This is one component of a proper automotive SEO strategy that shouldn’t be on our list. We really wish it didn’t have to be. It’s so easy to handle this extremely important aspect of search engine optimization that we wish we could mark it off as “done” by the various marketing companies and website providers out there.
Unfortunately, we can’t. The vast majority of dealers are missing these very important components of their search marketing efforts. It’s not their fault – more vendors should have this as a required component if they say they offer SEO.
They don’t.
Citations are used by the search engines, Google in particular, to get a better understanding of a business location and market area. This sounds simple – Google already knows where you are, right? Yes, but they need more information. They need data and updates that they collect from trusted websites to jive so they can know for certain which information is accurate and where your website belongs in the local search results relative to the location of the searcher.
Directories are similar but have a slightly different purpose. These are the data warehouses of the internet that the search engines use to get generic attribution. It’s about authority; if you’re on the right directories, your credibility within the automotive niche goes up. This is not to be confused with the old directory submission styles of the past that have been deemed spammy for a few years now. Avoid those like the plague. The directories that we manage and monitor are the trusted ones, the sites that Google and Bing still hold as credible and valuable.
Learn more about how Dealer Authority handles a holistic approach to automotive search engine optimization, including what we do with citations and directories, by filling out the form below:
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