Online car shopping continues to grow rapidly in acceptance. Millennials are fueling a major part of the online sales growth. Many car dealerships have pivoted in creating websites that aid online car shoppers with information, at-home test drives and digital paperwork. In fact, a survey conducted by Progressive showed that 78% of buyers were highly satisfied with buying a car online, while only 58% of in-person shoppers registered the same pleasure.
Most dealerships understand the importance of showcasing photos and videos of their inventory on their website, but there are extra steps dealerships can take to stand out and educate their consumers as much as possible. Featured videos have numerous benefits to online car shoppers, increase time and engagement spent on website, and are easy to implement on your car dealership website.
What are Featured Videos?
Automotive manufactures provide featured videos to help shoppers understand the car in more detail. Although walk around videos can help give car shoppers great insight into the desired vehicle, featured videos provide in depth details about numerous elements of the car without having to search the Internet. The number of feature videos available varies by make and model. There are numerous video types including:
How-to videos
Vehicle feature highlight
Vehicle overview
LESA has partnered with numerous manufacturers to provide feature videos, including:
Volvo
Volkswagen
Toyota
Subaru
Nissan
Mitsubishi
Mercedes-Benz
Mazda
Land Rover
Jaguar
Hyundai
Honda
GMC
Ford
Chrysler
Dodge
BMW
Audi
Acura
Chevrolet
Infiniti
What are the Benefits of Adding Featured Videos to Your Dealership Website?
Car shoppers rely on video to make informed purchasing decisions, but it’s not just walk-around videos they’re searching for. Our convenient feature videos combine OEM vehicle videos with your walk-around videos in the same player.
Now your shoppers can find all the vehicle info they need in one place, making you the automotive authority and increasing the likelihood of an in-person visit and sale. Video views are tracked so you can customize your follow-up based on what videos your customers are interested in. Other benefits include:
Decrease bounce rate: when you have all the videos your customers need to inform their choices, there is less reason for them to leave your site to find the info elsewhere.
Increase Time on Site: Studies prove that the more time a shopper spends on a site, the more likely they are to buy from it. LESA feature videos help you provide shoppers with the useful, relevant video content they need to stay put on your site.
Plug and Play: Your feature videos can be installed immediately after you order it. It’s simple, effective and ready to go when you are.
Available Right Away: It’s not easy to shoot a walk around video of the vehicle right away, so until your team has a chance to upload, we can add featured videos so car shoppers have something to look at.
It’s Easy to Implement: Adding featured video to your search results page and vehicles details page is extremely easy to implement with the help of LESA team, and requires no maintenance.
Examples of Featured Videos
The Bottom Line:
Most car dealerships have evolved and showcase photos and videos of their inventory on their car dealership website. Studies continue to prove that people enjoy shopping for cars online and the numbers are expected to grow. Your dealership needs to provide as much information as possible to help car shoppers make online purchasing decisions. Featured videos are a great way to make your car dealership stand out, and increase time spent on your website.
Get Started with Featured Videos on Your Car Dealership Website Today!
LESA featured video library includes numerous makes and models across multiple manufactures. Videos are easy to implement and involve no complicated maintenance from the car dealership. Let’s get started today!
Online car shopping has grown tremendously in popularity since the pandemic started. Most car dealerships are able to equip their shoppers with the information they need on their website to make important purchasing decisions.
However, certain obstacles don’t always make it easy to showcase your cars online. Seasonal changes such as rain and snow can make it tough to showcase your inventory online. LESA is helping car dealerships create professional photo library that stand out compared to competition with custom backgrounds.
Why Do I Need Custom Backgrounds?
Not all car dealerships have the perfect staging area to shoot inventory photos and videos. Especially dealerships in the city environment aren’t able to take professional photos of their inventory to showcase online. In fact, numerous dealerships pay tens of thousands of dollars for a proper staging area. Custom backgrounds is a much more economical alternative to having a professional background.
Additionally, as mentioned above, seasonal obstacles such as rain or snow can create challenges while shooting vehicle inventory photos and videos. With cars selling as fast as they are, your dealership doesn’t have days to wait until the weather clears to put your cars online.
