New car dealerships

Auto dealer marketing that sells the models on your lot

New car shoppers in the Charlotte area search model names thirty times more often than "new cars for sale", and those model clicks cost a fraction of a dealer click. We plan search, vehicle ads, Facebook inventory ads, your Google listing, email and your site around the models you stock, and we count appointments, units sold and service visits.

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8,100searches a month for "toyota camry" in the Charlotte area, against 260 for "new cars for sale"
$0.76low end of the estimated click cost for "toyota highlander" in Charlotte, against $2.31 for "chevrolet dealership"
2.3xmore "toyota rav 4 hybrid" searches in July 2026 than in February 2026, Charlotte area
9,900Charlotte-area searches for "car dealerships near me" in March 2026, the year’s peak

The short answer

What should auto dealer marketing do for a franchise store?

Auto dealer marketing for a franchise store has to meet shoppers at the model they are researching, win the appointment against the other stores selling the same brand, and keep every buyer in the service drive afterwards.

Most dealer accounts we audit spend the largest share of the budget on the store name and "dealership near me" searches, the most expensive clicks in the market. The search data shows where new car shoppers actually start: with a model name, months before they pick a store. We build dealership ads by model and trim, send each click to the matching in-stock vehicles, feed the same inventory into Google vehicle ads and Facebook inventory ads, keep every piece inside the brand’s advertising rules, and measure sold units and service visits by model, not form fills.

What franchise dealerships need their marketing to solve.

A franchise store sells the same new vehicles as every other store of its brand in the region. These are the pressures we plan around in new car accounts.

Same brand, same price, several stores
A shopper can buy the identical trim from three stores within a short drive. The store that answers first, shows real stock and makes the visit easy wins the deal.
OEM advertising and co-op rules
Manufacturer programs set rules on pricing language, logos, disclaimers and offers. Ads that break them can cost the store its co-op reimbursement.
Allocation that changes every month
What arrives from the factory decides what can be sold. Budgets and ads have to follow incoming units, not last month’s plan.
Model-year changeover
Outgoing model-year units need to move before the new ones land, while shoppers research the new model at the same time.
Buyers who should come back for service
Every new car sold is years of warranty and maintenance visits. The service drive, not the showroom, often carries the store’s margin.
Proof that ties to units sold
Dealer principals and OEM programs want cost per vehicle sold. Leads, calls and chats need to reach the CRM and come back matched to deals.

What new car shoppers search before they pick a store.

Monthly searches and estimated click costs for the searches a franchise store competes for. The brand shown here leads Charlotte model searches; the same pattern holds across brands, and the notes read the monthly curve.

Monthly searches in the Charlotte area

car dealerships near me 8,100
toyota camry 8,100
toyota rav 4 8,100
kia telluride 6,600
toyota highlander 6,600
ford dealership near me 5,400
toyota rav 4 hybrid 2,900
car dealership charlotte nc 2,400
chevrolet dealership 880
new cars for sale 260

Monthly searches and estimated click cost
Search	US / mo	Est. click cost, Charlotte
car dealerships near me	673,000	$1.83 to $8.79
toyota camry	673,000	$1.07 to $4.17
toyota rav 4	673,000	$1.35 to $4.50
kia telluride	550,000	$1.15 to $4.05
toyota highlander	550,000	$0.76 to $3.65
ford dealership near me	368,000	$2.04 to $8.36
toyota rav 4 hybrid	246,000	$1.40 to $4.50
car dealership charlotte nc	4,400	$2.18 to $9.27
chevrolet dealership	90,500	$2.31 to $11.62
new cars for sale	22,200	$2.53 to $8.23

Shoppers search the model, not "new cars": In the Charlotte area, "toyota camry" and "toyota rav 4" each average 8,100 searches a month, while "new cars for sale" averages 260 and "new suv for sale" 20. New car demand lives in model names, so that is where we put the campaigns.
Model clicks cost less than dealer clicks: A click on "toyota highlander" costs an estimated $0.76 to $3.65 in Charlotte; "chevrolet dealership" runs $2.31 to $11.62 and "car dealership charlotte nc" $2.18 to $9.27. Reaching a shopper at the model stage costs less and comes before the store decision.
Spring and summer move the market: "Car dealerships near me" peaked at 9,900 Charlotte-area searches in March 2026, against 6,600 from November to January. "Toyota rav 4 hybrid" climbed from 1,900 in February 2026 to 4,400 in July, then fell back to 1,900 by September, so hybrid budgets follow that curve.

