Google is expanding the usability of its automobile listing beta by allowing American dealers to list any vehicle with a VIN on their Google Business Profile.
Searchlabdigital.com reports that dealers will now be able to add listings for motorcycles, RVs, powersports vehicles, and commercial vehicles to Google through this service. For now, though, the program is still limited exclusively to American dealerships.
“Vehicle listings on Google allows businesses to display their for sale vehicle inventory on various Google surfaces, including dealerships’ Business Profiles and Google Search,” the tech company writes. “Google users can then search, filter, and easily learn more about vehicles for sale such as availability, pricing, and key information about the vehicles for sale, potentially directing customers to your business.”
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Google started toying with allowing dealerships to list their cars in 2021, when it introduced a local car inventory beta. By visiting google.com/local/cars, shoppers can see a list of automobile inventory at dealerships in their area.
The feature allows shoppers to filter by make, model, and trim, giving them information about the vehicle, its specs, color, interior, and its price. It also gives customers something called “Price Insights” that provides information on the value of the car.
At the time, Google said that it had heard from shoppers that “surfacing this inventory information directly on Google helps them quickly explore and compare available cars, leading to more qualified leads for dealers.” For dealers, meanwhile, Google isn’t yet charging a fee for the product.
Whether Craigslist and Auto Trader should be worried is not clear, but the feature is another tool that more shoppers can now use. Just the latest automotive product that the tech giant has improved, Google recently updated its Maps service to help drivers find DC fast charging stations and the service is going to go native in more vehicles’ infotainment systems.
