Car Dealer Websites by Autoweb Design

Our Approach to Website Design & Build

Car Dealer Website Design by Industry Experts

Experienced Automotive Web Designers

At Autoweb Design, we have been designing car dealer websites since 2004. Since day one, a lot has changed but one key thing has remained constant. We design websites to look great and perform for our dealership clients. These sites generate leads online, over the phone or through showroom visits.

We offer three types of design services. These cover a wide range of budgets, timescales and goals. If you'd like to know which would be a good match for you, please read on.

Let's dispel a myth. The approach we're asked about most often is bespoke car dealer website design. Some say you need to 'go bespoke' to have an attractive site that looks different. This isn't true.

All of our design services follow an adaptive design approach. This is in place of the basic responsive or mobile-first approach. Such approaches are common in the automotive industry.

We ensure that your website performs on all screen sizes. We ensure your site found by search engines like Google. We cover both aspects, whichever service you choose.

Bespoke Car Dealer Website Design & Other Options

Bespoke design is all about creating a completely tailored website. The site is designed uniquely for a particular dealership.

This service is sometimes referred to as bespoke car dealer websites. The approach is not a quick or cheap process. If you find 'bespoke' offered cheap or fast, the chances are it's a custom design. We cover custom design in the next section.

Bespoke design involves working closely with our talented web designers. They design the website from scratch, including all the design elements you want. This approach allows you to match your website with your brand perfectly. You can meet specific user experience needs.

It's important to know that bespoke design takes time and resources. This is due to the number of steps needed. We must create wireframes, prototyping, and high-fidelity design mock-ups.

Solutions By Budget

Your dealership's size or location may not define your budget. Factors like the types of cars you sell influence your budget. Explore our range of solutions to fit your budget and find your perfect match.

It's easy for web designers to make grand promises and showcase their top work. That is not our approach. We can create almost  any solution for dealerships. However, it is our delivery that sets us apart. We share data openly, so you can make informed decisions.

Knowing budgets helps us give clients a good return on investment. Then, budgets can increase as clients see results. For example, drone footage is impressive, but not always feasible. There may be better uses of a smaller budget.

For those with a large budget, standard offerings may not be of interest. You may be seeking unique and creative design options. We have solutions for all budgets. If you are unsure which is the right solution for you, we can help. We can give you some example dealer website designs. Seeing these designs can help to put your needs into perspective.

Solutions for Typical Dealership Budgets

The majority of dealership websites fall within this range. Our approach here is quite different to most.

With a typical spend, we don't think dealers should settle for templated websites.  Still, many do, knowingly or not.

Website templates are not a bad thing, far from it. We advocate their use when data suggests they deliver performance. We provide these at a low price point. You can then spend the remainder of your budget where you will see returns.

At a medium price point you can expect a custom design process. This process uses sets of reusable web components. We then configure the components. Components can look and feel very different depending on their use.

We are more flexible than many "bespoke" web designers. On top of this, a platform codebase is reliable.

Solutions for Smaller Budgets

Having a small budget is fine. A smaller budget means we need to focus on the most impactful things. 

With a focused budget, certain things are important. We aim to provide you with the maximum return on investment. These areas are where we recommend you spend.

The most important thing here is performance. Your website needs to be visible in search engines to have visitors. From there, your website needs to be good at turning visitors into leads.

On a tight budget, the promise of bespoke builds isn't realistic or genuine. On a tight budget, the best way to profit is to use site layouts that convert. We apply your branding and website content, then watch as the enquiries come in. This approach uses a custom website.

All of our pre-fabricated website sections follow an adaptive approach. Layouts are backed by data that shows you industry-leading enquiry rates. These leads come from all devices. We structure sections to give you the best start to gaining website traffic.

Solutions for Larger Budgets

We offer bespoke website design services from a blank canvas. This service starts with information architecture plans. It includes wireframe and prototyping stages. 

If you have a larger budget, then bespoke website design becomes viable. By bespoke, we mean that we start designing from scratch. We work out a user journey with you in an intensive process.

With a bespoke design, you would use our reliable platform codebase. Reusable website elements are a starting point to create your web elements. You can think of it like a boilerplate design. We layer the bespoke work onto the boilerplate. This ensures that your codebase doesn't fall behind on maintenance.

The process starts with a free initial consultation to discuss your vision. This allows us to understand your business better. It also means we can give you some ideas.

