Digital Audio Advertising for Dealerships
Reach Buyers When Screens Can’t
Your next buyer is listening to Spotify on their commute, streaming Pandora at work, or tuning into iHeartRadio at the gym. Digital audio puts your dealership in their ears during the moments no screen-based ad can reach — with the targeting precision of digital and the intimacy of radio.
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75%
of U.S. adults listen to digital audio monthly — a larger audience than podcasts or AM/FM in many demos
93%
average audio ad listen-through rate — the highest completion rate in digital advertising
Audio builds the name recognition that makes every other channel work better. When they finally search, your dealership is already familiar.
Why Digital Audio
The Reach of Radio. The Precision of Digital.
Traditional radio reaches a broad audience but can’t target, can’t measure, and can’t tell you who actually heard your ad. Digital audio fixes all three — while keeping what made radio effective in the first place: a captive listener in an intimate, distraction-free environment.
Captive, Undistracted Listening
Audio ads play during active listening sessions — commutes, workouts, cooking, work. There’s no scrolling past, no skipping after 5 seconds, no second screen competing for attention. When your ad plays, the listener hears it. Listen-through rates consistently exceed 90%, which is higher than any video or display format.
Household-Level Targeting
Target by geography, demographics, listening behavior, interests, and in-market automotive signals. Reach listeners in your specific market who are actively researching vehicles or showing purchase intent — not just whoever happens to be tuned into a station.
Frequency That Builds Familiarity
Audio is a frequency medium. The value isn’t in one ad — it’s in hearing your dealership name repeatedly over weeks and months so that when the listener is ready to shop, your name is already in their head. Audio builds the brand recognition that makes your search, social, and CTV campaigns convert at higher rates.
TRADITIONAL RADIO
DIGITAL AUDIO
Verified ad delivery and completion
Where Your Ads Run
Premium Audio Platforms, Strategically Selected
We don’t scatter audio ads across every streaming service available. We place them on the platforms that offer the best targeting, the largest audiences, and the most relevant listening environments for your market.
The largest music streaming platform by audience. Audio and display companion ads served during active listening sessions. Strong targeting by music taste, mood, activity, demographics, and geographic location. Reaches younger and middle-aged demographics heavily.
Best for: Broad reach, younger demographics, frequency building
Personalized internet radio with high engagement and long listening sessions. Strong audio ad targeting by genre, location, age, and behavioral signals. Higher ad completion rates than most platforms due to lean-back listening behavior.
Best for: Local targeting, lean-back listeners, high frequency
Digital streaming arm of iHeartMedia’s radio network. Access to both live radio streams and on-demand content. Reaches listeners who still have radio habits but have shifted to digital delivery.
Best for: Bridging traditional radio audiences to digital, local markets, older demographics
Premium subscription and ad-supported streaming. Reaches higher-income listeners and a dedicated commuter audience. Strong automotive affinity — SiriusXM is pre-installed in most new vehicles and has a naturally car-connected listener base.
Best for: Higher-income demos, commuters, automotive-adjacent listeners
Premium inventory. Purposefully deployed. Every platform is selected for what it adds to your media strategy — not to pad an impression count.
Precision Targeting
Every Listener Targeted. No Wasted Impressions.
Digital audio targeting combines geographic, demographic, behavioral, and interest-based signals to reach the right listeners in your market. Unlike traditional radio — where you buy a station format and hope your audience is tuned in — digital audio delivers your ad only to listeners who match your targeting criteria.
Targeted reach, controlled frequency, and verified delivery. Every ad goes to a listener who matters to your dealership.
Beyond Screens
Your Retargeting Doesn’t Stop When the Screen Goes Off
CTV reaches them in the living room. Social reaches them on their phone. Display follows them across the web. But when the screen is off — in the car, at the gym, walking the dog, mowing the lawn — your retargeting goes silent. Digital audio fills that gap.
We extend your existing retargeting strategy into audio by serving ads to listeners who’ve already engaged with your dealership — website visitors, video viewers, ad clickers, and CRM audiences — during the moments no other channel can reach them.
How It Works:
When channels reinforce each other across screens and speakers, awareness compounds and every channel performs better. Audio is the connective tissue in a cross-channel media strategy.
Campaign Types
Audio That Supports Sales and Service
Audio campaigns serve two primary roles for a dealership: building awareness for sales events and inventory, and driving frequency for service department promotions that rely on repetition and recall.
Sales & Inventory Awareness
Monthly sales events, new model launches, clearance pushes, and seasonal promotions. Audio builds the frequency and name recognition that primes shoppers to search for your dealership when they’re ready to buy. Especially effective for time-sensitive events where you need broad local reach fast.
Examples: Year-end clearance events, new model arrival announcements, holiday sales, “come see the all-new [model]” campaigns, lease specials
Service & Fixed Ops
Seasonal service reminders, tire promotions, oil change specials, and maintenance campaigns. Service promotions rely on frequency and timing — the listener needs to hear the message close to when they need the service. Audio’s high frequency and low cost per impression make it ideal for keeping your service department top-of-mind.
Examples: “Time for a spring tune-up” campaigns, tire season reminders, brake and battery promotions, “due for service?” frequency campaigns
Audio isn’t built to generate leads directly. It’s built to make sure your dealership is the name they remember when they’re ready to act — and to drive them into your search, social, and website funnels where conversion happens.
Media Integration
Audio Makes Every Other Channel Work Harder
Audio’s value isn’t measured in clicks and leads. It’s measured by what happens to your other channels when audio is running. When listeners hear your name before they search, click-through rates go up, branded search volume increases, and conversion rates improve.
Audio + CTV
CTV builds visual awareness on the big screen. Audio extends that awareness into screen-free environments. Together, they create a surround-sound brand presence that reaches the same households through multiple senses and moments throughout the day.
Audio + Paid Search
Audio drives branded search volume. When someone hears your dealership name on their commute and then searches for you at their desk, that’s audio feeding your search campaigns. We track branded search lift as a key indicator of audio’s effectiveness.
Audio + Social
Audio ads prime the audience for social retargeting. When a listener hears your ad and then sees your carousel on Instagram an hour later, the message compounds. Cross-channel frequency across audio and social produces higher engagement and recall than either channel alone.
Over 30 Years of Automotive Marketing Experience
Ready to Build Demand Before They Search?
If you’re running search, social, and video but not audio — you’re leaving a gap in your media strategy that your competitors can fill. We’ll show you how digital audio fits into your broader marketing mix and whether it makes sense for your market and budget.