Who doesn’t love out-of-the-box websites? They’re like a cheap box of chocolates from an estranged friend who only bothers you once a year.

The box is usually labeled with promising descriptors like gourmet, high-quality, or premium. And it always comes with a promise to call more often and keep in contact.

It sounds so sweet and promising, but as most people know, it’s all a facade. The chocolates are barely edible, and you’ll be lucky to get a voicemail once a year.

Out-of-the-box websites from companies like Dealer.com and Dealer eProcess are filled with duplicate content and outdated SEO practices.

Like cheap boxes of chocolate, these sites are built on the concept of quantity, not quality. But quality is exactly what your dealership needs and deserves!

The good news is that you don’t need to hire a new website vendor. There are some easy ways to turn your “cheap” website into the high-quality machine it was meant to be.

Here are our top four recommendations for improving an average automotive website.

1. Edit Your Homepage

Start by editing your homepage. It is the door to your website and typically gets the most traffic — by a long shot.

The key is to make your homepage as unique and user-friendly as possible. This is your digital opportunity to welcome people to your dealership.

Here are the primary edits we recommend:

• Update the page title to include your dealership name and location.
• Update the meta description so that it’s enticing and relevant for web searchers.
• Embed a Google Map of your location.
• Add one or two paragraphs of “welcome” text about your dealership.
• Add internal links to the most important pages on your site.
• Update your address and phone number to match your Google listing.

2. Edit Your SRPs & VDPs

After your homepage, the next most important (and most trafficked) pages are your search results pages (SRPs) and vehicle detail pages (VDPs). These are typically built on templates that have little SEO value.

Here are some edits to turn that around:

• Update the page titles to include your dealership location, inventory brands, and popular models.
• Update the meta descriptions so that they’re enticing and relevant for web searchers.
• For SRPs, add one or two paragraphs of text about your inventory makes and models.
• Add internal links to shopping-relevant pages, such as a finance application.
• Delete unnecessary and distracting buttons. (Check your form submissions to determine what is and isn’t unnecessary.)

3. Add & Delete Pages

This one can be hard for dealerships — but we promise, shoppers do not need three identical pages about new car incentives.

Reference your web traffic to decide which pages are getting little traffic and have low time on page. This will be a good starting place for deciding which pages need to be deleted.

Keep in mind that you want your menu and dropdown options to be as clean and concise as possible. So many dealership websites are littered with unnecessary pages that annoy and confuse shoppers.

Here is an example of a menu that needs some cuts:

Here is an example of a menu that is user-friendly:

This is also a good opportunity to identify what information is missing.

Do you have a certified pre-owned program? Make sure you have a page that educates shoppers about the program and why your inventory is better than the neighboring dealership.

For inspiration, visit other dealership websites and e-commerce websites.

4. Push Your Web Vendor

Give yourself permission to be curious and ask questions about your website.

Web vendors are typically understaffed and overworked, so their products are anything but flawless. Push your web vendor to be better by actively improving your website and communicating with your team.

Chances are you have paid a lot of money for a new website — and are still paying a lot of money for maintenance. Make sure you are getting the very best from your web vendor by requesting meetings at least every quarter.

Do not settle for an inedible box of chocolates. You deserve a unique, high-quality website that benefits your customers and your staff.

To further educate yourself about the latest website techniques, subscribe to our blog. We are here to help be your arsenal against the Dealer.coms of the world!