Search engine optimization (SEO)

Search engine optimization (SEO) helps shoppers find your website on Google and other search engines. Much of it is automatic. The rest is good titles and descriptions on the pages that matter most.

What your website does automatically #

• Sitemap and robots file. /sitemap.xml lists your published pages, inventory, categories, locations, promotions, blog posts, events, team and careers pages. /robots.txt points search engines to it.
• Structured data. Every page tells search engines who you are (a dealer listing with your locations and hours). Vehicle pages describe each unit (make, model, VIN, mileage, condition, price and availability). Blog posts, events and FAQ blocks get their own structured data.
• One main address. Once your own domain is verified and set as the main one, the platform subdomain redirects to it and is hidden from search engines. See Domains and HTTPS.
• Duplicate control. Deep inventory filter combinations, blog tag pages and sold vehicles are kept out of search results, so they do not compete with your main pages.
• Speed. Images are resized and load as visitors scroll, maps load only on click, and the site uses very little JavaScript.

Set a page's title and description #

1. Open Website › Pages and select Edit next to the page.
2. In Page settings, fill in the SEO title. If you leave it empty, the page title plus your dealership name is used.
3. Write a Meta description: one or two sentences that make someone want to click.
4. Leave Include in sitemap.xml checked for normal pages.
5. Check Hide from search engines (noindex) only for pages that should not appear in search, such as a thank-you page.
6. Select Save draft, then Publish.

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1. SEO title. The blue link text in search results. About 60 characters show.
2. Meta description. The text under the link. About 155 characters show.
3. Hide from search engines (noindex). Keeps the page out of search results.
4. Include in sitemap.xml. Lists the page in your sitemap.

Blog posts have the same SEO title and Meta description fields in their editor.

Give images alt text #

1. Open Website › Media.
2. Under each image, type a short description in Alt text and select Save.

Alt text helps visitors who use screen readers, and it helps search engines understand your images.

(open full size)

1. Upload an image. JPEG, PNG, WebP or GIF, up to 10 MB.
2. Alt text. Describe what the image shows.

Go further with the SEO tools #

With the Marketing plan feature you also get an SEO toolkit under Marketing › SEO: a site audit that finds missing titles, broken links and thin pages, search text for individual vehicles, a local SEO report for your locations, keyword landing pages, and Google Search Console verification. See SEO tools.

Tips #

• Start with the pages that bring in business: Home, Financing, Service and Value Your Trade.
• Mention your town and what you sell, for example "New and used boats in Lakeport Landing".
• Use redirects when you move or rename a page, so old links keep working.
• Do not copy manufacturer text word for word into many pages. Search engines prefer original content.

Permissions #

Limitations #