The SEM Strategy Your Competitors Don’t Want You to Know

When it comes to SEM (Search Engine Marketing), most dealerships are either throwing money at branded campaigns they don’t need or letting inefficient strategies drain their budget. Let’s get real—SEM is not a “one-size-fits-all” deal, but a lot of dealers are still running their campaigns like it is, or not asking their agency enough questions to keep them accountable.

What’s worse, some agencies are happy to keep collecting their fees while their clients burn through cash on campaigns that aren’t driving real results.

So, what’s the secret sauce? It’s all about breaking down your SEM into core campaigns and vehicle campaigns, then making every cent count. Let’s dive into how to make this work for your dealership or dealer group.

Core Campaigns: Focus Where the Conversions Happen

Think about core campaigns like your dealership’s bread and butter—this is where the majority of conversions happen. These campaigns target local, low-funnel searches like "Jeep dealer near me", “SUVs for families under 30k near me” or "cheap deals on Toyota Camry in [City]." These are the searches from people ready to take action, so your SEM budget needs to focus here first and becareful not to venture into Tier 1 and Tier 2 territory.

Most dealerships waste money by being too broad or unfocused in this space. They throw dollars into branded campaigns, where someone is searching for your dealership by name.

Spoiler alert: if someone is searching your dealership name, they’re already going to find you. You don’t need to pay for that. We’ve seen other agencies add branded keywords just to pad the numbers and make their metrics look better—meanwhile, that money could’ve gone towards capturing new, relevant traffic that’s actually going to convert.

Vehicle Campaigns: Catch Them in the Research Phase

Now let’s talk about vehicle campaigns. These are higher-funnel searches targeting shoppers who are still in the decision-making phase. They’re comparing models and searching for specific features like "best SUVs for families" or "Ford F-150 towing capacity."

This is where you go after more researched buyers. Maybe they’re not ready to buy today, but they’re narrowing down their options. If you show up in their search results, you’re planting a seed. The key here is precision. You want to capture searches specific enough to weed out tire-kickers but broad enough to reach those who are comparing models. This balance is crucial in making sure you're not wasting money but still casting a wide enough net to pull in potential buyers. If you search year/make/model, take notice of the type of organic results that appear? Does an ad with payment info seem appropriate for this audience?

The Budget Balance: Spend Smart, Not Hard

At Team MXS, we pride ourselves on being transparent about where your budget should go, and sometimes that means we’ll tell you to spend less. Yep, you heard that right. We’ve even told clients to cut their budgets in half if they’re overcommitting to campaigns that won’t yield returns.

Most agencies? They won’t do that. They’re happy to keep letting you dump money into display ads or branded search terms because, hey, more budget means a higher commission for them. But that’s not how we roll, we’re not interested in bleeding your budget dry to make more for ourselves.

We also hyper focus on regional dominance, tailoring your SEM strategy to your specific dealership’s goals, market share, and location. Whether you’re looking for a more conservative approach or ready to go aggressive, we make sure your budget works as hard as possible for you.

Don’t Let Display Ads Drain Your Budget

Speaking of budgets, let’s talk about display campaigns for a second. Display ads have their place, but only when done right. Too many dealers are blowing thousands on display ads, only to see them pop up on irrelevant gaming sites or alongside content that’s not even related to car shopping. With Google’s network putting ads on random sites, it’s becoming harder to control where your ads appear.

At TEAM MXS, we manually exclude junk sites from display campaigns, making sure your ads land where they matter.

Think of it like premium gas. Sure, you can fill your car with it, but if your engine doesn’t need it, why are you wasting the money?

It’s the same with display ads—spend where it makes sense, and skip the premium where it’s not needed.

Tailor Your Budget Based on Market Share

One of the most overlooked parts of SEM strategy is budget allocation based on market share. This is where we come in and break it down for you. We recommend anywhere between 20-30% of your budget for a standard strategy, with above 30% for aggressive campaigns aimed at gaining more market share. But here’s the kicker: We’re not set in stone on those numbers. If you’re in a smaller market and want to go aggressive, we’ll work with that. If you’re in a more competitive metro area, we can create a custom package that fits your exact budget and goals.

Our approach is built on flexibility—because no two dealerships are the same, and neither should their SEM strategies be.

The Takeaway: Be Smart, Be Strategic, Be Different

The bottom line is this: if your SEM strategy isn’t custom-tailored to your dealership’s needs, you’re wasting money. Period. At TEAM MXS, we don’t just take your budget and throw it at random campaigns. We’re constantly monitoring, refining, and adjusting to make sure every dollar is working for you.

So, if you’re tired of seeing your SEM budget disappear faster than a sports car at a green light, it’s time to rethink your strategy. Give us a call, and let’s get you set up with a smarter, more strategic approach that actually moves the needle.

And remember—SEM is like building the perfect sandwich. You need the right balance of bread (core campaigns) and toppings (vehicle campaigns). Too much of one, and you’ve got a mess. Get the balance right, and you’ve got a masterpiece that’ll keep people coming back for more.

Ready to stop wasting your SEM budget? Let’s chat.