Video Marketing for Car Dealerships - Long-Form vs Shorts

Videos Are Not Optional For Car Dealerships

YouTube video marketing is no longer optional for car dealerships—it’s essential for building trust, engaging customers, expanding reach, and driving sales. By leveraging video, dealerships can showcase their inventory, educate buyers, build a loyal community, and establish a strong, authentic brand presence in a highly competitive market. 

1. Do Videos Build Trust and Transparency 

• Video content provides an authentic, transparent view of vehicles and dealership operations, helping to build stronger customer trust. Virtual walkarounds, team introductions, and customer testimonials humanise the dealership and make it more approachable. 

  
  

2. Are Videos Engaging and Educating for Customers 

• Over 80% of automotive consumers watch videos during their buying journey, and nearly half rely specifically on video content to decide which vehicle to purchase. Videos allow dealerships to showcase vehicle features, explain complex technologies, and offer virtual test drives, making the research process easier and more engaging. 

  
  

3. Do Videos Expand Reach and Visibility 

• YouTube is the second-largest search engine, with over 2 billion monthly active users. Posting videos increases a dealership’s visibility, attracts a wider audience, and drives more organic traffic to their website. Video content also improves SEO, helping dealerships rank higher in search results. 

  
  

4. Will Videos Help With Community Building and Loyalty 

• YouTube’s Community features (posts, polls, updates) allow dealerships to interact directly with subscribers, share news, and foster a sense of belonging. This ongoing engagement builds loyalty and keeps the audience connected beyond just sales. 

  
  

5. Do Videos Influence Purchase Decisions 

• 75% of auto shoppers say online video influenced their shopping habits or purchases. Video marketing reaches consumers during their most influential research phase, expanding consideration sets and driving actual sales conversions. 

6. Are Videos Cost-Effective for Targeted Marketing 

• Creating and uploading videos to YouTube is cost-effective compared to traditional advertising. YouTube’s advanced targeting options (location, age, interests, keywords) ensure dealerships reach the right audience with the right message. 

  
  

7. Are Videos Good for Showcasing Brand Personality 

• Videos allow dealerships to tell their unique story, showcase their team’s expertise and personality, and highlight involvement in community programs. This helps differentiate the dealership from competitors and builds a memorable brand. 

  
  

8. Do Videos Drive Engagement and Leads 

• Video content keeps visitors on dealership websites longer, increases engagement, and generates more leads. Listings with videos attract more views and interest, even outside business hours. 

  
  

What are Videos best for: 

• High revenue generation: Long-form videos earn significantly more ad revenue per 1,000 views than Shorts. This is because long videos can include multiple ad placements, while Shorts revenue is based on a separate and less lucrative model. 

• Deeper storytelling and trust: Longer videos allow for more in-depth storytelling, tutorials, or educational content. This fosters a stronger, more loyal connection with viewers. 

• Building authority: The depth of long-form content is ideal for showcasing expertise and building credibility in a particular niche. 

• Evergreen and SEO traffic: Well-made, long-form videos are more likely to appear in search results and "suggested videos" for years, providing a steady stream of organic traffic and increasing total watch time. 

• Meaningful conversion: If a creator's goal is to convert viewers into customers for a high-ticket item or a complex service, a long-form video is more effective for explaining value and building confidence.  

  
  

What are Shorts best for: 

• Rapid channel growth: YouTube's algorithm gives a high priority to Shorts, making them a powerful tool for quickly gaining visibility and attracting new viewers. 

• High engagement: Shorts can capture attention instantly, leading to high initial view counts and engagement rates. They are easily shared and have high viral potential. 

• Low production effort: As the name implies, Shorts require minimal time and resources to produce. They can even be filmed and edited entirely on a mobile phone, making them ideal for beginners and frequent posting. 

• Mobile-first consumption: Shorts are designed for vertical, on-the-go viewing, which aligns with the habits of many social media users. 

• Testing content ideas: Creating Shorts is a fast way to test new content ideas and gauge audience interest before committing to a longer video. 

Video Marketing for Car Dealerships - Long-Form vs Shorts

Long-Form vs Shorts

Video Marketing for Car Dealerships - Long-Form vs Shorts