Where are your potential customers right now? Chances are, they’re not just browsing your website. In today’s digital age, car buyers are actively searching on third-party platforms. Is your dealership missing out? From established franchises to independent dealers, knowing which channels to prioritize based on your location and inventory is the critical first step to connecting with the right buyers and driving sales through the roof.
The Market is Saturated – Let’s Cut Through the Noise
You’ve undoubtedly been approached by reps from a number of third-party platforms such as CarGurus, AutoTrader, Edmunds, Cars.com and so on. While all of these vendors present an opportunity for you to elevate the reach of your listings, it can be hard to determine who is going to make the biggest difference for your dealership.
Each platform will speak to how they can yield you more views, clicks, and leads, but we want to help you determine who is going to produce the highest ROI for your business.
Gain a Competitive Edge with the Surfwrench Local Market Report
The key questions we ask in our Local Market Reports are:
- Who is going to make the most views, clicks, and leads?
- Who is going to produce the highest ROI?
- What is the best for your current inventory levels, and where you want to go?
- Do they have AI integrations?
We answer these questions by analyzing your local internet landscape, which vendors are spending the most to be first in results, and who is getting the most clicks. We leverage this key intelligence for your dealership to build and enhance your dealership’s omnichannel strategy.
What are the differences in sales channels?
For the sake of accuracy, we will use our home market of Rochester, New York to break down the major differences in eight major sales channels and illustrate how to best create your omnichannel strategy depending on your inventory:
Car Gurus
CarGurus is one of the all-time heavy hitters when it comes to getting the first touch, as this is the channel where a large percentage of customers (at least in the Rochester market) first entering the buying/search funnel interact with first.
How do you win this channel?
The CarGurus ranking algorithm is a fairly steady thing, driven mainly by two factors: deal ranking and age of the listing. When it comes to the deal ranking, CarGurus will actively lower vehicles that are highly priced within their subset, while displaying newer listings first regardless of their deal rating. There are several interesting ways to manipulate this as well with older inventory, but the main thing is to have all of the data correct, have more and higher quality pictures than the other listings that show up in the search, and to be priced fairly competitively.
Cost:
This has always been one of the more competitive platforms when it comes to cost, but the overall cost is highly dependent on the size of your inventory. However, for what they spend in this market, and in many smaller-midsize metros, this is a great investment. They are working so hard to sell your inventory that in many cases ROI is very, very good on this channel.
AutoTrader
Mathematically, this is where your budget inventory is going to get sold (if it doesn’t sell through CarGurus). There is also a small, but loyal cadre of new car buyers who prefer AutoTrader’s flow and functionality. It’s tied into the biggest name in automotive e-commerce of them all, Cox. It’s expensive, but if you have a good budget inventory and marketing dollars to burn, the channel ROI can be massive.
How do you win this channel?
Spend the most, and have the best selection of sub $20,000 inventory in the market. At least for this market.
Cost:
A lot…AutoTrader’s pricing typically depends on the inventory spread in a given area and the size of your dealership.
Cars.com
For dealerships working with Dealer Inspire as their web provider, your listings are likely automatically populating onto Cars.com in one way or another, as Cars.com is the parent company of Dealer Inspire.
How do you win this channel?
Consistent, excellent merchandizing. Customized VDP descriptions. Competitive Pricing. It depends a lot on their local traffic, but if the traffic is solid and tends to convert more on your website it shouldn’t be discounted as a solid sales channel. If they aren’t competitive with their traffic in your market, it is a big bust.
Cost:
Like many vendors on this list, Cars.com customizes its pricing based on your dealership’s needs, desired functionality, and long-term goals.
Edmunds
Edmunds already sounds like it went to prep-school, and the customers on this channel are no exception. Edmunds is often targeting the most educated, highest earners in a market and aiming the vehicles that they want to buy directly at them in their feeds. They have TONS of options from over-the-air (OTA) streaming, to in-feed retargeting that shows your customers vehicles that they have clicked on again, and again, and again, and again! These customers are usually not in a rush, but they are going to buy! That’s why we like them.
How do you win this channel?
