Car dealers can now take advantage of these banners designed for authorized brand dealers only.

Right click to download and use on your website.

We would appreciate a reciprocal link to: http://www.cashforclunkersfacts.com

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Supporters of the Cash for Clunkers Bill got some good news.

House and Senate lawmakers seem to have agreed on a $106 billion dollar wartime spending bill that includes $1 billion dollars for the Cash for Clunkers program.

Consumers looking to get assistance with a new fuel efficient car purchase are one step close to qualifying for a $3,500 or $4,500 cash voucher.  This coupled with existing manufacturer incentives can add up to big savings.

For example, Hyundai is offering a $3,000 rebate on the purchase of a 2009 Hyundai Sonata.  If a consumer traded in an old clunker getting 15 mpg, their total cash incentives from the CFC program and Hyundai would total $7,500.  That total package will be very motivational for cash strapped Americans.

Detroit Auto News

According to a Detroit Auto News email blast:

"House and Senate negotiators reached agreement late Thursday
on a $106 billion wartime spending bill that includes $1 billion for a "cash
for clunkers" program to boost auto sales.

The House and Senate are expected to pass the compromise version of the
spending bill next week. But the $1 billion set aside for the auto-purchase
program is far short of the full cost of such an effort, estimated at $4
billion. The $1 billion is expected to fund the program through Sept. 30,
the end of this fiscal year, according to two congressional sources close to
the negotiations who asked to remain anonymous."
 

Start Negotiations Now

As some of you may know, I have been working on a marketing plan for the new Cash For Clunkers bill to drive leads to my clients.

As I was reviewing the placement of the website www.cashforclunkersfacts.com I was reminded why press releases are SO very important.  Look at what is at the top of Google search results for the phrase "cash for clunkers".

 

On June 16, 2009 I did a Google search for the phrase "cash for clunkers" and this is what was shown:

 

 

 

I am very glad that the MediaSyndicate press release was one that we posted.  I was also glad that the WordPress microsite is holding strong despite being late to the game.

 

Belinda Luscombe, published a new article in Time Magazine on June 10, 2009 discussing the new GM Reinvention advertising campaign. 

Brian Pasch, Automotive Marketing Consultant was quoted in the timely piece on GM's efforts to rebuild their tarnished image.

To read the full article, visit this link:

http://www.time.com/time/business/article/0,8599,1903780,00.html 

 

Now that the House passed the Cash for Clunkers bill by a 298 to 119 vote, we come back to the basic Automotive SEO question:  How can car dealers leverage this news?

The first though to to create a page on the dealer website that is optimized for searches on the phrase  "Cash for Clunkers Bill".  Make sure the page is design to come up for your brand and your state.  The idea is that if you are a Honda dealer and a consumer had some questions about Honda cars and the bill, that if they typed "Cash for Clunkers Honda" that your dealership page would come up.

If you type into Google "Cash for Clunkers Phoenix" you will see that a Honda Dealer in Phoenix has already put out a press release on the subject and is in postion #1. In many cases, those dealers who are first to act with content on their websites will be rewarded.

Cash for Clunkers Dealer Marketing Tools

I have created a Cash for Clunkers Participating Dealer badge that you can drop onto your home page and add some text about the bill. You can start to educate consumers on the bill.  Since most dealers get HUNDREDS of new visitors to their website every day, having this badge on the home page will START new dialogue.

If you would like to add the badge to your website or blog, follow this link for the free code:

http://www.cashforclunkersfacts.com/bill/dealer-cash-for-clunkers-badge

Once dealers place the badge on their wbesite, send me a link at:  brian@paschconsulting.com and I'll add the dealership website to the National Cash for Clunkers dirtectory.

Consumer Interest

As we notes in a past this week, Toyota car models lead consumer interest in fuel efficient cars.  I will keep you posted on how the data changes in the coming weeks.

 

 

Cash For Clunkers Consumer Interest

Four car manufacturers are leading the pack for consumer interest in fuel efficient cars.  From data collected from www.cashforclunkersfacts.com website, the number one choice for consumers looking to purchase a new fuel efficient car is Toyota.  In the top four spots, there are two Japanese brands and two American brands.

This is good news for these four manufacturers which should bode well for them if the Cash for Clunkers Bill is passed into law this summer.

Preparing Your Website

I would encourage all car dealers interested in leveraging this sales opportunity if it becomes law, to start to optimize the websites and blogs for the program.  Car dealers can add a "Cash for Clunker Participating Dealer" badge to their website and create a page on their own website talking about the program.

If you would like to get the free code to generate the Cash for Clunkers badge, click on this link:  CFC Dealer Badge 

If you need assistance with preparing your website to get wide coverage for car searches in your State, give us a call at:                732-450-8200        .

 

Americans who could use a new fuel efficient car and would benefit from the anticipated cash vouchers offered in the Cash for Clunkers bill  may not qualify for a new car loan. The bill would reward consumers driving old “clunkers” if they traded their cars in for a more fuel efficient model.

However, many America’s who are struggling with unemployment, layoffs and foreclosures will not be able to qualify for a new car loan.  In fact, there has been an upsurge in used car sales at local car dealers who offer a Buy Here Pay Here model.  In this business model, dealers offer consumers the ability to purchase used cars with a payment plan that takes into consideration poor credit.

Ohio Used Car Dealer

A “Buy Here Pay Here” dealer group in Ohio called ABC Motor Credit is one automotive retailer that has actually seen an uptick in business.  Sam Snellenberger, an executive at the company commented; “In this economy, consumers need reliable transportation to get to work.  We match them with a car and a payment that they can live with; many have had their cars repossessed.  For many consumers, ABC Motor Credit is their last chance to be able to drive to work or find a new job that requires transportation.”

