So you have created an Automotive Microsite. What are your next steps? 

All websites that you own should have a sitemap and if the site is a blog, it should have a self-generating RSS feed like WordPress and Blogger creates.

That said, I also suggest that you setup the best free measurement and diagnostic  tools that will help you fine tune your automotive microsite marketing strategy.

Sitemap and RSS Registration

First on the list  is to create a free Google Webmaster Tools account and register the website’s sitemap. By doing this you can be alerted when links are broken.  You will also get basic diagnostics on your website. Google Webmaster Tools will give you insight into how Google sees your website and will report common errors like duplicate META descriptions.

Now head over to Yahoo which has a tool called  Site Explorer . Open a free account and register your sitemap and RSS feeds. Here you can register both your sitemap and your RSS feed if you have one.  This tool also has a more reliable inbound link counters to see how many web pages are linking to your site.

Lastly, head over to Microsoft Bing and setup a Webmaster account where you can register your sitemap and get feedback from their search engine.

Add Google Analytics

As an Automotive SEO consultant, I can’t encourage you enough to take advantage of Google Analytics which is free and provides a great deal of information about your visitor traffic and what they are doing on your website.  Google Analytics combined with Google Webmaster Tools is a great toolkit for fine tuning your SEO and content development strategies.

To install Google Analytics you will need the help of your website developer because the Analytics code has to be added to the bottom of every web page.  In the WordPress Microsites that we create, it takes only a minute to add the code to the footer.php  file.  Once this code is in place, you will start collecting valuable data on the people that come to your site.

Register Your Blog

Now that you have registered your sitemap and RSS feeds with the major search engines and have data tracking installed, you should register the website or blog with a few of the better directories.

If you have a microsite with blogging built in like WordPress, Blogger or NING, I would recommend you register your site with Technorati. There are also great blog sites like www.blogcatalog.com and www.bloghints.com.  

Technorati

Create a free account on Technorati and then go through the process to “claim” your blog. 

Follow the steps below to get it right the first time:

1. Create a Technorati Account.
2. Choose to Claim Your Blog.
3. Enter the URL of your Blog.
4. You will be given a piece of code to add to a blog post.  It looks something like this:
5.             <a href=”http://technorati.com/claim/8254cgryhm” rel=”me”>Technorati Profile</a>
6. Highlight and copy this code to your clipboard.
7. Create a blog “post” and not a page on your site. 
8. Switch to HTML mode and paste in the code they gave you.
9. Save the post.
10. Now go back to Technorati and  click to verify your claim. Technorati  will go to your blog and find the snippet of code you just added to a blog post.
11. Once you are verified, complete the details about your site that Technorati asks.
12. You can go back to your blog and delete that post you made to verify the Technorati claim.

In addition with Technorati, you should register you blog with other blog directory sites.  These will create additional inbound links to your site.  If your microsite is not a blog, there still are a number of great places to register your new site for inbound links. 

The key is not to just create a microsite and “hope” that everyone will find you.  Jump start your Internet marketing success with quality links to your new microsite.  Here are a few proven places to register your new microsite: www.merchantcircle.com, www.aboutus.org and www.insiderpages.com.

The news today that Chrysler is filing for bankruptcy protection has sent a shudder through the millions of Chrysler car owners across the United States.  Even though the Preston Auto Group does not sell Chrysler cars, their phones started ringing asking about the health of the brands they represent.

David Wilson, President and CEO of the Preston Automotive Group commenting on Chrysler’s bankruptcy said:

 “Preston is in a very strong position to service car buyers in Maryland and Delaware.  Our family owned and operated business has been serving area car and truck shoppers for over 30 years.  We represent some of the strongest brands in the marketplace including Ford, Lincoln, Mercury, Nissan, Hyundai and Mazda cars and trucks.  We see today’s announcement as an opportunity for growth as the industry consolidates”.

Ford Dealer Serving Maryland and Delaware

The Preston Auto Group reminds car shoppers from Maryland and Delaware that Ford Motor Company did not take any TARP monies from the government and that the Ford brand will emerge from this recession stronger and more competitive.  Car and trucks buyers looking for a quality vehicles can rely on Ford to be there for years to come.

