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Grant W. Repsher Automotive News / March 6, 2006 Search me Auto marketers use 2 kinds of Internet search models to guide computer users to their Web sites. 1. Natural or organic search: Manipulate Web pages to get better search rankings. This method includes featuring relevant keywords and search phrases in Web site content. 2. Paid inclusion: Pay a fee to a search engine, which guarantees the automaker's Web site will be displayed in search results for specific terms. Nearly every automaker's marketing strategy includes ways to nudge computer users from Internet search engines to its Web site. Search marketing was once the domain of third-party automotive sites such as kbb.com and Edmunds.com. But more than ever, car companies rely on search technology to attract potential buyers early in the decision-making process. An estimated 70 percent of vehicle buyers consult search engines early in their research. In a study for the Web site Yahoo!, consumers said Internet search engines were the resource that most influenced their purchase decision. "At least 10 percent of consumers come to our Web sites through search," says Bonita Stewart, the Chrysler group's director of interactive communications. "We know how important it is to give consumers information when and how they want it." Between July 2004 and June 2005, an average of 25 million people a month looked to the Web for vehicle information, the Yahoo! study concludes. Search engines delivered almost one in five of those visitors to automotive Web sites. "Consumers place a lot of credibility in search," says Lon Bollenbacher, automotive category director of Yahoo! Autos. "Search engines help them find the pertinent stuff." Fight for rank To attract consumers' attention, automakers compete for top rankings on search engines. They do so in two ways: by buying key search terms, and by including relevant keywords and search phrases in the content of their Web sites. Bollenbacher says car companies' search marketing is increasingly sophisticated. Instead of sticking to brand and model names, he says, they are using more generic keywords, such as "new car" and "sedan." "They are beginning to compete for more general terms to draw more people," Bollenbacher says. That's important, he argues, because when vehicle buyers leave the Web, "their minds are already made up." Pontiac has expanded its keyword search strategy by combining online and other marketing efforts, says Mark-Hans Richer, the brand's marketing director. Current TV commercials invite consumers to conduct Web searches about Pontiac vehicles. "Don't take our word for it," one spot says. "Google 'Pontiac' and see for yourself." The idea of the campaign, Richer says, is to take advantage of search engines' credibility and reputation for objectivity. "It affects our online results greatly," he says. "Every (automaker) has keyword ads as part of their strategy. We're trying to have some influence on which terms consumers actually search for." Richer says 70 percent of people who search for Pontiac go to the company's official Web site. "Our direct leads from search are better than those generated through (third-party) informational sites," he adds. TV ties Pontiac bought keywords on search engines as part of two celebrated marketing campaigns: its launch of the Solstice roadster on the reality TV show "The Apprentice" last year, and its giveaway of 276 G6 sedans on Oprah Winfrey's TV talk show in 2004. Other General Motors brands also use search technology to support marketing programs. Cadillac and Hummer placed Internet links on Yahoo! and Google to the commercials they aired during last month's Super Bowl. TV commercials generate Internet searches by boosting brand awareness and curiosity, says Max Kalehoff, vice president of marketing at BuzzMetrics, a word-of-mouth research company in New York. That's another reason, he says, that automakers strive to improve their search rankings. Dealerships as well as automakers are capitalizing on the search trend, says Curt Hecht, chief digital officer of GM Planworks, which handles GM's media planning and buying. GM is working with dealerships regionally to prevent them from bidding against each other for search terms, Hecht says. Yahoo's Bollenbacher estimates that every online lead created by automakers' search efforts generates three or four phone calls to dealerships. "The coordination is still in the early stages," Bollenbacher says, "but is clearly something automakers are thinking about." |
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