How to Do SEO in the Automotive (Auto Spare Parts) Industry? (2025)

The automotive sector is one of the areas where there is intense competition in digital marketing. Especially for websites offering vehicle sales, spare parts, and service solutions, SEO (Search Engine Optimization) plays a critical role in increasing organic traffic and reaching the right target audience. This guide will answer the question “How to do SEO in the automotive sector?” and will specifically examine the SEO steps for the automotive spare parts sector in detail.

How to Do SEO in the Automotive Sector in 15 Steps

Before starting your SEO strategy in the automotive sector, you must first conduct proper keyword research to identify the terms that resonate with your target audience. Under the umbrella of technical SEO, ensure your site’s speed, mobile compatibility, and SSL security are in place. Enhance user experience by adding the stock code and OEM code to product pages. Establish strong internal links through internal linking and optimize your crawl budget by blocking unnecessary pages. Make sure your product descriptions are original and support visual SEO with ALT tags. Keep your Google My Business listing updated for local SEO, identify content gaps through competitor analysis, create SEO-friendly URLs, improve user experience, provide informative blog content, and acquire quality backlinks. Build trust with customer reviews and continuously monitor all SEO efforts with Google Analytics and Search Console.

SEO Steps for the Automotive Spare Parts Sector:

• Conduct Keyword Research.

• Strengthen Technical SEO.

• Optimize Stock Codes and OEM Codes.

• Develop an Internal Linking Strategy.

• Optimize Your Crawl Budget.

• Optimize Your Product Descriptions.

• Focus on Visual SEO and the Use of ALT Tags.

• Emphasize Local SEO Efforts.

• Conduct Competitor Analysis.

• Optimize Category and Product URLs.

• Enhance User Experience.

• Utilize Blogging and Content Marketing.

• Acquire Quality Backlinks.

• Leverage Customer Reviews.

• Continuously Monitor Your SEO Performance.

1. Conduct Keyword Research

Before starting your SEO strategy, you need to determine which keywords your target audience is searching for. Choosing the wrong keywords can result in reaching the wrong audience and losing potential customers.

How to Conduct Keyword Research in the Spare Parts Sector

• Use tools such as Google Keyword Planner, Ahrefs, and SEMrush to find the most searched and low-competition keywords.
• Focus on long-tail keywords. For example:
  • Incorrect: “Tire” → Too broad a term, leading to low conversion rates.
  • Correct: “How to choose the best tires in winter?” → More specific and customer-oriented.
• Identify keywords that include city or region names for local SEO. For example: “Istanbul car repair service” or “Ankara BMW spare parts”.

2. Strengthen Technical SEO

Technical SEO helps Google crawl your website faster, index it, and improve the overall user experience. Even high-quality content will not boost your rankings if your site has technical SEO issues.

What to Do for Technical SEO Optimization in Spare Parts SEO Efforts:

• ✔ Perform a mobile compatibility test: Check if your site is mobile-friendly using Google’s Mobile-Friendly Test.
• ✔ Optimize your page speed: Slow-loading sites fall behind in rankings. Use Google PageSpeed Insights for speed tests.
• ✔ Use an SSL certificate: Websites without HTTPS are flagged as insecure by Google.
• ✔ Add Schema Markup (Structured Data): Include data such as pricing, stock information, and customer reviews on your product pages to attract more attention in search results.

3. Optimize Stock Codes and OEM Codes

For websites selling spare parts in the automotive sector, stock codes and OEM (Original Equipment Manufacturer) codes are very important. Customers often search directly by these codes to find the exact product they need.

Why Are Stock Codes and OEM Codes Important in Automotive Spare Parts SEO?

• Google indexes pages with stock codes more accurately.
• Pages with stock and OEM codes ensure that users find exactly the product they are looking for.

What Should You Do?

• Always include the stock code in the product title and description.
• Create an SEO-friendly URL structure by incorporating the stock code:
  • Incorrect URL Example: site.com/product?id=12345
  • Correct URL Example: site.com/bmw-e90-front-bumper-oem
• Provide additional information such as “This OEM code is compatible with these vehicles” to further guide the user.

4. Develop an Internal Linking Strategy

Internal linking helps Google better understand your website and keeps users engaged longer, thereby increasing conversion rates. It is an essential step in executing SEO in the spare parts sector.

Most Effective Methods for Internal Linking in Automotive Spare Parts SEO Efforts:

• Link to main category pages: For example, if you’re selling brake pads, add sections like “Customers who bought this also viewed” to suggest similar products.
• Increase relevance by linking from older blog posts to new content.
• Use internal links with relevant keywords. For example:
  • Incorrect: “Check out this product, click here.”
  • Correct: “Discover the most affordable options for BMW E90 front bumpers.”

5. Optimize Your Crawl Budget

Google allocates a specific crawl budget for each website. Unnecessary pages can consume this budget, causing your important pages to be indexed later.