Inventory, excellent merchandising, and consistency. If you have the inventory that this slightly-better-off than average consumer is looking for, you will be successful. They’re typically looking for higher option, lower mileage units with lower owner counts and typically no accidents. This is a customer that gets to be a bit choosy with what they are going to buy, but more often than not they are willing to go the extra mile for a better deal on exactly what they want.
For the merchandising, you have to show them in high definition, well balanced, lit, and composed shots that this vehicle is the right one for them. That it fits their needs for seating, storage, infotainment, charging, and generally what you are using this class of vehicle for. Consistency is the hard part. Having a steady stream of units that are appealing for this customer base can be expensive, and the reconditioning process needs to be spot on.
Cost:
It can eat up a big chunk of the monthly budget if you fully mac out the campaign, but the ROI is consistently good when the inventory suits the buyers well. Regular OTA Advertising campaigns can be expensive if you are constantly swapping out ads, but this is also some of the most effective advertising dollars that you can spend, with quick turnaround and campaign specific messaging.
CarFax
As a search modifier, CarFax has completely annihilated its competition. There has never been a successful campaign that has gotten people to say, “show me the AutoCheck!” As a toggle on your site, it can see up to 40% usage on your used inventory. If you have a great inventory with lots of Clean, One-Owner Units, this channel is essential. If you have a budget lot with a lot of salvage title bangers, save your money.
How do you win this channel?
Similar to Edmunds, if you have a consistent supply of clean one-owner units in your inventory pipeline, CarFax can be an incredibly effective tool to use.
Cost:
It’s either 100% worth it, or a 100% hard-pass.
Marketplace
Oh Marketplace. If there were an automotive equivalent to the spaceport of Mos Eisley – this is it! Where else am I going to find a $1,500 Mini Cooper S, next to a SeaDoo, and a Credenza and moving sale just to round it all out. Marketplace is a chaotic place, so standing out takes time, effort, and a willingness to answer stupid questions. Thankfully, there are a significant number of tools available to make the uploading and marketing process simple. Less thankfully, the likelihood to convert has a nearly perfect inverse reaction to the price. Everyone on Marketplace is looking for a deal, so if you have a deal, it’s probably going to convert. If it is priced highly in general, you might want to go on more specialized channels like specific pages and groups.
How do you win this channel?
Save it for wholesale units that you might be able to squeeze a few extra bucks out of. Other than that go to specific pages and groups, but be wary of their posting rules and when they allow for sale posts.
Cost:
Monetarily, it’s an extremely cheap way to get views, website clicks, and high funnel leads. However it might cost you your sanity.
Google Business Profile
The most wildly underutilized tool plugged directly into the most powerful engine on the internet. If you get it right, you can dominate local search. Get it wrong, you’re relegated to the wastebin of spammers.
How do you win this channel?
By using it consistently, avoiding spammy posts, and having all of the information filled out properly and sent to the appropriate links. See us about GBP optimization if you want to learn more.
Cost:
Usually included with one of the larger sales channels, but very possible to run entirely on your own with some inventory management integrations.
Your Dealership’s Website
You should have a bespoke website. If you are a franchise dealership, you should aim to modify the website that your franchise gave you as much as possible, to tailor it to the local search patterns and search needs of the local buyer base. Add functionality and increase the lethality of all of those stock parts when it comes to selling your cars on the internet.
How do you win this channel?
Talk to to Surfwrench Digital to give it a tune up! We work with your provider to achieve your vision, while increasing conversions at every point along the way.
Cost:
For the amount of moving parts and level of security that these sites need to have, the cost is usually pretty minimal out of pocket. Many modifications of the site can be paid for out of these same existing funds such as IMR, or written off completely as marketing expenses.
Conclusion
Bottom Line, if you want to sell more cars on the internet, being on the right combination of online sales channels is absolutely key to your success. However, as mentioned in every single one of these channel analysis, you will need excellent and consistent merchandizing to be effective against your competition and get the most ROI out of these channels.
With Surfwrench Digital Merchandising, you will dominate your local market, and even start syphoning off other markets when you have the exact car that someone is looking for – because we hit them first, and often! We make it so that you don’t have to think about your listings, because they are built to sell right out of the box.
For more information regarding how Surfwrench can help you optimize your third-party channels and take your dealership’s sales to the next level, please reach out to us at 877-653-5828 or [email protected].
