• by Laurie Sullivan  @lauriesullivan, July 13, 2009

General Motors, Ford, Nissan, Toyota and other car manufacturers are buying up paid search terms to catch consumer attention about the cash for clunkers incentive program. The Car Allowance Rebate System (CARS) program offered by the U.S. government gives consumers a cash allowance for junk cars that don't meet certain environmental standards.

CARS provides people trading in less fuel efficient models with a car allowance -- either $3,500 or $4,500 -- toward the purchase of specific new models. Last week, Toyota ran a paid click ad that read "Cash for clunkers. Get up to $4,500 in credit toward a more fuel efficient Toyota or Scion." Many Toyotas qualify, but a landing page on the automaker's Web site goes into more detail about the program.

Launching the paid search ads on the Internet let the automakers educate consumers even before the government put the program in place. Automakers know the Internet is where they can find consumers who want more information about the deals. It's not clear the financial investment each automaker has spent to attract consumers online, but each time an ad serves up, the bidding process starts all over again.

Google has seen more than a 600% increase in related searches during the second quarter 2009 vs. the first, according to Michelle Morris, Google's director of automotive sales for North America. "The automakers have individuals that run the search campaigns and they work closely with agency partners," she says. "We work either directly with the client or the agency to make recommendation on optimization to help them show up in the auction during the campaign."

Morris says several automakers are involved in the content network, so they have tied display ads into the paid click campaign. Automakers recognize the value of search campaigns and have sophisticated metrics. They were ready to go with the program before the government finalized the incentive program.

And as GM emerges from bankruptcy, paid search campaigns could make the automaker more accountable for the money infused in ad and marketing campaigns. Rather than allowing a newswire to carry the news, the company launched a paid campaign to take control of the message, Morris says. Ford and Chrysler run Google Analytics to track performance, she says.  

Morris says the automakers are using about 2,100 keywords, such as "cash for clunkers," "scrap," "old car," recycled car," or anything consumers might possibly search on.