Is your web site generating business or simply serving as an online brochure? Evaluate the effectiveness of your digital marketing efforts with these basic tenants of good web design.

• Less is More: Websites are for the user, not the designer. Adding a lot of bells and whistles to a site is meaningless if the user can't find what he/she wants. Keep your site clean and simple, with the most important information front and center. Customers don't want to jump around a site to find current inventory or dig through several layers to locate contact information, specials, and inventory.
  
• Search-Engine Friendly: Clean, uncluttered sites not only appeal to users, they are more likely to be indexed by the major search engines (sites that use Flash design can't be read well by search-engine spiders). If you want users to find you first, be sure to incorporate common SEO (search engine optimization) elements, including tags, keywords, fresh content, and shortened URLs for optimized inventory links.
  
• Support Systems: Attracting customers to your web site takes more than good design. You must be ubiquitous on the Internet, with multiple points of presence. To do this, build a trail of breadcrumbs that leads back to your site using such tools as satellite videos, blogs, Youtube, Facebook, and other social media.

3 Reasons to Go Mobile

Experts predict that by next year the majority of mobile phones in the U.S. will be smart phones. That means that more consumers than ever will have on-demand access to the Internet. Despite this expanding market, most auto dealers don't yet have mobile web sites. Here are the top three reasons they should:

1. The future is now. One-fifth of Americans already access the mobile web everyday. In less than a decade, half of all web searches will happen from a mobile device. The mobile generation is here and it includes your customers.
   
2. A regular site isn't enough. Traditional web sites are designed for people surfing from the comfort of home using a full-size computer. Mobile users are on-the-go and limited by small screens. To satisfy these users, dealers need simplified sites designed specifically for the smart phone platform.
   
3. The competition is already there. Picture this scenario: A consumer is driving around looking for a new car. As he drives by dealers' lots, he uses his phone to search inventories before deciding where to stop. If your site isn't optimized for mobile web, he'll move on to the next lot.

To add phone-friendly features to your site today, contact Dealer Impact at 877-334-9638.

Dealer Impact Client Wins Major Award

Although it opened its doors just 15 months ago, Des Moines Imports is already being recognized for its impact on the local community. The dealership was recently awarded the 2009 Business of the Year award in Grimes, Iowa.

"I was surprised because we are such a young business here," says Bruce Strassburg, general manager. "It's really a testament to my employees who take care of the people in this area."

Des Moines Imports created 80 new jobs and made it convenient for residents to buy and service vehicles, rather than driving to a neighboring community. The dealer was also lauded for its marketing, which sheds light on the city.

"In addition to saying we are located in Grimes, we always say we are open 24-7 at desmoinesimports.com. That's a huge part of our marketing efforts," Strassburg says. "There was no synchronized web presence until Dealer Impact was able to bring it all together for us and put it into one great-looking landing page."