Google Ads for Quebec Dealerships

Original article from the version published in AutoMedia in January 2025

Greetings to the entire Quebec automotive industry : )

I will adopt an objective perspective on the subject and set aside for now the promise of new technologies, the priority being to sell cars today and not in a hypothetical future.

Anchored in Reality

This advice article is therefore addressed to those who pay, especially when it comes to their own money, people qualified to manage this type of marketing investment.

Rather than dwelling on the impact of generative AI, predictive analysis, real-time contextualized ads using connected vehicle data, or even more confusing, the revolution represented by the seamless integration of SEM with metaverses and augmented reality (AR), I am going to talk to you about your SEM at its core, applied in your reality of today, and not that of a near future, certainly, but without consequence on your balance sheet for the next quarter.

The Necessary Evil

You know what third-parties, whom we wrongly believe to be indispensable, do with your money? SEM campaigns. So do like them too, but by allocating your budget envelope in such a way as to prioritize your business directly, before diluting your presence in large-scale media portals.

The Right Partner

The first thing to consider, even before putting numbers on your objectives, is who you are doing business with, and how you are doing business with them.

Understand that the territory representative who presents your performance report is not the same person who directly manages your marketing campaign. Their role is to interpret the numbers positively and renew your investment. Nothing wrong with that, but what power do they really have over the success of your campaign?

Dealing directly with the person who manages your campaign offers a dynamic that totally changes the outcome of the objective targeted at the start. That is why small specialized agencies are often ideal for successful SEM campaigns. Their size allows them to offer more personalized attention, and above all, they are genuinely motivated by the growth and performance of their clients.

However, they must possess a sufficient amount of data to know what they are talking about. The most important factor for performing in SEM is data. At the start of a collaboration, one must be able to present real results and set the bar high to hope to win over the competition. The problem with dealing with the classic hierarchy of a large company is that you are doing business with people trained to promise less and avoid exposing concrete results. They are trained to create room for maneuver in case ordinary performances are delivered, in a market that is nevertheless highly competitive.

Reducing intermediaries to a minimum is therefore a fundamental ingredient to everything one would hope to obtain the flavor of success. This is true in all industries.

Management Fees

If you are offered 30% management fees for your campaigns and out of $1000, $300 goes to fees and only $700 is invested, it's not 30%, it's 43%. Spread over years, these sums alone represent the equivalent of a considerable sales force.

Investing in Humans

Do not forget that in the end, however bold and avant-garde your marketing strategy in place may be, your sales force remains your best asset. A true closer can make a business prosper on their own... Before your test drives are done in VR, your dealership is established in the Metaverse, and your customers are greeted by robots, the success of your PPC campaign lies in its final phase and ultimately depends on a human being. Invest without restraint in this unique resource for your business.

Succeeding in achieving the best CPC on innovative offers resulting in an exceptional engagement rate will only be sadder if in the end, it ends up in the hands of a salesperson who is contemplating job offers at your competitor.

We are constantly encouraged to feed the Web machine, and those who know how to best exploit its potential will always have a considerable advantage in their market share, it is an absolute... but do not forget the humans in charge of closing deals, because for now, they still remain indispensable...

-DF