Source: OVERTOP Search Intelligence, 12-month averages for the United States and the Charlotte, NC media market, pulled October 2026. Estimated click cost is the typical range advertisers pay for a top-of-page click.

Our approach: it depends, and the data decides.

A single-point store in a small market, a high-volume import store and a luxury rooftop in a dealer group need different plans. Four things decide where a franchise plan starts.

Your goals Hit the OEM sales objective, move aged or outgoing model-year units, conquest a rival brand or grow service retention. Each starts in a different campaign.
Your allocation and stock Which models and trims arrive this month and how many days each sits decide where the budget goes first.
Your co-op and gross Co-op eligibility, front-end gross, finance income and service margin set what a sale is worth and what we can bid.
Same-brand competitors How many stores of your brand sit within a short drive, and how they bid on your models, changes which searches are worth winning.

Data sets the budget by model and trim, checks each channel against sold units in the CRM, and shows when to shift money from model research to the store name, from sales to service, or between rooftops.

Single-point franchise store
Own your brand in your market
Model and trim search, vehicle ads from the feed, Facebook inventory ads in the market area and a strong map listing for sales and service, all inside the brand’s rules.
High-volume import or domestic store
Win model shoppers before the store decision
Model campaigns for every core nameplate, conquest campaigns on rival models, hybrid and truck budgets that follow the seasons, and lead routing that answers in minutes.
Dealer group with several brands
Grow each rooftop without bidding against yourself
One structure per rooftop and brand, shared negative lists so stores never compete for the same click, and reporting by store and model.

If a franchise dealership came to us, here is how we would start.

This is the pitch we would give a real client, built for a fictional Charlotte franchise store selling a high-volume import brand, using that brand’s real Charlotte search data. The store, its phone number and its website are invented, and no manufacturer is involved. Sample data shows the kind of results a campaign like this tracks; it is not a client result and not a promise.

Sample campaign: fictional business

Quarrybrook Motors

Charlotte, NC · (704) 555-0146 · quarrybrookmotors.com

New sedans, SUVs, hybrids and trucks
Factory-certified service department
Financing, leasing and trade-ins

How our specialists segment search demand by buyer intent

We would split the account by where the shopper is: researching a model, comparing a rival model, ready to pick a store, or shopping a hybrid. Each group gets its own budget, landing page and bid, and budget moves as allocation changes.

Model research

The largest and cheapest demand. Each model gets its own ad group and lands on the in-stock trims of that model, never the homepage.

Search	Charlotte area / mo	Est. click cost
toyota camry	8,100	$1.07 to $4.17
toyota rav 4	8,100	$1.35 to $4.50
toyota highlander	6,600	$0.76 to $3.65

Store and brand searches

Shoppers choosing between stores of the same brand. Ads lead with stock on hand, hours and the test drive, because the other stores sell the same car.

Search	Charlotte area / mo	Est. click cost
toyota near me	4,400	$1.83 to $5.00
toyota dealer near me	3,600	$1.69 to $5.00
toyota dealership	2,900	$1.82 to $5.00
car dealerships near me	8,100	$1.83 to $8.79

Hybrids

A seasonal group. Budget rises from March, peaks in July and falls back by September, matched to incoming hybrid allocation.

Search	Charlotte area / mo	Est. click cost
toyota rav 4 hybrid	2,900	$1.40 to $4.50
toyota highlander hybrid	880	$0.82 to $2.89

Conquest

Shoppers researching a rival model in the same class. The ads never name the rival; they compare on the store’s own stock, warranty and test drive.

