The Future of Automotive Marketing with Digital License Plates | Harry Dhaliwal from Reviver

Ernesto Quezada: Pathmonk is the intelligent tool for website lead generation. With increasing online competition, over 98% of website visitors don’t convert. The ability to successfully show your value proposition and support visitors in their buying journey separates you from the competition online. Pathmonk qualifies and converts leads on your website by figuring out where they are in the buying journey and influencing them in key decision moments. With relevant micro experiences like case studies, intro videos, and much more, stay relevant to your visitors and increase conversions by 50%. Add Pathmonk to your website in seconds. Let the AI do all the work and get access to 50% more qualified leads while you keep doing marketing and sales as usual. Check us out on pathmonk.com. Welcome to today’s episode. Let’s talk about today’s guest. We have Harry, Marketing Manager at Reviver. How are you doing today, Harry?

Harry Dhaliwal: Hey, Ernesto, how are you? Thank you for having me on today. Feel honored.

Ernesto: It’s great to have you. You’re letting me know a little bit. About Reviver and what you guys are doing. It’s amazing. So, let’s start with the first question, right, Harry, so that our listeners can get a better understanding of Reviver. In your own words, tell us a little bit more.

Harry: Absolutely. To start it off, Reviver, we are the first digital license plate manufacturers. We’re based here in Granite Bay, California, for those of you who don’t know. Granite Bay is in the Sacramento metropolitan area. It’s not as exciting when you think of Sacramento, but it’s the capital of California. So that’s where we’re based. And we make the smart, digital license plates. The fun fact about that is that I was a customer first. When I came across the product, I was just sold by its sleek look, its app functionalities where you could pay for your vehicle registration in-app, which means no more going to the DMV. We bring convenience to motorists. You can go directly into the app and pay for your vehicle registration. We offer some exciting features for you to connect with your vehicle. For example, you can toggle light mode, dark mode, and add a custom banner message up to 27 characters. We have several fonts that you can select. We are working on releasing new fonts, new emojis, and new features down the road. But our main product is the Reviver R plate, which is right here. You can see, this is the world’s first digital license plate. It’s available in dark mode. This one has the custom vanity plate that supports cancer. If you have a vanity plate that you bought from the DMV that supports a certain cause, the imagery will be transferred over to this plate.

Ernesto: All right, that sounds awesome to hear. Right? I think that’s one of the things that people don’t imagine, that it could go into the technology world. Right. So it’s awesome to hear that part.

Harry: Absolutely.

Ernesto: I mean, is it safe to say that your segment, your ICP, is anyone that owns a car, or is it somebody else out there?

Harry: Good question. Ideally, we would want our plates on every type of automobile out there, but right now, with the current laws, we’re only able to place our R plates on vehicles like regular sedans, SUVs, and pickup trucks. One day we would love to tap into motorcycles, boats, buses, and commercial big rig trucks, but as of now, it’s just strictly automobiles. We are available in three states: California, Michigan, and Arizona.

Ernesto: All right, awesome. So then, how would someone usually find out about you? Say, I’m in California. How would I find out about Reviver? Is there a top client acquisition channel for you guys?

Harry: Yes, and that’s actually social media. I’m proud to say that the marketing team and I, our marketing initiatives are being recognized by multiple audiences. When I’m on the road, I see another passenger with a Reviver R plate. I will, in a subtle way, make an indication, not in a creepy way, but like, “Hey, I like your plate.” If we get a moment to chat, I’ll be like, “Hey, I’m a Marketing Manager at Reviver. I’m super pleased to see you got one. It’s super nice.” Then they’ll share their moment of how they got one. It’s just nice to see. When I ask how they found out about it, they’re like, “Oh, through your marketing efforts, through social media.” They’ve been checking out our Instagram page or other social media pages. It’s nice to know that our marketing content is resonating with our intended audience. When we speak to our customers, they’re super pleased. They say, “It just has to be on my car.” For example, a bulk of our customers come from Tesla owners. Their common response is that they’ve seen other Tesla owners have it and thought it looked like an original fit from Tesla. For some Tesla owners, this feels like a product that Tesla has built in. When customers say that, it becomes word of mouth. Our social media presence is one of our top acquisition channels, and so is word of mouth. We are partnered with several dealerships. We have a direct e-commerce business-to-consumer model, but we also have a B2C model through our dealership partners. Our dealerships advocate for the product. We provide them with adequate training on how to use the app, set up the R plate, and showcase key features. Lastly, we also have a B2B business, selling to commercial fleets. This is a growing part of our business that we would love to tap more into.

Ernesto: Definitely, that’s important. So that way, our listeners who are tuned in can visit you guys and get in touch with you. You can always check them out at reviver.com. What role does the website play in client acquisition?

Harry: Great question, Ernesto. The website serves to inform users about the R plate and what it’s all about. On our website, when you go to reviver.com, you see a video on the homepage. The video autoplays and shows you the functionality of the R plate. It tells the story of a person’s journey, whether they’re driving home or out in the wilderness. It showcases its sleek look and durability. It is heatproof, waterproof, and ice-proof. We’ve tested the product in various harsh conditions, and it comes out as a very durable product. Our homepage hones in on the look and feel of the product, its durability, and its key functions.

Ernesto: Definitely important. Great to hear that.

Harry: Thank you.

Ernesto: On that note, Harry, are there any tools, tips, or methods you would recommend to our listeners for website lead generation?

