Smarter Digital Strategy for Dealerships

Your website looks great—until a customer tries to buy something.

Executive Summary

• Mobile-first websites and real images drive conversions: Most dealer sites still fail at responsive design, clear calls to action, and using real vehicle photos—crucial for engaging mobile users.
  
• Content strategy is your SEO engine: Dealers can outrank OEMs by creating hyper-local, model-specific content and service pages that match real-world customer search intent.
  
• Promos aren’t only about price—they’re about personality: Creative, dealership-owned events and clear branding (like being “The Truck Centre”) outperform cookie-cutter OEM promotions.

Most dealerships still treat digital strategy like a checklist: website? Ads? Promotions? Done.

That’s no longer enough.

Shoppers today expect their digital journey to mirror the experience of walking into a dealership—clear, helpful, trustworthy, and tailored to their needs. A winning digital strategy does more than just check boxes. It connects every online touchpoint to what buyers actually care about.

Here’s what that looks like.

Start With a Mobile-First Website

Many dealership websites look great on desktop—but fall apart on mobile. That’s a major problem, since the majority of dealership traffic comes from mobile devices.

Fixes should include:

• Making sure the vehicle title, image, and price are clearly visible above the fold on all devices.
• Ensuring calls to action (especially text and call buttons) are easy to use.
• Avoiding clunky layouts or overlapping promotions on smaller screens
  

The best-performing VDPs (Vehicle Detail Pages) make it easy for users to text or call directly from their phones, as form fills are now a less preferred method for car buyers to connect with dealers.

Create Content That Actually Ranks

Inventory feeds and spec sheets don’t count as content. To build organic traffic and capture shoppers earlier in their journey, dealerships need original, local content.

Start with:

• Model-specific landing pages that target your location (e.g. “2025 Ford Lightning in Vancouver”)
• Service content that explains offerings in detail, using real pricing from your service counter
• Community and dealership news, which adds credibility and freshness

Think beyond keywords like “oil change near me.” Try building content around real questions your customers ask, such as:

• “How much is a brake job?” 
• “What’s the difference between maintenance plans?”
• “How long does a tire rotation take?”

Original, relevant content helps you outperform national OEM sites by demonstrating local authority.

Use Real Vehicle Photos

Stock photos—also known as “jellybeans”—are still too common. The problem? They create emotional distance and feel generic.

Buyers want to see what they’re actually purchasing. That means:

• Real, high-quality photos of your actual inventory
• Even basic smartphone shots are better than placeholder images
• Avoid photos taken before PDI (Pre-Delivery Inspection), where the car still has stickers or wraps

If your VDP has no real photos, or worse, says “coming soon” for weeks, you’re creating doubt in the buyer’s mind. Visual authenticity builds trust and increases engagement.