Blog - PartsEdge

Sarah Ciociola: How Is Digital Search Changing for Parts and Service Departments?

Written by PartsEdge | Feb 10, 2026 4:50:57 PM

What Digital Marketing Strategies Work Best for Fixed Ops?

 

Effective fixed ops marketing relies on audience specificity. Sarah Ciociola describes profile based marketing as a way to deliver relevant content to defined customer groups.

Instead of one message for everyone, dealerships segment by customer type and intent. This allows marketing to speak directly to commuters, parents, or enthusiasts with messaging that reflects how they actually use their vehicles.

Paid search and paid social campaigns work best when supported by advanced tracking. Call ads and attribution tools help separate service engagement from vehicle sales activity, giving clearer insight into what performs.

 

How Can Dealerships Use Social Media and Staff Content?

 

Social platforms allow dealership teams to contribute directly to digital visibility. Staff created content brings familiarity and credibility that traditional ads often lack.

Encouraging employees to share behind the scenes views, how to explanations, or day to day service moments adds authenticity. That organic content can then be reused in paid campaigns to extend reach while preserving trust.

This approach reflects how large brands amplify internal voices to support brand presence without relying only on polished advertising.

 

What Metrics Should Teams Track?

 

Evaluating success based only on form submissions or call volume gives an incomplete picture. Sarah Ciociola emphasizes engagement as a more accurate indicator of performance.

Engagement includes how customers interact with scheduling tools, educational pages, and digital retail experiences. Measuring repeat visits and interaction depth shows whether marketing efforts build long term confidence.

Benchmarking should prioritize internal trends. Month over month and year over year comparisons provide clearer insight than generic industry averages.

 

What Roles and Resources Support Digital Success?

 

Strong digital execution requires ownership and consistency. Dealerships see better outcomes when marketing has a dedicated leader coordinating vendors, content, and reporting.

Content creation increasingly exists inside the dealership, supported by partners that provide automation, reporting, and AI driven scale. This structure allows teams to maintain momentum without stopping and restarting initiatives.

Consistency remains a central theme. Digital performance improves when efforts remain active and aligned over time rather than reacting sporadically.

 

Conclusion

 

Digital visibility for parts and service departments depends on education, relevance, and sustained engagement. Fixed ops teams that adapt to discovery based search, profile driven marketing, and authentic content gain stronger positioning throughout the customer journey.

The insights shared by Kaylee Felio and Sarah Ciociola reinforce that success comes from meeting customers earlier, measuring engagement thoughtfully, and committing to consistent execution.

 

 

Listen to the episode: 

https://open.spotify.com/episode/4Fe7ST6mC9PQ8WXu9gWNQg?si=3S-2uH0iRqC2jptB-kAMqw

 

 

Watch to the episode: