Growing Your Automotive Business

A car is typically one of the biggest, most important purchases of someone’s life. It’s something you’re going to be using just about every day to take you from your daughter’s ballet recital to that important work meeting.

Even though people aren’t buying as many cars online or getting their cars serviced online, consumers are still using the internet to do the majority of their research before they walk into a business.While a decade ago, someone may have walked onto a lot without pinpointing exactly what they want, these days consumers may show up with just as much information as salesman or mechanic.

So, what are the ways you can use the internet to grow and strengthen your online business? If you aren’t using any of these strategies below, it’s time to jump in and go.

1. Appearances Matter

It’s a saying as old as time: “First appearances matter”. Appearances can make or break any initial greeting even though you shouldn’t judge a book by its over (those cliche phrases by Grandma can sure be confusing sometimes).

That means you need to have a great looking website from the start. Easy to navigate, services and contact information easily displayed and no need to try and get too fancy or overwhelm the visitor. Think about any time you’ve visited a web page. Wasn’t it better with everything streamlined and quite navigable?

If you’re selling cars, give your visitors a chance to filter out what kind of cars they’re looking for so they can get exactly where they want to go. In addition, take high-quality pictures. There’s nothing worse than trying to squint at a picture to see what exactly is going on. In this case, more is always better.

Of course, you’ll want to make sure you have a website that looks credible and helps your customer easily gather useful information about your vehicle inventory. This is true whether you are selling cars or offer car repair services like Chicago Auto Repair for example.

2.It’s Time to Get Social

Word of mouth is a great way to spread the news about your business but it can be near impossible to track just how well word of mouth will take you. There’s another way to be involved within your community: social media.

With over half of the world’s population using some form of social media, it makes sense for you to jump on that train as well. While there are plenty of payment options to increase your social media presence, you can consider it a free way to get your page in front of people.

You can talk about promotions, new arrivals, services or specials. It can also be a way to connect to other businesses or be involved in whatever is happening in your community as well.

3.Content Here, Get Your Content Here!

Part of running a website that will bring visitors is in publishing regular content. While your website may not be about publishing news stories, you can still put out interesting blog posts about new car arrivals or the latest trends in the auto industry.

Not only will this help your website show up on any organic web searches, but it’s a way to keep visitors engaged and spending more time there. You don’t have to have an exact schedule of publishing something new on the website, but making sure you keep it updated is a wise idea.

4.Publish Reviews

Reviews, just like your report card in high school, can be a bit scary. Even though you feel like you’ve done everything right, you could still come out with a low mark. But when you see five stars, two thumbs up or what have you, it’s a great feeling.

That’s why you should be publishing reviews on your websites. Customer testimonials are great and people are more likely to listen to fellow consumers. This also applies if you are having your business reviewed via other platforms, such as Google or Yelp. Take the time to thank your customers for their positive review but also address the negative reviews. A kind word can go a long way!

5.Think About Marketing

While this marketing section could be its own article, it’s important to think about how you’re reaching your customers and how you can change that. With less and less people watching cable TV every year, is investing in a commercial the best way to go?

Instead, you could take that money and partner with a local influencer. It’s a win-win for both sides. They get the exposure and so does your business. You can also use email marketing campaigns to reach out to people. Even if 98 out of 100 delete the email, two people that come in could be easily worth all the work. Regardless of your preferred method, their are plenty of ways to grow your automotive business online, be it a used car dealership or a car parts store.