Do you Vine?

Vine is a mobile app created by Twitter that allows you to create short, 6-second video clips, or what could be similiar to an animated gif. The videos can be shared through the app and through Twitter, using hashtags such as #food, #travel, and #pets. It just debuted this week and its impact has been almost immediate in the social networking world. So what are these videos like? People are dubbing it as "the Instagram for Twitter," but through their blog they say:

Posts on Vine are about abbreviation — the shortened form of something larger. They're little windows into the people, settings, ideas and objects that make up your life. They're quirky, and we think that's part of what makes them so special.

Instagram, Pinterest, Twitter, and now even Vine are shouting one thing to digital marketing enthusiasts everywhere - original content wins and keep it short. Facebook sure doesn't like it - maybe because its the competitor to their newly acquired Instagram?

Either way, Mark Zuckerberg barely sneezed at the creation of Google+ yet he cut off access from Vine to Facebook the same week of the app's debut. Mark has every right to be scared. Check out Vine's "explore screen" where you can easily search by hashtags, and then your user newsfeed once you start to follow some users:

Users are already uploading photos of their cars, although mostly going through car washes and during their morning commute. They've developed a new hashtag of their own - #DontDriveAndVine - hence the name of this blog:

It's easy to film using the app - just hit the camera button on the top right of your newsfeed and you'll see this filming screen. Press on the screen for as long as you want to film. So you can film the cup and press your finger for one second, move the cup, press your finger and film for another second, so on and so forth to create that "animated gif" or "stop motion" look:

What we can learn from the immediate success of Vine:

1. Short advertisements work best. - The most successful ads are video pre-roll in YouTube, Twitter promoted posts or Facebook sponsored stories. They are all 140 characters or a few second long. Six seconds is the attention span of Vine, that should be a cue to all advertisers - digital or not.

2. We are visual learners. - Vine, Instagram, Pinterest, recent Facebook and Google+ updates all have one thing in common - VISUALS. Photos or videos, visuals are working best. Of course, there is a strong argument for text-only posts on Facebook receiving the most engagement, but it is interesting to see how all of this is playing out. All I know is after working on a Mac and iPhone all day long with this social networks as soon as I jump on my dad's Windows computer I'm completely lost. There's such a lack of clean navigational design. Which end of the design spectrum does your website lie?

3. More is more. - More social networks don't scary the average consumer. They are, after all, the masters of consuming. As marketers, we tend to scratch our heads and say, "OK, how does this fit for my business?" and while we're wasting time trying to figure it out all of our customers are diving head first into new platforms. And one platform does erase another. There will always be a spot for radio and TV, so on and so forth. Our biggest challenge is keeping up and adapting as fast - if not faster- than our customers.

Have you caught the "Vine" yet? What do you think?

​Connect with me on the app: @CLRochelle  

Christine Rochelle, PCG

 Christine@PCGmailer.com

 732-450-8200

Do you Vine?

Vine is a mobile app created by Twitter that allows you to create short, 6-second video clips, or what could be similiar to an animated gif. The videos can be shared through the app and through Twitter, using hashtags such as #food, #travel, and #pets. It just debuted this week and its impact has been almost immediate in the social networking world. So what are these videos like? People are dubbing it as "the Instagram for Twitter," but through their blog they say:

Posts on Vine are about abbreviation — the shortened form of something larger. They're little windows into the people, settings, ideas and objects that make up your life. They're quirky, and we think that's part of what makes them so special.

Instagram, Pinterest, Twitter, and now even Vine are shouting one thing to digital marketing enthusiasts everywhere - original content wins and keep it short. Facebook sure doesn't like it - maybe because its the competitor to their newly acquired Instagram?

Either way, Mark Zuckerberg barely sneezed at the creation of Google+ yet he cut off access from Vine to Facebook the same week of the app's debut. Mark has every right to be scared. Check out Vine's "explore screen" where you can easily search by hashtags, and then your user newsfeed once you start to follow some users:

Users are already uploading photos of their cars, although mostly going through car washes and during their morning commute. They've developed a new hashtag of their own - #DontDriveAndVine - hence the name of this blog:

It's easy to film using the app - just hit the camera button on the top right of your newsfeed and you'll see this filming screen. Press on the screen for as long as you want to film. So you can film the cup and press your finger for one second, move the cup, press your finger and film for another second, so on and so forth to create that "animated gif" or "stop motion" look:

What we can learn from the immediate success of Vine:

1. Short advertisements work best. - The most successful ads are video pre-roll in YouTube, Twitter promoted posts or Facebook sponsored stories. They are all 140 characters or a few second long. Six seconds is the attention span of Vine, that should be a cue to all advertisers - digital or not.

