Websites, SEO, SEM, Display, Social, Marketing

Dealers discuss key management systems and solutions for tracking vehicle keys across sales, service, and body shop departments, with experiences ranging from simple pegboard systems to electronic solutions like KeyTrack. The thread reveals common pain points including employee negligence, security vulnerabilities of glass-mounted keyboxes, and the difficulty of finding durable, affordable alternatives to expensive systems like KeyRegister. The most practical consensus emerges around mid-range solutions: either color-coded pegboard systems with rolling metal cabinets for lot accessibility, or electronic tracking systems like KeyTrack that offer accountability through username/fingerprint authentication and integration with dealership software.

A dealer shares a cautionary tale about YourOtherYou, a prank service that Toyota partnered with, which resulted in a $10 million lawsuit for emotional distress—highlighting how poorly conceived marketing concepts can create serious legal liability. The discussion reveals that while the plaintiff voluntarily clicked links, agreed to terms, and completed a personality test sharing personal information, she sued Toyota (the deeper pocket) rather than the friend who initiated the prank, prompting debate about frivolous litigation and corporate risk management in unconventional marketing campaigns.

Automotive industry professionals discuss Google's newly released Real-Time Analytics feature, debating whether it will be included in the free version and what its practical applications are for dealerships. The consensus is that the feature will likely be free (or very low-cost), with limited but useful functionality—particularly for measuring immediate traffic spikes from offline marketing efforts like radio or TV spots and Craigslist posts. While one user mentions already paying for a competitor product with more advanced features, most see Real-Time Analytics as a valuable free addition despite its basic reporting capabilities.

A dealer asks for PPC marketing advice covering budget, vendor selection, and ROI tracking. After initial skepticism from a large dealer group citing poor results, Joe Pistell argues that PPC failure stems from poor campaign setup rather than the channel itself, emphasizing that success depends heavily on the PPC manager understanding the dealership's unique profile, inventory, market size, and goals. The thread concludes that PPC can be effective when executed properly, particularly for dealers with substantial inventory and appropriate geographic targeting, though it requires sophisticated campaign management to avoid wasting budget on low-intent keywords.

Dealership staff often manage multiple email accounts (work, admin, sales, leads, body shop, personal) across various platforms, creating inefficiency. The thread discusses solutions including using email aliases, creating separate mail boxes in Outlook, and forwarding all accounts to a single CRM or primary email account. The consensus suggests that aliases and consolidated forwarding are the simplest ways to streamline multi-account email management without requiring staff to manually check each account separately.

A BDC manager reports that their Craigslist vehicle postings are appearing in their account backend but not displaying in public search results across multiple dealership locations. The community identifies "ghosting" (invisible listings due to Craigslist's anti-spam filters) as the likely cause, with the primary culprits being IP blocking, posting too frequently, or issues with the Dealer Specialties posting tool's code template, and recommends either switching to a managed posting service or manually testing with a generic ad to isolate the problem.

Dealership professionals discuss strategies for generating Google reviews following recent platform changes, with particular focus on email automation, customer targeting, and integration with existing CRM systems. A significant point of contention emerges: while some advocate for DealerRater's new "push" feature to migrate reviews to Google, others argue that DealerRater itself remains superior for conversion rates and building dealership culture around review collection. The key insight is that successful review strategies depend less on the platform itself and more on having a systematic process in place—whether that's segmenting customers by email type or using physical touchpoints like iPads and handout cards.

Eley Duke asks about Facebook Places pages for his dealership—whether they're similar to Google Places, if they can be edited, and whether dealers should invest in managing them separately. The consensus from replies is that Facebook Places and business pages can and should be merged together into a single page, which provides better clarity for customers and gives dealers more control over business information like hours and phone numbers, though integration with Google and other location services remains limited.

Dealership professionals discuss Facebook's algorithm changes that prioritize content from close friends and highly-engaged pages, making it harder for car dealers' business pages to gain organic visibility unless they produce exceptionally engaging content. The consensus is that these changes make Facebook even less viable as an advertising channel for most dealerships, since they lack the resources to consistently create "amazing" content at scale and struggle to achieve positive ROI. The thread concludes that dealerships may need to either abandon Facebook ads entirely or develop custom applications to leverage Facebook's platform differently.

The thread discusses LinkedIn's effectiveness as a prospecting tool for car dealers, with mixed results reported across different use cases. While LinkedIn ads and paid placements performed poorly with minimal clicks and conversions, several respondents emphasized that organic prospecting and direct salespeople outreach on the platform could generate legitimate leads if executed consistently. The consensus suggests LinkedIn is better suited for recruitment and personal brand-building than paid advertising, but potentially valuable for individual salespeople engaging in direct relationship-building.

Dealers want more control over their website and marketing tools but often fail to utilize the features already available to them, raising the question of whether a true DIY solution would actually be used. The discussion reveals vendor reluctance to grant source code access due to proprietary concerns and the risk of dealers breaking their sites, while specific frustrations emerge around inflexible form requirements (like mandatory address fields) that reduce lead volume. A key insight is that dealers may be requesting control they won't actually exercise, and that any ideal DIY platform needs to balance advanced customization for "thought leaders" with simplicity for dealers wanting turnkey solutions—though both groups tend to underutilize the tools they already have.

