CHICAGO -

According to a recent eMarketer report, 88 percent of mobile phone users check their email via their device daily. With that level in mind, the dealer support staff at Cars.com wondered if your dealership sends mobile-friendly email.

Cars.com acknowledged that getting your contacts to open an email, read it and take action on it may seem simple. But the eMarketer’s study showed mobile open rates and click-throughs are slipping, causing many to rethink their approach to the experience provided by their email marketing efforts.

In a post on Cars.com’s DealerADvantage blog, analysts offered three ways to optimize the email dealers send to today’s mobile vehicle shopper:

1. First, be sure to create short, attention-grabbing subject lines. Cars.com insisted that dealers try to keep the length to 50 characters or less and use action words that are relevant to their interests and personalize the experience.

2. Use mobile-friendly templates that scale according to screen size. Cars.com said there’s nothing worse for a mobile user than an email formatted for a 15-inch computer screen. The site suggested that dealers open test emails on as many smartphones and tablets store staff can find to ensure your emails are easy to read from any device.

3. Cut the copy. Whether it’s responding to an inquiry about a specific vehicle or a newsletter meant for a distribution list of 1,000, Cars.com suggested that managers ask, “Would I read all of this on my smartphone?”  If the answer is no, analysts think dealers should limit the amount of copy, and if possible, limit the number of calls to action in a given email. They also mentioned that adding bullets and using bold formatting are other ways to cut down on copy and draw the reader’s eye to what’s most important.

“By doing your part to make it easy for mobile car shoppers to get relevant information quickly and in a way that’s optimized for their device, you’re also making it easier for them to choose your dealership over the competition,” Cars.com emphasized.

The original blog post from Cars.com can be found here.