Websites, SEO, SEM, Display, Social, Marketing

A DealerRefresh user reports rumors and confirms that AutoTrader.com has acquired vAuto, with an official press release expected to follow. While the acquisition is confirmed, community reaction appears cautious, with at least one dealer expressing uncertainty about what the consolidation means for the industry. The thread is brief and lacks substantive discussion of the deal's implications.

A GSM proposes implementing SMS text-for-more-info functionality for vehicle inventory, prompting discussion of whether automotive dealers should adopt real estate-style texting solutions versus mobile web and QR code approaches. Two vendors (DealerHD and BlueAuto Interactive) share positive implementations offering vehicle information delivery via SMS with links to mobile sites, with one dealer noting that "send to mobile" service coupons are outperforming inventory texting. The emerging consensus suggests integrated mobile marketing solutions provide tangible value through lead generation and conversion, though the thread leaves open the question of which approach (SMS versus QR codes) will dominate long-term.

The thread argues that dealerships should prioritize customer feedback and reputation management as social media goals rather than focusing solely on sales and lead generation. Multiple contributors emphasize that implementing automated review request processes for both sales and service customers—despite initial fears of negative feedback—actually builds dealership culture, demonstrates transparency, and generates predominantly positive results that can be addressed constructively when issues arise.

Dealers debate whether price quote emails should use graphics/professional layouts or plain text, with concerns about spam filtering and mobile compatibility offsetting presentation benefits. The consensus recommendation is a balanced approach: PDFs offer the best solution as they bypass spam filters, display professionally on all devices, and can include attachments like window stickers, while plain text emails with minimal branding elements are safer than graphic-heavy designs. Key technical considerations include server whitelisting, spam score testing, and understanding that image-heavy emails often require recipients to manually enable image viewing anyway.

This thread debates how Google Instant's auto-complete feature will reshape search behavior and digital marketing strategy for car dealers, with particular concern that it will suppress long-tail keyword searches in favor of shorter, more generic queries. Participants discuss downstream effects including reduced organic search visibility for local dealers, increased PPC impression metrics (potentially inflating performance reports), and lower click-through rates, ultimately suggesting that dealers must invest heavily in PPC advertising to maintain visibility as users rely more on auto-suggested short-tail searches rather than typing complete local queries.

Dealers discussing PCG's CarPortApp for WordPress microsites report mostly positive early results, with users like Miami Used Cars and Stevinson Lexus noting increased leads and improved search rankings after a few months of implementation. While the product appears flexible and SEO-friendly, one user cautioned about integration challenges with existing WordPress themes and slow setup support during busy periods. The consensus suggests CarPortApp is a solid tool worth considering, though success depends on patience for results and smooth technical implementation.

Dealers using Cobalt's mandated website platform discuss whether they can create a separate, custom-branded website while keeping Cobalt solely for factory leads, with multiple respondents confirming this dual-site strategy has no negative SEO or manufacturer consequences. The thread also covers best practices for platform migration (301 redirects, URL structure preservation) and includes debate about whether to customize existing CMS platforms or build entirely new sites, with most agreeing that running parallel websites—one for brand differentiation and customer experience, one for factory compliance—is an effective solution.

Automotive dealers seek examples of female-focused automotive blogs to build a local version, and discover "Lauren Wants To Know" by McCarthy Auto Group as an excellent model that combines Ask Patty-style advice with strong video and blog engagement. The discussion highlights the success of Lauren's content strategy and sparks interest from multiple dealers wanting to learn from her approach or collaborate with her. The thread underscores demand within the dealer community for more professional female voices and content creators in automotive marketing.

The thread debates whether automotive marketers' zealous promotion of SEO/PPC as superior to third-party classified sites mirrors religious dogma, with the original poster drawing parallels to how the industry once dismissed print advertising. Participants conclude that dealers' complaints about classified site fees stem from specific frustrations (lost early-adopter advantages, changing ROI metrics), and that the real issue is not which channel is "evil" but rather that marketing dollars should follow where consumers actually shop—whether that's Google, AutoTrader, or Cars.com—rather than following guru ideology.

Ryan Thompson introduces ClickTale, a heatmap and visitor analytics tool, prompting Jeff Kershner to share his prior experience with the platform—noting that while the insights were valuable for tracking customer behavior on dealer websites, the heavy code previously impacted page load speed and the service remains prohibitively expensive for dealers on limited budgets. The thread suggests ClickTale offers useful functionality for understanding customer website navigation patterns, but cost and technical performance concerns warrant careful consideration before adoption.

Chip Grueter introduces Google's new Realtime Search feature, which aggregates live social media content (primarily Twitter and Facebook) with email alert capabilities integrated into Google Alerts. Jeff Kershner shares positive feedback about seeing tweets appear in realtime results, while Rob Fontano identifies a significant concern: the tool revealed that third-party sites are scraping his dealerships' video content and tweeting it as their own content, a practice he had been unaware of despite its negative implications for content ownership. The discussion highlights both the utility and potential content piracy risks that Realtime Search exposed for automotive dealers relying on video marketing.

