Mobile responsiveness, a new video channel, and the opportunity to book a service online are among the features of The Donalds Group's new website.
The East Anglian car dealer has also unveiled a new corporate identity.
Group marketing manager Benjamin Grant said: “We’re very proud of our heritage as one of the region’s longest serving motor suppliers, but we never stop looking to the future.
"As tablets and smartphones become increasingly popular, more customers than ever before are using the Internet as their main way of interacting with businesses like ours, so we want to do our utmost to make that experience as informative and helpful, but also pleasant and entertaining, as possible.
“Meanwhile, for anyone looking for more information about the different brands of new cars we sell, our site acts as a portal through which customers can access our single-brand websites and find the up-to-date information they need.”
A feature of the website is the video channel DG:TV, or Donalds Group Television. It's a section devoted to video content including road tests, tutorials, demonstrations and adverts.
Grant said: "This reflects current trends in the way customers use web content: surveys suggest that more than half say they are more confident about purchasing decisions after seeing video footage, while more than 90% of those who view mobile videos share them with others."
Other key features of the responsive site include a rolling banner, prominently displayed across the full width of the home page, advertising latest offers from all the group’s brands as well as allowing any important ‘newsflash’ messages to be displayed clearly and prominently.
A three-step vehicle valuation form is designed to make it quick and easy for customer to upload details, including photographs, of their cars in order to obtain a prompt trade-in value.
Finally, while embracing new technology Donalds remains firmly a ‘people’ business, so there is an opportunity to meet the teams across the group’s four sites.
“We’ve always been keen to engage with local motorists and build relationships that go far beyond that of simply supplier and customer. The new website is just our latest way of doing that, and we hope people will check it out and let us know what they think,” said Grant.
Donalds has eight franchises across four sites in Bury St Edmunds, Ipswich, Peterborough and Stamford, representing the Alfa Romeo, Kia, Mazda, Vauxhall and Volvo brands.
>> Picture: Donalds' marketing team Holly Brookes and Benjamin Grant
Jeremy has been a journalist for 30 years, 20 of which have been in business-to-business automotive. He was a writer and news editor on AM-sister brand Fleet News for three years before setting up the AM website. For the last five years he has been Bauer B2B’s head of digital helping to manage the digital assets of AM, together with Fleet News, Commercial Fleet, Rail and Smart Transport.
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