Harry: Yes, I would say definitely strategize your marketing initiatives. For example, if you want to focus on TOFU (top of the funnel), make sure you are all about building awareness. When I joined the organization about six months in, Reviver had a lot going on, and it was scrambled. People didn’t know what it was. One initiative I took on was to focus on TOFU content, building awareness. We started looking into keywords and creating more search intent. We focused on the story of Reviver: what is a digital license plate, who founded Reviver, and what’s its origin story. We catered our marketing strategies to focus on the story. From there, we leveraged our other marketing channels to create more awareness. If we see an intent to purchase, we get our sales reps involved to educate the customer or schedule a demo call. Once we know that’s going, we move to BOFU (bottom of the funnel) content. If a customer has been visiting the website and has high intent, we might offer a 15% discount. We also have an abandoned cart procedure, sending out four emails to encourage sales. We are all about leveraging storytelling.

Ernesto: Definitely important. I think storytelling is an important part of people’s buying journey. Awesome to hear that. Thanks for sharing, Harry. Now, let’s switch gears a little bit. As the Marketing Manager at Reviver, what are some key aspects you focus on in your day-to-day work?

Harry: Being at a startup, you get to wear many different hats. I love that, but it can also mean prioritizing many tasks. Some of my key day-to-day tasks include content creation, managing social media, and partnerships. We are seeing traction in the partnership realm, so a lot of my priorities are finding and connecting with influencers. We are growing our influencer marketing program, finding ideal partners, and resonating with them. Some partners are fans of the product, which makes it easier. Alongside content creation and social media marketing, partnership marketing is my main priority.

Ernesto: Awesome. Great to hear that. How do you stay up to date with trends in marketing and new strategies?

Harry: I’m big on medium.com and LinkedIn. I’m connected with several marketing organizations. One is PMA (Product Marketing Alliance). Before I joined Reviver, most of my marketing career was in product marketing. I love product marketing, leveraging storytelling, and building the right persona. Since joining Reviver, I’ve leveraged that here. Sometimes, there’s so much going on that I lean back on HubSpot or ask my marketing peers in the PMA Slack channel. I also use Reddit and YouTube for quick information. Lastly, I try to attend marketing conferences, depending on my schedule.

Ernesto: Definitely important. Awesome to hear that, Harry. Thanks for sharing. Now, let’s jump into our next section, which is a rapid-fire question round. Are you ready?

Harry: Sure.

Ernesto: Awesome. First off, what is the last book that you read?

Harry: Good question. I love to read a lot. The last book I read was “Man’s Search for Meaning” by Viktor Frankl. I came across it on the Apple TV show “The Patient” with Steve Carell. The book motivates you to look for meaning in life, no matter the stage, and stay mentally strong. I highly recommend it.

Ernesto: Great to hear that. Next, what is the one single thing that Reviver is focused on the most right now?

Harry: State expansion. We would love to expand nationwide. Currently, we are legal in three states, and we have others on the roadmap like Colorado, Georgia, and Florida. We aim to be nationwide and eventually international. There’s a lot of educating to do with state legislature and law enforcement, but we are focused on selling the story, ensuring information security, and adding convenience for users.

Ernesto: Great to hear about the expansion. If there were no boundaries in technology, what would be the one thing you want to fix in your role as a marketer today?

Harry: Since I heavily rely on ChatGPT, I wish it offered unlimited access to things like scheduling tasks, finding keywords, and looking up trends. I love doing that manually, but I wish ChatGPT could automate it and dish back information without limitations. It would be great if it were as robust as the Google search engine.

Ernesto: Definitely a great point. Now, if there’s one repetitive task you could automate, what would that be?

Harry: It would be automating our social media posting. We are a small team of three, and building out our social media marketing efforts can be tedious. I wish tools like ChatGPT could automate bulk postings, find trending topics, and suggest themes. Although I use tools like Sprout Social, more automation would be wonderful.

Ernesto: Great to hear that. Lastly, what is one piece of advice you would give yourself if you were to restart your journey as a marketer?

Harry: Great question. I’m a late bloomer in marketing. Even though I graduated with a marketing degree in 2015, I didn’t start marketing until three to four years later. I was working for the state and federal government. I listened to my parents, who wanted me to stay in government or move into accounting and finance. Marketing wasn’t something they knew much about, even though it was my passion. But once I started in marketing, I never looked back. My advice to aspiring marketers is to start now. Sharpen your skills, stay connected on LinkedIn, and give yourself a marketing project. Pick a product, create content, and test it in the market. Be proactive. Marketing is hands-on, and staying on top of trends is crucial. Educate yourself and don’t be afraid to get your hands dirty.

Ernesto: Awesome advice, Harry. Thank you so much for sharing that. We are coming to the end of the show. I want to thank you for being on with us. Let’s say everyone forgets everything they heard today. What is the one thing they should remember about Reviver?

Harry: One thing about Reviver they should remember is that this digital license plate makes your overall lifestyle more convenient. You have all the necessary information in your app. You can register your vehicle renewal, get reminders, and avoid unnecessary fees. At the same time, you can also customize your car. It’s all about adding convenience to your lifestyle.

Ernesto: Great to hear that. Thank you so much, Harry. To our listeners, thank you for tuning in today. Harry, I look forward to our next episode on Pathmonk Presents.

Harry: Thanks a lot, Ernesto. Yeah, thank you.