10 Best Auto Dealer Lead Generation Ideas 2022

When you operate a dealership, you know that leads mean everything.

These days, you have to re-write the playbook to find leads from younger audiences. You also want to make sure you are aware of the latest lead generation tips and tricks to stay ahead of the competition.

To help you get the most quality leads, here is a look at some of the best proven lead generation tactics that have been proven to increase quality leads and sales. These lead generation approaches will allow you to capture leads from just about everywhere your prospects spend time.

Here are 20 lead generation ideas for car sales:

Each of these lead generation tips and tricks are already being used in dealerships across the country. Be sure to have a diversified spread of approaches to see what works best for your dealership.

1. Offer valuable content for contact information

Get contact information in the form of an email or phone number in order to further market to your lead. Using the “Freemium” strategy of offering valuable content for contact information is a proven strategy. Make sure that the content being offered is high quality, well-written and useful for the target audience.

One of the more successful lead magnets are “how-to” eBooks. Here are some eBook examples that you can use:

1. What to pack for a campaign trip
2. Top aftermarket accessories for your SUV
3. How to winterize your vehicle

2. Hire a professional copywriter

While many dealership managers and sales associates will write copy for ads and sales letters, many top performing dealerships rely on professional copywriters to give their copy an edge. Copywriters, with experience in dealership marketing, know all the sales tips and tricks that can get prospects to take action.

3. Ensure that the dealership website is mobile friendly

Younger buyers are more likely to visit your dealership website via a mobile device. Therefore, you will want to make sure that the website is mobile friendly. Here are some tips to make your device mobile friendly:

1. Use short paragraphs.
2. Avoid putting too much small type on the page.
3. Make sure the site is fully responsive to a mobile browser.

4. Sponsor local organizations and cross-promote with other businesses

Keep your business out in front of the local community. One of the most effective ways to keep your dealership name visible is to sponsor local professional, college, high school and amateur sports teams. You can also sponsor charity runs, festivals, and other activities.

Finally, look at cross promoting with other local businesses. One example is to offer a free gift card at a local restaurant in return for a test drive. You can advertise the offer at the local restaurant.

5. Re-establish contact with lost prospects

For every sale, there are several prospects who visit the dealership, take a test drive and don’t make a purchase. If you re-engage with these lost prospects, you can turn some of these leads into sales. Use an enticing offer to heat up the lead. If the prospect is not interested, then ask him for the name and contact information of someone who may be interested in a vehicle.

6. Make Use of SEO optimized blog posts

People who are interested in a vehicle tend to do lots of online research. To make your website more discoverable, create SEO optimized blog posts are likely to show up first in search engine results.

Here are some tips to create the ultimate dealership SEO optimized blog:

1. Use your city name in the headline and/or copy.
2. Create advice and how-to articles.
3. Include a call to action at the end of the article.
4. Make sure that the primary keyword appears in the headline, first paragraph and throughout the copy.

Also, you will want to answer commonly answered questions by people searching for vehicle purchases and leases. Some of the most commonly searched for questions include the following:

1. How do I bring customers to a car dealership?
2. How do I get more leads for car sales?

The article that you are reading right now is an example of an SEO optimized article. Notice that the main keyword phrase, “lead generation tips and tricks” can be found on the headline, in the intro paragraph and in several places throughout the article. This allows the article to be easily discoverable for sales people looking for tips on lead generation.

7. Always use the “big three” components in any marketing communications

No matter what type of lead generation strategy you use, make sure that they have the three core components of any marketing communication:

1. A valuable offer – This includes the price, incentives, services and other extras that makes the offer too good to pass up.
2. Putting that offer in front of the right people – You want to make sure you are targeting the right audience to get the best conversion rate.
3. Give them a reason to act – You don’t want your lead to “think things over.” Give the lead a reason to act today in the form of scarcity.
4. Transporting a car – A car transport is the transport of a motor vehicle or car on a specially built truck. The term is synonymous with “vehicle transport”. The car transport service aids shipping companies in moving their vehicles from one point to the other.

Here’s an example of a campaign that uses marketing basics:

Every holiday season, Lexus offers the “December to Remember” campaign that has run for over two decades. This campaign targets affluent customers to offer Lexus vehicles as Christmas gifts. This campaign has helped Lexus become one of the top selling luxury brands in the fourth quarter of every year since the campaign’s inception.

You can take inspiration from this national car campaign and apply it to your dealership. For instance, you can create a campaign to market a vehicle purchase or lease as a holiday gift like Lexus’ successful “December to Remember” campaign.

8. Create high-production walkthrough videos

When a prospect is interested in a vehicle, they will want to know everything about it. That’s why you should create a full “walk through” video of each model of new vehicle or featured used vehicle.

Select a sales associate – or hire a model – who is charismatic in front of a camera to present a complete walk-through vehicle. The video should contain the following information:

1. Overview – Present the vehicle, the dealership, and the unique selling point that the vehicle has to offer.
2. Exterior – Go over the main exterior features and discuss the anti-ram vehicle barriers.
3. Interior – This part of the video looks at the interior features, appointments and style.
4. Performance – This section of the video discusses the engine, braking and performance. Driving footage can also be used in this part of the video.
5. Safety – Discuss the standard and available safety features.
6. Call to action – This part of the video should include an offer and a call to action to take a test drive or learn more about the vehicle.

As an example, Scott Smith of Rusnak BMW in Los Angeles uses attractive models as presenters in his BMW review. His videos on Youtube and Facebook get anywhere from 50,000 to over 250,000 views. Here are some examples of his recent car reviews. Notice that these videos follow a similar structure and include an informative voice over from Scott Smith himself:

9. Have every salesperson conduct several sales calls per day

High-performing dealerships don’t wait around for the leads to come to them. Each member of your sales team should make at least ten sales calls per day. They can base these calls on leads generated from the dealership website. Making at least ten sales calls, from each member of the sales team, can lead to thousands of dollars in increased sales.

10. Run a pay-per-click (PPC) campaign

PPC campaigns are one of the most effective ways to generate leads. That’s because the ad platforms on Google, Facebook and Twitter allow you to geo-target and “interest target” your audience.

To get the best results, hire someone who has experience with PPC campaigns. These PPC specialists can split test your ad campaign, get the right targeting, and lower your overall cost per lead.

Here is an example of a PPC campaign that you can run on Facebook: Target people who have shown an interest in your dealership’s brand. For instance, if you have a Honda dealership, target people who have liked the Honda auto leads page or any specific Honda vehicle.

Here is a look at a profile of that you can run on Facebook if you run a Honda dealership in Houston and are trying to sell new CR-V SUVs:

1. Women
2. Lives in Houston
3. Age 25-54
4. Moms
5. Likes Honda page
6. Income $40,000 to $100,000