Website Advice Needed

[John Lawrence 1]

Hi, 

I was hoping to get some help. I am moving into the modern world and I need a website. I have been doing some research into companies that create car dealer website, but I'd like some personal opinions rather than lots of sales pitches. 

The companies I've found are: 

- Spidersnet

- Dragon200

- GForces

- Autoweb Design

If anyone has had any past experiences with these companies can you please let me know who's the best? If there are better companies that I haven't mentioned please let me know. It's a bit of a minefield and I don't really know where to start!!

[whitestone679231 113]

CLICK DEALER

[Mark101 536]

No doubt Car Dealer 5 - super starter packages and really helped me out

[Wood235 36]

Car dealer 5 all the way in my opinion!!

[John Lawrence 1]

Hi @Wood235 @Mark101, what makes Car Dealer 5 the best?

[RH Trading 80]

Its a tough decision as there are so many choices out there and getting it wrong can have massive impact on your business so don't rush your decision or purely base it on price John. Like anything you get what you pay for with websites

For me its Click Dealer, been with them for nearly 2 years now due to many reasons. Service, price, functionality, speed, website traffic tools, aesthetic design of website, mobile optimisation (very important), the back end DMS functionality, the way they seem to continually update and invest in growing my business, give me insight and data on response, finance functionality, ability to run invoicing, which channels are working and which clearly aren't, enabling me to work out my ROI and stop wasting money on motors, eBay etc. Had experience of GForces in the past, they charge for every small design change and I think are better suited for larger main dealers and supermarkets.

Not had experience of any of the others so cant say but did look at Autoweb when we moved away from GForces but they didn't get back to me after initial enquiry and I had to ring them several times, spoke to 2-3 different people so gave up in the end, however this is just my opinion, my friend has a cardealer 5 website and is happy with it.

BTW I don't work for Click and Im not on commission  

[Mark101 536]

1 hour ago, John Lawrence said:

Hi @Wood235 @Mark101, what makes Car Dealer 5 the best?

For me, I have taken the entry level package from Car Dealer 5.  I am a real novice when it comes to this sort of thing, give me Excel, Word or PowerPoint and I will dance all over it but websites, blogs, social media etc and I am a dinosaur.

Car Dealer 5 helped me so much, I can upgrade my package in line with business growth and it is so easy to navigate both as a site owner and, more importantly site visitors - looks alot more expensive than it was and even my techy friends say how great it looks.  I see my website as a way to pull people in as it helps gloss over the fact I am a home trader.  It creates the impression that I trade from a bonefide site and you can sense that mood change when you direct people to your site - they suddenly realise that you are professional trader as opposed to a jobbing trader.

Also for me is the support from Car Dealer 5, they are very patient (they need to be with me) and I was fully up and running in less than 1 day of paying my invoice.

Edited April 10, 2018 by Mark101

[John Lawrence 1]

Thank you so much for you help @RH Trading! Really helped

[John Lawrence 1]

32 minutes ago, Mark101 said:

For me, I have taken the entry level package from Car Dealer 5.  I am a real novice when it comes to this sort of thing, give me Excel, Word or PowerPoint and I will dance all over it but websites, blogs, social media etc and I am a dinosaur.

Car Dealer 5 helped me so much, I can upgrade my package in line with business growth and it is so easy to navigate both as a site owner and, more importantly site visitors - looks alot more expensive than it was and even my techy friends say how great it looks.  I see my website as a way to pull people in as it helps gloss over the fact I am a home trader.  It creates the impression that I trade from a bonefide site and you can sense that mood change when you direct people to your site - they suddenly realise that you are professional trader as opposed to a jobbing trader.

Also for me is the support from Car Dealer 5, they are very patient (they need to be with me) and I was fully up and running in less than 1 day of paying my invoice.

RH Trading have said   mobile optimisation - is very important),  is this something Car Dealer 5 have?

[Arfur Dealy 823]

On 09/04/2018 at 5:32 PM, Mark101 said:

No doubt Car Dealer 5 - super starter packages and really helped me out

 

 

                                                      LIKE 

15 hours ago, John Lawrence said:

RH Trading have said   mobile optimisation - is very important),  is this something Car Dealer 5 have?

Yes

https://www.cardealer5.co.uk/faqs.php

[Mark101 536]

1 hour ago, tradex said:

Don't take this the wrong way, I really do not mean any offence, just curious.

Doesn't this also work against you at times?

Great website, giving the impression of a site based business, then customer arrives and finds you are a door stepper, home trader, call it what you want, not a site based seller. Is there a whiff of creating something of a 'wasn't expecting that' experience for the customer?

Both my partner and myself are going thru the painful 'swimming in treacle'  motions of getting 'planning' (for want of a better phrase) for car sales at our houses, for when we retire as site based dealers,  hence the question. 

 

I am never offended, once one can admit to being fat and ugly, everything else washes off my back now.

I sell the story and am upfront before people come here.  

They have two options as I do have the use (but I don't want to mix work with friends) of a storage unit.  I say, I have two locations, one is simply a secure storage unit and I also trade from home because most of my customers like to view cars outside of business hours and they seem very happy with that.

I am going through a similar thought process to you - we live in a nice road (which makes neighbours less tolerent I suppose) and are at the head of a cul de sac.  Luckily we have a reasonable amount of land (about 0.5 acres) which includes an undeveloped plot which is mine.  Now, do I get a pitch or unit or do I create something from home (thius adding value to my property, give me far more storage and away from neighbours)?

The woods are ours too in the background, so only have one real neigbhouring property.  Mrs is not too keen but only because of her allotement which we only started last year.

 

[EPV 631]

3 hours ago, tradex said:

Don't take this the wrong way, I really do not mean any offence, just curious.

Doesn't this also work against you at times?

Great website, giving the impression of a site based business, then customer arrives and finds you are a door stepper, home trader, call it what you want, not a site based seller. Is there a whiff of creating something of a 'wasn't expecting that' experience for the customer?

Both my partner and myself are going thru the painful 'swimming in treacle'  motions of getting 'planning' (for want of a better phrase) for car sales at our houses, for when we retire as site based dealers,  hence the question. 

 

I’m a homer too. I deliberately want to set the tone of professionalism and grandeur before someone arrives to see the car. The first thing I do is explain that I do not have a forecourt via choice, as car sales is an internet business and also they are expensive! But that doesn’t make me any less of a dealer, I still offer part ex, warranties, finance etc and I carry all the correct insurances. But, you didn’t come here to talk about me, you came here to see this xyz....

No one cares about you being a home dealer. They care about the car. 

[EPV 631]

11 minutes ago, tradex said:

I would disagree with that statement, there are people that wouldn't buy from a door stepper, we see them each and every week.

I'm not saying it's right or wrong, more a state of confidence with some buyers. 

Well fair enough, luckily the internet can bridge that confidence gap 

[Mark101 536]

Didn't Arthur Daley (not to be confused with our Arfur Dealy) have a pitch?  Nuff said 

[BHM 994]

 

On 11/04/2018 at 8:16 PM, tradex said:

I would disagree with that statement, there are people that wouldn't buy from a door stepper, we see them each and every week.

Very few nowadays and even years ago I used to sell £5-7000 motors from a terraced house & rarely had a negative reaction. Tbh I think it depends on the type of vehicles although I will concede that in these hard times because punters are financially stretched they are becoming pickier.

I guess it depends upon your definition of doorstepper. Is someone on a housing estate with space for 2 cars & the others scattered untaxed on the local roads the same as someone with a large property, all cars within a boundary & everything legal? 

Likewise is some backroad ‘trader’ operating out of a shithole yard scattered with half assembled cars the same as a prime main road pitch offering the full retail shiney shoes experience?

[trade vet 702]

I have done a bit of doorstepping,the better the doorstep,the easier it is.I was just talking to a sales guy this morning who I have known for years.He works full time for a doorstepper ( his description) who operates with a ‘grand name’ and they do 20 per month doing heavy stuff.However it is from a palatial residence with huge grounds.