Search	Charlotte area / mo	Est. click cost
mazda cx 5	6,600	$1.31 to $5.00
hyundai tucson	3,600	$1.76 to $4.68
honda crv hybrid	1,300	$1.17 to $3.38

How our negative keyword governance protects the budget

Used and buy here pay here searches
Parts, accessories and owner manuals
Recalls and warranty complaints
Toy cars, games and model kits
Rental and car share
Jobs at dealerships

Model names pull in parts shoppers, owners looking up a recall, used car hunters and people searching toy versions of the car. Our specialists load these exclusions before launch and read the search terms every week, so new car budget stays on new car shoppers.

How we write and test the Google search ads

Each intent group gets message-matched ad copy engineered by our specialists to qualify buyers before the click and lift expected click-through rate.

Ad for the "Model research" group

Sponsored Quarrybrook Motors
www.quarrybrookmotors.com/new-suvs/in-stock New Midsize SUVs in Charlotte | See Every Trim We Have Now | Book a Test Drive Today Compare trims, colors and real stock with photos. Reserve the one you want online. Factory-certified service on site. Get a trade-in value and payment before you visit. In-stock SUVsHybrid modelsValue your tradeBook a test drive

Ad for the "Hybrids" group

Sponsored Quarrybrook Motors
www.quarrybrookmotors.com/hybrids/charlotte Hybrid SUVs in Stock Now | New Hybrids in Charlotte, NC | Reserve Yours Online Hybrid SUVs and sedans on the lot and arriving soon. See real stock and reserve one. Ask about current offers and financing. Test drives seven days a week by appointment. Hybrid SUVsArriving soonCurrent offersSchedule service

The Google listing, the map and the inventory feed

Shoppers choosing between stores of the same brand read the map, the photos and the latest reviews side by side. The listing would carry separate sales and service hours, photos of the showroom and service drive, and replies to every review. The inventory feed then does double duty: Google vehicle ads show each new unit with its photo and price to shoppers searching that model, and Facebook automotive inventory ads show the same units to shoppers in the market area.

Places

Quarrybrook Motors 4.7 Sales open until 8 PM · Serves Charlotte, NC New vehicles · Service center · Financing

CallMessage

The Facebook ad

Inventory ads from the feed show each arriving unit to shoppers in the market area, and retarget everyone who viewed that model on the site. In spring they build hybrid demand ahead of the summer search peak.

A smiling woman in a red corduroy shirt leaning on the open window of a dark car — Mockup of the Facebook ad

The email

A new car buyer who never returns for service is a lost relationship. Reminders tied to the delivery date and mileage bring every buyer into the service drive, where the next trade-in conversation starts years later.

Email header photo: a smiling woman in a red corduroy shirt leaning on the open window of a dark car — Mockup of the email

The landing page the ads send people to

A shopper who searched a model wants to see that model in stock, not the store’s homepage. The page shows the units, answers trade and payment questions and books the visit, so the shopper has a reason to pick this store over the next one.

Landing page photo: a smiling woman in a red corduroy shirt leaning on the open window of a dark car — Mockup of the landing page on a phone

Other channels, only where they fit

YouTubeModel walkarounds for local shoppers
Short walkarounds of the core models, shown to people in the market area researching that class, so the store is familiar before the shopper compares dealers.
Microsoft AdsModel and store groups on Bing
Reaches shoppers searching on desktop. It stays only while its cost per sold unit matches Google’s.

What each piece turns into, and how they hand off

Model searches start the deal Model, trim and rival model campaigns.
Vehicle ads show real stock Every unit from the feed, Google and Facebook.
Leads answered in minutes Calls, chats and forms routed to the CRM.
Buyers return for service Reminders from delivery date and mileage.

How our team tracks calls, bookings and revenue

Leads by model and sourceCalls, chats, forms and test drive bookings recorded with the model and campaign that produced them, and duplicates merged in the CRM.
Sold units sent backDeals from the CRM and dealer management system are matched to their first ad click and sent back to Google and Meta, so bidding learns which models and searches sell.
Co-op documentationEvery ad, landing page and invoice kept in the format the brand’s co-op program asks for, so eligible spend is ready to claim.
A monthly report by modelSpend, leads, appointments, units sold and cost per sale by model, plus first service visits from new buyers.

