Automotive PPC : Campaign management for Car Dealers

If you’re a car dealer looking to attract more qualified buyers, PPC advertising is exactly what you need. Every dealership in your area is fighting for the same customers, and that battle is happening online right now. Smart Shout build and manage automotive PPC campaigns that get you real enquiries from people ready to buy.

What is Automotive PPC ?

The Concept for Car Dealers

PPC stands for Pay-Per-Click, and in the automotive world, it’s one of the most direct ways to connect with car buyers actively searching for vehicles. People don’t impulse-buy a £25,000 vehicle. They research, they compare, they visit multiple websites, and they take their time. Your automotive PPC strategy needs to reflect this reality. That’s why automotive PPC focuses on capturing buyers at every stage of their journey. Someone searching for “electric vehicle benefits” is just starting their research. Someone typing “Nissan Qashqai lease deals Manchester” is ready to talk numbers. We create campaigns that speak to both types of searchers, with different messages and different approaches.

The Numbers behind Automotive PPC

The automotive sector achieved a 14.67% conversion rate from search ads in 2025, the highest of any industry. That means nearly 14 out of every 100 people who click your ad take action. Investment in automotive PPC makes business sense. UK dealerships typically allocate 2-3% of their total revenue to advertising, and an increasing share of that budget goes to digital channels. The reason is simple: 75% of searchers never look beyond the first page of results. Even if your organic rankings are decent, paid positions at the top capture the majority of clicks.

Ready to acquire Automotive PPC leads ?

How Does PPC Work in the
Automotive Industry ?

Google Ads

Google Ads is where most automotive PPC budgets go. Google processes over 8.5 billion searches every day, and a huge percentage of those are from people looking for cars. Google Ads offers several campaign types that work brilliantly for car dealers.

Search campaigns show text ads when people type in keywords like “used BMW near me” or “Toyota dealer Birmingham”. These are high-intent searches, people are actively looking to buy.
Shopping campaigns (called Vehicle Ads for automotive) display your actual inventory with photos, prices, and specs directly in search results.
Display campaigns put visual banner ads on relevant websites across the internet, keeping your dealership top-of-mind.

Social Media Ads

While Search ads catch people actively looking for vehicles, social ads put your inventory in front of potential buyers who match your customer profile but might not be actively searching right now. Facebook and Instagram are particularly powerful for automotive. You can create:

carousel ads : showing multiple vehicles from your latest stock.

video ads : demonstrating features and performance.

lead generation ads : collecting enquiries without people leaving the platform.

Retargeting is where social media really proves its worth. Someone visits your website, looks at a specific Audi A4, but doesn’t make an enquiry. For the next few weeks, ads for that exact vehicle follow them around Facebook and Instagram, reminding them what caught their interest.

How Do Our Automotive PPC Services Work ?

Every dealership is different, different inventory, different local market, different competition, different goals. Our automotive PPC services start by getting to know your business properly.

We create your strategic campaigns :

We analyse your inventory mix, your pricing, your website, and your past marketing strategies. We build separate campaigns for your different audiences so every ad speaks directly to what a person is actually looking for.

We sharpen your ad copy :

You’re competing with multiple other dealers in every search result, so your ads need to stand out. We highlight what makes you different and test multiple variations continuously to find what resonates best with your local audience.

We optimize your Landing Pages :

Great ads only work if the landing page delivers. We either optimize your existing pages or build new ones that load fast. We make sure your page clearly shows what’s promised, displays the contact form and phone number in the right spot and builds trust so potential customers can easily call, email, or get in touch.

We optimize your campaigns:

Ongoing management is what separates campaigns that succeed from campaigns that burn through budgets. Keyword research goes far beyond the obvious terms. We target “car dealers [your location]” and similar phrases. But we also dig into long-tail keywords that show serious buying intent that face less competition and convert at much higher rates.We monitor performance daily, adjusting bids based on what’s working, pausing keywords that aren’t converting, testing new ad variations, and shifting budget to your best-performing campaigns. You’ll get clear, regular reports showing exactly where your money is going and what results you’re getting.

