Optimizing a dealership website to rank in search engines isn’t easy given the unique digital environment it competes in.
Not only are there other dealerships targeting the same keywords as you including identical models and very similar services, but you also have the automaker’s website to compete with when trying to rank your vehicles. And if that wasn’t enough, news and review media (MotorTrend, Car&Driver, MotorIllustrated.com, Driving.ca etc.) are also competing for ranking when a user searches for the models you are selling.
Ranking pre-owned vehicles is even more complicated. Used vehicle description pages have a limited shelf life and the competition for used car search results is even more difficult.
We’d like to tell you we can rank that specific 2007 Honda Civic or that 2012 Toyota RAV4 vehicle description page when someone types “used RAV4 for sale” but it won’t happen. There are just some things that are impossible in SEO and that’s one of them.
That said, you can certainly optimize your entire pre-owned vehicle section to rise above your competitors in search results. Back to that user looking for “used RAV4 for sale”, your objective as a dealership implementing SEO to rank your pre-owned vehicles is to create a worthy section that includes a cascading flow of unique, plentiful content from the main page to the specific vehicle description.
When it comes to dealership SEO as a whole, worthy=wordy.
Prove your dealer’s ranking worth to Google by communicating through your content.
You’re only real weapon to optimize your dealership SEO is content. The good news here is that most of your competitors have little content in their pre-owned section and even less content in their VDPs. Adding some unique, different content here with specific geographical references, a lengthy, well-written overall page description and individual descriptions of the models for sale along with specific point-form equipment descriptions will create a ton of content in your pre-owned section which will help you rank better for a variety of queries.
This guide is based on an extensive study of Google best practices and our experience having written 3,500-4,000 words of content for over 300 dealerships in the last three years.
Let’s take a closer look with the steps to go about this.
Make sure your pre-owned vehicle section landing page (the first page users get to after clicking “pre-owned vehicles” on your site has unique content. You need a good chunk of content here, at least 400 words.
This content needs:
- To be unique*
- To be easy to read*
- Include a geographical reference to your city***
- A reference to the vehicles sold most often****
- A good mix of keyword variations ******
*Don’t use the same content you used on other dealership sites in your group, and remove your supplier’s generic content as quickly as you can. Write content for this one dealership.
**Write well. Quality is so important to Google and the search engine is smart enough to recognize spelling mistakes and content created just for SEO purposes. Get the best writer on your team to write it or trust an SEO firm with qualified writers to create the content. We can’t stress this enough.
***If you are located in Toronto, make sure you mention Toronto in your pre-owned vehicle page. Break down your content in paragraphs with a title or two mentioning your city, just don’t over do it. Now, one thing you shouldn’t do is overextend your cities to try and rank every region in your area. Please, avoid this at all costs:
“Welcome to Montreal Dealership, your number one resource for a pre-owned vehicle in Montreal, Laval, Brossard, St-Jérôme, Verdun, St-Lambert, Boucherville and Terrebonne”.
It won’t work anyway, and it will likely hurt you because the phrase makes absolutely no sense and Google will eventually recognize that.
****If you are a Mazda dealership, make sure you reference Mazda often in your description as well as some popular pre-owned vehicles you regularly have in stock. In this case, make sure “pre-owned Mazda3”, “used Mazda CX-5”, and “quality second-hand Mazda CX-3” are found in the content as well.
*****As you saw above, use variations. Don’t just do “pre-owned” or “used”. “Pre-owned”, “used”, and “second-hand” are interchangeable in that order. Have more “pre-owned” than “used” and more used than “second-hand” but use all three.
Next, optimize your pre-owned vehicle display pages.
We know, this isn’t easy. There are a lot of them, and you may not have the time or resources to optimize each display. We would recommend that you train your team to do so, however. The benefits will be worth it. To make it as simple possible, we’ve written the key points of a good vehicle description. You’re already writing a description anyway, right? You just need to optimize.
But first, what does your current average pre-owned VDP look like? Probably something like this:
Accident-free, High-Quality local Nissan Rogue for sale. SL trim – leather, Bluetooth, heated seats, trailer hitch, sunroof, always kept serviced! Great condition!
At least you have something unique describing the vehicle. If you don’t even have some kind of unique description, however, then it’s time to get started. Regardless of your current practices, here’s what you want to do.
- Avoid point form*
- Describe the vehicle in general**
- Describe the vehicle’s features***
- Remember your geography****
- Don’t stuff****
*Writing a complete description as opposed to point form descriptions of the vehicle, its equipment and its financial offers will go a long way. Use the two sections (general and features) to get to about 200-250 words.
