Auto Dealership PPC: 2.75x Conversions at 72% Lower Cost
A franchise dealership came to us spending roughly $10,000 a month on Google Ads and getting 72 conversions for it — about $139 per lead. A restructured program now delivers 198 conversions a month at under $40 each, on a smaller budget.
Conversions per month, documented in monthly reporting
Same dealership, same market — different structure.
Real budget, respectable clicks — and $139 leads
On paper the account looked healthy: five figures of monthly spend, steady impressions, decent click-through rates. But the number that pays for showroom traffic — cost per conversion — told the real story. At $139 per lead, the math behind every sold vehicle was carrying more ad cost than it needed to.
The problem wasn't the budget. It was where the budget was allowed to go.
Structure first, spend second
Restructure before spending
The account was carrying broad campaigns that competed with each other. We rebuilt the structure around intent: dedicated search campaigns per vehicle line, Performance Max scoped to its lane, and a separate service campaign so fixed-ops budget stopped leaking into vehicle shopping.
Cut waste with negative discipline
Aggressive negative keyword lists filtered out job seekers, DIY researchers, and shoppers outside the trade area — so budget concentrated on people who could actually walk into the showroom.
Reallocate to what converts
Monthly budget moved toward the campaigns producing conversions at the lowest cost, not the ones producing the most clicks. Total spend went down while conversions nearly tripled.
Creative and landing alignment
Ad copy built around live offers and inventory counts, pointed at pages that matched the promise. The account's top search campaign now runs a 13.8% click-through rate — several times the auto retail average.
Where the account runs today
The gains held and kept compounding — this is the latest month of reporting, not a one-time spike.
Conversions in the latest reported month
Cost per conversion — down from $139 before topVue
Account-wide click-through rate; auto search averages run 2-4%
Click-through rate on the top vehicle-line search campaign
Paying too much per lead?
Most accounts don't need more budget — they need better structure. We'll audit your campaigns and show you where the spend is leaking before you commit to anything.
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