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Vehicle detail pages (VDPs) are a standard feature of any dealership website. There are many approaches when it comes to VDP optimization - a practice which tries to increase the rate of lead submittals, and ultimately, sales. Multiple schools of thought exist on this topic based on everything from detailed analytics to gut feelings.

Some dealers and marketers believe that a client should be able to do everything on a VDP that they could do in an actual store. This might include financing, payment, or customization of a car. However, while entire transactions may eventually take place on a dealer site, for now VDP optimization is best done with a "less is more" approach.

Generally, e-commerce does not occur on a dealership site. With a big ticket item such as a vehicle, most customers are interested in choosing the color and features on a vehicle within their price range, seeing what others think about the vehicle and dealership (i.e. reviews), and inquiring about the automobile with as little friction as possible. It is assumed that customers will come in person to check out the actual vehicles. Thus, current VDP optimization should lean towards making that path as clear and obvious as possible.

Tons of blinking buttons, social links and options are definite conversion killers on VDPs. Assuming customers are going to eventually come into the store, a site should do as good of a job as possible of making the vehicles look attractive in both pictures and descriptions, and putting all means of trackable communication (phone number, lead form, chat) at the potential client's fingertips. At most, the customer should have the option to fill out a credit application or finance form as a lead. VDP optimization mostly deals with taking a customer down a simple, easy to understand path that ultimately gets the dealership calls, form leads, chats and visits. This usually means de-cluttering the VDP so that those elements are the most prominent.

A VDP that operates smoothly can help bring buyers to a dealership more quickly than a VDP with tons of buttons and options. What are some other tips you guys have for giving zero moment of truth clients a clear-cut way to submit leads?

This week, Anthony Alagona talks about "Building Value." How do you build value in yourself, your vehicle, and your dealership? Building value in yourself starts with identifying yourself to the prospect and establish a clear channel of communication. Building value in the vehicle starts by telling the prospect about the vehicle and selling the prospect on all of the special deatures that make the vehicle stand out. Building value in the dealership starts with passionately selling your value package to the prospect and explaining the benefits it can offer. Remember: People do not buy what you sell, they buy what you believe. 

For more training check out http://www.BradleyOnDemand.com

If you're looking for more information on the automotive industry visit http://www.AutomotiveInternetSales.com

http://www.googleopolybook.com

Auto Dealer Live Interviews Win The Game Of Goolgeopoly Author, Sean V. Bradley

If you haven't been taking advantage of Facebook's "dark posts", now is the time you want to start. On this week's Hard Facts, Samantha explains how using this feature will allow you to segment your audience by sending certain messages to specific Facebook users without alienating other users that the message doesn't apply to.

While a blog is a great place to talk about your business and build valuable search engine authority, it can also help you gain a loyal following of customers and admirers that will help you see steady growth for a long time to come.

A blog builds trust with customers, allowing people to better connect with your business. That does not come overnight, and may not come at all, but there's a formula for successful blogging that can help you tackle this new, powerful type of marketing.

One example of a business that embraces blogging and content marketing is Moz (formerly SEOMoz). The software company has no sales staff, puts an extreme emphasis on content and community, and provides truly in-depth industry reports for free. Through all of that, they've built a huge following and have been able to consistently grow Moz as a business because of it.

Sure, Moz has always been a unique company, but there's nothing stopping your business from following in their footsteps.

Want in on their secret formula? Keep reading.

Be Honest and Helpful

When a lot of businesses start blogging, they seem to think that means they need to literally blog about their business. The problem there? Nobody cares about what's going on with your business unless you're one of the world's largest companies or you give them good reason to care. I don't say that to be mean, but it's an absolute truth.

So how do you get people to care about your business? Be selfless.

Give out information like candy on Halloween. But instead of giving out crap from an assorted bag like all of the other houses, give out full-size candy. I bet you'd remember who gave you that and immediately forget about the crap givers, right?

It's the same way with content. We visit sites like Moz, QuickSprout, Buffer, and CopyBlogger because we can count on their content being honest and helpful. In case you weren't following the analogy, those sites give out full-size candy.

Create a Schedule and Stick to It

If you're going to blog, you need to do it regularly. If you let your audience know when you'll have new content (whether directly or indirectly), there's a greater chance that they'll become return visitors.

The only thing you have to do is hold up your end of the bargain and more and more readers will return each time you create new content.

And you don't have to post every single day to be successful, but you do need to deliver great content. When creating your posting schedule, think of how long you need to craft those great posts so you don't feel rushed or overworked.

Create Regular Features/Columns

An easy way to start your blog off on the right foot is to create regular features or columns to encourage readers to come back for similar stories. Moz's Whiteboard Friday is a great example of this, and provides Moz with tons of consistent traffic, links (like the one here), and general buzz about their digital marketing knowledge.

Think of a way you could implement a regular feature into your blog while providing entertainment for your readers. You can always change it up as you and your business evolve; the key is to get started!

Be Extremely Active on Social Media

On both your personal and business accounts, it's important to be extremely active when you're trying to grow your blog's audience. Follow and connect with influential bloggers, be a cool source for industry news, and give people a reason to follow your business.

It's also important to note that you can buy exposure on social media to help throw these efforts into overdrive. With ads that can target only the type of consumer you want to attract, allocating some of your online ad spend to social media is an extremely effective method to grow your business's blog.

Conclusion

The goal for your business's blog is to attract people that will allow you to market to them. By providing them with something of value for their clicks and time, they'll give you permission to be a business without running for the hills.

It is now widely known that Google has changed their algorithm for displaying search results to weigh more heavily on "content”. It is important to continually add website content if one is to show up in the most used search engine in the world. Unfortunately, not many understand what their options are to increase content on their website. This is where content blogging can come in very handy.

People with personal, niche-related blogs, have it easiest as Google is always looking for relevant, specific information to display to it's searchers. If people don't find Google's searches relevant, they will search elsewhere, and Google will not be able to monetize the loads of traffic it receives. Thus the focus on new, quality content.

Many dealerships might struggle with how they can add content to their site on a continual basis. Sales and specials come and go, and so does inventory. Certainly neither of these are suitable in the long term to qualify for new content in Google's algorithm. Content blogging can alleviate the pressure of finding a way to add new material to a dealer site without interfering with the rest of the site structure.

The vehicles that dealerships carry often have lots of information floating around on the internet that can be continually researched and repackaged as blog content on a dealership site. A dealer might concentrate on doing this once or multiple times per week. In this way, content blogging should work to increase SEO for the various automobiles on a dealership's lot - as long as the content doesn't blatantly duplicate any existing articles that are published already.

Content blogging can definitely give dealers a way to add new content to their sites and increase their Google search profile. It can be a lot of work creating and/or curating this content. What ways are you all adding content to your sites to help with SEO?

http://www.GoogleopolyBook.com 

Win The Game Of Googleopoly Book Signing At Barnes & Noble 5th Avenue NYC February 4th

This is BEYOND HUGE NEWS! It is official, "Win The Game Of Googleopoly" will be featured in the store front (BIG POSTER of my book) of the #1 (LARGEST) BusinessBook Store in the United States!! Barnes & Noble on 5th Avenue New York City, starting February 2nd 2015!! I am so excited and honored. I am planning to do a video production shoot with friends, family, fans at the B&N store and a "Book Signing". February 4th I will be onsite with my Dealer Synergy Video Production team! I am hoping that you all will meet me in NYC to share this AMAZING experieince with me! Afterwards I am taking everyone to lunch! THANK YOU so much for your support and friendship!

I bet you've seen or looked for a few of these . . . :)

Social-shifter. One minute it’s a lead source, the next it’s your reputation; one minute a floor wax, the next a mouthwash. VERY hard to pin down for ROI, but very, very powerful. Really. Somehow. We mean it!