2. We are visual learners. - Vine, Instagram, Pinterest, recent Facebook and Google+ updates all have one thing in common - VISUALS. Photos or videos, visuals are working best. Of course, there is a strong argument for text-only posts on Facebook receiving the most engagement, but it is interesting to see how all of this is playing out. All I know is after working on a Mac and iPhone all day long with this social networks as soon as I jump on my dad's Windows computer I'm completely lost. There's such a lack of clean navigational design. Which end of the design spectrum does your website lie?

3. More is more. - More social networks don't scary the average consumer. They are, after all, the masters of consuming. As marketers, we tend to scratch our heads and say, "OK, how does this fit for my business?" and while we're wasting time trying to figure it out all of our customers are diving head first into new platforms. And one platform does erase another. There will always be a spot for radio and TV, so on and so forth. Our biggest challenge is keeping up and adapting as fast - if not faster- than our customers.

Have you caught the "Vine" yet? What do you think?

​Connect with me on the app: @CLRochelle  

Christine Rochelle, PCG

 Christine@PCGmailer.com

 732-450-8200

Even though new car sales are the main focus at any dealership, the most dollars and the most foot traffic are found in the service lane.

So if Google is going to mark videos as the holy grail of contest in search, online video content about your service department just makes sense. 

But why aren't any dealers doing it?

There could be a list of reasons why service gets the short end of the stick when it comes to branding or advertising, but these five dealerships are great examples in service videos done RIGHT. 

1. Educational

Kingsway Toyota's video on tires is short and to the point and is certainly perfect for their Canadian market. 

This Indiana Chevrolet dealer created a fantastic how-to and educational video on their transmission flush service.

2. Behind the Scenes

Eastside Dodge isn't going to tell you why you should get an oil change or why you should come to them, instead they're going to show you what exactly happens when you bring your vehicle in to them. 

Your average customer has no idea how a dealership works, and that's why many of them come into the store with their guard up. Waldorf Ford gives viewers a look behind their Parts department.

3. Why Service Your Vehicle at a Dealership

Content, whether written or videos, is best derived from your FAQS right inside the dealership. Drivers want to know what the difference is between a dealership and the local auto repair shop. Educating the customer on that difference is what this Acura dealershp does in this oil change video. 

This Ford dealership offers the customers several reasons why to buy tires from a dealership in just over a minute.

Drop some of your favorite dealership videos - whether parts, new, used - in the comments section. The more we share, the more we can learn from one another.

Even though new car sales are the main focus at any dealership, the most dollars and the most foot traffic are found in the service lane.

So if Google is going to mark videos as the holy grail of contest in search, online video content about your service department just makes sense. 

But why aren't any dealers doing it?

There could be a list of reasons why service gets the short end of the stick when it comes to branding or advertising, but these five dealerships are great examples in service videos done RIGHT. 

1. Educational

Kingsway Toyota's video on tires is short and to the point and is certainly perfect for their Canadian market. 

This Indiana Chevrolet dealer created a fantastic how-to and educational video on their transmission flush service.

2. Behind the Scenes

Eastside Dodge isn't going to tell you why you should get an oil change or why you should come to them, instead they're going to show you what exactly happens when you bring your vehicle in to them. 

Your average customer has no idea how a dealership works, and that's why many of them come into the store with their guard up. Waldorf Ford gives viewers a look behind their Parts department.

3. Why Service Your Vehicle at a Dealership

Content, whether written or videos, is best derived from your FAQS right inside the dealership. Drivers want to know what the difference is between a dealership and the local auto repair shop. Educating the customer on that difference is what this Acura dealershp does in this oil change video. 

This Ford dealership offers the customers several reasons why to buy tires from a dealership in just over a minute.

Drop some of your favorite dealership videos - whether parts, new, used - in the comments section. The more we share, the more we can learn from one another.

