Websites, SEO, SEM, Display, Social, Marketing

Google launched a new review monitoring system within its Places for Business Dashboard that aggregates reviews from thousands of indexing sites (including DealerRater and Cars.com) and provides analytics—all for free—though notably excludes Yelp. While dealers appreciate the centralized interface and organization benefits, some professionals note limitations like missing email alerts, lack of mobile administration, and Google's historically slow rollout of new features to existing users. The key insight is that this free Google tool will likely disrupt third-party review monitoring services, but its effectiveness depends on whether dealers actually engage with Google+ accounts and whether Google adds essential missing features.

The thread highlights Mike Blumenthal's report on Google's new review monitoring system, integrated into the Places for Business Dashboard, which aggregates reviews from thousands of indexed review sites alongside Google's own reviews and provides analytics reporting. This was positioned as a significant development for local businesses and dealers looking to track their online reputation in one centralized place. The discussion points to a major shift in how SMBs, including dealerships, could monitor and respond to customer feedback across the web.

Dealers discuss the impact of custom vehicle comments on search result page (SRP) to vehicle detail page (VDP) conversions and overall inventory performance. While no formal research exists on this topic, participants share anecdotal evidence of success—including one dealer's experience achieving the highest new car VDPs in a 142-dealership Dallas market—and highlight that the real value comes from investing time in well-crafted, vehicle-specific descriptions combined with tools like Homenet's data conversion system that can automatically generate templated comments for each make/model/trim combination.

JD Rucker presents part two of a four-part series on automotive social media strategy, arguing that dealers should move beyond branding and auto-fed content to actively drive foot traffic and website visits. The post builds on foundational steps like localizing a fan base and optimizing for algorithms, pushing toward tactics that produce measurable sales and service outcomes. The core insight is that social media, when executed with the right strategy, can function as a genuine business driver rather than just a marketing checkbox.

A dealership owner seeks advice on choosing their first website, noting the overwhelming number of options available and budget constraints. Responses range from free DIY solutions (Wix) to specialized automotive vendor platforms (DealerOn, Dealer.com, Vin Solutions, Dealer Peak), with one dealer sharing that investing in a quality dealer-specific platform significantly outperformed their previous cheap website and generated quality leads. The consensus suggests sticking with established automotive vendors rather than generic website builders, though budget considerations may push some toward DIY alternatives.

A user shared a Popular Science article examining modern barriers to car sales, likely addressing how consumers' access to information and changing preferences are disrupting traditional dealership sales models. The thread appears to be a resource share rather than a discussion, with no visible replies or developed conversation about the article's key points or implications for dealers.

The thread debates what percentage of dealership sales should legitimately be attributed to the internet, sparked by a vendor's claim that 30% is the ideal benchmark and that higher figures suggest ISMs are poaching floor ups. Jeff Kershner challenges this by sharing how his previous stores counted internet deals strictly — confirmed appointments or customers asking for an ISM by name — raising questions about how dealers define and track internet-sourced business. The key tension is whether high internet attribution rates reflect genuine digital performance or inflated numbers caused by attribution gaming.

Alex Magnan seeks conversion optimization strategies for AutoUsa's Payment Pro pre-approval tool, asking peers about effective call-to-action placements across websites. Respondents share successful implementations including banners, dropdown menu links, email campaigns, Facebook integration, and mobile optimization—with one dealer reporting that 41% of leads now come from mobile users after integrating Payment Pro into their mobile site. The key insight is that multi-channel placement (especially mobile integration) of payment pre-approval tools significantly boosts lead generation beyond standard VDP buttons.

A dealer portal operator seeks advice on managing an imbalance where a few low-cost dealers dominate lead distribution, leaving other dealers with insufficient leads and frustrated customers. The only response suggests technical solutions like changing search result sort order (price descending instead of ascending) and improving conversion elements on search results pages to distribute leads more evenly across price ranges and dealer inventory. The thread appears incomplete but indicates the core issue is algorithmic bias favoring cheap inventory rather than a need for explicit lead-sharing policies.

Dealers discuss DealerMatch, a Manheim-backed dealer-to-dealer trading platform that charges a flat $299/month fee instead of per-transaction auction fees, positioning it as an alternative to competitors like OVE.com and RoadDealer. Multiple posters report that DealerMatch offers better inventory selection, pricing transparency, and no-contract flexibility compared to OVE, with several expressing interest in or commitment to signing up. The thread suggests DealerMatch addresses a genuine market need for cost-effective inventory sourcing while maintaining the auction industry's relevance through a different business model.