Web-asus. The winged and perfect online lead strategy, for zero extra work and no-money investment, that your hero Internet department can effortlessly ride through the Internet air to conquer business. Often sighted by some GMs but never seen by the Internet Department.

Lead Ness Monster.. The hard-to-find “store visits caused by VDP views” that many 3^rd-party merchandising vendors can always somehow see.

OEM-prechaun. The little guy in the green hat that promises you a pot of golden leads at the end of the pretty “OEM sitesand shared-keyword PPC programs” rainbow.

Phone-icorn. A sales line that is almost always answered well by a talented and trained sales staff that sets appointments, gets contact info, and gets the customer into the store to sell them a vehicle. 

By Keith Shetterly, Copyright 2015
All Rights Reserved keithshetterly@gmail.com

There are many solutions available for capturing data about your website visitors. Many automotive dealerships and digital marketing vendors stay with Google Analytics, which is the standard free solution. However, the potential of a website’s complex data cannot be fully tapped without some kind of custom analytics set up.

This is by no means a knock against Google. They've created a free solution that works well for most people. The reason an automotive dealer might want to opt for a custom analytics solution lies in the advanced detail, and much more accurate reporting.

Google Analytics provides session data, and supposedly does it’s best to filter out bots and other unwanted or irrelevant traffic. With custom analytics, parameters can be set to show only visitors that are legitimate. Reporting can be filtered with regards to time on site, IP address, location, and many other useful specifics that Google Analytics does not provide for filtering your traffic.

Custom analytics will also give more detail about website traffic and it's behavior. With Google Analytics, a dealer would not be able to find a specific user and see every event that the person triggered with extreme accuracy. Custom analytics allow one to literally trace a user’s steps and see everything that they viewed. In aggregate, this level of information can help make any marketing plan much more effective.

Google Analytics is great, but serious automotive dealerships are going to want to upgrade to a custom analytics solution in order to take full advantage of their website's visitor data and use it for effective marketing. Are any of you guys using custom analytics?

How do you increase sales as a salesperson? On this week's Think Tank Tuesday, I explain that if you're in sales, you better be charming. I'll cover the four steps you need to follow in order to be interpreted as personable instead of creepy.

Do you have chat on your website or are you considering it? Either way, this is a free webinar on Thursday, January 15th at 1:37pm EST you will want to attend.

I will have a special guest, Jeff Sterns from CarChat 24 and we will be discussing everything chat. We will answer your questions and tell you how you can get more from your chat or what to look for when considering chat providers. You will also want to pay close attention to ensure you are not making the Biggest 7 Deadly Sins that could be killing your lead potential.

But Wait, There's More! Jeff will be giving away 3 Free Subscriptions to CarChat 24 and if that wasn't enough we also worked a deal with Exit Gadget and they will be giving away 3 Free subscriptions of their service. All you have to do is attend the webinar and learn how to get more from chat.

Sign up now for the webinar on Thursday, January 15th 1:37pm

http://www.BradleyOnDemand.com 856-546-2440
Make Money Mondays With Sean V. Bradley - Why Your Phone Scripts Dont Work

Sean V. Bradley, CEO of Dealer Synergy is talking about "Why Your Phone Scripts Don't Work." Sean says that your scripts don't work because you don't work! You have to stick to the scripts! The Dealer Synergy phone process is amazing, but the script is only 33% of the effectiveness and success of the phone engagement. The next 33% is understanding the top 7 reasons why people go online. To have 100% success, you need a strong Value Package Proposition. What makes you better than your competitors?

Your goal on the phones is to identify, meet, and exceed. So, ask yourself, "are you utilizing the scripts?" And make sure that you clearly and passionately articulate why your organization is better than others.

Have you ever owned something that is often in need of repairs, and you find yourself getting to the point where you're just sick of dealing with it? On this week's Hard Facts, Samantha offers two strategies to aid customers when in need of service that will allow you to drive more traffic to your service lane.

