- Dec 30, 2009
- 1,883
- 480
- First Name
- Yago
Along with Joe...
He who can hire, manage, and keep good programers please step to the front of the crowd. I want to salute you.
Websites made by a company that doesn't specialize in dealerships?
- Thread starter Spencer Tichenor
- Start date
Along with Joe...
He who can hire, manage, and keep good programers please step to the front of the crowd. I want to salute you.
- Apr 7, 2009
- 4,633
- 2,122
- Awards
- 10
- First Name
- Joe
woops. site:forum.dealerrefresh.com DIY
https://www.google.com/webhp?source...2&ie=UTF-8#q=site:forum.dealerrefresh.com+DIY
1st return: http://forum.dealerrefresh.com/f43/do-you-really-want-diy-2049.html Great thread. Lots of helpful input from all. Noteworthy was Kyle's Suss Buick GMC WordPress site announcement.
- Apr 7, 2009
- 4,633
- 2,122
- Awards
- 10
- First Name
- Joe
I still believe there are 4 categories here that are very different:
1. Template in a Box
2. Non-Templated Platform Solutions
3. Custom Web Development Agency
4. DIY
Doing it Yourself implies building it in-house, which is very different than hiring a professional company that has done many projects before. I also know, in my vicinity, at least 4 other development studies that have no issues retaining developers and designers. Maybe it's just a Canadian thing
At any rate, all personal/company opinions aside, I recommend everyone chooses something from options 2-4.
Having a site that has the same structure as everyone else, same color scheme, same flash assets, same contact page, etc is not a benefit. I have yet to see a single piece of data showing that there are SEO benefits to templated automotive sites, but there's plenty of data showing the positive impact of Wordpress (with plugins) and other platforms that are not so strictly templated, but have a proven back-end that can deliver results indifferent of the front-end theme.
Make sure when doing your research you ask about:
a. Ongoing improvements to the website
b. SEO experience with the platform (if existing platform is being used)
c. Experience with some sort of retail or product-based development
Just my opinion.
1. Template in a Box
2. Non-Templated Platform Solutions
3. Custom Web Development Agency
4. DIY
Doing it Yourself implies building it in-house, which is very different than hiring a professional company that has done many projects before. I also know, in my vicinity, at least 4 other development studies that have no issues retaining developers and designers. Maybe it's just a Canadian thing
At any rate, all personal/company opinions aside, I recommend everyone chooses something from options 2-4.
Having a site that has the same structure as everyone else, same color scheme, same flash assets, same contact page, etc is not a benefit. I have yet to see a single piece of data showing that there are SEO benefits to templated automotive sites, but there's plenty of data showing the positive impact of Wordpress (with plugins) and other platforms that are not so strictly templated, but have a proven back-end that can deliver results indifferent of the front-end theme.
Make sure when doing your research you ask about:
a. Ongoing improvements to the website
b. SEO experience with the platform (if existing platform is being used)
c. Experience with some sort of retail or product-based development
Just my opinion.
- Apr 7, 2009
- 4,633
- 2,122
- Awards
- 10
- First Name
- Joe
Website's responsibility = Sell the dealership & sell Cars
--Question: If you hire a non-automotive site specialist, who is responsible if the site doesn't sell cars (or make the phone ring?)
--Answer: The guy that signs the checks.
--Consider: What happens if business falls off.
--Who's going to be mad as hell?: The guy that signs the checks.
--Reverse engineer the question: If this idea had business value where are all thousands of independent automotive site vendors?
p.s. This idea is well over a decade old. I use to be one of the original DIY site builders.
- Apr 7, 2009
- 4,633
- 2,122
- Awards
- 10
- First Name
- Joe
Lots of good threads on this topic
3 yrs ago I reviewed a DIY site, Nissan Mitsubishi Jeep Olympia, WA | Bruce Titus Automotive Group | New & Used Car Dealerships a site built by pros outside the car biz Website Design and Web Development - Seattle, Tacoma, Spokane WA
It was a hot mess of slop. Who's fault was it?... The guy that signed the check. He bailed and went with an automotive specialist.
If you go it alone, IT's ALL YOUR FAULT.
If you go it alone, you had better be the smartest guy in the room
If you go it alone, it will test your management skills to the max (organization, communications & time management)
Oh, if you think its frustrating to work your web vendors customer service, just wait until you work with web geeks that know nothing about cars.
I think the answer is the guy who managed the project from the dealership side. Not necessarily the guy that signs the cheques.
If you're smart, you have someone on your end create a spec or RFP and get it done properly. Let's not assume dealerships are blindly throwing money at a development studio and expecting car sales in return.
Hard to assume anything in this situation. Some guys would be mad as hell, but others would understand.
I don't expect an old-school dealership with no tech knowledge to make this work, but the OP appears to be the grandson of the original owner, so chances are that he's not as traditional as every other dealer. Of course, I could be entirely wrong - I'm just trying not to assume too much here.
There aren't thousands, but there are plenty. I have a list of over 50 of them and that's not even international.
It doesn't take thousands of businesses to prove a plan has value - that's just nonsense.
Many, many things have changed in the past decade. Most significantly: reduced development time, reduced hosting costs/requirements, number of educated developers and open source web application availability.
I'm not trying to pick a fight here, but the OP's idea is not a bad idea in and of itself.
There are ways to manage it, but instead of giving advice you're assuming mismanagement (in my opinion).
I just can't agree with the generalities you're making Joe. Some of them are stereotyping an entire industry on both sides of the coin. Many web development companies work with business strategy as much as they do development.
I would like to see an opinion from you that doesn't assume that all dealerships know nothing about websites and all website companies know nothing about dealerships. I'm sure you have more value to add to the conversation.
- Apr 7, 2009
- 4,633
- 2,122
- Awards
- 10
- First Name
- Joe
d. What experiences do you have with OEM compliance police?
They look puzzled, so you continue: "...for example, When my website gets ticketed & fined for a compliance issue (wrong font, wrong price, wrong incentive, wrong site colors, wrong faceted search presentation, wrong use of branded keywords, wrong stock photo, etc..., will you read the 98 page compliance doc and see to it that it is adhered to throughout the contract? Will you charge me for fixing it and will you pay the fine?"
Give them the compliance document up front.
I've read through almost all of them and they're not that intimidating - the branding, colors and vehicle placement tend to be the priority from the OEMs.
Not to be "that guy", but I know of multiple Dealer.com, AutoTrader and other vendor websites that are not compliant and getting complaints from OEMs. I've had a complaint against one of my own websites.
That doesn't apply only to custom work.
I've read through almost all of them and they're not that intimidating - the branding, colors and vehicle placement tend to be the priority from the OEMs.
Not to be "that guy", but I know of multiple Dealer.com, AutoTrader and other vendor websites that are not compliant and getting complaints from OEMs. I've had a complaint against one of my own websites.
That doesn't apply only to custom work.