To Ensure Google Crawls Your Priority Pages:

• Hide unnecessary pages from search engines using the “noindex” tag.
• Optimize your robots.txt file to block unneeded directories.
• Create an XML sitemap to inform Google of your most important pages.

6. Optimize Your Product Descriptions

Using standard manufacturer descriptions can negatively affect your SEO because Google values original content more.

For Effective Product Descriptions:

• Detail the product’s technical specifications.
• List the compatible vehicle models.
• Create a structure that answers common questions.

💡 Example of a Poor Description: “This brake pad is a quality product produced by brand X.” ❌

💡 Example of a Good Description: “Brake pads compatible with the BMW 3 Series (E90) offer long-lasting and quiet braking performance. OEM Code: 123456789.” ✅

7. Pay Attention to Visual SEO Optimization and the Use of ALT Tags

In the automotive sector, visuals are among the most influential elements in customer decision-making. However, simply uploading high-quality images is not enough; they must be optimized for SEO.

How to Optimize Images for SEO?

• Make image file names descriptive.
  • Incorrect: IMG001.jpg
  • Correct: bmw-e90-front-bumper.jpg
• Add ALT text. Google cannot read images, but it understands their content through ALT tags.
• Reduce image sizes and use the WebP format. Large images slow down your site and negatively affect SEO.
• Add OEM codes to your images to gain more visibility in Google Image Search.

8. Emphasize Local SEO Efforts

If you sell automotive spare parts or provide service solutions, local SEO efforts can help you reach customers in your area.

What to Do for Local SEO in the Automotive SEO Process:

• ✅ Create and update your Google My Business listing.
• ✅ Enter your business address, phone number, and hours of operation completely.
• ✅ Encourage your customers to leave Google reviews.
• ✅ Create content that includes local keywords. (Example: “Best Maintenance Tips for Istanbul BMW Service”)
• ✅ Optimize your “About Us” and “Contact” pages to appear in map results.

💡 Example: If you run an auto repair service, strengthen your local SEO to appear in searches like “Nearest Auto Repair Service” on Google Maps.

9. Conduct Competitor Analysis

One of the best ways to succeed in SEO is to analyze what your competitors are doing and turn their shortcomings into your advantage.

How to Conduct Competitor Analysis in Automotive Spare Parts SEO Efforts:

• Analyze which keywords your competitors are ranking for.
• Examine your competitors’ content strategies to identify missing topics.
• Research which sites are providing backlinks to them, and try to obtain similar backlinks for your site.

💡 Example: Use tools like Ahrefs or SEMrush to see which pages of your top competitors are driving the most traffic.

10. Optimize Category and Product URLs

SEO-friendly URLs make it easier for both search engines and users to understand your page.

Correct and Incorrect URL Examples for SEO

❌ Incorrect: site.com/product?id=12345

✅ Correct: site.com/bmw-e90-front-bumper

• Use keywords in your URLs.
• Avoid unnecessary parameters.
• Create short and descriptive URLs.

11. Enhance User Experience

Google ranks websites that offer a good user experience higher. Therefore, SEO isn’t limited to content and technical optimizations; having a user-friendly website is also crucial.

What to Do for User Experience:

• Your pages should load quickly.
• Product filtering options should be user-friendly.
• Enhance mobile usability.
• Provide live support, FAQs, and easy return policies.

💡 Example: Improve customer experience on your e-commerce site by adding a “Customers who bought this also bought” recommendation.

12. Utilize Blogging and Content Marketing

Google loves informative and useful content. Instead of focusing solely on product pages, create content that benefits your potential customers.

Automotive Blog Content Suggestions:

📌 “How to Choose Motor Oil?”

📌 “Which are the Best Winter Tire Brands?”

📌 “When Should Brake Pads Be Replaced?”

Such content encourages users to visit your site and perceive your brand as a reliable source of information.

13. Acquire Quality Backlinks

Backlinks increase Google’s trust in your website and can boost your rankings. However, not all backlinks are equal; acquiring low-quality or spam links can harm your site.

Ways to Acquire Quality Backlinks:

• ✔ Obtain backlinks from authoritative automotive blogs and news sites.
• ✔ Earn natural backlinks by contributing to forums and social media.
• ✔ Analyze your competitors’ backlinks and try to secure links from similar sources.

💡 Example: Reach out to renowned sites to have your website featured in lists such as “Best Automotive Blogs.”

14. Leverage Customer Reviews

Google displays customer reviews in search results. Utilizing user reviews for SEO not only boosts your rankings but also builds trust with customers.

How to Optimize Customer Reviews for SEO:

• Add customer reviews to your product pages.
• Display reviews in search results using Google Rich Snippets.
• Encourage users to leave reviews.

15. Continuously Monitor Your SEO Performance

SEO is an ever-evolving process. To be successful, you must regularly analyze your performance.

📊 Use Google Analytics and Search Console to analyze your site’s traffic data.
📊 Update your pages if you notice declining rankings.
📊 Monitor your competitors to refine your SEO strategy.