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Marketing in the automotive industry has evolved quickly over the past 20 years — and much of it can be traced back to one item: the smartphone.
As mobile has taken over the advertising and eCommerce world, it’s changed how brands must operate to succeed. Because with so many options to choose from and pieces of marketing material bombarding consumers daily, it’s easy to get left in the dust.
That’s where specialists come in. Automotive marketing agencies use their experience and expertise to hit the right tone and tenor in the markets and channels to target the right buyers.
That can but doesn’t always mean aspirational campaigns. Often, it simply means standing out from the competition in ways that don’t win awards but do win hearts and minds.
Here’s a compilation of 13 automotive marketing agencies you should be aware of, in no particular order. They span various specializations encompassing the different needs of sales operations, including national vs. local, dealerships and dealer groups, modernizing digital operations, reaching different demographics and more.
Why automotive brands need specialized marketing agencies
The automotive industry has transformed, with tech-savvy consumers now researching vehicles online, comparing prices, reading reviews, and scheduling test drives before ever visiting a dealership.
Competition is fiercer than ever, with new electric vehicle startups and traditional automakers battling for attention. Navigating this complex buyer journey—spanning social media, online ads, and dealership visits—requires expert strategies.
Specialized automotive marketing agencies bring several unique benefits to automotive brands such as:
- Industry-Specific Knowledge: Specialized agencies understand the unique challenges and opportunities within the automotive sector, from compliance regulations to seasonal buying trends.
- Tailored Strategies: They can develop customized campaigns that address specific needs such as lead generation, brand awareness, event success, and eCommerce optimization.
- Advanced Analytics: These agencies utilize sophisticated tools to track consumer behavior, measure campaign performance, and adjust strategies on the fly for maximum ROI.
- Omnichannel Approach: They are adept at integrating multiple marketing channels—digital, social, print, TV, and experiential—to provide a cohesive brand experience.
- Creative Storytelling: Specialized agencies have the creative prowess to craft compelling narratives that resonate with target audiences, helping brands stand out in a crowded market.
In a rapidly evolving market, partnering with a specialized agency isn’t just smart—staying ahead and connecting with today’s automotive buyers is essential.
10 Automotive marketing agency leaders
When deciding which agency is best for a specific situation, there is one cardinal rule: choose one with a history of proven success doing what you want.
The following 13 agencies have been identified for their expertise across various specialties.
1. The Automotive Advertising Agency
The Automotive Advertising Agency is a full-service agency founded in 2013 and headquartered in Austin with offices in Los Angeles and New York. They specialize in local campaigns for new and used dealerships, including for Hispanic audiences.
Core Services: TV, digital, social, print and radio content, paid search, SEO, SEM, email marketing and media buying.
Notable Clients: Nissan, Kia, Ford, Toyota dealers and groups around Texas. Many custom commercials they produce have a classic local feel with movie and lifestyle themes.
Best for: Local dealerships that must stand out on all channels in their markets.
2. CMB Automotive Marketing
CMB Automotive Marketing has offices in Detroit and the UK with a track record from 2005. They work with global OEMs, Tier 1 & OE suppliers, motorsport, commercial and aftermarket brands, and marine and defense.
They focus on storytelling and high-impact campaigns like this one for Cobra Sport, using video and photography to focus on drivers' emotional connection with their vehicles, in this case, with the sound they can make.
Core Services: Market research, strategy and lead generation, product and brand launches via multichannel campaigns across legacy media and digital, paid and organic.
Notable Clients: Cobra Sport, Zeta Automotive, DCE, Torsus.
Best for: Brands looking to refresh their public positioning or need launch marketing.
3. Dealer.com
Dealer.com is a digital-focused, auto-only agency based in Burlington, Vermont. It was founded in 1997 and provides end-to-end digital software solutions for dealership and OEM marketing.
