Published On: November 15, 2011

With all the updates Google has made to its search algorithm this year, it’s hard to keep track of what’s new and how to stay on top of search result pages. From back to back Panda updates to the new Caffeine Web indexing system released in June, Google has made significant changes to how it displays SERPs. Recent comments made by Google’s Amit Singhal reveal that the company is aiming to deliver search rankings based on “freshness”. In other words, Google ranks websites according to timeliness, and not just keyword relevance. Websites with the most up to date information provide a better user experience, and thus gain relevancy on Google and other search engines. You might think the change only affects websites about news, hot topics and regularly recurring events, but as Singhal points out in the Official Google Blog, this “freshness” algorithm change will also impact websites about products such as new cars.

There are just a couple things you need to do to make sure you stay ahead of competitors on the first page of Google. If you don’t already have a company blog for your car dealership, start one and update it regularly. Creating a company blog and updating it with the latest information about new vehicle models, manufacturer news and local promotional sales events will only help improve the SEO for your website. Google ranks frequently updated webpages higher and takes into account simple information like the calendar date on which you added a new post. Having an active blog gives you three benefits in one: it helps you communicate with loyal customers, engage potential car buyers, and it gives Google the fresh, high quality information it craves.

If you just don’t have time to create and actively manage a blog, then the next best solution is to update the pages on your website with information like new model descriptions or current manufacturer promotions. You can write this content yourself, or work directly with an automotive internet marketing provider that includes unique content solutions in their SEO services. By adding timely, fresh content to your dealer website, you’ll be able to rank higher in Google, get increased web traffic and generate more leads.