How We Helped CARSTAR Drive Additional $300K in Monthly Revenue

CARSTAR | Automotive

USA

The Challenge

CARSTAR is one of North America’s largest automotive franchises under the Driven Brands empire. While their Houston franchisees were successfully generating revenue, the vast majority of their business came from Direct Repair Program (DRP) referrals from insurance companies.

To build long-term stability and scale, Ambassador Collision needed to reduce their dependency on these insurance referrals by dramatically increasing their independent brand awareness and direct-to-consumer digital presence. Furthermore, as they scaled, they needed the operational infrastructure to handle a massive influx of new retail customers, B2B fleet accounts, and new staff. The goal was to build a comprehensive marketing strategy that bridged the gap between lead generation and internal operational readiness.

The Results

By optimizing the entire conversion process, from the first click to the customer review, we successfully transformed CARSTAR’s lead generation engine.

The integrated campaigns drove $300,000 in extra monthly revenue, directly fueling the successful launch of 5 new franchise locations.
We reduced the historical average cost-per-lead from $72 down to $46.30 per conversion on search campaigns.
The Performance Max campaign alone generated 8.46 million impressions and 3,770 conversions.
Over 20 service categories and blog articles created to support long-term organic traffic.
The strategic bidding and optimized ad creatives yielded a 7.2% conversion rate and a 6.42% Click-Through Rate (CTR), a 5% YoY increase that far exceeded collision industry standards.

The Strategy

We operated as a true business partner to Ambassador Collision, aligning aggressive external marketing with internal operational efficiency.
We restructured their Google Ads strategy to capture high-intent traffic, deploying highly optimized Search and Performance Max (PMax) campaigns. We utilized bilingual search ads to capture Houston's diverse demographic, driving campaigns like "PM Leads" and "PM Clientes" alongside location-specific campaigns for their Griggs, Tidwell, and Montgomery shops. To maximize conversions, we designed mobile-responsive Unbounce landing pages in both English and Spanish for A/B testing, featuring seamless online booking and strong "Your One-Stop Auto Body Shop" calls to action.
We documented the repair process from start to finish, creating highly engaging before-and-after transformation videos. Combined with a strategic hashtag approach, this content generated over 4 million views and 300,000 likes on TikTok, while our high-quality promotional business videos generated over 50,000 views.
To grow B2B revenue by a targeted 3%, we scraped Texas SOS business licensing directories to prospect local towing, food handling, and dealership fleets. We integrated this data into HubSpot and launched automated email and SMS outreach tailored to each specific industry, supplemented by targeted LinkedIn Premium outreach to key decision-makers.
Recognizing that tangible brand touchpoints convert, we developed a cohesive visual identity across all physical materials. We designed and printed "Damage gone, drive on" promotional flyers, location-specific trifolds outlining the hassle-free repair process, business cards, swag items, and a comprehensive, high-end "Fleet Portfolio" to use during fleet account presentations.
We created and optimized all Houston profiles across Google My Business, Apple Maps, Facebook, Instagram, Yelp, and key auto marketplace directories. We also built an internal workflow to help staff request and manage reviews, ensuring early traction with customer feedback.
Generating leads is only half the battle. We migrated all shop communications to Google Workspace and seamlessly integrated it with HubSpot CRM so customer service representatives could nurture leads effectively before passing them to the shop's main software. We also developed a robust internal web portal for staff, housing vendor lists, SOPs, HR paperwork, PTO requests, and a checkerboard workflow strategy to streamline operations.
To elevate the customer experience, we implemented automated SMS text updates detailing vehicle repair progress, as well as post-repair email sequences requesting surveys and online reviews.