Most dealers know what they spend online. Very few know what it sells. I fix that first, prove it with numbers, and only then put more budget behind it.
90+ extra cars a year sold from ads at one Nissan dealer.Same dealership, same stock, no extra ad budget. At around €3k a car, that's well over €250,000 in gross profit.
Gary Redmond. Finalist, Ireland's Best Young Entrepreneur. I run the online side for Nissan showrooms in Drogheda, Dundalk and Naas. You deal with me, not an account manager.
Before Gary, online advertising was the job nobody wanted. It ended up with me, and I did it reluctantly and not very well.
Since he took it over, we've hit our targets comfortably every quarter. When I have stock I need to move, he gets it gone.
Sales are up, we've got proper control over our inventory, and online advertising has gone from an afterthought to one of the bigger and more reliable parts of the business.
The results are only half of it though. Knowing I have an expert doing it with little need for my attention, and someone looking out for the best interests of the business, is worth more to me than anything else.
★Finalist, Ireland's Best Young Entrepreneur
I spent 11 years building online businesses. I took a subscription company from nothing to over 10,000 customers and around €3 million a year, and trained 120+ business owners on their marketing. So I look at your ads the way you look at the business: cars sold, margin, and stock that needs to move.
Now I run the online side for Nissan showrooms in Drogheda, Dundalk and Naas, and have done through a full seasonal cycle. I deliberately take on a small number of dealers at a time, so every account gets me personally.
And there's no lock-in. You own the ad account and everything I build. After the first three months it's month to month.
A few ads were running with no tracking and nobody with time to manage them. Money went out every month and nobody could say which ads sold cars.
It was fixed in three steps, in this order: tracking, then the website, then the ads. Same budget, same stock, three times the cars. Here's what each step looked like.
Nobody could say how many cars online was actually selling. Six months of history went in first as a real baseline. Then every enquiry was tracked through to the sale, so each month answers two questions: how many cars came from online, and what did each one cost?
Every page an ad sends people to answers two questions: can I trust this place, and can I afford the car? Reviews and awards up front, the used-car worries answered, finance in plain English, and WhatsApp on every car.
Every ad has a reason to act now: a saving, a voucher, a trade-in figure. Each one runs in variations and the winners get the budget.
"Before Gary, we were putting money into online without really knowing what we were getting back. Now it's handled. We get a one-page report every month and a quick call, so we know what's working and what to push next. We've definitely seen an uplift in business, and online has become a reliable channel for us. Gary knows what he's doing and keeps it simple."
"Since Gary came in, there's a real strategy behind our advertising. Every ad has a purpose, a clear offer and a reason to get in touch now, and he's always testing to see what works best. We're getting more online enquiries than ever, the lead quality has stayed high, and we're selling more cars and vans because of it."
Most dealers have. Usually one ad, sent to the homepage, with nothing tracked. Nobody could tell what was working, so it got switched off. John McCabe Nissan had been there too.
3.8 → 11.6cars a month from ads, once it was set up properly
Facebook lead forms can be. That's why I don't rely on them. People go to the actual car on your website, see the price, finance and reviews, then get in touch on WhatsApp or the form. Easy enough to enquire, not so easy you get flooded with junk. Most dealers don't have a junk problem. They're missing good enquiries they should be getting.
34 → 105enquiries a month, and cars sold rose just as fast
Your part is a 10-minute call a month. I build the ads, run the tracking and schedule your manufacturer's monthly social posts. You get one page of numbers and decide what to push next.
Hours → 10 minthe dealer principal's time on it each month, down from hours of posting
A second opinion on your online: your website, your live ads, and how easy it is for someone to get in touch. You get the three changes I'd make first, in writing. Yours to keep whether we work together or not.
First you'll know how many cars online sells, and what each one costs. Then the pages your ads send people to get fixed, then the ads get rebuilt and tested. No extra budget asked for.
Once you can see cost per car sold, the decision is easy. More budget goes behind what's selling, moved between new, used and demo stock.
Your part: a 10-minute call a month and a few photos of the cars you want to push. I build the ads and send the report. You make the call.
Your three big questions, answered. Nothing else.
The three questions every dealer principal asks about their online, answered for your dealership. Plus what I'd do about each.
Right now: Your website has no Facebook tracking on the enquiry forms or WhatsApp button. So Facebook can't tell which ads bring enquiries, and neither can you.
The fix: Track every enquiry through to the sale. Every month you see cars sold from online and what each one cost.
Right now: Your ads send people to the homepage. They have to go hunting for the car they clicked on.
The fix: Send them straight to that car, with finance and a WhatsApp button beside it.
Right now: They're running 11 ads, including video. You're running one image, live since May.
The fix: A walkaround video, an image and a fresh offer, tested against each other. Keep the winner.
One page. The simple version. Then a 10-minute call.
Demo cars sold best, so more budget goes there. The used Juke ad has stopped working, so it gets replaced.
Examples with sample figures, laid out exactly as you'd get them.
There are two stages, with no long contract and no extra ad budget asked for.
Months 1 to 3: get it working. Tracking set up, the pages your ads send people to fixed, and the ads rebuilt and tested. The fee is roughly the margin on one car a month.
After that: keep it working. A lower monthly fee for managing your ads, keeping the tracking running and your monthly report. Scheduling your manufacturer's monthly social calendar is included.
I'll give you exact figures after the review, once I know what your setup needs.
No. After the first three months it's month to month, so you only stay if it's working.
If you stop, you keep everything that was built: the improved website pages, the ad account and all the ads in it. What stops is the ongoing work. Nobody is building new ads each month, pointing budget at the right stock or tracking what sells. That ongoing work is what keeps the numbers going up, and it's why dealers stay.
The manufacturer sells the brand. I sell your stock. Your used cars, your demos, the car that's been sitting on the forecourt too long. That's local, and it changes every month.
Then the review is a free second opinion. A good agency should be able to tell you, every month, how many cars your ads sold and what each one cost. If yours can, great, the review will say so. If they can't, you're paying for ads without knowing what they're worth.
No. The first job is making what you already spend measurable, then moving it to what works.
I only take on a small number of dealers so that doesn't happen. You deal with me directly, every month.
My results so far are with Nissan dealers, but the process works for any franchise or independent dealership.
No. I focus on Facebook and Instagram, the website and tracking. If someone runs your Google Ads, I'll work alongside them and track both properly.
Yes. I'll look at your website and what's in place to measure results, so the first euro you spend is tracked from day one.
Tell me where to look. I'll review your online setup myself, your website and your live ads, and email you the three changes I'd make first.