How To Make A Sales Funnel For Car Sales
Automotive dealerships and car sales professionals face unique challenges in lead generation and customer acquisition in today's digital marketplace. A well-designed sales funnel can help dealerships attract qualified prospects, showcase inventory, and convert more leads into test drives and purchases. This guide will show you how to build, market, and implement a sales funnel specifically for your automotive business.
If you're a car dealer, sales manager, or automotive marketing professional looking to increase qualified leads and sales, there are several excellent platforms that can help you build effective automotive-focused sales funnels without requiring extensive technical knowledge.
The first step to making your car sales funnel is choosing the right platform. However, selecting from numerous options can be overwhelming, especially when you're focused on managing inventory and serving customers. Keep reading this guide to see our suggested picks and a step-by-step guide to making a sales funnel for your automotive business.
The Best Platforms For Car Sales Funnels
When choosing a platform for your automotive sales funnel, you need specific features that address the unique needs of vehicle marketing. The ideal platform should include vehicle showcase capabilities, financing calculators, trade-in valuation tools, and test drive scheduling functionality. It should also help you segment leads based on vehicle preferences, budget range, and purchase timeline. Based on these requirements, we've ranked the top 5 platforms for car sales funnels:
1. ClickFunnels
Get started with ClickFunnels (Free Trial) ๐
ClickFunnels offers automotive dealerships a comprehensive solution with templates that can be customized for vehicle sales. Its drag-and-drop interface makes it easy to create multi-step funnels that showcase inventory, collect prospect information, and schedule test drives. ClickFunnels integrates with popular CRM systems and includes form builders that can be configured for detailed vehicle preferences. It provides a 14-day free trial to test all features.
2. Leadpages
Get Started with Leadpages (Free Trial) ๐
Leadpages offers user-friendly templates ideal for automotive lead generation. Its alert bars and pop-ups are effective for promoting special offers, vehicle launches, or limited-time promotions. Leadpages makes it easy to create lead magnets such as “Car Buying Guides” or “Trade-In Value Calculators” that provide value while capturing prospect information for follow-up.
3. Unbounce
Get started with Unbounce (Free Trial) ๐
Unbounce provides dealerships with highly customizable landing pages perfect for specific vehicle models, promotions, or customer segments. Its Smart Traffic feature automatically directs potential car buyers to the landing page variant where they're most likely to convert based on their vehicle interests. Unbounce excels at A/B testing different vehicle presentations and offers to optimize lead generation rates.
4. Instapage
Get started with Instapage (Free Trial) ๐
Instapage allows automotive businesses to create personalized landing pages for different vehicle categories or customer demographics. Its collaboration features make it easy for marketing and sales teams to work together on campaign creation. Instapage's heatmap analytics help identify which aspects of your vehicle presentation most resonate with potential buyers.
5. Optimizepress
Get started with Optimizepress (Subscription) ๐
Optimizepress provides WordPress users with a flexible platform for creating automotive sales funnels. Its templates can be easily adapted for vehicle marketing, and its integration with WordPress makes it suitable for dealerships that already have WordPress websites. Optimizepress includes templates specifically designed for product showcasing and appointment booking.
Conclusion
After evaluating multiple platforms, ClickFunnels stands out as the best choice for automotive sales funnels due to its comprehensive approach combining vehicle showcasing, lead qualification, and test drive scheduling in one integrated system. While it requires a monthly investment, the potential return through even one additional vehicle sale per month can easily justify the cost.
However, if you're working with a limited budget, Leadpages provides an excellent starting point with many essential features at a lower price point.
Now that we have identified our top choice, let's show you how to make a car sales funnel using ClickFunnels.
How to Make a Sales Funnel for Car Sales Using ClickFunnels
Building an effective automotive sales funnel involves showcasing vehicles effectively while qualifying leads to ensure you're focusing on serious buyers. The following steps will guide you through making a funnel that converts browsers into buyers.
Step 1: Sign Up for ClickFunnels
Create your account and take advantage of the 14-day free trial to explore all features before committing.
Step 2: Define Your Automotive Sales Strategy
Before building your funnel:
- Identify your primary vehicle categories or focus (new, used, luxury, etc.)
