Social media for car dealers - You must converse to convert.
We have all seen the stats for social media and yes it is obvious car dealers target audience's are out there. One of the main problems dealers face is how to grab the audience by the scruff of the neck and make them listen, which is a real challenge.
When using your facebook or twitter account many dealers are interested in one thing, that’s converting followers to sales leads by constantly attempting to sell, sell, sell. Recently I had to remove a number of companies who were spamming my news feed with non-related content. Many dealers struggle to find time to simply converse with members as part of their social media car marketing strategy; we think this is a wasted opportunity.
However you must earn the right to converse - and converse in the correct manner. Social media is the place to converse within a relaxed environment, rather a coffee shop than an underground rave. You need to be adding value through your comments and content posted to your social media pages - just as you try to do with your service. Listening to your online community will help diffuse potential negativity from a painful car dealer experience, as illustrated in Lauren's blog yesterday.
Social media is something that BMW do well, no wonder they have been voted the No.1 Facebook automotive brand:
They want to know what the consumer thinks, whether it be good or bad: They are there to listen. Starting the conversation also improves the chances that your posts will appear in news feeds. More feedback on a post will result in you appearing higher in your followers' news feeds, as posts are algorithmically sorted to identify important posts.
To gain credibility you must also post from the customers’ perspective and understand that social media is not just a channel to broadcast communications but to listen to your consumers - listening will differentiate your car dealership's marketing strategy from the competition.
Submitted by Rorie Hannigan