A GM dealer manager enthusiastically recommends attending GM's eSummit 3.0 tour, describing it as an essential educational event for dealers trying to navigate digital marketing and understand evolving automotive industry technology. The thread includes information about upcoming fall industry conferences (Digital Dealer 9, Driving Sales, and JD Power events in Las Vegas) and reinforces the value of bringing multiple dealership staff members to such events to build organizational alignment on digital strategy. The key insight is that digital marketing competency is becoming critical for dealership success, and manufacturers like GM are providing free, accessible learning opportunities to help dealers develop these skills.

DevBasu outlines five cardinal mistakes in automotive PPC/SEM campaigns, with the primary focus on sending visitors to irrelevant landing pages instead of matching ad content to destination pages. The discussion includes practical insights from Jeff Kershner about using personalized phone numbers and staff names in ad copy to increase click-through rates (achieving 4.5% CTR three years ago), and ChristianFerrer suggests complementing SEM with display/retargeting campaigns for enhanced performance. The key takeaway is that dealers can significantly improve conversions, lower cost-per-click, and reduce wasted ad spend by ensuring tight alignment between ad messaging and landing page content, combined with proper campaign structure and testing.

An Internet Sales Manager seeking benchmark data for managing five dealerships asks the community about standard website performance metrics like conversion rates and time-on-site. The community confirms that average website conversion rates hover around 2-3% (excluding phone calls), with time-on-site typically 3-4 minutes, while noting that inventory size, lead quality, and brand reputation significantly impact these metrics—and that even a 1-2% conversion improvement can double lead volume.

A dealer proposes a reciprocal link-building strategy where automotive professionals exchange links to boost SEO rankings, citing his own test showing links remain critical to Google rankings. While supporters acknowledge the potential mutual benefit, skeptics raise concerns about complexity, sustainability, and whether Google would penalize such coordinated link schemes as link farms. The thread concludes without consensus, though participants agree that link building remains relevant to SEO despite Google's evolution.

The thread debates what makes a dealership website successful, with participants arguing it's not a single factor (SEO, design, etc.) but rather a balanced combination of elements including compelling vehicle presentation with quality photos, strong pricing strategy, differentiated brand messaging, and multiple marketing channels that drive traffic to the dealer's owned website. The key insight is that while all these ingredients matter, the ultimate measure of success is converting visitors into car sales at healthy margins, achieved by building customer trust and loyalty so buyers choose you over competitors despite potentially higher prices.

Joe Pistell identifies a common dealer website mistake: neglecting to update the "Specials" page, which shows "0 vehicles found"—a top-landing page that damages credibility when left stale. Over the thread's year-long arc, dealers admit to being guilty of this oversight, while some (like Jeff Kershner) share best practices like daily manual checks and RSS feed monitoring to prevent the problem. The broader insight is that dealers rushing to adopt new marketing channels like social media should first maintain their core website presence, as outdated content undermines all other marketing efforts.

Automotive professionals share examples of dealership websites with poor design, confusing navigation, or unintentionally humorous elements—highlighting common mistakes like burying contact information and awkward layouts. While the thread is largely humorous, MichiganMan's practical observation stands out: prominently displaying phone numbers and addresses is critical, as customers will abandon sites that make basic information difficult to find.

The thread debates whether map/directions page views should count as website conversions, with most participants agreeing they shouldn't be counted as true conversions since they don't capture customer information, though they are valuable engagement indicators. The broader consensus is that automotive dealers shouldn't fixate on traditional conversion metrics (form submissions, calls) since most car shoppers research online but complete purchases offline, making engagement metrics like time on site, VDP views, and visitor loyalty better indicators of website success. The discussion emphasizes that online conversion rates are typically only 1-4%, and dealers should instead focus on inventory quality, pricing, merchandising, and sales team follow-up rather than artificially inflating conversion numbers.

The thread discusses how most dealerships misuse Twitter by relying on spam tactics like auto-messaging and frequent promotional posts, which alienates followers rather than building genuine engagement. Contributors argue that effective Twitter marketing should focus on manually identifying and responding to tweets showing real consumer intent, using tools like Twithawk to surface relevant conversations rather than blasting automated messages. The key insight is that dealerships should prioritize one-on-one relationship-building over volume-based spam to actually gain followers and generate qualified leads.

Dealership professionals debate whether mobile apps are a worthwhile investment, with consensus emerging that standalone sales apps lack value but post-purchase service apps (appointment scheduling, maintenance reminders, service notifications) have genuine utility. The key insight is that dealers should prioritize optimized mobile websites and apps that solve real customer problems—like integrated service management tied to vehicle data—rather than chasing trendy technology for its own sake.

The thread discusses whether Foursquare, a location-based check-in app, is worthwhile for car dealerships, with the original poster advocating for it as a customer loyalty tool while subsequent replies reveal significant practical obstacles—including difficulty getting dealership listings verified and a small Foursquare team struggling with backlog. The consensus that emerges is skeptical: while some see potential in location-based deals and specials, most participants argue that dealerships should prioritize mastering established platforms like Facebook and Yelp before investing in unproven location services, and several question whether Foursquare's gaming mechanics (mayorships, badges) actually drive meaningful automotive sales.