Automotive advertisers spent more than £70 million on performance marketing and lead generation activities in 2013, 15% more (on a like-for-like basis) than in 2012.

And according to the second annual Online Performance Marketing study, conducted by PwC for the Internet Advertising Bureau UK (IAB) automotive is a key sector online, accounting for 7.3% of the total market ad spend of £1 billion, by UK business.

This spend generated £14bn in sales via price comparison, voucher, cashback, review and automotive websites – the most common forms of online performance marketing (OPM). This represents a return of £14 for every £1 invested by advertisers.

In 2013, UK consumers made 150 million purchases via performance websites – three for every British adult – totalling £13bn. A billion pounds in sales was generated from Britons submitting contact forms.

This means OPM now drives about 10% of all UK e-commerce retail sales.

Chris Green, co-founder and director of automotive website Motoring.co.uk, said: “The internet is without doubt the first starting point for consumers looking to buy a car and with the latest Google stats telling us that 94% of car buyers start their research online, it is imperative that manufacturers and dealers showcase their brand and offers very early on in the buying cycle, in order to capture the interest of early bird consideration buyers.

“Using classified advertising and large branded websites are historically no brainers, but it is clear to see that manufacturers and dealers are getting smarter when reaching out to consumers in the whole buying cycle. The internet allows businesses like motoring.co.uk to work much smarter and move quickly in order to capture consumers, so that our partners can engage and transact with them, at the right time.

“This research, which shows that for every £1 spent on performance marketing the return is £14, is fantastic and especially for the automotive sector, where there is huge wastage with big brand publishers.

"Performance marketing is simply measurable and it makes us work harder and smarter for our clients, in order to generate the much needed ROI, in a tough climate.”

Performance marketing pays out only on a completed action. Often the action is based on a sale (cost per sale) or a lead (cost per lead).