Drive your dealership forward with Google Vehicle Ads

With 95% of car buyers starting their search online, standing out in local searches is more important than ever. Enter Google Vehicle Ads – a powerful tool to put your dealership in the fast lane of online visibility, driving high-quality leads directly to your website or showroom.

Let’s look at how this innovative ad format works, the benefits it offers, and how your dealership can leverage it to dominate local searches.

What are Google Vehicle Ads?

Vehicle ads effectively allow you to window shop from the get-go, appearing at the right moment to encourage users towards purchases based on their search query. These ads appear when users search for vehicles, showing relevant images alongside key information like make, model, price, mileage, and location. This allows car dealerships to display their inventory just in the same way you typically see shoes, clothing and more as you shop online. 

For example, a search for “used SUVs near me” might display your dealership’s inventory at the top of the results, complete with high-quality visuals and a clear call-to-action.

Unlike standard search ads, vehicle ads focus on delivering highly relevant results to users actively searching for vehicles, streamlining the path to purchase.

Key benefits of vehicle Ads

1. Enhanced visibility for local dealerships – Vehicle ads prioritise relevance, ensuring your inventory appears in front of users searching for cars in your area. This local targeting increases foot traffic and qualified leads.
2. High-quality leads – These ads attract in-market buyers with high intent, leading to better conversion rates compared to traditional advertising with the visuals and information provided.
3. Performance insights – Google provides detailed performance analytics, allowing you to track ROI and optimise your campaigns effectively. Tracking metrics like click-through rate (CTR), cost per acquisition (CPA), and conversion rates (CVR) helps optimise your campaigns.
4. Automation & scalability – By leveraging AI-powered Performance Max campaigns, vehicle ads automate bidding and targeting for maximum reach, enabling dealerships to scale campaigns without extra effort.
5. Cost-efficiency – With pay-per-click (PPC) pricing, you only pay for actions taken on your ads. And with a low average CPC of £1.50–£2.00, vehicle ads are a budget-friendly option for dealerships of all sizes.

How Vehicle Ads work

Here’s a simplified breakdown of how Google Vehicle Ads function:

1. Inventory integration: Dealerships must upload a real-time vehicle feed via Google Merchant Center. This feed includes critical information like VIN (Vehicle Identification Number), make, model, price, and availability.
2. Display for buyer intent: When users search for specific vehicle-related keywords (e.g., “used SUVs near me”), Google matches the search intent with your inventory. The ad is displayed with a prominent vehicle image, price, and a call-to-action link to your dealership’s website.
3. Performance Max campaigns: Vehicle ads are part of Google’s Performance Max campaigns, which utilise machine learning to optimise ad placements across Google’s ecosystem, including Search, YouTube, Display, and Discover.
4. Click-to-Visit or call: Clicking on the ad directs users to your dealership’s website or landing page, where they can view the full vehicle listing, schedule a test drive, or call directly.

What to expect from Vehicle Ads

For Google Vehicle Ads campaigns, here are typical performance benchmarks:

1. CVR: The average conversion rate for the automotive sales industry in Google Ads is approximately 5.72% to 6.49%, depending on the campaign quality and targeting. This metric reflects the percentage of ad clicks that result in meaningful action, like lead submission or sales
2. CTR: Automotive sales campaigns often achieve an average CTR of about 8.77%. This is higher than many other industries, suggesting that well-optimized vehicle ads attract significant attention
3. CPC: The average CPC for vehicle ads is relatively low compared to industries like legal services or finance. It typically ranges around $2.00 to $2.50, depending on targeting and competition.
4. CPA: The automotive sales sector often enjoys an efficient CPA, averaging around $33 to $43 for search campaigns. This low CPA makes it one of the more cost-effective industries for digital advertising

These metrics can vary based on campaign optimisation, geographic targeting, and specific goals (e.g., driving sales versus generating leads). To maximise performance, it’s essential to execute detailed audience targeting, compelling ad copy, and optimised landing pages tailored to the relevant audience.

Our PPC experts are here to help you every step of the way. Contact us for a free campaign consultation and see how Google Vehicle Ads can drive real results for your dealership.