Aaron Wirtz —  May 16, 2013 — 5 Comments

Brand Transition Notes: A Google Timeline

From Suzuki to Subaru

As you might have heard, we’ve been busy here in the land of Oz. On April 1st, 2013, Suzuki of Wichita became Subaru of Wichita, which meant we had a lot of switching to do.

In the digital realm, I was most concerned about our listings across Google properties, and I’ll be the first to admit–I didn’t do everything perfectly. But then again – there’s not a good instruction manual for this. Straight up–changing anything on Google can be a challenge, and I’ll admit I wasn’t very optimistic about what would happen.

At several points in this process, however, Google surprised me.

For the sake of sharing what I learned from this experience, I documented what happened on which days with the hope of gaining some insight into how Google works. Of course, I’m not suggesting that if you do the same things I did, you’ll get the same results–this is just what happened for us. First, here’s what we were working with prior to the transition:

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Stop what you’re doing and watch this video from Google’s Matt Cutts. It isn’t often we’re given the opportunity to hear about what changes are coming in updates.

Google’s Ten SEO Changes Are Coming:

  1. Major Penguin Update
  2. Advertorial Spam
  3. Spammy Queries Being Looked At
  4. Going Upstream At Link Spammers
  5. More Sophisticated Link Analysis
  6. Improvements On Hacked Sites
  7. Authority Boost In Algorithm
  8. Panda To Soften
  9. Domain Clusters In SERPs
  10. Improved Webmaster Communication

Comment and let us know what action you’re taking!

Click here to comment in the forum

Posted by Jeff Kershner on May 14, 2013 In Internet Dealer Marketing, Latest News & Trends, Search Engine Marketing
Kevin Frye —  May 13, 2013 — 13 Comments

Digital Dealer 14 Review with Kevin Frye

Sean Stapleton, Kendall Billman, Jessica Wyler, and Kevin Frye enjoy Digital Dealer 14

Sean Stapleton, Kendall Billman, Jessica Wyler, and Kevin Frye enjoy Digital Dealer 14

Our Annual Digital Dealer 14 Review with Kevin Frye

That’s right – I’m one Tough Mudder! Well, maybe tired is a better word. I ran my first Tough Mudder the weekend before Digital Dealer, and for one day, I beat Father Time – though he took revenge on me that night as I nursed multiple bruises, scratches, and sore muscles from running 10+ miles in the mud and tackling 23 tough obstacles. And less than a week later I ran a half-marathon the Sunday before Digital Dealer.

Why do I bring this up?

After finishing the race, I cleaned up and boarded a plane to fly down to Digital Dealer, tired and sore. When I arrived at The Rosen Shingle Resort, I was welcomed to my room with a bottle of wine and a selection of food.

Now that is a great way to start Digital Dealer 14! So let’s get started..

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Joe Pistell —  May 10, 2013 — 9 Comments

The Best Leads Your Store Will Get Tomorrow

Car repair

Damn you 2008!

Real change is happening out there. It’s subtle and it’s taking years to play out so it’s hard to see, but it’s very real and it all traces back to 2008. Let’s go for a walk, turn over some stones and let’s find some ROI out here!

The financial crisis of 2008 caused a once in a generation event that’s now called “The Great Recession”. It impacted every country, every business and everyone on the planet (except for Jerry Thibeau & Brian Pasch ;-).  The Go-go years are gone, we’re in a “new normal”, business is good…but different.  Your instincts tell you your customers are still feeling the effects. Has our customer changed?

What’s going on out there?

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Jeff Kershner —  May 9, 2013 — Leave a comment

AutoTrader.com Buys Haystak

autotrader_vinsolutions_buys_haystak

 

AutoTrader’s VinSolutions to Acquire Haystak Digital Marketing

As you may have already heard, AutoTrader.com / VinSolutions has come to a definitive agreement to acquire Haystak Digital Marketing.

Haystak Digital Marketing will continue to operate under it’s brand and our entire leadership team is excited to continue operating the company going forward. For our current and prospective customers, it will be business as usual and you can expect to receive the same great products and services, from the same team that provides them to you today.

In the future, VinSolutions and the entire AutoTrader Group of companies will explore opportunities to create new and exciting products and services.

We’re excited to be part of the VinSolutions family and the larger AutoTrader Group family as a whole. As a customer, you can expect nothing to change with the exception of improvements to products, services and customer support.

Is this one more step closer to making AutoTrader.com a full one stop shop for dealers?

Sound off in the comments!

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George Nenni —  May 2, 2013 — 1 Comment

Facebook Graph Search…What Next?

Facebook Graph Search

Facebook Graph Search – How Should Your Dealership Prepare?

I’ve written in the past about optimizing your Facebook business page for Facebook Graph Search.

Graph Search is Facebook’s most recent search tool iteration, helping users make connections to existing people and places that were previously difficult to find. With a clean interface and natural search capabilities, Graph Search unlocks the massive amount of data logged into Facebook by individuals and businesses each day.

Even though Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg has emphasized that Graph Search is “not Web search,” many would agree that this is Facebook’s attempt to compete with Google. Unlike Google’s current search algorithm, Graph Search relies on social interactions to build its search database.

Today, businesses can be optimized for the current Graph Search tool. For dealerships, this involves: listing the dealership as a business instead of a person and once listed as a Facebook business page, selecting relevant business categories. Since Graph Search currently only searches business names and categories, these two steps are the most critical today.

What about the next step?

How should dealerships prepare for the evolution of Graph Search in the future?

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Jeff Kershner —  April 29, 2013 — 4 Comments

Internet Lead Response Best Practices Webinar – Video Recording

Are You an Internet Ninja Warrior…or a 90 lb. Weakling?

The recorded webinar isn’t a short one. Matter of fact, it’s 1 hour and 56 minutes long. But for anyone looking for great (and maybe no-so-great) examples of customer follow-up by email, phone and text – this is one webinar that will have you wanting more, even after almost 2 hours.

If you missed this exciting, power driven webinar last week that DealerOn and Jerry Thibeau put together, no worries because a video recoding of the session is right here, above.

What makes this webinar so exciting?

Each panelist…

BILL PLAYFORD from Dealer Knows Consulting
ERIC MILTSCH from Driving Sales
JEFF KERSHNER from DealerRefresh / HookLogic
RALPH PAGLIA from Automotive Digital Marketing
GRANT CARDONE automotive industry Trainer

…reviewed one or more previously dealer submitted lead follow-up processes consisting of email, phone and video. The Panelist then reviewed, offered feedback and voted for the best.

One skilled Internet walked away with $1000 in cash!

Watch the webinar to find out who won and why, then give a SHOUT OUT in the comments. We want to hear from you!
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