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COVID-19 Resources for Used Car Dealers

How can Used Car Dealers adapt to a changing retail landscape during COVID-19?

Here at Auto Ad Manager, we know that used car dealerships across the country are facing unprecedented times, and we wanted to make sure that you are getting the resources and help you need. Here are a few of the top resources and tips to tap into during this time:

  1. Familiarize yourself with and follow the CDC recommendations for small businesses
  2. Tap into the SBA Coronavirus relief options if needed
  3. Resources / Apply for a grant thru LISC
  4. Prioritize making consumers feel safe when visiting your dealership.
  5. Offer incentives and discounts to motivate shoppers
  6. Offer vehicle delivery and test drive delivery options if requested
  7. Offer video conferencing to show customers your vehicles before they commit to a test drive / come to the dealership
  8. Update your Google business page with changes and announcements
  9. Print COVID-19 signs for your workplace: Face Covering PSA, Stop the Spread of Germs PSA, Stay Home From Work PSA
  10. Watch the dealer forward webinar discussing how you can adapt your business to the changing retail landscape here. Any of the tools discussed can easily be integrated into your website by Auto Ad Manager

With a constantly evolving situation with the SARS-CoV-2 virus, Used Car Dealers face unforeseen and unprecedented challenges. By utilizing resources, staying calm and focused, and supporting one another, we can make it thru this challenging time together. If you aren’t an Auto Ad Manager customer yet, visit our homepage to learn more.

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Dealer Tips

Not All Dealer Websites Are Created Equal

There are a lot of bad websites out there, especially for used car dealers. So how do you pick the best? One way is to examine the features that you should and shouldn’t have. Here are a few things to look out for.

  1. Website Templates

    2. The same look for every dealership doesn’t brand your web presence and it looks cheap. Shrewd internet users will notice that you haven’t taken the time to present yourself as a distinct business to them, and will correlate a lack of effort here with a lack of effort in other aspects of your business. Choose a company that will take the time to work with your brand to create a custom or semi-custom website for you.

  2. Mobile

    3. The amount of users accessing the web from their mobile phones continues to grow at a staggering pace, and you can bet that people are using them when they shop for a car. So how does your website look on a smart phone? Is it just a small version of your website that is hard to read and navigate? Or is it easy to browse and interact with without much effort? Choose a company that continues to optimize for this very important internet segment.

  3. Simple and Powerful

    4. Your inventory manager should be available from any computer, accessed via HTTPS for a secure connection, easy to navigate and simple to use. Powerful features like Vin Decoding, Bulk important from Karpower or your dealer DMS like Desk Manager would be included. Posting help to sites like Ebay, Craigslist, and OVE, should all be standard. Your vehicle should be automatically sent to third party free sites like Oodle, Vast, and Backpage, as well as any sites you pay for like Cars.com, Autotrader, and Vehix.

  4. SEO

    5. Because search engines like Google, Yahoo and Bing make it so easy to find information, customers use these to find the website they are looking for, instead of trying to remember the URL. If you want your website to appear at the top for your customer, then search engine optimization is a must. Pick a company that knows the right blend of meta tags, keywords, and content to use to make sure your site comes up where it should.

  5. Affordable

    6. Dealers know that advertising is one thing they can’t afford to cut out completely if they want to stay in business. Why not start with one of the most affordable systems in the industry so you don’t have to worry about cutting back? Auto Ad Manager has been designed with the small independent dealer in mind, so costs are kept low from the start.

We feel that our internet application hits all of these marks.

Find out more about how Auto Ad Manager can help your dealership by clicking here.