What is co-op advertising?
Co-op (cooperative) advertising is an arrangement where a manufacturer or brand shares the cost of local advertising run by its retailers or dealers, usually by reimbursing an agreed percentage of eligible spend after proof that the activity ran.
In automotive, co-op advertising funds flow from a brand, importer, or National Sales Company (NSC) to franchised dealers. The dealer plans and pays for local marketing — social campaigns, events, local media — and claims back a share according to the program's rules: eligible channels, required brand standards, co-funding percentage, and caps.
Programs stand or fall on administration. Every claim needs an approved plan, evidence the campaign ran (proof of performance), and an invoice that matches eligible spend. Done over email and spreadsheets, validating all of that consumes much of the value the funds create.
In practice
In Sizle, co-op budgets are allocated by market, brand, and dealer; campaigns are approved against them before money is spent; and claims inherit their eligibility from the approved plan, with evidence and invoices validated on the same record.