Do you remember a few years back when you started to see hotels and flight information from Google at the top of your Google Searches? It’s second nature now, but at the time, it was groundbreaking, right?
Well, get ready…Looks like Google is now getting into the Auto Business! They have begun testing local car and auto dealership inventory in search results. It has not been rolled out in all areas yet, but it is happening. Here is an example of what it looks like currently:
Google’s thought process.
There is limited functionality with the filter options now, but this is still being worked on and tested, so I am sure that will be corrected as it moves forward.
Google gave us a peek into this thought process, when they added this to their robots.txt file a few nights ago:
Disallow: /local/cars/
Disallow: /local/dealership
If you visit https://www.google.com/robots.txt you will see the hotels and travel URL that were disallowed when Google entered that industry. So this was definitely the first “tell” of their intentions.
This is the Official Google Statement:
“…last year, as part of our continued efforts to help connect businesses with potential customers, we began working with select car dealers and data providers in the U.S. to pilot new ways for dealerships to showcase their cars for sale directly on their Business Profiles in Search. We’ve heard from potential car buyers that surfacing this inventory information directly on Google helps them quickly explore and compare available cars, leading to more qualified leads for dealers. Dealers and related businesses can fill out a partner interest form if they’d like to learn more about this opportunity. The car inventory information is powered by feeds shared directly from dealers or their data providers…”
– A Google Spokesperson
So why does this matter?
Will Google enter the market of actually selling cars to consumers? Hard to say right now. But being able to get dealer inventory showcased on SERPs can be an SEO game changer!
Questions?
Want to learn more? Need help with your SEO? Call TurnKey Marketing and let us give you a no-obligation evaluation! Don’t hesitate to call TurnKey Marketing at 951-291-2222 today and let one of our many Marketing Experts assist you!