They have a white glove partnership program with a data-driven, goal-powered retail strategy customized to reach the right audience. That includes a dedicated performance manager who provides monthly reports and insights.
Core Services: Web design, inventory management, multi-platform content creation, media buying, SEO, dynamic SRP, online reputation management, paid search, social.
Best for: Dealerships and groups looking to generate more quality leads and sales with data-based marketing solutions.
4. 7 Communications
7 Communications is a “luxury and lifestyle marketing agency” founded in 2009 with offices in Toronto and Calgary with several automobile brands and dealer groups as clients.
What sets 7 Communications apart is its focus on producing high-impact experiences and creativity tailored to specific audiences and buying groups. Lamborghini’s Horsepower on Ice hosted nearly 60 customers in Northern Quebec for a luxurious two-day getaway, including test drives and snow and ice driving lessons.
Core Services: Experiential and data-driven digital campaigns, social and PR, brand partnerships and creative content.
Notable Clients: Harley-Davidson, Land Rover, Maserati, Rolls-Royce, Globe & Mail.
Best for: Dealerships and dealer groups catering to high-income customers.
5. Innocean USA
Innocean USA is a large agency founded in 2005 and based in Huntington Beach, California, with clients like Hyundai and Genesis, among various non-automotive partners.
They're known for their ideas that resonate with audiences, like the “How it Started. How it’s going.” TikTok campaign featuring Jason Bateman created to promote the Hyundai Ioniq 5.
Core Services: Strategy, data science, creative, production, journey mapping, web and app development, media planning, social and experiential.
Notable Clients: Hyundai, Genesis, Kia, LG, National Coalition Against Censorship.
Best for: Brands with big budgets or groups with important causes looking to make a splash with award-caliber campaigns.
6. Automotive Marketing Gurus
Automotive Marketing Gurus was founded in 2020 and is headquartered in Marietta, Georgia. AMG is, not surprisingly, auto-specific, but it is less of an agency and more of a tool.
They're known for their collaborative tech called MOJO, which tracks marketing activities' progress and increases market transparency and speed. It aligns marketing teams and vendors to find and create efficiencies or fill gaps.
Core Services: Streamlining strategies and efforts so dealerships and dealer groups can reduce money and time spent on marketing while increasing closing ratios. It does that with vendor audits, analysis and vetting, marketing project management and marketing recommendations.
Notable Clients: Multiple dealer groups.
Best for: Dealer groups with disconnected or disjointed marketing strategies and budgets that need to save time and money.
7. Omni Advertising
Omni Advertising was founded in 2001 and headquartered in Boca Raton, Florida, with satellite offices across the U.S. Omni services more than 300 dealerships, including Honda Dealer Associations and other Tier 3 dealerships. It has placed more than $4 billion in media.
Their specialty is working within a dealer group on a single campaign. For example, reconnecting Hispanics in South Florida with Honda.
Core Services: Account teams that work with dealers on strategy and tactics and integrated creative and media teams providing a comprehensive omnichannel approach. That includes social, SEM and SEO, video and connected TV, digital audio, email marketing, legacy media and media buying.
Notable Clients: 40% of the Top 25 U.S. Honda dealers, Jeep, Bugatti, Lexus and many other top brands.
Best for: Honda dealers and groups and Tier 3 dealerships needing omnichannel campaigns.
8. WDA Advertising
WDA Advertising was founded in 1997 and based in the UK, specializing in performance vehicles and aftermarket parts and accessories.
Their intimate knowledge of motorsports and the aftermarket segments makes them unique. One notable campaign for Yamaha motorcycles helped get more riders on higher price-point bikes at dealerships.
Core Services: Market intelligence, customized journey mapping, marketing strategy and tactical planning, campaign creation, and audience engagement. Those include video, blogs, design and creative, social, PR, paid advertising and investor marketing.
Notable Clients: Yamaha, Samco Sport, M-Sport, Tillet Racing Seats.
Best For: Motorsport and aftermarket brands in need of a refresh.