Consumers with poor credit are hoping that the proposed Cash for Guzzlers or Cash for Clunkers bill provides additional support for consumers hit hard by the recession.  Some opposing voices to the current draft of the cash for Clunkers legislation say that the bill is not doing enough to allow consumers with low credit to utilize a cash vouchers.  Some opponents actually have petitioned that the vouchers should not be made available for wealthy Americans.

With poor credit a reality for many Americans living in 2008, used car sales will continue to rise and consumers with poor credit may be forced to drive less fuel efficient cars because they will be priced in the marketplace at the bottom of the value scale.

Cash for Guzzlers

The Cash for Guzzlers bill is still under scrutiny and compromise with Washington laymakers.  A new effort called Drive Forward America Act is another effort to get a cash voucher system passed this summer.  Senators Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) and Sam Brownback (R-KS) are backing this new measure in a bi-partisan effort.

The new search engine from Microsoft called Bing started to get some testing from our team and of course one of my targeted search phrases is "automotive seo". This is not a highly searched phrase but it does describe one of the services the Pasch Consulting Group offers car dealers.

So, on June 2, 2009 I did my first Bing search on Automotive SEO and I smiled at the results.  Brian Pasch and Jim Rucker continue to dominate page one search results. JD Rucker is a leader in Automotive Social Marketing and SEO and is employed by TK Carsites.  Jim has been a leader in the automotive Internet marketing profession for many years and his blogs and tweets are worth following.

Automotive SEO Searches on Bing

So the screen shot I took on June 2, 2009 shows that the Pasch Consulting Group has five listings for Pasch Consulting websites and two slots for JD Rucker.  Between the two of us we dominate 70% of the page which is a direct result of employing the same strategies that we advise our clients to follow.  In this case, the shoemaker's kids have good shoes.

The other national page one listings includes Dan Durick who works at Dealer.com and eXteres with the third site not identified to anyone in particular.  I don't need another search engine to complicate live and add more work to my testing protocols but from first glance, our global automotive SEO strategies at PCG seems to adapt well to Bing.

Will Bing be a major force in search engine marketing? No one knows but we will be watching the Bing engine for Automotive SEO in the coming months and let you know what we find.

 

 

 

Automotive Internet Marketing

If you are interested in Automotive SEO and Internet Marketing, I invite you to visit my new NING community for Internet Sales Managers and anyone in the Internet marketing community, not just car dealers.  I'll be using my free time to post strategies and articles that may be useful to improving your visibility on the Internet. 

You can also post your own blogs and interact with other members of the business world who share the same passions you do. I encourage you to join; www.internetsalesmanager.org

 

 

What part of your marketing budget is allocated to reach Spanish speakers living in the United States?  If your business operates near communities that contain a large percentage of native Spanish speakers, you should reconsider past testing that you might have done and start with a clean slate.

About six years ago there was a big buzz in the business community about marketing to "hispanic" people in the United States.  For many business owners their marketing attempts did not result in much success.  I am suggesting that business owners reconsider how the Internet can be utilized to market to this growing demographic.

ComScore Hispanic Data

In April 2009, ComScore, Inc. released a report on the U.S. Hispanic Internet market, finding that the Hispanic online population reached a record 20.3 million visitors in February 2009, representing 11 percent of the total U.S. online market. During the past year, the growth of the U.S Hispanic Internet audience outpaced that of the total U.S. online population in terms of number of visitors, time spent and pages consumed, as Hispanic online adoption and engagement accelerated.

“It’s well known that the Hispanic market is a growing and increasingly important segment to advertisers and marketers,” said Jack Flanagan, executive vice president of comScore Media Metrix. “However, any business attempting to effectively reach this segment needs to understand the behavior of the U.S. Hispanic online consumer as a fundamental component of their marketing and media strategies.”  Read the full Comscore Press Release.

Automotive Sector Ripe for Spanish Internet Marketing

I encourage auto dealers to setup a series of tests to see how much incremental web traffic and sales can be added with just a little attention to Spanish Automotive SEO.  My initial testing looks very promising so if you are looking for new ideas to grow car sales, this is one not to miss.

 

 

 

 

 

Mark Wilson’s Better Used Cars in Ontario has joined the ranks of Canadian car dealers who are looking for more cost effective ways to market their businesses online.  By selecting the Internet marketing services of Pasch Consulting Group (PCG), Mark Wilson will expand their used car business with innovative social marketing, automotive blogging as well as precise Automotive SEO strategies

The Pasch Consulting Group specializes in automotive Internet marketing and offers car dealers a Google search marketing compliant microsite platform that is custom branded for the car dealer’s business.    Mark Wilson’s Better Used Cars in Guelph will take advantage of the cost effective content publishing website to attract additional car leads and buyers.

Used Car Sales Ontario

The used car microsite, based on Wordpress technology, we will create a portal for Ontario used car shoppers seeking information on buying a reliable preowned cars.  Mark Wilson's is the proud recipient of the Guelph Mercury's Reader's Choice Favorite Used Car dealer award for the fourth year in a row! They have been voted Guelph's #1 used car dealership in 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, and 2008!

Brian Pasch, CEO of the Pasch Consulting Group, commented, “Our automotive marketing strategies leverage blogging, social networking and precise content placement.  This is just what car dealer’s need in this economy; cost effective content publishing platforms that generate high visibility on the Internet.  With the cost of pay-per-click advertising on the rise, dealers are realizing they need to invest in their own lead generation and sales platform.  Unlike other car dealer platforms, our custom marketing platform employs the best in search engine optimization architecture.”

More information on the Automotive SEO services offered by PCG is available at http://www.dealer-seo.com/
For additional information, contact Brian Pasch, CEO of the Pasch Consulting Group at 732-450-8200.