For weeks I've found myself saying the same one-liner, "reviews are missing from your Google+ Local listing, we reported it to Google but there's not much else we can do."

I find myself cringing every time I have to utter those words. I send them the link on Google's response to missing reviews, which really doesn't say much, and then we all wait. After coaching a dealer to ask customers to post reviews for them on Google, how do you explain to them why Google would then delete nearly every single one of those positive reviews, only leaving the negative reviews behind? For two years I have motivated dealers to hop on the Google train, branding them online as "Top Rated Dealer on Google" - but they aren't the top rated dealer anymore.

Did we all make a big Google mistake?

I've looked outside the auto industry and I have been tracking the very same issues for other businesses. Mike Blumenthal of Blumenthals.com has even took it upon himself to collect all the issues pertaining to missing reviews so that they are reported on the Google forum in one post. He also posts his own formula on the missing reviews.

Since there is not much a client or SEO can do, I also provide them with the 6,6,6 rule for lost reviews to guide them as to what to expect in terms of recovery of the reviews. It might offer some small comfort.

 

What is the 6,6,6 review rule? (any client imagined thoughts about the devil suggested by my guideline are actively encouraged)

 

• If reviews don’t come back to the Google Places page in 6 days, they might return in 6 weeks
• If they don’t return in 6 weeks they might return in 6 months
• If they don’t return in 6 months they have descended to Dante’s 6th Ring of Hell

Joking aside, what are the next steps for a dealer who has had their reviews missing from Google? And what about a dealer who has had all of their positive reviews go missing?

Google is a free tool, after all, we don't have to use it. In fact, when you create a Google login their terms of service that you probably blindly accepted made that very clear:

"OTHER THAN AS EXPRESSLY SET OUT IN THESE TERMS OR ADDITIONAL TERMS, NEITHER GOOGLE NOR ITS SUPPLIERS OR DISTRIBUTORS MAKE ANY SPECIFIC PROMISES ABOUT THE SERVICES. FOR EXAMPLE, WE DON’T MAKE ANY COMMITMENTS ABOUT THE CONTENT WITHIN THE SERVICES, THE SPECIFIC FUNCTION OF THE SERVICES, OR THEIR RELIABILITY, AVAILABILITY, OR ABILITY TO MEET YOUR NEEDS. WE PROVIDE THE SERVICES 'AS IS'." 

Did we make a mistake in molding a business' digital presence around something no one has control over? Do we start over, or do we keep fighting?

I'd love to know your thoughts on this.

For weeks I've found myself saying the same one-liner, "reviews are missing from your Google+ Local listing, we reported it to Google but there's not much else we can do."

I find myself cringing every time I have to utter those words. I send them the link on Google's response to missing reviews, which really doesn't say much, and then we all wait. After coaching a dealer to ask customers to post reviews for them on Google, how do you explain to them why Google would then delete nearly every single one of those positive reviews, only leaving the negative reviews behind? For two years I have motivated dealers to hop on the Google train, branding them online as "Top Rated Dealer on Google" - but they aren't the top rated dealer anymore.

Did we all make a big Google mistake?

I've looked outside the auto industry and I have been tracking the very same issues for other businesses. Mike Blumenthal of Blumenthals.com has even took it upon himself to collect all the issues pertaining to missing reviews so that they are reported on the Google forum in one post. He also posts his own formula on the missing reviews.

Since there is not much a client or SEO can do, I also provide them with the 6,6,6 rule for lost reviews to guide them as to what to expect in terms of recovery of the reviews. It might offer some small comfort.

 

What is the 6,6,6 review rule? (any client imagined thoughts about the devil suggested by my guideline are actively encouraged)

 

• If reviews don’t come back to the Google Places page in 6 days, they might return in 6 weeks
• If they don’t return in 6 weeks they might return in 6 months
• If they don’t return in 6 months they have descended to Dante’s 6th Ring of Hell

Joking aside, what are the next steps for a dealer who has had their reviews missing from Google? And what about a dealer who has had all of their positive reviews go missing?

