29% Lead-to-Sale Growth: Hyundai Netherlands’ Success Story

Their story

As one of the world’s most recognised automotive brands, Hyundai has built a reputation for forward-thinking design, quality and leadership in new-energy vehicles. In the Netherlands, Hyundai is a fast-growing challenger brand, competing at the front of a dynamic, technology-led market and putting lead generation at the heart of its growth.

“We are really a challenger and a leader when it comes to all technologies.” Leon Van Schie, General Manager Marketing, Hyundai Netherlands

The problem

Behind the brand’s technology leadership sat a lead process that could not keep up. The breaking point was simple: the majority of third-party leads were still being sent to dealers manually.

• Manual, slow hand-offs: Third-party leads were downloaded manually from the ad platforms by the Hyundai team, only during office hours, then passed on to dealers, so follow-up was slow for customers who now expect an instant, seamless journey.
• Poor lead data: Many phone numbers and contact details coming from the media platforms were bots or flawed, wasting dealer time and eroding trust.
• A reporting black box: There was no reliable way to track leads, their source or channel performance, making it impossible to steer spend or prove ROI to the CFO.
• No single view across 60 dealerships: Every dealer ran different systems, so joining up the lead management process was genuinely complex.

“The majority of our third-party leads were still sent manually to our dealer network. And that was just really the breaking point where I said, ‘Okay guys, we now have to find a partner...” Leon Van Schie, General Manager Marketing, Hyundai Netherlands

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The requirements

Hyundai Netherlands set out to find more than a piece of software. The requirements were clear:

• Real-time, automated delivery of every lead straight to the right dealer
• Validation, qualification and deduplication to guarantee clean, contactable data
• A single, end-to-end view of lead performance by channel to steer media spend
• The speed to launch new models and onboard new channels in hours, not months
• The ability to feed lead outcomes back to platforms like Meta to optimise campaigns
• A true partner for a highly competitive, fast-moving automotive market

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Die Lösung

Driftrock now sits at the centre of Hyundai Netherlands’ lead engine, powering capture, validation, conversion and measurement across the funnel.

• Real-time capture and delivery: Leads from Meta, TikTok, affiliates and publishers are delivered to dealers in minutes. Onboarding new affiliate and publisher partners is seamless.
• Validation and qualification: Validation, qualification and deduplication run automatically, so more than 99% of lead data reaching dealers is correct and contactable, with the dealer typically calling the customer within one to two minutes of the enquiry.
• Closing the loop with the walled gardens: Driftrock stitches lead status and form data back into platforms across Hyundai’s global setup, feeding back real-time signals on lead quality and maturity so campaigns can be optimised proactively.

“The CRM stitching bit, so where we could feed back the lead status and also the input of the lead forms... It did the trick that we hoped it would do, but it actually exceeded our expectations.” Ronald Den Dulk, Manager Digital Performance & CRM, Hyundai Netherlands

• Measurement that steers spend: By distinguishing gross from net cost per lead and qualified from non-qualified leads, the team can now direct media budget towards the channels producing the most qualitative leads, getting more leads for the same spend.
• Speed and self-serve activation: New models and channels go live in hours rather than weeks, supporting the team’s always-on, test-and-learn approach.

“Making new connections, onboarding new channels, it’s seamless actually. One test we did a couple of months ago together with you is onboarding TikTok as a new lead generation channel. I was expecting, okay, this will take weeks, maybe a month to get this live. It’s a matter of hours.” Ronald Den Dulk, Manager Digital Performance & CRM, Hyundai Netherlands

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Die Ergebnisse

In just six months, the impact showed up everywhere: in data quality, in volume and, most importantly, in sales.

• Improved lead quality by 27% in the first six months live.
• Increased growth from lead to sale by 29%, driven by more leads that convert more easily thanks to assured quality.
• 99%+ of lead data correct and contactable, up from a baseline plagued by bots and flawed details.
• Dealer contact within one to two minutes of a customer’s enquiry.
• 9.6/10 average satisfaction from newly onboarded Hyundai drivers.

"We’ve actually improved the lead quality over 27% in those six months, and actually measured from lead to sale, to as far as we can track to date, we’re talking 29% growth. We’re getting more leads, which is fantastic. And actually, with assuring the quality of the leads, we’re able to convert them a whole lot easier." Ronald Den Dulk, Manager Digital Performance & CRM, Hyundai Netherlands

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A partnership, not a purchase

What began as a search for a SaaS vendor to stitch a few systems together became a strategic partnership, built on honesty, accountability and shared results. With the basics solved, Hyundai Netherlands and Driftrock are now focused on closing the full loop from prospect to happy driver, and on the next frontier of conversational and AI-led customer journeys.

“In the beginning we were just looking for a SaaS partner to stitch together some systems, and I think in the end it really feels like a true partnership, and we’ve got some exciting developments ahead of us still.” Leon Van Schie, General Manager Marketing, Hyundai Netherlands

“There’s accountability, there’s ownership, there’s immediate response. And that’s what we need in a highly competitive landscape and dynamic landscape as automotive.” Ronald Den Dulk, Manager Digital Performance & CRM, Hyundai Netherlands