Starting a car dealership YouTube channel

Shoppers search YouTube for reviews, walk-arounds and “is this car worth it?” videos. A dealership channel puts your store in those results, and gives people a face to recognise before they walk onto your lot. It doesn’t need expensive gear to start.

Set up the channel first

• Use your dealership name as the channel name, so it matches your website and Google listing.
• Add a clear channel description with your city, the makes you sell, your phone and your website. Keep it short and accurate.
• Upload a simple logo as the profile picture, and a banner that shows your lot or your team.
• Add your website in the links section so it’s one click away.

Five videos to post first

1. Meet the team. A 60-second intro of the people shoppers will talk to. It builds trust faster than anything else.
2. A vehicle walk-around. Each car on the lot, filmed in a minute or two: the exterior, the cabin, the features that matter.
3. How the buying process works. The steps from test drive to delivery, in plain language.
4. A trade-in explainer. What affects trade value, and how to get an estimate. See trade-in ads for car dealers.
5. A delivery video. A happy customer and their new car, with their permission.

Film it with a phone

Good light matters more than a good camera. Film in the morning or late afternoon, outside the glare of the sun, and keep the phone steady. Our guide to car photos for ads covers the basics that carry over to video.

• Shoot horizontally for YouTube and vertically for Shorts and Reels, so you can reuse the same footage.
• Keep videos short. One topic, one minute or two. Longer videos are fine once you have a rhythm.
• Add captions so people can watch with the sound off, and so the words are searchable.

How often to post

Consistency beats volume. One video a week, posted on the same day, is a better plan than five in one week and nothing for a month. If that’s too much, start with two a month and build from there.

Reuse every video

Each video can work in several places:

• YouTube as the full video, with a description that links to the vehicle on your website.
• Short-form as a Reel, TikTok or YouTube Short, cut to the best 30 to 60 seconds. See short video ads for car dealers.
• Google Business Profile as a post, with a link to the vehicle or the sale.
• Your website on the vehicle page or the team page.

Make the ads that promote it

New videos need a short announcement on your social channels. In DealerAdGen, use the video ad maker to turn a still from the video into a short animated ad that points to the channel. The training videos show how the tool works.