Get Smart – Get Mobile

 

The growth in people using Smartphones over desktop and laptop computers is mind boggling and growing exponentially by the day.  Consider this - in 2013, 50% of web traffic will come from mobile devices as more people will use their Smartphones (eg. iPhone, Android, Blackberry, Windows mobile, Palm Pre) rather than computers for surfing the internet. 

Check out the latest stats: 

19% of all phones sold worldwide are now Smartphones 

Over 70% of the world’s population now have a mobile phone  

The total numbers of iPhones sold worldview is over 60 million  

Approximately 35% of all mobiles in NZ are smart phones, and expected to increase to 50% by 2014

What is a mobile website?

Simply put, a mobile website is a website that has been formatted to fit a mobile phone screen with it’s content optimized for viewing and interacting using a Smartphone. This enables  your company website, to work more easily and efficiently with the smaller screen of a Smartphone or iPad.

Why is this relevant to me?

More and more people on the move require fast and easy access to websites and data. Google found that 1 in 3 customers use their Smartphone throughout the buying process. Mobile websites deliver a better experience to your customers.  If you don’t have this functionality, you could be losing out on sales.

Here’s an example from the customer’s side. Recently I was out and about in Auckland looking for a used car. My friend was driving while I used my iPhone to search dealer websites to look for stock and yard addresses, then go into Google Maps to get directions. Then after I viewed vehicles onsite at physical yards, I’d go into their website to look at further details or to forward that listings to friends for their opinions. Dealers with non-mobile websites meant I had to enlarge each page which took longer to download, then fiddle about searching for cars and squinting at my screen at tiny links.  Then I had to find their address, go from their website into Google maps, find out and type in exactly where I was, then type in their address and work out the most efficient route to go, all while trying to relay that to the driver - who was getting very frustrated with my stop-start navigating!  The dealers who had mobile websites made it 100x easier to find out what I needed to know. I could search their stock more easily, and access their contact details faster. In a few clicks I could find what I was looking for on pages that fit clearly onto my iPhone.  Dealers without mobile websites meant a lot of mucking about on my iPhone to find the information that I needed.  Now you can get directions to dealerships built into your mobile website.  It’s also easier to contact dealers using features like click-to-call, where their Smartphone will bring up your website, easily find your number, press and call!

What kind of devices use mobile websites?

Smartphones use mobile websites, eg. iPhone, Android, Blackberry, Windows mobile, Palm Pre  – basically any phone that has access to the internet. This includes iPads, whose uptake in New Zealand has soared. iPads (and tablets – the non-Apple versions) are also great to use on the go. iPads are not only popular with Gen Y - People over the age of 45 now account for 37% of the iPad and tablet market according to Nielsen. And why not – they are lighter and more mobile than lugging around a laptop, and easier to see than a Smartphone!   

How do I get a mobile website?

There are many website design companies who mobilise websites. Speak to your website host about this. There are also many types of mobile websites – some are better than others, so make sure that when you are investigating mobile websites, you know how it will get and display your stock and existing data? Can they host your mobile website? How much will hosting cost? Can they provide you with stats on how many leads are coming from the mobile website?  Will it be accessible across different platforms? 60% of mobile browsing is done via the iPhone, so you need your mobile site to be ‘iPhone friendly’.

Those of you with AutoBase-hosted websites, call your Account Manager now and ask them about mobilising your website!

Remember - within 2 years 50% of web traffic will come from mobile devices. Stay ahead of the game and ensure that your dealership is keeping up with the technology that your customers are using. Mobilising your website will make it easier for customers to search your stock, find your yard and make contact. 

More internet sources = more eyes on your stock = more leads = more sales.

Keywords and Trade Me Motors - What dealers need to know

Here at AutoBase we like to pick the brains of Trade Me Motor's IT department. We like statistics and data that helps us to ensure our products are giving our Clients maximum benefits and online exposure. Knowing how people search on Trade Me Motors goes a long way to improving your listings to attract more views and then, more leads - and more sales!  Lately we have had a lot of questions about KEYWORDS. This is what we know:


Keywords are searched from the top to bottom of your listing on Trade Me Motors - therefore a key word in the features list OR comments 'free flow' section will be picked up in a browser's search. All the keywords below in yellow will be picked up in search results.

 

I did a search today for "leather interior" and the following listings popped up - some with the keywords in the title, some not.

*The top listing here has been Super Featured. To find out more about Super Featured Listings which can get up to 10x more views and enquiries, email us here.


* 90% of searches for cars are done in the side-bar search box:

 

* 80% of searches include 1 to 3 filters


* The most popular filters used when searching Trade Me Motors are:
1. Make
2. A keyword
3. Body style, Price or Year


* Almost 50% of searches include a keyword


* The most popular keyword for searches is MANUAL - as in the transmission, not the book! The other most popular keywords include: 

• Hilux
• Corolla 
• Automatic
• Turbo
• Diesel
• 4wd
• 4x4
• v8
• Evo
• Commodore

* 49% of viewers search for a car make  

* Around 41% of searches include a price option. 


Here’s a trick a lot of dealers don’t know about. When someone searches for a vehicle, what they see first is a list of vehicles that match what they’ve searched for. Every vehicle displayed has next to the picture in bold and underlined is the Make, Model, Model Detail and Year. You can use the Model Detail field to promote any special offers for your vehicles. 

In the example above, instead of just having the Model Detail, this dealer has added *REDUCED* to draw attention to the listing. You can see for yourself how effective it is at getting attention. You get 25 characters to play with, and they all show up within the search results headline for that vehicle, e.g: ** NZ NEW **, **SPECIAL** or ** Drive Away Price **. Use this information wisely - don't say anything in the headline unless it’s true and relevant to the vehicle being advertised. 

We had a dealer from a yard call us recently wondering why his vehicle had not sold –  he told us about the vehicle on the phone that this car was a bargain, good nick, the price was reduced for a quick sale and basically he wanted to shift it fast - yet NONE of this information was in his listing??? These points would encourage a bargain hunter to enquire about that vehicle!

For more info on making sure your listings are easy for viewers to find and search for, check out our Dealer Tips Resources here.