Where do your dealership’s ads lead after a click? Wherever it is, it’d better be glorious.

A car shopper’s experience after clicking an ad can make or break whether they convert or choose your dealership as their new vehicle supplier. You need a killer landing page.

A landing page, also referred to as a lead capture page, is an individual web page that ads (whether they’re search, display, email or social campaigns) bring a user to once clicked. Unbounce defines a landing page as…

“ …a standalone web page, created specifically for the purposes of a marketing or advertising campaign. It’s where a visitor ‘lands’ when they have clicked on a Google AdWords ad or similar.”

Landing pages are critical for conversions and, when executed well, can have huge benefits for your dealership. Often, advertisers draw traffic from ads to the homepage of their website. That’s a big no-no that results in missed opportunities!  Visitors may bounce from your site when they don’t see what they’re looking for right away. Automotive ads offer something specific to car shoppers — whether it’s a limited time offer, a particular make or model, or a unique selling proposition (USP). A good landing page needs to reflect an ad’s headline, offer clear and concise value, and let people know they’ve come to the right place — all while avoiding information overload.

For dealerships, ads for specific vehicle models could drive traffic to a model-specific search results page (SRPs) as a landing page. Further, dealership ads for specific units could bring users to the appropriate vehicle details page (VDP). These are both variations of landing pages that should reflect the message in the ad that the user originally clicked on.

An effective landing page requires a few specific things. Read on if you want to begin building high-performing, fully-optimized landing pages that help maximize conversions and drive traffic to your dealership.

Match Your Messages

People are impatient, and if they don’t see what they’re looking for immediately, they’ll bounce. Your dealership’s landing pages should include messaging that reinforces — quickly and clearly — the associated ad copy by including a matching headline or consistent keywords. With a strong message match, you’re reassuring users that they made a good choice by clicking your ad.

Just like your dealership’s ads, your landing pages should be targeting car shoppers in specific phases of their car-buying journey. The language and tone in both your ads as well as on your landing pages should reflect your targeting.

Be relevant. Be specific. Match your messages.

Simplicity is Key

The most effective landing pages often boast simple, easy-to-navigate designs that indicate a clear purpose. The last thing your dealership wants is to overwhelm or confuse a car shopper with chaotic design or too much content! Keep them short, simple and to the point.

The average number of form fields is 11, which is a few too many if you ask us. According to Unbounce, reducing the number of form fields will increase your conversion rates. In one instance, a company reduced its form fields from 11 to 4 and saw a 150% increase in conversions.

Avoid using navigation bars or other elements that distract a user from the main goal of completing the landing page form. And don’t forget to include a prominent, persuasive call-to-action button that would make anybody want to click!

Don’t Forget a Unique Selling Proposition

A unique selling proposition (USP), otherwise known as a unique value proposition, is a catchy statement that encompasses how your offer will benefit the car shopper, how it solves a need, and how it’s unique from the competition. This statement should be front and center, and visible immediately upon landing. Avoid boring language and captivate users with attention-grabbing, unique, quantifiable benefits. Offering me something above and beyond OEM incentives? Saving me time? Tell me about it!

If your USP isn’t clear or visible, car shoppers may not realize the value in completing the landing page form. Help them understand the benefits they’d gain from submitting a form!

Make it a Good Experience

Your dealership has less than ten seconds to convince a car shopper to stay on its landing page. If the page takes too long to load, forget about conversions. Landing pages need to make a good impression — fast — in order to capture quality leads. Offer positive user experience for your potential customers. The experience they have on your landing page may influence their perception of your dealership and reflect poorly on the in-store experience.

Test, Test, Test!

So you’ve built a landing page that you think is pretty fantastic. That’s awesome! The thing with landing page optimization, though, is that you’re never finished. It’s an ongoing process that requires testing different versions against each other to determine the top-performing designs, messaging, form fields and so on. Constant revision and  A/B testing will help your dealership find its way to the highest converting landing pages.

To build a winning automotive landing page is a rather complicated endeavor. At Convertus, our Design, Development, and Paid Search teams work together to create powerful landing pages consistent with your dealership’s ad messaging. Once they’re built, we work together to continuously optimize, ensuring maximum conversions. Want to know more about how strong landing pages can benefit your dealership’s digital marketing strategy? Reach out to us and let’s talk landing pages!

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