Pay-per-click advertising, such as AdWords and Bing, is a popular way to bring qualified traffic to a website. Spanish speaking customers are one market segment that is widely ignored on these platforms. Spanish Language PPC is a concept that can bring great potential clients to an automotive dealer's website.

In America, most PPC defaults to English when Campaigns, Ad Groups and Keywords are set up. However, many fail to utilize the language targeting options to enable Spanish Language PPC. In most cases, a separate campaign can be formed that concentrates on creating advertising geared towards the ever-growing Spanish-speaking population in America.

One way to help ensure success with Spanish Language PPC is to have someone that speaks Español build out the Ads and Keywords, or help in doing so. Conversational (and successful) Spanish language marketing is a bit different from what sites like Google Translate and Babelfish can generate. Getting an authentic speaker of the language is a must for dealerships looking to tap into the under-served Spanish speaking market.

In conclusion, Spanish speakers represent a large market segment that buys vehicles and therefore should not be ignored. What are you all doing to tap into the Spanish-speaking community and bring those customers back to your websites?

A Man Who Misses Opportunity And A Monkey Who Misses His Branch Cannot Be Saved

On this week's Think Tank Tuesday, I will explain how you can leverage the upcoming tax season to increase sales.

http://www.BradleyOnDemand.com 856-546-2440

http://www.MakeMoneyMondays.com

This Monday Sean talks about the question, "What did you say?" Have you ever met someone that sounds stupid? There's a saying, "It's better to keep your mouth shut, and let them think you're a fool than open your mouth and prove it." Potential buyers can not see you, so you need to create a positive image of yourself through your words by being articulate, educated, and sensible. Listen to what the prospect is saying and then meet their questions and expectations strategically.

Do you want to learn more about how you can sell more cars? Check out http://www.BradleyOnDemand.com

For more information on the Automotive Industry visit http://www.AutomotiveInternetSales.com

Did They Have The Right Answers?

Are you confident about your marketing or are you just spending money and hoping it works? The first step to developing an effective marketing strategy is to always keep your customer's wants and needs in mind.

This week on Hard Facts, Samantha helps you determine if your business should start investing money in marketing or if they should stop.

MONTEREY, CA – This past year was an interesting year for digital marketing. Most automotive companies increased their digital presence through all kinds of different ways, and technology got a little better in terms of finding potential customers. And while many dealerships kept pace with all the latest marketing trends, many could still use some work. For those dealers, here is a Zero Moment of Truth resolution checklist:

[ ] Make sure that all vehicles are searchable on Google via SEO and pay per click advertising
[ ] Evaluate long tail marketing and targeted branding and make sure that the balance is constantly monitored
[ ] Get vehicles onto Craigslist and other classified listing sites
[ ] All vehicles should be searchable on YouTube
[ ] Continue to build a presence on Facebook, Twitter, Google + and other social media
[ ] Monitor various review sites and make sure that negative reviews are handled correctly
[ ] Ensure that important online directory listings such as Google Maps are accurate and contain identical information
[ ] Continue to create new content to help boost SEO and social media presence
[ ] Make sure to retarget website visitors
[ ] Try reducing the number of vendors being utilized for digital marketing in favor of vendors with more capability
[ ] Make sure all vendors are delivering efficiently
[ ] Get help for any areas that cannot be covered effectively in-house

New Year resolutions are usually about changes for the better, but many make their resolutions and never follow through. Automotive digital marketing is only going to get sharper and more competitive as the year progresses, so a dealership should remember to make sure that their marketing is always in balance, not stale or out-of-date and creating as big of a presence as budget will allow. Capturing clients at the zero moment of truth should always be every dealer’s #1 resolution. What are everybody's New Year's resolutions for capturing clients at the zero moment of truth this year?

http://www.DealerSynergy.com 

Happy New Year From Everyone At Dealer Synergy & AIS!!! 

Have a safe and wonderful New Year's Eve!!