Why Are So Many Auto Body Shop and Collision Center Websites So Bad in 2022?
The automotive industry is behind on digital technology, understandably. Automotive dealerships and collision centers lack the resources that tech companies have. Dealership websites are okay for consumers though. There, you can reasonably view inventory, schedule service, fill out a credit application, etc. Most auto body and collision center websites, on the other hand, are not. The bare minimum is a form for clients to schedule an appointment for an estimate and even that is a challenge for most.
In addition, their websites are far from aesthetically pleasing. Take the image above. It’s a real image taken from a real collision center website. Notice anything strange? Well, those cars are not ones that you’d find in the US and the collision center definitely did not do collision repair on them. The ‘designer’ of this site took images from a foreign source and the collision center managers didn’t even notice. How much confidence will potential clients get when they realize the mistake?
Auto body and collision centers rely on a steady stream of leads from people filling out ‘schedule appointment’ forms for an estimate. It’s critical to their business but most auto body and collision center websites put little thought and resources into it. See the image below. Does it inspire confidence in the business? Tech companies engage in UX strategies that test and optimize critical areas of websites to maximize conversions. Auto body and collision centers can’t do that (at least most) but they should have something usable.
As I mentioned in the beginning, it’s understandable that auto body and collision center websites can’t match the expertise of tech companies but improving their sites in the most crucial areas isn’t that difficult, or expensive. If they can manage to have an aesthetically pleasing website with optimized and functional forms to collect leads, their revenue and thus profits will increase.
The industry is competitive. Consumers have choices on where they take their cars to get collision repair. A minimal improvement in their website (and digital marketing) will give them an advantage over the competition and give potential clients confidence to choose them.
If you’re interested in how to improve your auto body and collision center website, get an advantage over the competition and increase your leads, check out Dealer Digital Solution’s Custom Collision Center Website Solution.