Websites, SEO, SEM, Display, Social, Marketing

Dealers criticize CarGurus for displaying "Average Price Paid" alongside listing prices, arguing it undermines their advertised prices and confuses customers without providing them real benefits. The core issue revealed is that third-party listing sites prioritize generating leads through psychological tactics over genuinely serving dealers, while dealers themselves perpetuate the problem by obsessing over lead volume rather than focusing on meaningful metrics like engagement quality and overall profitability.

Dealers debate whether blogging remains viable in 2019, with skeptics citing low local readership and analytics showing minimal customer engagement, while advocates argue relevant content still drives SEO authority and customer education—if executed consistently. The emerging consensus is that content itself remains valuable, but delivery mechanisms matter less than relevance and understanding customer behavior, with some suggesting video content and knowledge bases may be more effective than traditional blogs. A critical insight from industry veterans is that most dealerships have never executed blogs correctly at scale, so success depends less on the format and more on strategic content planning tailored to local customer demographics.

Jeff Kershner highlights that a major paid search platform is spending $3.47M monthly on advertising, correlating with dealer complaints about rising costs and declining lead volume. Brad Burlingham notes the surprising stagnation in cars.com's spending, suggesting potential market shifts in automotive paid search investment strategies.

Dealers and vendors at NADA were heavily promoting OTT (streaming video) advertising as a highly targeted alternative to traditional broadcast TV, but Drew questions whether household-level targeting wastes impressions on unintended viewers—especially in multi-person households—given the premium CPM costs vendors are charging. While replies acknowledge OTT's advantages over broadcast TV and note that targeting affluent, adult-focused demographics can mitigate waste, the core tension remains unresolved: whether OTT's targeting precision justifies its significantly higher costs compared to traditional advertising.

Dealer Authority announced a new three-tiered graphic design service offering for automotive dealers who need custom creative assets like PPC ads, banners, and social media graphics without in-house design capabilities. Respondents validated the need, with one dealer sharing a positive experience using freelance design services that improved efficiency and brand consistency over time. The thread suggests this is a valuable resource for dealerships lacking either design expertise or dedicated outside agencies to handle their marketing collateral needs.

A dealer seeks digital advertising vendor recommendations with emphasis on engagement metrics rather than user tracking, with a ~$3,000 monthly budget. Driven Data's representative promotes their newly announced attribution solution, and a satisfied client endorses the platform's effectiveness. The thread offers limited vendor options but provides one credible recommendation from an existing user.

A dealer raised concerns that CarGurus' Sell/Trade and Car Values features are steering customers toward Carvana by displaying their offers during the consumer journey, potentially diverting leads from participating dealers. CarGurus representative Jeremy Sacco clarified that this is an early-stage alpha test designed to eventually offer all dealers the ability to make instant offers on used cars, not an exclusive Carvana partnership. The key takeaway is that dealers frustrated with lead quality should monitor this feature's development, as CarGurus plans to expand instant offer capabilities to more dealers rather than reserve it as a competitive advantage for Carvana.

Dealers frequently overspend on branded keyword campaigns (e.g., "Mercedes-Benz of Hagerstown") because agencies claim strong performance metrics, but the consensus is this represents wasted money since customers searching for a specific dealership name will find it organically through Google My Business listings anyway. The key insight is that branded campaigns only make financial sense if competitors are actively bidding on your dealership name; otherwise, dealers should either turn them off entirely or run them on a minimal $1/day budget to monitor competitor activity, while agencies typically resist this because it deflates their reported KPIs.

Dealers debate the challenges of adding plugins and customizations to their websites, with OEM approval requirements (particularly Subaru's strict gatekeeper process) creating friction versus the opposing problem of vendors adding too many tools without dealer oversight. The thread reveals tension between wanting innovative technology to stand out competitively and managing vendor clutter that degrades user experience, with contributors suggesting that OEMs should establish clear guidelines rather than use gatekeepers, while dealers themselves bear responsibility for failing to properly audit and control what gets added to their sites.

Joe Friedrichsen shares 10 actionable Google My Business optimization tips for car dealerships heading into 2020, emphasizing that GMB is a free and widely underutilized tool for driving website traffic and customer engagement. A key debate emerges around how many GMB listings a dealership should maintain, with one expert recommending separate listings per department and another arguing that one sales listing plus a combined service-and-parts listing (plus a third for body shops) is the more manageable and effective structure. Practitioners also highlight GMB messaging as a strong source of service leads and note that the Products tab rollout remains inconsistent across listings.