Automotive PPC : Benefits for Car Dealers

Immediate Results : Unlike SEO, which can take six months or more to show results, PPC is immediate. When you need results quickly, maybe you’ve got excess stock to shift or a manufacturer target to hit, PPC delivers.

Budget control : You decide exactly how much to spend per day or per month, and the platform will never exceed that limit. If a campaign isn’t performing, you can pause it instantly and if something’s working brilliantly, you can increase the budget and scale it up.

Targeting precision : You’re reaching people who’ve actively searched for cars, who live within driving distance of your dealership, who are in the market right now. Every pound you spend goes toward reaching qualified prospects, not random people who’ll never buy from you.

Measurability : With PPC, you see exactly which keywords, which ads, and which campaigns are generating enquiries and sales. This data lets you make intelligent decisions about where to invest more and where to cut back.

Competitiveness : If your competitors are running PPC and you’re not, they’re intercepting customers who could have been yours. Even if your organic rankings are strong, those paid positions at the top of search results grab clicks first.

Brand awareness : Someone might click your ad, browse your inventory, not be ready to buy yet, and leave. But they’ve now seen your brand, they know who you are, and you can retarget them.

PPC Strategy Across the UK:

Location targeting

For dealerships in major cities : London, Manchester, Birmingham, Leeds, Glasgow, Edinburgh, competition is intense but search volume is high. We can focus on granular targeting: specific boroughs, postcodes, and neighbourhoods around your dealership, where your ideal customers live and work. Suburban and rural dealerships face different challenges. Search volumes are lower, but so is the competition. We typically cast a wider net for these locations, targeting whole counties or large regions, for example, partnering with a PPC agency in Hertfordshire helps dealerships capture more qualified local buyers while keeping their ad spend efficient.

Multi-location car dealers

Multi-location dealers need coordinated strategies. Each showroom requires its own localised campaigns targeting its specific area, but there are also opportunities for broader regional campaigns that direct traffic to whichever location is most convenient for the searcher. We manage this complexity so your budget is distributed efficiently across all sites. Google knows who’s actively researching vehicles, who’s visited car dealer websites recently, and who’s likely to be approved for financing based on their search patterns. This intelligence means your ads reach people with genuine buying intent.

Customer reviews

Titouan le Rallier

Nutritionist

Wilhelm has significantly improved my SEO. I recommend him without hesitation! He also provided valuable advice on other topics. His speed and the quality of his work make him an essential partner.

Eric Maillard

CEO Merci Léon

From the very first contact, I appreciated his commitment even before the initial quote was approved! In the end, I’m extremely satisfied with the work and the results achieved. I’m excited to continue working together on new projects and have full confidence in the outcomes!

Joelle Wang

CEO Masqeye.com

I am extremely satisfied with the work Wilhelm has done regarding link building. Not only has he successfully secured quality links to enhance my site’s visibility, but he has also been remarkably attentive to my needs.

FAQ : Automotive PPC

How quickly can I see results from automotive PPC?

Unlike SEO, which takes months, PPC delivers real results fast. You’ll start getting phone calls and enquiry forms within days of launching your campaign.

How much should a car dealership spend on PPC?

UK dealerships typically allocate 2-3% of revenue to advertising. For most car dealers, we recommend starting with a monthly PPC budget of £500–£700 to gather meaningful data and generate consistent leads. The ideal amount will always depend on your area, local competition and keyword demand can make the cost per click (CPC) vary significantly. Start with a focused budget, measure the impact, and scale confidently as results grow.

What's the difference between Google Ads and social media advertising?

Google Ads captures people actively searching for cars right now (high intent). Social media puts your inventory in front of potential buyers matching your profile. Most successful dealerships use both strategically but we recommend starting with Google Ads first to generate quick, qualified leads before expanding to other channels.

Can PPC work for both new and used car sales?

We run separate campaigns for each because buyer intent differs. New car campaigns focus on specific models and finance deals, while used car campaigns emphasise value and selection.

How do you measure PPC success?

We track metrics that matter: cost per lead, conversion rate, phone calls, form submissions, and return on ad spend.

Let's talk about your project

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