it up as the slow time of year, or you can go big and use the last month to provide a jolt to the year’s profits. The choice is yours.”

With that decision ahead for dealers large and small, GWC Warranty offered four recommendations operators can try in order to breathe some life into the final days of the year.

“It’s the season for deals, giving and new beginnings, and your business is no exception,” the company said.

1. Social media advertising

If your store hasn’t tried social media advertising, GWC Warranty said the operation may be missing out on the deal of the century. Ads on Facebook, for instance, can be relatively affordable and allow you to target by age, location, gender and even interests.

“If you have a specific car for a specific audience that you need to get off your lot, social media ads might be your ticket to a quick, profitable sale,” the company said.

2. Contests

GWC Warranty emphasized that customers love to win, and they love a deal.

Promoting contests that can get customers engaged with your dealership don’t just reward the winner, but also get more foot or internet traffic for your dealership, according to the company.

“You can try discounts, free service vouchers, gas cards or similar giveaways for customers that help get conversations started during a season when they might otherwise not happen,” GWC Warranty said.

3. VSC second chance

If your customers didn’t bite on service contract coverage the first time around, GWC Warranty suggested that dealerships could try getting them back in to see if they might be interested now that they’ve been in the vehicle for a few months.

“Especially during the holiday season, you’d hate to see an unexpected repair hurt a customer’s monthly budget,” the company said. “You can use this to position a VSC as the perfect gift to give themselves this holiday season.”

4. Test a new lead tool

If this time of year is typically slow, GWC Warranty acknowledged that it couldn’t hurt to try something new.

“You can pilot the use of a tool like Covideo that uses video communication to help nurture leads and get customers on your lot,” GWC Warranty said. “Give it a shot with a few leads that come in and if it works well, you can build it into your regular processes for the new year.”