A decade ago, buyers visited an average of five dealerships while car shopping. Now, they only drop in at 2 dealerships on average before deciding. Research has also shown that nearly 40% of interested new car shoppers think that an auto dealership website is very influential in their purchasing process.
The bulk of their research is done online before they ever see you in person, which points to just how important it is to have a top class car dealer website if you want to stand out from the crowd.
In this article, we give you a few effective ideas on how to improve your car dealer website.
01. Prioritize High Quality Images and Searchability
Potential customers want to initially explore their options in a virtual setting, and they shortlist dealers after browsing car dealer websites.
User-friendly website design and top notch vehicle images in your auto dealership’s inventory pages can certainly make a difference at this initial stage.
The option to quickly search through a car dealer website is a must-have these days, since over a third of potential buyers know exactly what they want. In order to nudge them into the sales funnel, make it easy for them to find what they’re looking for.
02. Include Contact Forms and Testimonials
If it’s good to get as many people as possible to visit your car dealer website, it’s even better to have them visit your brick-and-mortar showroom. In order to maximize your chances to make this happen, add brief contact forms on every page of your dealership website. If they are thinking about reaching out to your dealership after having seen something they like, a contact form should be readily available for them to fill out.
While customer reviews are becoming more important for prospective car buyers in their decision making process, many of them may not take the trouble to look up your auto dealership on review sites. In order to not miss out on potential opportunities, gather up some of your best testimonials and feature them prominently on your car dealer website, as they help immensely in building trust.
03. Less is More
A classy, sleek, user-friendly website design will certainly be much more beneficial for your car dealer website than packing in details about so many vehicles, promotions, offers and general information all at once on the home page. The first impression is the foundation of your relationship with the customer, and you have to get it right.
Use a website layout that is free of distractions and clutter, and instead include clear calls-to-action (CTAs) and eye-catching navigation that guides the customer to their next stage in the buying process.
Most importantly, being spoilt for choice may not be the best idea to increase sales. The fact that it becomes more difficult to make a decision could actually drive your car dealer website visitors elsewhere.
04. Figure Out Your Pricing Tactics
The ability to shop by vehicle price is commonly stated as one of the top benefits of purchasing online, and it is make-or-break in terms of trust.
Keep the vehicle pricing on your car dealer website transparent by displaying the vehicle MSRP, all savings, and additional deals or incentives that apply. How the final price was arrived at should be quite clear, in order to avoid any confusion or doubt.
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