Automotive Technology and Integration Experts

We provide solutions for all automotive trends. We cover online sales, financing options, and photo enhancement. We excel in managing stock feeds and DMS integrations. We know finance calculator integrations and Automotive CRM. All of this means customers see your car adverts in the right place at the right time. This includes platforms like Auto Trader and Car Gurus.

We work with all the main dealer management systems. This makes a big difference in the motor trade. On top of this we're experts at brand marketing integration (OEM). We look at new technology constantly. We're always thinking about  how car dealers can use it. Our clients are often early users of the latest website features around.

We Make Useful Things

Our goal is to simplify digital marketing for car dealers. We collaborate with our clients to generate ideas. For example, we've created a system for franchise dealers to update their sites.

This system ensures compliance with brand standards. It includes updated branding, offers, and vehicle launch info. It's optional but popular and comes at no extra cost.

Backed by Data

We believe in measuring success to improve it. We back our advice with data. If something is brand new, we explain how to test technologies. Vehicle dealers across the country can show success through data. Successful partnerships are at the heart of what we do.

Our account managers focus on improving your website, not selling to you. We base our internal metrics on website performance. Performance includes the number of leads generated. The same metrics are in your website reports. Your account manager will explain the data and suggest actions. If you prefer to receive a summary by email, that's also fine.

Car dealer website features are always evolving. Our industry is full of software companies that focus on niche features. Working in partnership provides the best solution for our clients. Our technology partners offer solutions ranging from customer reviews to background changes. Working together, we make your dealership website more engaging and interactive. We work hard to develop strong partnerships; you can find more information here.

We do not force our clients into any vendor's solution. As such, we seek to work with all automotive technology providers. You can see a selection of vendors we partner with on this page.

Some of these vendors provide offers for Autoweb clients. Please ask for the latest information. If your chosen provider is not on the list, please ask us about them.

Finance Integrations for Automotive Websites

Finance integrations for car dealer websites are very useful. They connect the website journey with lender information. FCA compliance is crucial here. There are many popular vendors of finance systems. Some lenders even provide their own website plug-ins.

Some vendors can show finance calculators for new and used vehicles. Some providers have APIs which we can use to create custom solutions. Another option is to quickly integrate finance widgets. We list some of the popular vendors we partner with here. 

Automated Part-Exchange Valuation

Automated part-exchange valuations are a good lead generator. The vendors below provide the valuation data behind these tools. You can use this data for simple price indications. You can build in more detailed appraisals. Likewise, you can use these as part of an online purchase tool.

If you don't already have a preferred provider, consider your options. Cost of lookups, valuations, and back-end can all differ. If you'd like to discuss options then please get in touch.

Vehicle Imaging Software

These tools help you to present vehicle images online. You can make sure images are consistent and high-quality. Some solutions can automate vehicle video creation for you. Imagery tools can save dealers a lot of time. 

Solutions range from turntable technology to mobile apps. If you would like to talk through options then get in touch.

Vehicle Data Lookups

Showing customers the right vehicle information in ads is crucial. Adding this information manually can be difficult. With a vehicle spec provider, we can automate this task. Many dealerships have preferred vendors. One reason for this is to ensure data consistency across systems.

Managed Live Chat for Car Dealers

Live chat gives your customers a convenient way to get in touch. Managed live chat means that chats are handled by a third-party company. Having your live chat managed means that you won't miss customer contact. 

There are many live chat providers who specialise in automotive. This generally means they have automotive-trained live chat handlers. It also means they are used to the way the motor trade works. We work with all popular providers and we're adding partners all the time.

When it comes to choosing a live chat provider there are some key points. Price is important but the quality of chat should be looked at. The ability to alter the chat pop-up is useful. It is also helpful to have Google Analytics integrated.

Live chat providers have started adding more channels to their product. These channels include SMS and WhatsApp. You should try to match your preferred channels with your chat provider.

You may prefer to self-manage chats. We can add features like WhatsApp or Facebook messenger to your website. Another option is to use free live chat software. Some of the vendors below also have self-service options.

Some more website enhancements to consider

Judge Service

Signal by G3 Auctions

G3's Signal tool adds value to part-exchange options. The software helps dealers to manage valuations and inspections.

Total Chatbots

AutoConverse

AutoConverse is a revolutionary AI communication channel for your website. The platform is based on a digital representation of your dealership with discounts for Autoweb design customers.