Car-Mercial Gunn Nissan case study

1. Success Story
Gunn Nissan
Gunn Nissan’s eCommerce Sales Jump 29% with New Video Ad Platform
In early 2011, Gunn Nissan was looking Gunn Nissan began searching for a solution
that would give them an added edge and
for an effective way to generate more increased visibility over their competitors
awareness of their “One Simple Price™” while boosting sales without having to boost
philosophy throughout the San Antonio, Texas their ad budget. They soon discovered that
with the dramatic increase in popularity of
market they serve. Like many dealers, Gunn online video in recent years, a new market
Nissan maintained a marketing strategy that audience had emerged that can be highly
included traditional and digital components, targeted, and is more cost effective than
traditional mass media: online video ads.
but were beginning to feel a decrease in the
effectiveness of traditional mass marketing The 2011 Google Automotive Shopper
mediums like TV, print and radio while the cost Behavior Study shows online video ads as the
No. 1 most useful ad format, above all other
for these traditional mediums remained high forms of traditional and digital advertising, to
and difficult to track with measurable results. connect with prospective car buyers.
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2. Success Story
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Recognizing an ideal opportunity, Gunn search phrases and appear on Page Gunn uses a proprietary Video SEO
Nissan began implementing a two 1 of search engine (Google, Yahoo & platform to distribute and optimize
pronged, “push and pull”, video ad Bing) results with compelling videos that custom videos through an intelligent
strategy to elevate their local presence attract and influence consumers more algorithm that continually works to
and increase profitability. effectively than traditional text results. achieve the highest possible search
rankings on top search engines
“Our eCommerce business is up 29 Online video ads decidedly draw more for popular phrases like “Nissan
percent year over year since we started traffic than static ads because they oil change San Antonio” or “Gunn
our video ads back in March of 2011,” combine the power of television’s sight, Nissan reviews”.
said Tony Rhoades, Executive Director sound and motion with the power of
of Information & Consumer Strategies search engines’ ability to speak directly A 2011 AutoTrader.com / Polk
at the Gunn Automotive Group. to consumers who want to buy or service Automotive Influence Study shows
a vehicle now. These high impact videos that 95 percent of car buyers use
First, Gunn Nissan began using Video are extremely effective as they stand search engines to shop for vehicles
SEO (Video search engine optimization) out amongst the myriad of text ads, and 98 percent of those same
that enabled their dealer brand and influencing consumers in a way that the car buyers do NOT go past Page 1
message to “pull” for relevant keyword written word cannot. search results.
“With the average U.S. consumer watching over 21 hours of online video each month, and online video
advertising comprising 20 percent of all viewing material, retailers can’t ignore this audience,”
- AJ LEBLANC, MANAGING PARTNER FOR CAR-MERCIAL.COM,
THE COMPANY GUNN NISSAN USES FOR ITS VIDEO SEO AND PRE-ROLL PLATFORM

3. Gunn Nissan
“Today Video SEO is given high ranking “With the average U.S. consumer However, with standard PPC an ad is
authority by top search engines like watching over 21 hours of online not viewed every time it shows up in
Google, Bing and Yahoo,” explains video each month, and online video sponsored links. Video pre-roll ads always
AJ LeBlanc, managing partner for advertising comprising 20 percent of all play and are seen whether the consumer
Car-mercial.com, the company Gunn viewing material, retailers can’t ignore wants to view it or not. Just like traditional
TV advertising, video pre-roll gives you the
Nissan uses for its Video SEO platform. this audience,” said LeBlanc. “Dealers
power of brand awareness, but online
“It is imperative for dealers to make can readily push their message using
video has the ability to convert that viewer
it onto the Page 1 search results with video ads to a select target audience
to an actual website lead the moment the
high-impact video ads that quickly on numerous popular national online
video ad is played because the directly
draw-in the consumer.” TV networks – it’s truly ‘targeted TV’.” clickable video takes the prospect right to
your website.
Next, Gunn Nissan worked to
implement the “push” component of “MLB TV, along with the other sites in
its strategy. Developing a video ad the Video Ad Network, has a huge online
network that included Geo targeting presence and has afforded us a great
local car buyers on the largest online opportunity to build our brand awareness.
video ad network in the U.S., building There are a lot more San Antonians who
brand awareness and purchasing now know… ‘At Gunn, One Simple Price™
intent within specific digital market means no fine print and No hassles’. The
areas, and driving site traffic with greatest thing about these pre-roll ads
is that the consumer can click directly
professionally produced, high quality
on the video ad and go straight to our
targeted TV-style placed “pre-roll”
website. Thanks to AJ at Car-mercial, Sean
video ads on highly visited websites.
Stapleton and Tom Walls at VinSolutions
we are now working to find better ways to
“Pre-roll” refers to in-stream online track this activity,” said Rhoades.
Tony Rhoades
video advertising across high quality, GUNN AUTOMOTIVE GROUP
professionally produced publishers Additional stats from the Influence Study
like MLB TV, that typically run for 15- by AutoTrader.com / Polk show the average
30 seconds at the beginning of a Gunn Nissan’s initial pre-roll ad ran for car buyer visits five different dealer websites
video clip that a viewer has selected 30 days and was featured on 1 of over before setting foot in a dealership. Dealers
to watch or on a website’s home 40 popular national websites targeted cannot afford to remain static online, as
page. The pre-roll automatically to only local consumers in the San online video ads are fast becoming the new
runs, and often there is no opt-out Antonio market. The ad had 313,799 “norm” in advertising.
option – a captive audience, just like video plays with an 82 percent
With 24/7 easy access to research
traditional TV. The Video Ad network completion rate, meaning consumers
vehicles, the increased use of tablets,
has the largest collection of popular watched the entire video ad, and 3,716
cell phones and laptops and the “no
national websites consumers visit to direct clicks were made to the Gunn
pressure” aspect of searching online,
get information and see videos about Nissan website – a 1.18% click rate. more than 9 out of 10 consumers start
news, lifestyle, entertainment, sports, This modest website conversion rate their buying process online. Dealers have
how-to, technology, gaming, health, resulted in increased sales at a cost a phenomenal opportunity to get in front
fitness, finance, auto, food, travel, comparable to what would be spent on of in-market car buyers with maximum
parenting and family. standard pay per click (PPC). exposure for minimum cost.
Success Story

4. Success Story Gunn Nissan
“OUR ECOMMERCE BUSINESS IS UP
29 PERCENT YEAR OVER YEAR SINCE
Gunn Nissan’s
WE STARTED OUR VIDEO ADS BACK eCommerce
IN MARCH OF 2011,” Sales Jump
29%
-TONY RHOADES
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF INFORMATION & CONSUMER
STRATEGIES AT THE GUNN AUTOMOTIVE GROUP.
IN A NUTSHELL
Gunn Nissan eCommerce Sales Jump 29% with New Video Ad Platform
• Use Video SEO to ensure that your dealership’s brand and message
appears on Page 1 of the search results with compelling videos that attract
and influence consumers more effectively than traditional text results.
• Use a Video Ad Platform that drives site traffic with professionally
produced, high quality targeted TV-style placed “pre-roll” video ads on
highly visited websites.
• Work with a Video SEO and Video Ad Platform specialist like Car-mercial.
com to Geo target ready car buyers and build brand awareness and
purchase intent within specific digital market areas to capture local in-
market consumers.
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