Custom backgrounds can help your website have a professional feel, which can also help build trust with potential car shoppers. Custom backgrounds can improve the car shopping experience on your website in numerous ways:
Shorten Time to Market: Don’t worry about exact vehicle placement when shooting your photos. Shoot as-is and leave the background to us.
Increase Uniformity: Bring consistency to your site for a clean, professional look. This is especially helpful to have consistency across your search results page.
Increase Brand Recognition: Make a lasting brand impression with every photo with an added logo.
Shift Focus: Take attention away from surrounding elements and let the viewer focus on what matters: your inventory
Maintain authenticity and stand out: So many car dealerships use images that look alike. Your dealership has the chance to stand out by creating custom backgrounds.
Two Types of Custom Backgrounds for Your Car Dealership Website
LESA offers two types of custom backgrounds for your car dealership website.
Option 1- Hybrid Background: A hybrid background has the ability to remove the background of the image while keeping the floor. This provides a consistent look and feel across your website to help car shoppers focus on the vehicles opposed to background distractions.
Option 2- Full Background Replacement: A full background replacement completely removes the car from the original environment and uses different floors and a different background image. To do this, the LESA team adds shadows and professional shading to ensure the car does not look fake in it’s new environment.
Custom Backgrounds: Make Your Dealership Website Stand Out
Having a great car dealership website is essential in today’s environment, as numerous car shoppers are pivoting from researching and buying cars online from traditional visits to the dealership. Custom backgrounds can make a huge difference, and ensure a professional look and feel across your entire website. Contact a LESA representative today.
The last two years have pushed car dealerships to evolve focusing on digital channels and selling cars online. The transformation in the automotive industry came quicker than expected due to the push by COVID-19. As car dealerships continue to adapt and tailor their strategies towards online channels, they should be aware of tools they can use to help sell cars online.
LESA automotive offers two different video apps for car dealerships to help showcase vehicles online and boost sales online. Let’s take a look at the apps and how each one of them can benefit your car dealership.
Dealer Video Inventory App
The Dealer Video Inventory (DVI) App allows your in-house photographer or professional lot services company to easily record walk around 360 videos of your car dealership inventory. For used cars, the video can showcase the condition of the vehicle which builds trust, credibility and customer confidence. Shopping for new cars has become a very personalized experience. Video can help consumers shop and browse custom features. The DVI app can help showcase all the different new makes and models helping consumers shop without having to go to multiple dealerships.
How Does It Work?
Your photographer can easily capture automotive videos, photos, and ultra 360 spins for your dealership’s inventory in minutes. Not only can the app to shoot videos, but they can also take all photos on the app as well, merging both photographs and video into one simple solution.
Step 1: Scan the VIN
Find or add a vehicle instantly. Use the camera to easily scan the VIN. The app will automatically find the vehicle or you can add it to the inventory.
Step 2: Capture video
Record an HD full-motion walk around video and capture photos simultaneously. Add optional voiceover, background music and more after upload.
3. Upload to Website
Upload and syndicate your videos to your dealer website, social media channels and third-party providers within hours from smartphone.
The Benefits of the Dealer Video Inventory App
Recording Videos Has Never Been Easier: Your in house photographer or lot service company can easily record vehicle walk around videos and capture photos in just a few minutes. All you have to do is record the video on your mobile device, and upload and syndicate to your dealership website and third party providers. Additionally, the DVI app will automatically create ultra 360 spin and upload it to your dealership website. The app can easily capture photos, videos and ultra 360 spin in just minutes.
Videos Help Your Audience Retain Information: Viewers retain 95% of a video’s message as compared to 10% if reading it in text. Emotions play a significant role in retaining information. Video allows the car shopper to be there without being there in person.
Increase Engagement and Time Spent on Website: The more time a viewer spends on a shopping page, the more likely they are to buy. People spend on average 2.6x more time on pages with video than without. Our full-motion walk-around videos have an 80% completion ratio average for a 2-minute video. This shows consumers are engaged and recognize the value that video provides.