Google is a free tool, after all, we don't have to use it. In fact, when you create a Google login their terms of service that you probably blindly accepted made that very clear:

"OTHER THAN AS EXPRESSLY SET OUT IN THESE TERMS OR ADDITIONAL TERMS, NEITHER GOOGLE NOR ITS SUPPLIERS OR DISTRIBUTORS MAKE ANY SPECIFIC PROMISES ABOUT THE SERVICES. FOR EXAMPLE, WE DON’T MAKE ANY COMMITMENTS ABOUT THE CONTENT WITHIN THE SERVICES, THE SPECIFIC FUNCTION OF THE SERVICES, OR THEIR RELIABILITY, AVAILABILITY, OR ABILITY TO MEET YOUR NEEDS. WE PROVIDE THE SERVICES 'AS IS'." 

Did we make a mistake in molding a business' digital presence around something no one has control over? Do we start over, or do we keep fighting?

I'd love to know your thoughts on this.

Defeated.

That is how I would describe many dealers who believe they are “doing social media” but aren't getting the engagement they're looking for. Whenever I sense that a dealer is starting to feel that their time is being wasted on social, I have two options:

1. I could whip up a fancy report with strategies, social tips, graphics, pie charts and stamp it with the PCG logo to let them know that I am an “expert” and as long as they follow this “strategy” they too, can win!

2. Or, I can admit that there's no such thing as a social media strategy and many dealers are looking at social the wrong way.

No social media strategy?! You're probably thinking that I got way too much sun this July 4^th and must be totally out of my mind for saying such a thing.

Here's why I say there's no such thing as a fancy-pants social media strategy (pie charts and all): Because social isn't a strategy, it is a communication plan.

If your dealership is looking to “do social” then I translate that into “we want to expand our communication plan.”

Of course none of the above exactly helps you. So here is my #1 social media secret: Get your staff involved.

The rationale behind that is that no one wants to be first to bat. For PCG, our engagement levels skyrocketed when PCG employees would engage with our posts because then other fans would follow suit.

We started this by posting more and more photos of our employees online in an effort to better communicate to our customer base what it is like to work at PCG. We didn't sit down and say, “okay team, what is our new Facebook strategy?” - we were simply pumping up our existing communication plan with one message in mind: "who is PCG?". 

From company BBQs, holiday parties, weekly training meetings, or community service photos – we put it all online. The employees would notice immediately, and start “liking”, commenting, or sharing the posts.

Our next step was to amp up our blog content with employee posts that we could then share on our social networks. Again, we would tag the employees when we shared their blog post and even email it to the entire staff.

The employees immediately reacted, and engagement grew even more.

Like I mentioned before, after each employee-driven post, we have other fans who will go ahead and comment or share our message we were pushing out through this new communication plan of showing who PCG was.

There is a lot you can do with social media, but my biggest piece of advice is to take it one step at a time and don't overwhelm yourself with “social strategies” that you can't commit to.

Take a step back, and start to think about social as a communication plan. Get your employees on board and the rest will start to fall into place.

What other social media communication plans have worked for you?

Defeated.

That is how I would describe many dealers who believe they are “doing social media” but aren't getting the engagement they're looking for. Whenever I sense that a dealer is starting to feel that their time is being wasted on social, I have two options:

1. I could whip up a fancy report with strategies, social tips, graphics, pie charts and stamp it with the PCG logo to let them know that I am an “expert” and as long as they follow this “strategy” they too, can win!

2. Or, I can admit that there's no such thing as a social media strategy and many dealers are looking at social the wrong way.

No social media strategy?! You're probably thinking that I got way too much sun this July 4^th and must be totally out of my mind for saying such a thing.

Here's why I say there's no such thing as a fancy-pants social media strategy (pie charts and all): Because social isn't a strategy, it is a communication plan.

If your dealership is looking to “do social” then I translate that into “we want to expand our communication plan.”

Of course none of the above exactly helps you. So here is my #1 social media secret: Get your staff involved.

The rationale behind that is that no one wants to be first to bat. For PCG, our engagement levels skyrocketed when PCG employees would engage with our posts because then other fans would follow suit.

We started this by posting more and more photos of our employees online in an effort to better communicate to our customer base what it is like to work at PCG. We didn't sit down and say, “okay team, what is our new Facebook strategy?” - we were simply pumping up our existing communication plan with one message in mind: "who is PCG?". 