- Clarify your unique dealership value proposition
- Determine your geographic service area
- Gather vehicle imagery and video content
- Compile customer testimonials and reviews
- This clarity will guide your funnel design and qualification process
Step 3: Make Your Vehicle Showcase Landing Page
- Add a compelling headline highlighting your dealership's unique advantages
- Include a gallery of featured vehicles with high-quality images
- Add a brief video showcasing your dealership and inventory
- Feature customer testimonials with specific buying experiences
- Include trust indicators like dealership awards, certifications, and years in business
- Offer a valuable lead magnet (car buying guide, maintenance tips, etc.)
- Create a simple form to capture basic information and vehicle interests
- Add your location and service area information
Step 4: Design Your Lead Magnet Delivery Page
After prospects submit their information:
- Thank them for their interest
- Provide immediate access to your promised resource
- Include additional information about your dealership's approach
- Add educational content about the car buying process
- Feature specific vehicles based on their indicated interests
- Offer a specific next step (inventory search, trade valuation, test drive)
- Make it easy to take action directly from this page
Step 5: Build Your Vehicle Preference Assessment
Create an interactive experience that:
- Asks about specific vehicle preferences (type, make, model, features)
- Collects budget range and financing needs
- Gathers information about trade-in vehicles if applicable
- Determines purchase timeline and urgency
- Provides immediate value through personalized recommendations
- Creates a natural transition to inventory browsing or test drive scheduling
- Captures detailed contact information for follow-up
Step 6: Make Your Inventory Search and Selection Page
Design a user-friendly vehicle browsing experience:
- Include filtering options based on preferences
- Display vehicle specifications and features clearly
- Show high-quality images from multiple angles
- Include video walkarounds when available
- Display transparent pricing and payment information
- Feature vehicle history reports for used inventory
- Make it easy to save favorites or request more information
- Include clear calls-to-action for next steps
Step 7: Create Your Test Drive Booking Page
Develop a streamlined scheduling system:
- Explain the test drive process and what to expect
- Allow selection of preferred vehicles to drive
- Include a simple calendar booking interface
- Collect necessary information like driver's license details
- Send automatic confirmations and reminders
- Provide dealership location and directions
- Include preparation recommendations
Step 8: Implement Follow-up Sequences
Set up automated email campaigns for:
- Initial inquiry follow-up with personalized vehicle suggestions
- Test drive reminders and preparation information
- Post-test drive feedback and next steps
- Special offers based on viewed inventory
- Educational content about financing options
- Vehicle comparison information for considered models
- Re-engagement for leads who haven't responded
Step 9: Develop Vehicle-Specific Funnels
Create separate funnel paths for different inventory segments:
- New vehicle models
- Used/certified pre-owned inventory
- Luxury vehicles
- Trucks and SUVs
- Eco-friendly/electric vehicles
- Special offers and clearance models
- Each with tailored content, specifications, and targeted messaging
Step 10: Make Your Financing Pre-Qualification Process
Design a system that helps prospects understand their options:
- Simple credit application forms
- Payment calculator tools
- Financing option comparisons
- Trade-in value estimators
- Down payment guidance
- Special financing program information
- Clear next steps for formal applications
Step 11: Build Your Purchase Facilitation System
Create processes for moving from interest to purchase:
- Digital deal creation capabilities
- Document preparation checklists
- Deposit collection methods
- Delivery scheduling options
- New owner orientation resources
- Warranty and protection plan information
- Post-purchase follow-up processes
Step 12: Measure, Track, and Optimize
Monitor key metrics to continuously improve performance:
- Lead form conversion rates by traffic source
- Lead quality by form type and vehicle interest
- Test drive show rates
- Lead-to-purchase conversion percentages
- Average days from lead to purchase
- Cost per lead and cost per acquisition
- Return on marketing investment by campaign
By following these steps with ClickFunnels, automotive dealerships can make an effective sales funnel that showcases inventory effectively, qualifies leads for serious buying intent, streamlines the test drive process, and converts more prospects into vehicle purchasers. This systematic approach not only increases sales efficiency but also improves the customer buying experience from first click to vehicle delivery.