Improved Visibility in Organic Search Results Supercharges Auto Dealers’ Service Business

Dealers Report Significant Increases in Service Calls After Implementing eXtéres’ Proprietary System to Improve First-Page Search Engine Rankings

Average Monthly Service Calls Jump From 78 to 206

eXtéres, the leading organic search engine optimization company specializing in the auto retailing industry, today announced the results of a multi-dealer study measuring the impact of improved organic search placement on the service departments of auto dealers. The results were powerful: after implementing this organic search system for their website(s), dealers experienced increases ranging from roughly 50% to over 700% (with an average reported growth of 164%), for Internet-generated calls for service and parts.

These findings (culled from objective, third-party call data)1 represent a jump from an average of 78 Internet-generated service calls a month to an average of 206. And in a troubled economy, this can prove a lifesaver for dealerships, as service and aftermarket sales (an $84 billion market) represent the highest margin sales and profit center for auto dealers.

“The increase in service calls with eXtéres has been nothing short of staggering,” said Joe Orr, Internet Manager at Dick Hannah Honda. “And this is translating–month in and month out–into a steady stream of revenue for fixed operations.”

The advanced technology employed by the dealerships, eXtéres’ Organic Search Marketing System, works on a continuous basis to optimize a dealer’s website so customers find it at or near the top of organic (unpaid) search listings at the big search engines like Google and Yahoo!. This first-page placement is vital in our Search Age, as 4 in 5 consumers are now primarily using search engines to locate auto dealerships2–and shoppers now use search, more than any other media resource including the Yellow Pages, to track down local business information.3

Surge In Service Business Mitigates Impact of Recession Economy

This powerful uptick in service calls into eXtéres-powered dealerships comes at a time when new-vehicle sales are predicted to hit a 15-year low, at 14.2 million units. And, as NADA’s Chief Economist recently reported, the service department is ever-more-critical to the survival of a dealership, and is, in fact, currently responsible for generating an extraordinary 81% of dealer operating profits.4

“After eXtéres was live, my Internet director called me, begging me to get a direct line posted on our website for our service department, because the receptionists were overwhelmed with calls,” reported Mark Parkinson, Dealer Principal of Tustin Auto in Tustin, CA. “I’ve only one warning for dealers: you better get ready and have the proper staff in place to handle all your increased service phone traffic.”

“This data really underscores the ‘unfair advantage’ a dealer enjoys when they achieve top search placement in their local markets, especially when trying to reach consumers hunting down auto service providers,” said Richard Winch, CEO of eXtéres. “An effective organic search system is quite simply the most targeted, cost-efficient, sustainable solution for driving service customers into the dealership. And in this economy, that’s never been more critical.”

For graphs: http://news.exteres.com/public/results.htm.

Media Contact:

To speak to CEO Richard Winch about eXtéres’ automotive SEO, or to interview dealers about their results, please contact:
Betsy Isroelit

rbi for eXteres

213.300.0108

betsy {at} rbicom(.)com

1 Results for eXtéres dealers nationwide with objective call data (Who’s Calling, etc.) that have been on the eXtéres program 6 months-plus.

2 Yahoo!/Cobalt Study, 2008

3 WebVisible/Nielsen, 2008

4 NADA Data, 2008
Contacts

rbi for eXtéres
Betsy Isroelit, 213-300-0108
betsy {at} rbicom(.)com