Preston Ford has won the Ford Motor Company President’s Award four years in a row.  Their commitment to serving Ford buyers in Maryland and Delaware is very clear with an outstanding selection of new and used Ford cars.

Outstanding Customer Service

Preston Automotive Group’s member stores are all DealerRater certified and have some of the highest customer service review scores in the country.  DealerRater is the nation’s number one website for consumers to share their experience at car dealers across the USA.

This week I met with Stan Sher (aka RedNumbat) and his passion for providing car dealers with a new way to generate quality sales leads was very clear.  His willingness to step out and join an entrepreneurial endeavor is just what the car industry needs.   Innovations in the car industry could not come at a better time.  Car dealers are eagerly searching for ways to lower advertising costs and still drive quality leads to their website.

The idea of a “RedNumbat” or a “Twitter” or a “Facebook” innovating car dealer sales just a few years ago would have been met with frowns. The Internet is creating new communication tools and channels that can deliver messages to thousands of “followers” in seconds.  No wonder why the idea of an instant car price quote from a Red Marsupial has traction in the marketplace. 

I look forward to testing the RedNumbat technology on a few client websites in the coming months. I’ll report my findings on this blog as soon as  we collect enough data.  www.rednumbat.com

Protecting Your Dealer Name

In the past few weeks I have been talking with dealers across the US and Canada that were inspired by a free webinar I conducted with Dealers Edge on March 10th.  From the calls, it is clear that the economy has reignited a passion for car dealers to compete on the Internet.   Dealers want innovators to step up and shake up the old establishment; they are just cautious about spending money.

Significant interest from callers was focused on protecting their dealer name from third party lead collectors.  This is one of the easiest things that car dealers can do to increase consumer direct leads; get third party leads collectors off of Google page one for searches on their dealer name. Dealers should roll up their sleeves and use free web publishing tools like:

• www.merchantcircle.com
• www.vox.com
• www.blogspot.com
• www.squidoo.com

to create “dealer name” branded web assets that they can use to share content about the cars that they sell; talk about promotions, rebates, safety or third party reviews.  The key is to “name” these web assets with their dealer name so they appear for dealer name searches.  Think of these web assets as your free blogging tools without expenses or the need to know HTML programming.

What About Facebook

This week I was speaking with a dealer that said that their Facebook project sold three cars this past week.  This was exciting to hear that car dealers are testing and measuring some of the latest trends in social networking.  It is too early to definitively say how to use Facebook efficiently. Anyone with experiences with Facebook I encourage to share on this forum by sending an email to me at brian@paschconsulting.com.  Your feedback will be welcome since Facebook is hot topic of conversation amongst marketing professionals.

What About Twitter

I’m still waiting to see the results from using Twitter, so if anyone has some data to share, please send me an email.

If you would like to join me on my next Webinar on April 2, 2009, click here:  SEO Webinar

Reader Feedback – March 25, 2009

Brian,

I have just started using facebook for marketing. I think it is going to work well. I have sold cars for 20 years. I have a data base of  over 2,500 customers. I have started inviting each one to be my friend on face book. I am surprised that 50% of them are on facebook. If they  are not I invite them to join. They often do and it is great to be the one that introduced them to facebook. if they are on I send a personal message. I ask how their car is and what have they been up to.

Once  they accept me as a friend, I look at there pictures. I find something I am interested in. Art work, or a fishing trip and ask a question about it. I also invite people that buy a car from me to be my friend and they almost write something about their new car. I take a picture of them with their new car when they buy it. I email it to them. I am asking them if I can post it on the dealerships facebook page, which I  am a fan of.

I really hope they will post the photo I email on their facebook account. Some have but it too early to see what the results 
will be. I mix friends and work on facebook. I get lots of comments from customers that they like the way I blend this and am real and that I use marketing, social networking and friendship the way it was designed to be used.

I think this is going to be great.

Chance Black
Internet Manager
Subaru of Georgetown
www.chanceblack.com