Digital Advertising Blog




Unmasking the Scams and FUD in Automotive Websites

by Terry MacCauley - Posted 1 month ago


Wake Up, Auto Dealers!

The automotive industry is evolving rapidly, with dealers investing countless hours and significant dollars to ensure transparency, tracking, and ownership of their advertising spending. However, a critical area often overlooked is the transparency of website providers. This negligence can have dire consequences for your digital marketing efforts.

 

Over the past decades, we at Big Time Advertising & Marketing have encountered numerous dealership websites riddled with issues that should not exist. From vehicle feed problems to poorly tagged pages, the inefficiencies and incompetence are staggering. Let's dive into the key issues plaguing dealership websites and how they impact your bottom line.

 

The Hidden Pitfalls

  1. Vehicle Feeds: Many website providers struggle to provide accurate vehicle feeds. According to industry reports, 42% of website-related issues involve outdated or incorrect inventory feeds, leading to missed sales opportunities and frustrated customers.

  2. Page Tagging: Proper tagging is essential for tracking user behavior on your site. Unfortunately, many providers only manage to track entry and exit points, leading to washed-out UTM tags and incomplete data. This lack of proper tracking can severely hamper your ability to understand customer behavior and optimize your marketing strategies.

  3. SEO Negligence: Dealers often pay hefty fees for SEO services that barely scratch the surface. A simple inspection of many dealership websites reveals gross negligence in the basics – titles, descriptions, and keywords. Studies have shown that over 60% of dealership websites lack proper SEO fundamentals, causing them to underperform in search engine rankings.
     
    • Example: We've seen numerous websites whose SEO efforts were so poor that they targeted the wrong state entirely due to lazy duplication of content from another site or still have a description for a wholly different industry. This not only confuses customers but also hurts your search engine rankings.

    • Monthly SERP Reports: Many dealers are charged monthly for SEO services but fail to receive consistent SERP (Search Engine Results Page) reports. These reports should show your vast improvements and be delivered monthly, not just when you remember to ask for them.

  4. Technical Requests: Simple tech requests, such as updating vehicle overlays, hero banners, fixing dead links, and more, should be handled promptly. However, completing these tasks can take days, weeks, or even months. This inefficiency not only frustrates dealers but also impacts customer experience and engagement.
     
    • Example: Many dealerships still use outdated platforms like WordPress, which are not designed for automotive retail. These platforms require numerous plugins and widgets, making the website a patchwork that is prone to breakdowns and inefficiencies.

The Real Cost

Why does this happen? Because providing good service is expensive, time-consuming, and requires attentive listening and response. Many companies prefer a set-it-and-forget-it model, hoping for consistent billing with minimal updates. They confuse dealers with FUD (Fear, Uncertainty, and Doubt) to avoid making necessary changes.

 

Accessibility and Liability

Ignoring website accessibility not only limits your audience but also exposes your dealership to potential legal liabilities. Websites that fail to meet accessibility standards can be subject to lawsuits, which have been on the rise. According to a report, more than 2,500 website accessibility lawsuits were filed in 2021 alone, a significant increase from previous years. Ensuring your website is accessible can help you avoid these costly legal battles.

 

Our Commitment

At Big Time Advertising, we do things differently. We take the tough feedback, deliver exceptional service, and act as your agents to bridge these painful gaps. We believe in proactive support, ensuring your website not only looks good but performs exceptionally in speed, accessibility, and SEO.

 

Leading the Charge with Expertise

At Big Time Advertising, we were tired of these issues, so we intentionally sought the help our dealers deserved and hired one of the sharpest minds in the automotive website business at the start of this year. Chris Jackson, our Director of Digital Operations, brings over 27 years of hands-on experience in the automotive industry, with a diverse skill set that spans sales, marketing, and search engine optimization (SEO). His passion for the automotive world has driven our team to push and excel in these areas, making us an even more trusted expert in all automotive advertising and marketing fields.

 

We firmly believe in taking an educational approach to sales, empowering clients and customers with knowledge to make informed, fact-based decisions. This approach has not only strengthened our client relationships but has also contributed to our delivering even more to our valued dealer clients.

 

Beyond the Basics

While we are not directly in the website-providing business, you can be sure that we will no longer remain silent on behalf of our dealers when they need a voice to help them, regardless of the website provider. Yes, there are many choices in our suite of offerings and services, and we have successfully guided numerous dealers in making web adjustments, transitions, and sometimes even complete overhauls to help boost conversions. The extended play must always be remembered when planning for the short term.

 

The Bottom Line

Dealers deserve better. It's time to demand transparency and competence from your website providers. Don't settle for mediocre service that hampers your digital marketing efforts. At Big Time Advertising, we’re committed to raising the game and ensuring your website truly supports your dealership’s success.

 

Let's put an end to the blame game and work together to elevate your online presence. If you need help navigating these challenges, we're here for you. Feel free to reach out to us for any questions or assistance. Your success is our mission.

 

By highlighting these critical issues, we hope to empower dealers to demand better service and support, which will ultimately lead to more successful digital marketing efforts. 

 

Sources: (Statista)​​ (McKinsey & Company)​​ (PwC)​​ (RSM Global)​.

 

By- Terry MacCauley, Founder & CEO





WE'RE FIXIN' TO VISIT ALABAMA

2024 AIADA – THIS FRIDAY & SATURDAY

 

Join us for our first time visiting and presenting at the AIADA Annual Convention & Expo at the Hoover Country Club.

 

Our CEO, Terry MacCauley, and Chris Jackson, our Director of Digital Operations, will present on Saturday morning immediately following the Opening Ceremony at 9:00 a.m. Artificial Intelligence is changing our world in everything we do, including our dealerships and advertising efforts.

 

In this highly requested session, "Future-Ready Dealerships: AI Solutions for Compliance, Lead Generation and Marketing," dealers will be left with simple, knowledgeable advice, examples, and direction on how their dealerships can either begin or continue to integrate AI into their daily operations.

 

Alabama Dealers it is not too late to register and attend.  We will see you there.







TIADA SESSION YOU WON'T WANT TO MISS

"Boosting Conversions With Website Optimization"

Presented by- Chris Jackson, Director of Digital Operations


Get ready for an unmissable presentation at TIADA! Join Chris Jackson, Director of Digital Operations for Big Time Advertising & Marketing, as he dives into "Boosting Conversions with Website Optimization." This is one session you cannot afford to miss – packed with insights to help your dealerships digital footprint perform better within Google's ecosphere without braking the bankl! See you there!


DATE:  Tuesday, July 23, 2024

TIME:  11:00 - 11:50 am

WHERE: JW Marriott Hill Country 

ROOM: Grand E-F



"A Culture of Innovation Can't Exist

Without a Culture of Risk-Taking"

 

We kick off Monday mornings every week with something educational and motivational for our entire team. Our team members take turns picking the content, and we dive deep into discussions.
 
This week, our Director of Digital Operations, Chris Jackson, chose a fantastic video featuring Jensen Huang, the founder of Nvidia, now the highest-valued company in the world by market capitalization.
 
We spent a lot of time discussing three BIG TIME takeaways:
 
1. A Culture of Risk-Taking
2. A Tolerance for Failure
3. Intellectual Honesty
 
We left with a fresh perspective and a renewed drive to keep growing and taking the risks that benefit our dealers. We understand that failure is part of the journey, but we aim to fail quickly and pivot when necessary because we already know.
 
We love our Monday morning meetings and wanted to share this inspiring video. It’s worth a watch: