Highly Competitive Keywords & Industries

Ok, so what do you do when you run across a highly competitive industry or set of Keywords?

I know the goal is to use unique or more uncommon keywords that can still drive traffic, but I'm stuck.

I have a possible client that would like me to optimize thier site and generate more traffic for them. They are a group of new & used car dealerships. The dealership group encompasses 6 sites that are split off by brand. (Bob Roberts Ford, Bob Roberts Volvo, Bob Roberts Nissan, etc...)

What kind of unique keywords could I possibly use to help drive traffic without competing for "Nissan" or "New Car" or other terms that are highly competitive. Or would that be my best bet?

 

Are there any relative geo specific terms that would apply..? State, city and regional terms such as 'new car Phoenix', 'nissan phoenix', etc.

The searches for these focused terms aren't as numberous, but the more focused a search result, the higher the conversion rate.

PLUS - the core kw's are included in these geo focused key phrases - so you should show in results for these as well.

 

Good call. It can definitely be made geo specific to that area. Thanks.

 

Yeah - but the question remains, "Is anyone using those search terms?" Unless you are in a major metro area, I can't imagine that there are that many regional searches for cars. So what if you rank #1 if no one uses that KW?

If your client can't generate enough traffic, leads, conversions, and sales it may not be worth the investment of your time and their money. You're better off telling the client that it may not be practical to SEO their web site. They will thank you for your honesty.

If your dealer is able to ship cars or enter into a commission transaction with other dealers around the country, then it may pay to optimize sites or pages by brand and model (i.e. Volvo S60, etc.).

 

I agree 100% - I assumed that a series of 6 dealerships for 6 seperate car companies all carrying the same Bob Roberts brand could only exist if there was a competitive local market driven by local/semi-local buyers.

Further, I assume that the only markets that could support the existance of these dealerships (let alone their competition) must be of a remarkable size, certainly not a berg in the corner of nowhere - so I assume this must be a metro/urban area at least to some degree.

Market research of any geo-specific area can be obtained from the proper sources to establish the existance and trends of local internet shoppers.

"...may not be worth your time or their $$"

I couldn't disagree more. If this company doesn't get in the serps for local keywords...their local competition will. Competion is assumed to exist for the reasons mentioned above.

Local/metro branding is a vital aspect of any companies marketing - especially a car dealership whose sales are traditionally in the local/semi-local market - and should be included in any SEO agenda.

 

So, you would charge a company thousands of dollars to "SEO" their site for non-competitive or non-revenue producing KW's?

I went to Google and typed in "Los Angeles Ford dealership". There were only 230,000 results returned. If you put the dealership address on every page it would be very easy get top rankings without even trying.

 

I forget the exact number, but dealerships spend an average of several hundred dollars on advertising for each car they sell. If all the website did was make it easy for a buyer who heard a TV ad to print out a map with directions, it would probably be money well spent.

I find that my visitors don't search like I do. Less than 20% of my traffic arrives from a search on what I consider my key words. The other 80% is spread over the most amazing range of search strings.

However, they are VERY targeted, and interested in the ads that are served on my pages. I think a cheap SEO job that researched and targeted low frequency local terms would be very rewarding for the dealership.

 

I appreciate the discussion guys. I am going to optimize for the geo specific area. I check the terms and they are searched for 1000+ times a month. I am making sure to disclose that to the client and they can make their own decision if they want to procede.

 

Yeah - I find that general keywords are great if you can afford the time and resources required to optimize and rank for them - but when it comes down to it 'focused term searches' have MUCH higher conversions.

Yeah, its great to show up in the search engines for "Widget", but you are more likely to convert a visitor to a sell if they find you searching for "Widget Store" or "Red Widget", and even better for sites with a B&M - "Phoenix Widget Store" - Brick & Mortar or Person to Person sales opportunites are more important to some clients than great serps that gain them nothing but bandwidth consumption.

Bazkaz - good luck!

 

As a general answer to the question, when I come across very hard to SEO phrases, I typically try to link build in the top ten pages that already rank across the different engines. This usually can send you a snippet of traffic and help with your rankings too.

You'll need some killer content, though, as many of these sites will be competitors and you'll have to find a way to convince the rest to link - often straight $$ wont' do it.

 

I would also target the service needs of the people who own those types of cars in the city as well as those close by. Dealerships make some money on servicing I believe.

 

Good call Chachi. They do make some money in the Service Department. Thanks for the idea.