Car Website Marketing
by: Ron Tams
Car buyers today, whether looking for new or used vehicles, usually start their search on the Internet to get a sense for pricing, options, and styles that might be available. Many dealers are using auto websites to display their stock of vehicles and to help consumers make informed decisions. An online showcase of cars and trucks available is an extremely potent marketing tool.
Automobile websites broaden a car dealer's potential geographic draw and customer reach. Anyone who has access to the Internet is a possible client as requesting additional pictures, information, or even shipping is not a big issue. Good car websites will provide an easily navigated site for potential customers. A search function is essential and if the inventory is large, some advanced features to screen down the results even further is very helpful. People visiting the site can shop for cars on the website from anywhere. This is especially helpful for dealers who carry specialty cars or trucks. Many customers will come a long way to make a buy if they are searching for something not widely available. They usually find available vehicles through Internet searches and then call or make a request for additional details.
A car website also provides valuable information about the car dealer's company, their area of expertise, and any other interesting facts such as how long they have been in business. The website should include an "About Us" page to provide a little background information about the dealership. Many people are attracted to small businesses and personal relationships while others prefer large corporations and their potential selection. The " contact us" page should have phone, fax, and email contact information along with directions and a link to Yahoo or Google maps is always helpful. Pictures and direct phone lines to sales people also can be helpful. If the dealership has other departments such as service, direct numbers and operating hours are helpful.
Another valuable feature is a vehicle request sourcing form. The car website can include a vehicle request page in which a customer can outline a certain year, make and model that they are interested in along with colors and extra features they are looking for. This feature is very appealing to many car or truck buyers who have something very exact in mind. The customer can shop without the hassle of going from dealer to dealer.
Just having a website isn't enough though. The marketing and sales text on the site is no different than when presenting yourself in front of a customer. The website must have a clear marketing message on what the consumer can expect, why your dealership is the right one for them, and a call to action to search for that special car or see the specials of the day. The quality of the pictures and look of the site can also influence trust along with listing local chamber of commerce or any other memberships that establish credibility. Testimonials can also be helpful.
Most people use search engines to conduct their car or truck search on the Internet. Your car website needs to be search engine friendly by making sure the links can be navigated easily by the search spiders. Try typing in "site:www.yourwebsitename.com" (replace the yourwebsitename with your own e.g. site:www.thatsnobull.com) into Google's search bar and it will tell you the pages that it knows about. Especially when customers are ready to buy, they type in specific makes and models. So having a search responsive site with makes, models, year, etc. on the listings will help those pages show up in the search results.
Having a well thought out website can be an invaluable resource for car dealers. More and more the sales progression and relationship building starts through the Internet. A good car website can pay for itself very fast.
About The Author:
Ron Tams does online marketing and sites NuStar motor's http://www.thatsnobull.com website as one that employs many of the best practices he recommends.
August 2006
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