Labor Day offers a day of rest for most people, but dealerships around the country have been working hard to get ready for the big holiday sales weekend. The competition for buyers this year will be high—how can you make sure that your dealership’s hard work pays off?

By working smarter, not harder. Below, 3 Birds offers a few tips that we’ve seen work wonders for dealerships.

1.  Tailor and target your marketing to resonate with different customers.

Labor Day sales have the potential to reach many different buyers:

  • Parents who missed out on back-to-school savings
  • Buyers looking to save before the holiday season
  • Customers eager to get a great deal on remaining 2016 models

With smart messaging Streams in the 3 Birds Sales Accelerator, your dedicated Account Strategist will set up multiple automated messaging workflows based on these purchasing goals, so you can go beyond the typical sales language and move customers through the stages to purchase based on their demonstrated interest.

2.  Give customers a way to celebrate at your dealership.

Don’t make visiting your dealership a chore—keep things exciting with a fun event like a cookout, music, or similar activity and encourage them to bring friends and family. If you can find something for the kids to do as well, even better. This not only keeps customers in a great mood, but helps to build a relationship between buyers and your dealership that can truly set you apart.

3.  Learn about your customers—and follow up.

Customer interactions with your Labor Day campaigns—as well as at your dealership during the sale itself—provide valuable information for your future marketing efforts. This data is combined with your data from your CRM, third-party providers, and forward-looking predictive models to identify customers’ specific purchasing intent and segment your database based on customer lifetime value.

This Labor Day, make sure you’re getting the most out of your holiday campaigns. Contact us to learn how you can reach your customers with smart messaging streams, predictive modeling, and more.

This post originally appeared on our blog on August 28, 2013 and has been updated for accuracy and timeliness.