SearchLab Digital is proud to announce that we have won Best Local Campaign at the 2025 US Agency Awards for our work with Jim Burke Ford in Bakersfield, California. This award recognizes the strength of our local SEO strategy and reinforces our position as a leading agency in local search.
Why This Campaign Won
The winning entry, “From Search to Showroom,” focused on improving visibility, relevance, and conversions for a dealership operating in one of California’s most competitive auto markets.
The judges summarized the campaign as:
“An exemplary local SEO campaign that turned content relevance into real commercial impact. Focusing on high-intent, localised assets drove major gains in visibility, leads, and revenue. Their hands-on client coaching and user-first approach made this a standout example of dealership SEO done with precision.”
The Strategy Behind the Award-Winning Campaign
To improve the dealership’s digital performance, SearchLab Digital executed a three-pillar approach:
1. Customer-First Content
We focused on real questions from Ford owners and local car shoppers, creating high-value content that answered specific, high-intent queries.
Example topics included:
- “How to turn off Ford MyKey without the admin key”
- “Ford Explorer vs. Hyundai Palisade comparisons”
This strategy built trust and positioned the dealership as a reliable resource.
2. Google Business Profile Optimization
We rebuilt the GBP to improve accuracy, visibility, and engagement. Key updates included:
- Review management
- Accurate UTM tracking
- Localized updates that reflected the dealership’s voice
3. Conversion-Focused Site Enhancements
The website experience was redesigned to guide users toward meaningful actions. This included:
- Clearer CTAs
- Improved navigation
- Better paths to schedule service or test drives
The results? Traffic, leads, and engagement all surpassed our goals and the dealership reclaimed its position as one of the most visible Ford resources in the region.
A Landmark Year for SearchLab Digital
This award comes on the heels of another major achievement: Winning Best Local Campaign (SEO) at the 2025 US Search Awards, where we were also shortlisted in three categories.
Two wins. Three shortlists. And one of the strongest years we’ve ever had as an agency.
These recognitions reinforce what we’ve always believed: SearchLab is setting the standard for local SEO and PPC done right.
Our team is committed to clarity, precision, and strategies that actually help businesses grow.
What This Means for Our Clients and Team
This award reflects the collective expertise of SearchLab’s content, technical SEO, PPC, and analytics teams. Every member contributed to creating a campaign that resonated with both customers and judges.
For businesses, this win reinforces why SearchLab is a trusted partner: We deliver local SEO and PPC strategies that improve visibility, build trust, and drive measurable outcomes.
For our team, it’s a moment to celebrate the work we produce every day and that stands out across the entire digital marketing industry.
Looking Ahead
SearchLab Digital will continue to expand its research, refine its local SEO frameworks, and support more dealerships, law firms, service-based businesses, and multi-location brands.
Our mission remains the same: Make search simple, solve real customer problems, and deliver results that matter.
Thank you to the Jim Burke Ford team for trusting us and congratulations to everyone at SearchLab for an incredible win.
