Of all the industries creating video ads these days, the car sales industry probably has the most negative reputation. The simple words “car salesman” can conjure up images of high-pressure sales tactics, hours spent in a tiny dealership office, and smarmy sales pitches.

But in this internet age, it’s no longer the case that people just walk into a car dealership and start shopping. They’re not walking in cold. They’ve already done their research—mostly online. So you have to meet them in that online space to maintain a competitive edge. And that’s why compelling automotive video ads are absolutely indispensable for dealerships and used car lots.

In this post, we’re featuring eight auto ads that are doing well on social media. There are a number of different approaches here, but they’re all solid and legitimate. Read on to see what businesses are doing right.

1. This TikTok video manages to invite viewers to come buy a car at Empire Car Sales without featuring a single car in the video. How? Simple. Instead of showing off inventory, the ad features good-looking twin brothers with mean dance moves strutting their stuff while wearing Empire Car Sales t-shirts. The call to action is in the caption. More than 650,000 people have watched this ad, so you know they’re doing something right.

2. The father-son team of Classic Cars for Sale takes a traditional approach to their video ad. They spend the first minute and a half of the ad earnestly explaining how their business differs from other classic car dealerships. Then they take the viewer on a tour of the interior and exterior of a few of their vehicles.

3. Another classic car establishment has created a complete online video inventory of all the cars they have in stock. In this ad for Maple Motors Muscle Cars, viewers can see the outside of every single car in the lot. If you see one you’re interested in, you can look up the individual video for that car through Maple Motors’ YouTube page. This allows interested buyers to shop for a car in the comfort of their own home. The ad has been viewed 2 million times.

4. This video ad by My Exciting Vlogs is for a car dealership in India. The video starts off with a branded introduction reel, and then cuts to two men discussing the dealership’s luxury SUVs for sale. Finally, they take viewers on a tour of the interior and exterior of each vehicle. It’s effective, and has been viewed more than 160,000 times.

5. Content marketing is big these days, and this video on the best new cars of 2021 to 2023 from carwow has the views to prove it—680,000 of them. The video shows official footage of each car overlaid with a green-screen video of the speaker explaining the pros and cons. Viewers who are researching which car to buy are directed to carwow’s comparison shopping site at the end. This ad helps people do their research and gives them a convenient place to continue the car search.

6. Another content marketing example, this video from AutoTrader features a discussion of the best used cars to buy, including footage of the speaker searching the cars on the AutoTrader website. The video also incorporates official footage of these cars from the manufacturers. This strategy is effective because it targets people who are already looking for a used car to buy, and directs them to the AutoTrader website.

7. The social media whiz behind this truck ad knows his audience: people who get fired up by trucks. The short ad show off the outside of a new rig, accompanied by pumping hip-hop beats. The pitch is similarly simple. A caption at the end instructs interested buyers to send a private message for more information. The casual call to action makes the salesman feel as approachable as a close friend. This video has been viewed over 110,000 times.

8. Our final example might be our favorite, and it’s incredibly low-tech. In this unassuming video from Lakehead Motors, the videographer carries his cell phone through the office and interviews customers and employees, asking, “If you could have any truck from Lakehead Motors, what would it be?” When they reply, a caption pops up displaying their answer. This helps make the video accessible to people who watch videos on mobile with the sound turned off. (By the way, that’s most people.) 

The viewer gets an idea of which cars are desirable without the salesman having to sound, well, salesy. It’s clever and effective—more than 50,000 people have viewed the video.