How a Syracuse-Area Ford Dealer Expanded Its Reach and Moved 26% More F-150s Than a Local Competitor

A Syracuse-area Ford dealership already had a dedicated F-150 paid search campaign to reach truck shoppers in its primary market. But their Catalyst IQ Dealer Success Manager (DSM) saw an opportunity to go further using MarketAI real-time data.

Using market and inventory insights, engaged sessions nearly doubled and the dealership moved 26% more 2026 F-150s than a local competitor despite receiving slightly less inventory.

The Opportunity: Reach More Truck Shoppers Beyond the Primary Market 

Located in the Syracuse area, the dealership served a mix of urban and suburban customers. About 45 minutes east, the market became more rural and presented an opportunity to reach additional truck shoppers. 

Using MarketAI’s real-time competitive insights, the DSM could see where the dealership’s competitors were located and identify opportunities to win in a new market.

Those insights pointed to Oneida as a market to compete in with a separate campaign—extending the dealership’s reach without disrupting the F-150 strategy already working in its primary market.  

The Strategy: Take a Proven Truck Strategy into a New Market 

The Catalyst IQ team launched a dedicated paid search campaign targeting a five-mile radius around Oneida.

Rather than focusing only on the F-150, the campaign included keywords for F-150, F-250 and F-350 models, along with price-related searches designed to reach shoppers researching truck options.  

This allowed the dealership to:

• Expand geographically into a distinct, new market.

• Reach more truck shoppers without changing the dealership's existing F-150 campaign.

• Broaden its truck strategy with F-150 and Super Duty model and price-related searches.  

The goal was to keep what was already working and add a focused campaign where there was additional opportunity to drive new truck sales. 

The Results: More Reach, More Movement

The new search campaign did exactly what it was designed to do: Put the dealership in front of more truck shoppers.

In a four-month comparison after the campaign had been running , engaged VDP sessions increased from 82 to 166, a 102% increase.

The dealership also moved 26% more 2026 F-150s than a local competitor, becoming a top competitive truck mover without requiring the largest truck inventory. Its 38.3% turn rate was 2.9 percentage points higher than the market’s 35.4% rate.

Find Growth Beyond Your Primary Market 

A campaign doesn't have to be underperforming to have room for improvement.

For this Ford dealership, the opportunity was outside its existing footprint. By identifying an additional truck-focused market and building a dedicated strategy to reach those shoppers, the Catalyst IQ team helped the dealership expand its visibility and outperform local competitors in F-150 movement, without abandoning what was already working.

Could your dealership be missing demand beyond its current campaign footprint? Talk with our team about where another focused market opportunity may exist.