It’s Extremely Cost Effective: Video production can be extremely time consuming and expensive. Many car dealerships think that having vehicle walk around videos requires hiring a videographer which can cost thousands of dollars. LESA video inventory vehicles have changed that, making it easier than ever for your in-house photographer to shoot vehicle walk around videos. Not only can your photographer use the app to shoot videos, but they can also take all photos on the app as well, merging both photographs and video and 360 ultra spin into one simple solution. The photos and videos taken from each car are saved in the app and can be easily uploaded to your car dealership website in just two hours.
Interact with Features That Matter Most to Customers: LESA spotlight features allows consumers to view key highlights in the video and interact with features that matter most. Spotlight easily helps car shoppers identify the wheel, headlight, steering wheel, odometer/speedometer, navigation system in the video.
Drive Organic Traffic with Video SEO: Video SEO is an under explored aspect of SEO. Having video on your website allows google to drive traffic to your website.
Dealer Video Suite App
The Dealer Video Suite (DVS) app is a video toolbox for your sales team and BDC (business development center) team, bringing your dealership closer to your clients than ever before via personalized videos.
Types of Videos on LESA Video Suite
Vehicle Walk Around:
If you are using the DVI app to capture video walk around, you can leverage the library you already have to send personalized vehicle videos. What really makes this app effective is that you can send a video of a car to an incoming lead without the sales person having to leave their desk to shoot the video. However, if the sales team wants to go out and capture and send a vehicle walk around instead of using the library they can do it on the DVS app. The app easily allows you to send a video of the car of interest in addition to custom branding, custom VoiceOver, background music, and more.
The picture in picture features allows sales rep to put a recorded video of themselves on vehicle video, allowing the potential customer to see the car and sales person in one video.
Let’s face it, most consumers hate the sales tactics used by car salesman and feeling pressured into buying a car when they are at the dealership The picture in picture helps establish trust increasing the likelihood of the consumer visiting the dealership and the eventual purchase of a car. Additionally, the sales team can upload the video to a dealership branded landing page which can then be emailed or texted to the recipient.
Picture in picture feature allows the sales team to easily send vehicles to incoming leads
Vehicle Testimonial
The Vehicle Testimonial feature allows you to capture positive customer reviews during the delivery of the vehicle and before they drive off the lot. The DVS App allows sales reps to shoot positive customer review videos and share them on your dealership’s social media channels such as YouTube, Facebook and Twitter.
In a competitive environment, reviews are very important. Numerous consumers search for dealership reviews before committing to purchasing a vehicle, to ensure other consumers had a positive experience. LESA video suite uses proprietary SEO video techniques once the testimonial video is uploaded to your car dealership website to ensure your reviews are being found on Google. If a potential customer searches “your dealership name” and “reviews”, the testimonial videos will come up at the top of the first page of Google.
Promo Videos
Almost 50% of internet users look for videos related to a product or service before visiting a store. The promo videos in the DVS App allows you to easily create promo videos with our app and instantly publish to your dealer website without involving the website provider.
For example, if your car dealership is running a Fourth of July special you can create a custom promo video and tailor it to any make or model applicable to show up after the vehicle video on the car dealership website. The app even allows you to select an end date, so the promo video will automatically disappear off your website without having to go in and manually remove. The promo videos are so easy to upload, it removes the need to involve a website provider which can cost extra time and money. Additionally, you don’t have to hire a professional videographer, the promo video can be shot entirely from a cell phone.
Thank You Videos
Every brand interaction leaves an impression. As a car dealership, you want to end the deal on a warm, fuzzy note to create customers for life. Thank you videos allow you to increase referrals and repeat business by adding a personal touch. It’s a simple and smart solution to increase your dealership revenue.
Thank you videos also allow the car dealership to introduce the services department to their new customer. That way, if their vehicle needs any repairs they know who to call.
The Bottom Line: It’s Time to Elevate Your Online Strategy
LESA is the largest provider of online video solutions for car dealerships with thousands of dealerships using their tools. LESA has the data that proves the success video can provide for car dealerships. Check out the study they conducted to learn more.
Online car shopping has grown exponentially during the last two years pushing car dealerships to create a stronger online presence. This trend does not seem to be slowing down anytime soon as car shoppers prefer to visit the car dealership less and to use online tools when looking for a new car.