9. Green Line Automotive
Green Line Automotive is a Digital marketing agency headquartered in suburban Chicago. It was founded in 2016 by dealership executives who identified a gap in the technology used to market dealers, manufacturers, parts suppliers, and aftermarket companies.
They focus on data, including their Customer Data Platform which integrates with dealers’ CRM and DMS tech stacks to increase targeted marketing. It employs first-party data, third-party prospecting and geo-targeting.
Core Services: Everything digital, from SEO and paid search to social and email marketing to video and creative services — all customizable. There is also a big focus on data capture, reporting, analysis and storage.
Notable Clients: Subaru is a Certified Digital Program partner that gives individual retailers access to a suite of search, SEO, social, data and content packages ranging from $200 to $3,000 a month.
Best for: Dealerships and dealer groups looking to get better insights by harnessing data.
10. Dealer Authority
Dealer Authority is a digital marketing agency founded in 2013 and based in Dayton, Ohio. It’s staffed by platform experts who have automotive backgrounds. They work with dealerships and dealer groups to create cohesive marketing strategies that increase quality traffic.
Dealer Authority is a holistic marketing strategy that audits and coordinates dealers’ online advertising. Every ad on every digital platform is custom-built to reinforce the same message for the right people and send them to the appropriate retail page.
Core Services: SEO, social (Meta), paid search and Google vehicle ads, drip campaigns, Fixed Ops SEO, geo-targeting, Google Business Management.
Best for: Local dealerships that need to break through online advertising noise.
How to Choose the Right Agency for Your Brand
Choosing the right agency for your automotive brand can be challenging since there are so many to choose from. We've outlined several essential factors to help you decide which agency will best represent your brand.
1. Define Your Goals and Budget
- Set your goal: brand awareness, lead generation, eCommerce growth, or better data-driven decision-making.
- Identify your pain points (e.g., lagging revenue, low-quality leads, or disjointed strategies).
- Set a realistic budget aligned with your goals and the expected ROI.
2. Look for Proven Experience in the Automotive Industry
- Check case studies and client testimonials for results in similar markets.
- Evaluate whether the agency has worked with brands, dealerships, or dealer groups like yours.
- Ensure their approach aligns with your industry’s unique challenges.
3. Assess Their Specialization and Services
- Decide if you need a full-service agency (e.g., advertising, experiential marketing, analytics) or a specialist for targeted needs like SEO or eCommerce.
- Verify they offer services aligned with your goals, such as CRM integration, event support, or social media campaigns.
4. Ensure Scalability and Flexibility
- Look for an agency that can adapt as your needs evolve and scale efforts over time.
- Ask about their ability to handle new challenges, market shifts, or expanded services.
5. Evaluate Transparency and Measurable Outcomes
- Choose an agency that provides clear communication and regular reporting.
- Ensure they offer measurable results tied to your goals, such as ROI tracking, lead quality, or increased sales.
6. Speak With Multiple Agencies
- Schedule consultations to discuss their approach, experience, and how they would tackle your challenges.
- Look for a partner who listens to your needs, provides tailored solutions, and demonstrates a strong understanding of the automotive market.
Following these steps, you can find an agency with the expertise, tools, and strategies to help your brand succeed in the competitive automotive landscape.
Final Thoughts
Choosing the right automotive marketing agency is about finding a partner that understands your goals, has proven experience in your market, and can deliver measurable results.
The automotive industry is rapidly evolving, with increased competition, changing consumer behaviors, and the growing importance of digital and experiential marketing. By following a structured approach—defining your goals, evaluating expertise, and ensuring alignment—you’ll position your brand or dealership for success.
The right agency doesn’t just execute campaigns; they become a strategic partner, helping you navigate challenges, adapt to change, and stand out in a crowded market. With the right choice, you’ll drive more leads, foster stronger customer connections, and ultimately accelerate your business growth.
