Auto-lead Data Format (ADF) has been the standard XML file format for capturing online sales leads in the automotive industry for the past 20 years. The format is used to record information from online car shoppers—including customer contact information and specifications for vehicles of interest—and transfer that information between the various software systems used for…

The auto dealer industry has a trust problem. Consumers are leery of the stereotypical car salesman and how arduous the buying process is. In the past, consumers and dealers would engage in a painful dance, where they negotiated back and forth before finally arriving at a sale price. Oftentimes, the painfully long process would leave…

In today’s online-centric automotive marketplace, using CRM systems (customer relationship management) and email marketing software is obligatory, due to the tremendous sales and revenue potential you gain from maintaining a database full of your customer and prospect data. Being able to follow your leads as they move through your sales funnel, to focus on the…

Have you ever wondered about the impact individual digital marketing tactics and touchpoints have on your customers? And more importantly, whether that budget is translating into effective dealership marketing that brings in leads and closes sales? The effective use of in-depth marketing attribution allows your auto dealership to understand and answer these questions, and many…

When it comes to business engagement and customer interactions, phone calls are still king. According to Google, 70 percent of mobile users use click-to-call buttons to connect with businesses directly from the search engines results page. In the same report, Google also found that 61 percent of mobile searchers consider click-to-call to be the most…

These days, it almost goes without saying: Video is a powerful tool for driving engagement. As Google recently reported, 69 percent of people who used YouTube when buying a car say it influenced their purchase decision. That’s more impact than TV, newspaper, or magazine ads. In fact, 1 out of every 4 people that visit…

In the age of digital marketing, the car-buying journey has evolved. Your dealership’s customers are no longer coming into your showroom before they’ve made up their mind about which vehicle to purchase. Instead, they’re doing the majority of their research (and decision-making) online, long before they enter your dealership. New competitors, the rise of the…

According to 2017 data collected by the National Automobile Dealers Association (NADA), dealerships across the United States are spending over 55 percent of their advertising budget on internet ads. (This figure works out to an average monthly ad spend of $26,750 per month.) And this research tracks with another study of over 300 dealerships, which…

There’s a simple truth when it comes to dealership marketing: You will not see sustained long-term growth in car purchases if you are depending only on walk-ins, large advertising banners, or television commercials. The battle for your customers will not be won with grand gestures, but with customer micro-moments and touchpoints. A slam dunk one-size-fits-all…

Have you taken the time to develop a dealership marketing strategy? If so, kudos! This is a great first step to attracting leads. But this leads to an even more important question: How can you know whether your dealership marketing strategy is improving your lead generation efforts, and earning more leads? At the root of…

These days, advertisers and audiences alike are dealing with more marketing noise than ever before. (Reportedly, consumers see or hear an average of 4,000 ads a day.) So when it comes to automotive lead generation, your competitors are all jockeying to get in front of the same prospects you’re chasing. You need a marketing strategy…

Today, potential car buyers don’t need to visit a physical dealership location for their car buying research — search engines can deliver almost all of the information they need, which has changed the face of auto dealership marketing. When a prospect arrives at an auto dealership, they probably have a high intention to buy. Potential…

Even the biggest automotive marketing companies can run into trouble when it comes to consistently generating high-quality leads. Like other industries where customers make big-ticket purchases, the path to conversion can stretch across weeks or months and involve plenty of research and deliberation on the buyer’s part. Without a way to properly analyze leads across…

A comprehensive automotive marketing strategy is essential, whether you’re representing an individual seller or a big franchise. Dealers can expect to pay anywhere from $350 to $500 in advertising and lead-acquisition per car sold — a significantly higher up-front cost than most other industries. Any auto seller will be well-served by having a marketing strategy…

Do you know what drives traffic to your dealership? Auto buyers are the perfect audience to reach via channels like digital advertising and mobile marketing, but how do you make sure those channels are actually driving revenue so you can prove and improve your marketing ROI? CallRail has you covered. Download the infographic to access…

Paxton Automotive Marketing is the country’s leader in direct mail and digital advertising for the automotive industry. They create customized advertising solutions for more than 125 clients across the nation to drive traffic to their websites, generate leads, and increase direct sales. They’ve been using call tracking since they first opened 14 years ago and…