**Start by describing the vehicle overall. This is one paragraph and it’s about 100-125 words.
***Now describe those features that you normally would list point form. This should be about 75 words
****Place a geography keyword in that first paragraph
*****Write well, don’t stuff with keywords and keep it readable.
We figured at this point you would like to see an example. So here we go.
Great Pre-Owned Vehicle Section Text
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Buying a pre-owned vehicle is not always an easy experience. It’s certainly not something you want to rush into, and you want to be able to trust the dealership with whom you are doing business to get you a reliable, safe vehicle that will work as it should for years to come.
We understand all of that at Mazda Dealership, and we make a point of making sure we treat our customers with respect, but more importantly that we allow them to make the best purchasing decision in a stress-free environment. At Mazda Dealership in Montreal, we can give you the pre-owned vehicle buying experience you have always wanted.
A Complete Collection of Affordable and Reliable Pre-Owned Vehicles
When it comes to buying a pre-owned Mazda, or a used vehicle from other brands, Mazda Dealership in Montreal takes the process very seriously. We make sure that we are only offering the very best-quality vehicles in our inventory, and we inspect every vehicle we are about to put up for sale. Our team of dedicated sales representatives will treat you with respect, dedication, and commitment, and they will also give you the answers you seek. At Mazda Dealership, there are never any surprises, and there are no lemons in our inventory. To learn more about our pre-owned vehicles, contact us today to book your test drive. Our team is very much looking forward to helping you find the right vehicle for you and your family.
Affordable Pre-Owned Vehicle Financing in Montreal
At Mazda Dealership in Montreal, the quality of pre-owned vehicles is only matched by the quality of our financing services. We will provide our customers with the most affordable financing plans we can along with special promotions and low interest rates that ensure that you get more bang for your buck.
Discover Mazda Certified Pre-Owned Vehicles
Buying a Mazda Certified Pre-Owned Vehicle is the best way to get a reliable, affordable used car. With the Mazda Canada Certification Program, you’ll never have to worry about your safety behind the wheel and the durability of your recent Mazda Certified Pre-Owned Vehicle. Mazda Canada’s certification program has several benefits, starting with a full inspection, a generous powertrain warranty and other related benefits. Let’s take a closer look.
All Mazda Certified Pre-Owned Vehicles get a complete and detailed 160-point inspection prior to being put on sale which ensures their reliability and quality. If a problem is detected, it will be repaired using only genuine Mazda parts to ensure the reliability of the repairs. This inspection ensures that nothing is left to chance at the time of purchase and ensures that you will never have an unwanted surprise with your Mazda pre-owned vehicle.Mazda Certified Pre-Owned Vehicles are backed by a generous 7-year or 140,000-kilometer warranty that starts from the original date of service. This warranty protects you from major mechanical problems and gives you total peace of mind.
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Poor Pre-Owned Vehicle Section Text
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We welcome you to our pre-owned vehicle department. We have great deals waiting for You! Visit us and get the best price on your used vehicle. We have the best used cars in Toronto, Mississauga, Oakville, Hamilton, Sarnia, and Barrie. Get the best financing and great interest rates! Book today!
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There’s not enough detail in the second one, it’s not informative and Google will surely not see any value in the text. And if Google doesn’t see any value in your content, your dealership SEO will suffer.
Great Individual Pre-Owned Vehicle Display Text
Let’s say we are selling a 2015 Mercedes-Benz C-Class.
Mercedes-Benz redesigned the C-Class in 2015 and now we offer you this pristine pre-owned 2015 Mercedes-Benz C-Class. The C-Class is the perfect used luxury vehicle for Toronto buyers looking for an upscale experience at an affordable price point. This particular example is a 2015 Mercedes-Benz C 300 4Matic and is powered by a 2.0-litre with 241 horsepower. This engine along with the entire vehicle has always been meticulously maintained at our service center. The vehicle has just 75,000 kilometres and is perfect all across the board. We have great pre-owned vehicle financing plans rates available which will make this pre-owned C-Class more affordable than ever.
Specific features found in this 2015 C-Class include:
- Heated front seats
- Heated steering wheel
- Sunroof
- 19-inch wheels
- Adaptive cruise control
- Blind-spot monitoring
- Heated rear seats
- Back-up camera
This vehicle is also protected by an extended warranty that protects you until 02/23/2021. If you’re in the market for a quality used Mercedes-Benz C-Class in Toronto, check out this beautiful example today by booking an appointment with our pre-owned vehicle sales department.
If you can’t do this for all of your vehicles, try to get at least 100 words. Just remember that a paragraph describing the vehicle will go a long way in making your pre-owned vehicle inventory stand out.