From company BBQs, holiday parties, weekly training meetings, or community service photos – we put it all online. The employees would notice immediately, and start “liking”, commenting, or sharing the posts.

Our next step was to amp up our blog content with employee posts that we could then share on our social networks. Again, we would tag the employees when we shared their blog post and even email it to the entire staff.

The employees immediately reacted, and engagement grew even more.

Like I mentioned before, after each employee-driven post, we have other fans who will go ahead and comment or share our message we were pushing out through this new communication plan of showing who PCG was.

There is a lot you can do with social media, but my biggest piece of advice is to take it one step at a time and don't overwhelm yourself with “social strategies” that you can't commit to.

Take a step back, and start to think about social as a communication plan. Get your employees on board and the rest will start to fall into place.

What other social media communication plans have worked for you?

This past week I attended the 2012 BlogWorld & New Media Expo and was completely blown away with some of the speakers and presentations on content marketing and social media.

Some of the speakers I was already following around on the web, but some of them were new to me. I gain most of my inspiration from looking at non-automotive companies and how they're "doing" social media and then I apply that to the car industry.

I wanted to share who I thought were my current top 5 influencers that I believe every digital automotive professional should be looking to for inspiration for their social strategies. 

1. Lynette Young - Lynette stood up in front of the audience and announced that she owned Google+.  She is currently followed by 1.25 million people and through the Google+ circles she is actually connected to everyone who is currently on Google+. Lynette is releasing an e-Book on the platform this year, keep an eye out for it: http://lynetteyoung.com/

2. Derek Halpern - A well known podcaster, Derek actually started with his blog but hit it big with his podcast. Actually, he calls it a "master class" because he believes the word podcast devalues the content. Listen to Social Triggers here: http://socialtriggers.com/ 

3. Corbett Barr - A polished speaker, Corbett had an air to him that drew the attendees into every word. Get to know Corbett through one of his most popular blog posts http://thinktraffic.net/21-quick-actions-for-massive-blog-success. 

4. Jay Baer - Jay is not only informative, but always has the audience laughing and at the edge of their seats. Convince and Convert has a fantastic email newsletter called "One Social Thing" that gives simple tips on content and social media. Sign up for that here: http://www.convinceandconvert.com/ 

5. Chris Brogan - you may know him through his book "Trust Agents" but Chris Brogan has a new book on Google+. He has a lot of great blogging tips and can be followed here: http://www.humanbusinessworks.com/ 

Who are your online influencers? Digital rock stars? Share their websites, Google+ profiles or Twitter handles below.

This past week I attended the 2012 BlogWorld & New Media Expo and was completely blown away with some of the speakers and presentations on content marketing and social media.

Some of the speakers I was already following around on the web, but some of them were new to me. I gain most of my inspiration from looking at non-automotive companies and how they're "doing" social media and then I apply that to the car industry.

I wanted to share who I thought were my current top 5 influencers that I believe every digital automotive professional should be looking to for inspiration for their social strategies. 

1. Lynette Young - Lynette stood up in front of the audience and announced that she owned Google+.  She is currently followed by 1.25 million people and through the Google+ circles she is actually connected to everyone who is currently on Google+. Lynette is releasing an e-Book on the platform this year, keep an eye out for it: http://lynetteyoung.com/

2. Derek Halpern - A well known podcaster, Derek actually started with his blog but hit it big with his podcast. Actually, he calls it a "master class" because he believes the word podcast devalues the content. Listen to Social Triggers here: http://socialtriggers.com/ 

3. Corbett Barr - A polished speaker, Corbett had an air to him that drew the attendees into every word. Get to know Corbett through one of his most popular blog posts http://thinktraffic.net/21-quick-actions-for-massive-blog-success. 

4. Jay Baer - Jay is not only informative, but always has the audience laughing and at the edge of their seats. Convince and Convert has a fantastic email newsletter called "One Social Thing" that gives simple tips on content and social media. Sign up for that here: http://www.convinceandconvert.com/ 

5. Chris Brogan - you may know him through his book "Trust Agents" but Chris Brogan has a new book on Google+. He has a lot of great blogging tips and can be followed here: http://www.humanbusinessworks.com/ 

Who are your online influencers? Digital rock stars? Share their websites, Google+ profiles or Twitter handles below.