So how can a car dealership display it’s inventory on their website? Buying a car is a huge purchase for most consumers, and it is important dealerships equip shoppers with all the information they need to make such a large purchasing decision. LESA’s new feature, Ultra 360 spin, is an innovative technology compared to traditional 360 spin that is helping consumers view the car as if they were there in person thanks to the use of video.
Let’s take a look at traditional 360 spin vs. Ultra 360 spin and the advantages Ultra 360 spin has in helping consumers make important purchasing decisions.
What is Traditional 360 spin and How Does It Work?
Although traditional360 spin is not technically video, numerous car dealerships have added it to their websites. Traditional 360 spin offers interactive images that allow your customers to view the exterior of a vehicle from every angle.
Traditional 360 spin works similar to a flip book, and is a collection of consecutive photos that creates the illusion of a spin allowing you to view multiple angles of the car. If a consumer views a traditional 360° spin image on their computer, they can drag their mouse to rotate the vehicle. If the image is viewed on a tablet or mobile device, all it takes is a swipe of the finger to rotate the image.
What Is Ultra 360 spin and How Does It Work?
Ultra 360 spin uses video technology to provide seamless and smooth visibility into the condition of the vehicle on the outside and the inside of the car. Ultra 360 spin technology scrubs video footage back and forth giving the car shopper the ability to view numerous angels of the vehicle with the swipe of a finger or click of a mouse.
The AI spotlight technology allows shoppers to easily zoom on important car details such as cup holders, buttons, tires, steering wheel, navigation and more. Ultra 360 spin technology offers a completely different and more transparent view of the vehicle making it easier than ever to successfully shop for a car from the comfort of your home, without missing any important details.
For Ultra 360 spin to be implemented, walk around videos must be recorded of each vehicle. Once the walk around vehicle videos are recorded, your dealership can benefit from both vehicle videos and Ultra 360 spin.
The Advantages of Ultra 360 spin over Traditional 360 Spin?
Traditional 360 spin is broken down into exterior and interior photos. The exterior photos can be rough or smooth depending on the exterior spin is constructed, which could lack the detail needed to view the car. With regards to the interior traditional 360 spin, it is just a 360 photo that is fixed on the arm rest, which allows for minimal detail to be seen since you are spinning from a fixed location. The consumers then must rely on hotspot photos, which they have likely already viewed in the photo gallery.
Ultra spin, on the other hand, uses video technology to provide a new smooth and seamless view of the car almost as if you were viewing the car in person with the swipe of a finger. Spotlight features allow the consumer to easily view features that matter most in detail. compared to just a photo gallery or a fixed location. The visibility into the interior allows the consumers to see different angles as if you were shopping in person. Hot spots in traditional 360 spin are nothing more than photos that the consumer has already looked at, therefore providing no additional value to help them making important purchasing decision.
Why Multimedia Features Are Important for Dealerships in 2022?
In 2022, it is time for car dealerships to elevate and innovate with multimedia. Multimedia combines text, graphics, audio, 360 spin and video that let the user navigate, interact, create, and communicate. LESA multimedia player takes on a custom and innovative approach to having multimedia on a car dealership website. The LESA player allows the dealership to have numerous different features for each vehicle, with little effort. The simple tool can help empower consumers to make purchasing decisions without numerous trips to the dealership.
Data from a LESA study which analyzed dozens of car dealerships showed users that interacted with multimedia spent 3x the amount of time on a website then users that did not. Additionally, data from the study showed that car dealerships that implemented video features on their website saw an 400% increase in conversions on their website. Implementing video really can be the difference in turning car shoppers into car buyers.
The Bottom Line
In 2022, photos won’t be enough to sell cars online. In a competitive environment such as the automotive industry, it is essential car dealerships tailor an online strategy to the preferences of the consumers they serve. Consumers continue to prove that multimedia is the most effective medium to learning and digesting information making Ultra 360 spin an attractive option for car dealerships looking to sell cars online.
Speak with a LESA Representative Today!
Interested in learning more about LESA Video Technology for Car Dealerships? Get Started and talk to a representative today! sales@lesautomotive.com