Sample data

Sample monthly report: search ads

$4,000 sample monthly search budget

Metric	Sample	Built from
Estimated cost per click	$1.40	Low end of the Charlotte estimated click cost for the 12 keywords in the plan, weighted by searches (OVERTOP Search Intelligence)
Clicks	2,849	Budget divided by the estimated cost per click
Leads (calls, chats and forms)	171	6.01% of clicks, the published conversion rate for automotive for sale (LocaliQ 2026 search benchmarks)
Cost per lead	$23.39	Budget divided by leads
Showroom appointments	57	Sample: assumes one in three leads books a visit or test drive
New vehicles sold	14	Sample: assumes one in four appointments buys
Conquest buyers	3	Sample: the share of sold units whose first click came from a rival model search

Sample data: the kind of results a campaign like this tracks, built from Charlotte search data and a published benchmark. Not a client result and not a guarantee.

Dealership digital marketing services, and which come first.

The four core services carry most franchise plans. The others join where the store, the brand program and the market call for them; a single-point store and a ten-rooftop group rarely need the same mix.

What has worked for dealers and car brands.

These are results the ad platforms published for dealer groups, a franchise dealership and a car brand. They are those companies’ published results, not ours; each story shows what a franchise store can take from it, from inventory ads to reaching shoppers before they visit.

All success stories ›

Auto dealer marketing in Charlotte, where every brand has several stores.

We are based in Charlotte, where most brands have several stores within a short drive and shoppers cross county and state lines for the right trim. We plan franchise campaigns around the market areas your brand assigns and the routes shoppers actually drive, from the dealer corridors inside the city to the growing suburbs to the north and south. We also work with franchise stores and dealer groups nationwide, with each plan built on that market’s own model searches.

Six profit leaks we fix in franchise dealer accounts.

When we take over new car accounts, these are the places we most often find budget leaking away from sold units, and what we change first.

Most of the budget on the store name
Store name and "dealer near me" clicks are the most expensive in the market and reach shoppers who already chose you. We protect the name with a lean campaign and move the rest to model searches, where shoppers are still deciding.
Model clicks sent to the homepage
A shopper who searched a model and lands on a homepage leaves. We send every model and trim group to the matching in-stock units, so the first click shows the car.
Bidding against your sister store
Dealer groups often run two stores of the same brand on the same searches. We set shared negative lists and market areas so the group stops paying twice for one shopper.
Ads that put co-op at risk
Missing disclaimers, off-brand logos or offer wording the program does not allow can void reimbursement. We build ads and pages to the brand’s rules and keep the paperwork for every claim.
One flat budget all year
Dealer searches in Charlotte peak in March and hybrid searches more than double from February to July. We move budget with the season and with incoming allocation.
No contact after delivery
Many stores never market to a buyer again until the next sale. We set first service, mileage and lease-end reminders from the delivery date, so buyers come back to the service drive.

Questions dealers ask us.

Can you work within our OEM co-op and advertising rules?

Yes. We plan franchise campaigns around the brand’s co-op and advertising standards from the first draft: approved logos, offer language and disclaimers, plus the documentation the program asks for, so eligible spend stays claimable.

Will you work with our OEM-approved website provider?

Usually, yes. Most dealer website platforms allow tracking, inventory feeds and campaign landing pages. Where a platform limits something that matters, we show what it costs you in leads and the options.

Should we bid on our own store name?

Usually, with a lean campaign. Other stores of your brand and third-party sites bid on dealer names, so a small budget protects the name. The larger share goes to model searches, where shoppers have not chosen a store yet.

Is conquest advertising worth it for a franchise store?

Often, in the right classes. Rival model searches in Charlotte cost about the same as your own model searches. We test conquest groups against your own models on cost per sold unit and keep the ones that sell.

How fast do leads and sales start?

Search and vehicle ads usually bring calls and leads in the first weeks. Cost per sold unit settles over the first few months, once enough deals come back from the CRM to match against clicks.

Do you work with dealerships outside Charlotte?

Yes. We are based in Charlotte and work with franchise stores and dealer groups across the US. The method is the same; the brands, model demand and click costs change with each market.

Get a free audit for your dealership.

Tell us your brand, your market and the models you need to move. We will look at model search demand in your area, your ads and inventory feed, your Google listing, your lead handling and your service follow-up, and show you where the next sales are.

Get my free audit Call (704) 237-0707