Best lead sources in your opinion

[April Andresen]

Hi everyone! It's my first time posting in here but I've found the threads to be very helpful. I wanted to ask the question of best lead sources based on your experience with them on a platform where I feel I'll get the most honest and helpful answers.

I'm the BDC/Digital Manager for the dealership group (14 locations) and our group just cut cars.com, and we don't use AutoTrader either. We currently get leads from cargurus, TrueCar, Auto Alert, all the manufacturer websites and manufacturer 3rd party leads, we use dealer.com, Dealer e Process, DealerFire, and CDK for our websites.

I know there is a plethora of sources but I am on a mission to find a solid, reputable source for new and used car leads that close at a good percentage and aren't washed out in quality.

I would love to hear what works best for your stores and if you have a process for those leads that helped close at a high rate. Thanks in advance!

 

[Alexander Lau]

Welcome here and IMO, there's two parts to this.

Firstly, what works in Miami, FL might not in Seattle, WA. It's all about demographic preferences. There is no shiny red button or preferred digital vendor lineup for a total panacea. IOW, Cars.com might work well in one city and in others not (like your area). Yeah, it's tough because you're the one responsible for measuring which vendors produce quality leads (eventually to sales) and the metrics that exist around that overall protocol. Point is, what might work for a dealer or what a vendor sees might not be the best for your location. There are tons of thread here on this subject.

Secondly, why guess? Use a multi-touch attribution tool (both web traffic attribution for Cost Per Lead [make sure your goals are set up properly within GA] and then sales attribution for Cost Per Customer Acquisition / Sale) figure out what works or who helped sell your cars. Unable to see traction with a vendor and that includes website providers...? Dump them. I would license an attribution tool for 90 days (if you are unable to figure out what's working by then, something is wrong).

If you're looking for assistance in increasing your closing rates, there are other AI-based technologies out there that can assist you, such as Conversica, etc.