Dealers debate whether to manually post inventory on Craigslist, use automated tools, or pay services like Cargigi (~$400/month), with most reporting modest but meaningful results (2-4 sales/month, strong brand exposure) especially for "C" (cash) cars. Key concerns include compliance with Craigslist's terms of service, the time investment required for manual posting and updates, and the risk of account blacklisting from aggressive automation. The consensus leans toward manual posting with templated HTML code to balance effort and results while staying compliant, though participants disagree on whether the time investment justifies the returns.

A user asks about VAAS (likely Vehicle-as-a-Service or a similar automotive platform) but provides no context or details about what results they're seeking. The thread appears to be incomplete or lacks substantive discussion, offering no clear conclusion or insights about the topic.

A dealer reports zero sales from 38 chat leads despite a strong 14% overall internet closing ratio, prompting discussion about whether the problem is chat placement/visibility, the chat receptionist's script quality, or lead follow-up. Respondents suggest the real issue is likely the chat operator's approach and engagement quality rather than chat volume, with recommendations to mystery shop the chat interactions and analyze response logs for gaps. The consensus is that dealers using managed chat services with better-trained representatives (like Carchat24 or Dealer E Process) see meaningful conversion, indicating the channel itself works but depends heavily on how skillfully it's staffed.

Dealers express frustration that GM and Cobalt are leveraging the new "Flex" website platform as a bait-and-switch tactic, offering a free 60-day trial before forcing a $699/month upsell to the Digital Marketing Package to maintain the upgraded site design. While respondents acknowledge the Flex platform itself is a genuine improvement over legacy systems, the core complaint centers on deceptive sales practices rather than the product's actual value. A GM representative attempts to reframe the fee structure as optional pricing tiers, but this fails to address dealer concerns about being strong-armed into upselling based on OEM requirements.

A dealer asks whether offering gift cards or gas cards as incentives for customers to leave positive reviews on Google, Cars.com, and Facebook is legal, noting that compensation for "time spent" rather than the review itself may exist in a legal gray area. A respondent shares that disclosures of compensation are required on third-party sites, but suggests an alternative approach: leveraging the F&I waiting period to organically request reviews without incentives, which has proven effective at generating 50-100 reviews in 2-3 months.

Katie asks how hard dealership BDC teams should pursue "bad leads" — prospects who seem unlikely to convert — and what strategies work best. A BDC rep shares a successful example of converting a skeptical lead by building genuine rapport, staying engaged, and politely persisting through initial resistance rather than giving up after a rejection. The key insight is that even unpromising leads can convert through relationship-building and confident, patient follow-up rather than aggressive sales tactics.

A dealer switched AdWords management from in-house to an outside agency but cannot locate the paid traffic data in their original Google Analytics account, despite having the old AdWords account linked. Responses suggest the issue stems from separate account structures—the agency likely set up their own AdWords and Analytics accounts that aren't synced to the dealer's original account—and recommend troubleshooting via landing page URL patterns and PPC segments as a workaround until proper account linking is established.

Alex Snyder raises the question of whether dealerships should invest more attention in Yelp reviews, given that Apple Maps now uses Yelp as its exclusive review source and Apple's growing influence in the consumer market. He notes that most dealerships have minimal and negative Yelp presence, creating a potential vulnerability as Apple Maps gains adoption. The limited reply expresses concern about negative consumer reviews damaging dealership reputations on these platforms.

A dealer inquires whether Unhaggle, a Canadian automotive lead platform, is worth adopting for their dealership. Responses from Canadian dealers indicate low lead volume and modest ROI potential, with some suggesting competitors like Car Cost Canada may be more established alternatives, though the overall consensus is that Unhaggle remains untested and underutilized in the market.

LinkedIn Intro is a new feature that integrates LinkedIn data directly into users' iPhone email inboxes, allowing professionals to view LinkedIn profiles of people they're corresponding with. The post appears to be sharing this product announcement with the DealerRefresh community as a potentially relevant development for automotive professionals managing client communications and business relationships.

Google is testing banner ads on search results pages, reversing a 2005 commitment made by Marissa Mayer to keep the search interface ad-free. The post alerts automotive marketing professionals to a significant change in Google's ad placement strategy that could impact how search results appear and compete for user attention.

The thread alerts dealers to two critical TCPA compliance deadlines for texting customers: all messages must include immediate opt-out capability (effective January 2013), and explicit written consent is required before sending marketing texts via automated systems (effective October 2013), even for existing customer relationships. The post emphasizes that despite high SMS open rates (97%), dealers must implement proper consent procedures to avoid regulatory violations when texting salespeople communicate with customers.