Dealers discuss best practices for optimizing vehicle inventory search functionality, with focus on filters, sorting, and homepage query options. Key insights include: instant filter results dramatically improve engagement (33-37% increase in filter usage and deeper page browsing), filter priorities vary significantly between new and used vehicles (Model/Trim/Bodystyle for new vs. Make/Price/Model for used), and most shoppers use advanced query filters (83%) rather than manual search or navigation. The data suggests mobile-first design is critical since most dealer traffic comes from mobile devices, and prioritizing the most-used filters while maintaining fast load times should be the primary focus for conversion optimization.

Automotive dealers are experiencing an uptick in toxic backlinks from spam domains (primarily German-based sites like euronett-umzug.de and others) that are appearing in Google Search Console and SEO tools like SEMrush. Multiple participants confirm they're actively disavowing these unwanted backlinks monthly, and the conversation suggests a potential connection to third-party listing sites and vendor SEO packages that dealers commonly use.

A vendor seeking to become a verified website provider asks how to achieve vendor certification status with major automotive platforms. Responses clarify that certification requirements vary by manufacturer, with some requiring bidding processes or multiple existing clients before consideration, and that building a strong client base and proven platform performance should be the priority before pursuing formal certification.

Marc Lavoie initiates a discussion about 2020 Super Bowl car commercials, mentioning confirmed advertisers like Porsche, Kia, and Hyundai, while hinting at a marketing prediction technique he plans to share. Brittany responds positively to the Hummer commercial, indicating it was emotionally impactful enough to impress even non-Hummer enthusiasts. The thread appears to be in early stages, focused on identifying which automotive brands aired ads and sharing reactions to standout creative.

Marc Lavoie shares an article by Shawn Armorer, a BDC expert from Canada, that examines where Business Development Centers (BDCs) typically fall short in dealership operations. The post appears to be an introduction to Armorer's in-depth analysis aimed at helping dealers understand BDC limitations and improvement opportunities, with Lavoie recommending readers follow Armorer's work on LinkedIn for further insights.

The post uses the "white hat" metaphor from the TV show *Scandal* to describe Dealer Authority's approach to automotive digital marketing, emphasizing their commitment to ethical practices like hiring quality staff to create custom content rather than relying on syndicated or automated solutions. The author positions the company as a principled alternative to competitors who cut corners. The post appears to be the beginning of a larger discussion about industry practices, though the full content is cut off mid-sentence.

The thread discusses the risks and effectiveness of using celebrity images in Facebook advertising and boosted posts, with one user reporting a permanent ban from major social platforms after using a celebrity photo. Opinions diverge on the tactic's value: some argue it's an outdated approach that attracts the wrong audience, while others contend that celebrity/pop culture references can be effective if used strategically and tied to relevant content. The key insight is that while celebrity imagery can generate engagement, it often doesn't translate to meaningful business results and carries significant platform enforcement risks.

A dealer's main GMB listing was suspended for "quality issues," prompting discussion about whether this was an industry-wide problem and how to resolve it. Experienced GMB managers offered troubleshooting guidance—suggesting the suspension might stem from service area mismatches, multiple listings at one address, or recent account changes—while also recommending escalation to Google's dedicated auto support team as the most effective path to reinstatement.

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The thread discusses whether updating outdated website content can improve SEO performance for car dealerships. The key insight is that refreshing old landing pages and re-indexing them with search engines can provide competitive advantages, and dealers should leverage their community involvement (sponsorships, charitable work, local events) as fresh, frequently-updated content on their websites rather than letting standard taglines stagnate.

Greg Schafer reports a significant drop in CarGurus leads in November using their free "restricted" plan, though Jeff Kershner confirms he hasn't experienced similar declines. The consensus suggests the lead decline is likely due to inventory and pricing factors on CarGurus' platform rather than SEO shifts, though both users note they've had surprisingly good success with CarGurus' free plan compared to paid options.

The thread debates whether dealerships should assign all credit for a sale to the last advertising touchpoint, given that car shoppers typically interact with 24+ sources before purchasing. Participants argue that last-click attribution is overly simplistic and flawed, with the most influential source often being an earlier one that created the path to purchase, while acknowledging that ideal cross-platform tracking remains technically difficult at the dealer level. The key insight is that while multi-touch attribution models are preferable to last-click attribution, the automotive industry lacks the tools to properly implement them, forcing dealers to rely on customer conversations and imperfect data to understand which marketing channels truly drive conversions.

Brittany shares a Google Think With Google article advocating for a "tierless" automotive marketing approach, highlighting that consumers don't distinguish between dealer and manufacturer messaging. The thread appears to begin discussing implications of this unified marketing strategy, though the full discussion context is cut off in the provided excerpt.