ChatGPT Ads for Car Dealers: UK Dealerships Go Live with CMe Automotive
The way people search for their next car is changing.
For years, Google Ads, Google Vehicle Ads and social media advertising have been central to automotive digital marketing. Now, consumers are increasingly using AI platforms such as ChatGPT to research cars, compare models, explore finance options and help make purchasing decisions.
And advertising is beginning to become part of that journey.
At CMe Automotive, we’re already testing ChatGPT Ads for car dealers.
A select number of UK dealerships are now live as part of our invitation-only ChatGPT advertising programme, giving our automotive PPC specialists the opportunity to test real campaigns, analyse performance and understand how this emerging channel could work for motor retailers.
Over the coming months, we’ll continue testing and refining our approach before looking to make ChatGPT advertising available to more dealerships and dealer groups.
Interested in ChatGPT Ads for your dealership?
What are ChatGPT Ads?
ChatGPT Ads are sponsored placements that can appear alongside relevant conversations within ChatGPT.
They offer a different approach to traditional PPC advertising.
With Google Ads, advertisers typically target searches and keywords related to their products or services. ChatGPT conversations can be much more detailed, with people asking questions, comparing options and researching purchases conversationally.
Someone looking for their next car might ask questions such as:
What are the best family SUVs?
Should I buy an electric or hybrid car?
What car can I get for £400 per month?
Which electric cars have the best range?
What’s the best car for a long commute?
What should I look for when buying a used car?
These conversations can take place before a customer knows exactly which vehicle they want.
Where relevant, a clearly labelled sponsored advert can appear alongside the conversation, separate from ChatGPT’s AI-generated response.
For car dealers, this creates the potential to reach prospective customers while they’re researching and considering their next vehicle.
How do ChatGPT Ads work for car dealers?
Unlike traditional search advertising, ChatGPT Ads aren’t simply based around bidding on individual keywords.
Advertisers can describe the audiences they want to reach, with the platform determining when an advert is relevant to a conversation.
That makes the customer journey particularly interesting for automotive retailers.
A potential customer might start with a broad question about the best vehicle for their family, budget or lifestyle before gradually narrowing their research to particular fuel types, manufacturers or models.
ChatGPT advertising provides an opportunity to explore how dealers could become visible during that research process.
And because ChatGPT advertising is still developing, we’re testing how it can fit alongside the established automotive PPC channels dealers already use.
ChatGPT Ads vs Google Vehicle Ads
One of the biggest questions for automotive retailers is how ChatGPT Ads compare with Google Vehicle Ads.
They’re very different and we don’t currently see one replacing the other.
CMe Automotive already specialises in Google Vehicle Ads, which use a dealership’s vehicle inventory feed to display relevant available stock to people actively searching for cars on Google.
Google Vehicle Ads can be particularly powerful further down the buying journey, when someone knows roughly what they want and is actively looking at available vehicles.
ChatGPT could create an opportunity earlier in that journey.
For example, a customer might use ChatGPT to research whether an electric SUV would suit their family, compare electric and hybrid ownership or understand what type of car they could afford with a particular monthly budget.
They’re interested in buying a car, but they may not yet know exactly what they want.
That’s the difference we’re interested in.
ChatGPT Ads could help dealers reach customers during research and consideration, while Google Vehicle Ads can put relevant stock in front of them as they move towards actively searching for a vehicle.
The introduction of product feed functionality to ChatGPT advertising makes the future relationship between these channels particularly interesting for automotive retailers.
Our PPC specialists are now testing how ChatGPT advertising could complement Google Vehicle Ads, Google Ads, paid social and other elements of an automotive digital marketing strategy.
Why is CMe Automotive testing ChatGPT advertising now?
Because we believe the best way to understand a new advertising channel is to use it.
ChatGPT advertising is still in its early stages and the platform is evolving quickly.
When our PPC team first began exploring campaigns, advertisers could create relatively simple ads using a headline, description, image and destination URL.
Within weeks, we had already seen additional functionality introduced, including audience uploads, conversion events and product feeds.
Rather than waiting for ChatGPT advertising to become an established part of automotive marketing, we’re building our knowledge now through real campaigns with real dealerships.
Charisse Thomas, Managing Director at CMe Automotive, said:
“We don’t want to be talking about ChatGPT advertising in six months’ time and wishing we’d started testing it sooner. We already have dealers live and we’re building that knowledge now.
“Our clients expect us to understand where automotive marketing is going next. The aim is to learn quickly, understand what performs and use those insights to put our dealers ahead as the platform develops.”
What are we learning from ChatGPT Ads?
It’s still early, which is exactly why we’re testing now.
Our automotive PPC specialists are exploring how the platform performs, how users engage with advertising and where ChatGPT Ads could fit within a dealership’s wider digital marketing strategy.
We’re also seeing the advertising platform develop as we use it.
Petar Nikolov, PPC Specialist at CMe Automotive, said:
“What has really stood out is how quickly the platform is evolving. We’ve already seen new functionality introduced since we started testing.
“Google Vehicle Ads are incredibly effective at reaching people actively searching for cars. ChatGPT gives us the opportunity to explore a different stage of that journey, when someone might still be researching, comparing and deciding what is right for them.”
We’ll continue testing over the coming months to build a clearer picture of the role ChatGPT advertising could play within automotive PPC.
Can ChatGPT Ads replace Google Ads or Google Vehicle Ads?
Not at the moment.
ChatGPT Ads are an emerging advertising channel and we currently see them as an addition to an automotive marketing strategy rather than a replacement for established platforms.
Google Ads and Google Vehicle Ads already provide sophisticated targeting, reporting and automotive-specific opportunities.
ChatGPT advertising offers something different: the potential to reach consumers within the conversational research process.
As the platform develops, its role within automotive marketing may change too.
That’s why we’re testing it now.
Are ChatGPT Ads available to UK car dealers?
Yes, but CMe Automotive’s initial testing programme is currently invitation only.
We’ve already onboarded a select number of dealerships and our PPC team will continue working with these businesses over the coming months while we test and refine our automotive approach.
We then hope to begin opening the opportunity to more dealerships and dealer groups.
Want to advertise your dealership on ChatGPT?
If you’re interested in ChatGPT advertising for your dealership, you can register your interest now.
Join the CMe Automotive ChatGPT Ads waiting list and we’ll keep you updated as we expand our automotive testing programme.
FAQs
What are ChatGPT Ads?
ChatGPT Ads are sponsored placements that can appear alongside relevant conversations in ChatGPT. They allow businesses to reach users while they are researching products, comparing options or considering a purchase. Sponsored ads are clearly labelled and remain separate from ChatGPT’s AI-generated responses.
How do ChatGPT Ads work for car dealers?
ChatGPT Ads can give dealerships an opportunity to appear while potential customers are researching their next vehicle. For example, someone could be comparing family SUVs, researching electric cars or exploring vehicles within a particular budget. This means dealers could potentially reach customers earlier in the car-buying journey.
How are ChatGPT Ads different from Google Ads?
Google Ads are largely built around search behaviour, keywords, audiences and other targeting signals. ChatGPT advertising takes place within a conversational environment, creating an opportunity to reach people while they are asking questions, researching and comparing their options.
How much do ChatGPT Ads cost?
Costs can vary depending on the campaign and the platform is still developing, so there isn’t an established automotive benchmark yet. That’s one of the reasons CMe Automotive is testing real dealership campaigns now – to build first-hand insight into performance and where the channel could provide value.