Resource Center - Industry Articles
3 Questions To Ask Your Web Designer
by Tom Knoop, March 18 2010
It doesn't matter if you have someone in-house working on your Website or if you use a third party Web design company, their job is not over when the Website becomes active. Most visitors to your dealership will visit your Website first, so it is important to maintain, update, and improve upon the functionality of your site. Here are a few questions that you should ask your Web designer.
1. Do we have Google Analytics (or some other analytics tracking program) installed on every page of the site?
Having a Website is fine. Knowing exactly what's working and what's failing on your site is something completely different. With data tracking, you can see what pages were viewed most often, view where your Website traffic is coming from, compare current Website activity to past performance and so much more. If you don't have an analytics program installed on your site, have your Web designer do it right away. I suggest using Google Analytics. It has great information, you can link your AdWords campaign directly to it, and best of all it's free.
2. Is there a link or button on every page of the Website for the customer to contact us?
People shopping for cars rarely only visit one page of your site. They could peruse the entire span of content on your site and decide at any moment to contact you for more information. That is why it is critical to have an easy to see "Contact Us" button on every page. If you want to get the customer from the Website to the store, you will need to make it easy for them to contact you. This also directly links to my next question.
3. Do we track conversions on the Website?
It's one thing to have a contact link on every page; it's another thing to make sure they are working. That's where conversion tracking comes in. A conversion is a term commonly associated with retail businesses, but it is equally as important in the auto industry. Many people ignore conversion tracking because, for the most part, you don't sell anything through the Website.
A conversion, however, is not limited to purchasing something online. A conversion for an auto dealer is sending the visitor from your Website to your dealership. If someone signs up for a test drive on your Website, they made a decision to visit your dealership in the near future. That's a conversion. If someone submits a quote online with their name, address, and phone number, you now have a hot lead in your hands. That's another conversion. If someone is browsing your site, then clicks on the 'directions' tab, then there is a good chance that they are coming in to take a look at your dealership. Yet another conversion.
You should be able to track this Web activity to see which links are most successful at getting a potential customer's information. This will help you understand which links are working and which links are not so good at bringing people to your dealership
Tom Knoop is director of search engine marketing for Stevenson Advertising. If you need help starting your own SEM campaigns, feel free to contact him at 425-787-9686 or email TomK@StevensonAdvertising.com.