This thread discusses the importance of article marketing and content creation as effective SEO strategies for automotive businesses operating on limited budgets. Contributors emphasize that regular, fresh, high-quality content—particularly through blogs and article syndication—helps improve search engine rankings, build backlinks, and establish website authority, with results accumulating over the long term rather than through short-term black hat tactics. The key insight is that consistent article marketing serves dual purposes: it naturally improves SEO metrics while building a loyal audience that drives ongoing traffic back to the dealership website.

The thread discusses a report showing Bing loses approximately $463,000 per hour, sparking debate about the search engine's viability and business model. While most participants react with skepticism and humor about Bing's profitability challenges, Eley Duke offers a practical counterpoint—noting that despite Bing's financial struggles, dealers can still achieve strong organic search rankings on the platform. The overall consensus is that Bing faces insurmountable competition from Google's dominant market position and brand strength, though some acknowledge it remains a viable secondary channel for automotive dealers.

A Ford salesman asks how to handle customer requests for lease payment quotes, noting that providing estimates causes prospects to disappear without visiting the dealership. Respondents suggest the solution is shifting from a price-focused approach to a consultative sales strategy that emphasizes rapport-building and "selling the appointment" rather than disclosing payment information upfront, with recommendations to explore resources from trainers like Joe Webb and Jerry Thibeau who specialize in appointment-setting processes.

A dealer shares positive feedback about attending Brian Pasch's PCG Pit Stop seminars, praising the quality of content and Pasch's personal attention to attendees' needs, and asks if others have attended similar small seminars. The thread confirms that multiple industry professionals have had valuable experiences at these workshops and appreciate Pasch's hands-on approach to helping dealers improve their marketing and business practices.

• Poll

Automotive dealers debate whether to purchase third-party leads containing only an email address without names or phone numbers. While opinions are divided, the consensus leans toward rejection due to poor data quality and low ROI—dealers report that OEM third-party leads have high bounce rates, fake contact information, and conversion rates as low as 2.5%, making them uneconomical compared to other marketing investments. One participant argues that email-only requirements might actually yield better-quality voluntary data, but most experienced dealers advocate for stricter contact information standards before purchasing leads.

A dealer asks whether V12 Software is worth using for Craigslist postings, prompting discussion about Craigslist's continued relevance for automotive traffic. While one participant questions Craigslist's viability, others report it still drives meaningful traffic—one dealer cites 6% of site visits—though results vary by region, with stronger performance on the West Coast. The thread suggests Craigslist remains a viable channel despite declining popularity, though dealers are also exploring alternative platforms like UsedEverywhere.

BillH inquires about Widestorm, an online price negotiation tool, and questions its practical value, prompting community members to share experiences with similar services that aggregate competitive dealer pricing. The key insight is that these platforms face a fundamental flaw: customers can simply take negotiated prices obtained through the service to their local dealership and request they match or beat them, undermining the tool's value proposition. The thread suggests such services have limited real-world effectiveness and references a history of failed automotive negotiation platforms.

The discussion centers on the average lifetime value (LTV) of a dealership customer, with estimates ranging from $250K-$300K to $500K depending on assumptions about purchase frequency and vehicle prices. Jerry Thibeau provides mathematical analysis suggesting that the $500K figure is unrealistic for average dealerships, requiring customers to purchase nearly 18 vehicles over their lifetime. The key insight is that while industry figures like $250K-$300K are commonly referenced, actual LTV varies significantly by dealership type and market, and should be viewed as a rough guideline rather than a precise metric for valuing individual customer relationships.

A dealer's e-commerce manager needed help merging a Facebook profile page (containing friends) with a fan page (containing apps and content). While one vendor provided a general Facebook Help Center link, the specific issue required merging a personal profile into a business fan page, which prompted a vendor specializing in automotive digital solutions to offer direct assistance for this common dealer problem.

Automotive industry professionals discuss failed automotive websites and services from the past decade, including MyRide.com, CarLocate.com, Greenlight.com, and My Live Offer, analyzing why they couldn't compete against market leaders. The consensus insight is that smaller automotive portals and third-party inventory aggregators have struggled because dealers and consumers increasingly gravitate toward established platforms (Cars.com, AutoTrader, AOL) and dealer websites directly, making it extremely difficult for new entrants to gain traction without a compelling differentiation or critical mass of participation.

The thread debates what a dealership's true 'product' is, sparked by Alex Snyder's assertion that the dealership itself — its culture, people, and processes — is the product, not just the vehicle. Commenters wrestle with the semantic tension between classical marketing definitions (cars as product, dealership as distribution channel) and a broader view that dealers are really selling confidence, experience, and brand culture. The emerging consensus is that while the car remains the tangible product, the dealership's environment and people are what differentiate it and drive profitability.