Social media is the name of the game for businesses that want to attract consumer attention, and every day, more companies are realizing it.  According to Optimizely, 66% of companies say they’re putting more pressure on measuring return on investment (ROI) in social media.  After all, if you don’t know that what you’re doing is working, how do you know if you should continue down the same path?  ROI is your guidepost.  It tells you whether you’re hitting the mark with consumers or if you’re out in left field.  And in today’s competitive marketplace, your dealership does NOT want to be out in left field.

It hasn’t been too long since companies were thinking of social media almost as an experiment.  Many were thinking they might get a few bites from getting out there and being social, but not many companies really expected a huge turnout from their social platforms.  But along came consumers—and they surprised companies with their adoption of all things social, mobile, and tech-related.  And now, businesses are scrambling to not only build their platforms, but also measure ROI to determine what’s working the best for them when it comes to reaching their audiences.  Social is no longer an experiment; it’s a strategy!

So, how will your dealership know what works and what doesn’t? When you measure your ROI, those are the answers you’ll get. By focusing on your social ROI, you’ll be able to evaluate the efficiency of an investment, allowing you then to determine whether or not it’s worth maintaining.  Companies are starting to put more of an emphasis on ROI in order to better understand their investment opportunities, as well as understand areas where they may be misdirecting their energy.

Tools of the Trade

There are several web analytics tools that make it easy to measure ROI. Common packages offered by Hubspot, Google Analytics, and Kissmetrics allow clients to gain powerful insights that will guide them as they make decisions regarding their social platforms.  These are all available to help clients achieve insights into how well their social media marketing campaigns are working—or even if they’re not working well at all.  By generating reports, they are able to let clients know how many people viewed their online posts, how many clicked on them, and how many visits specific posts generated to their websites. With this information in hand, companies are able to see the types of content and posts that are catching consumer attention and driving interaction.

For dealerships specifically, AutoAlert’s powerful suite of products offers insights ranging from intelligent consumer data insights, shopping triggers, and strategies to help dealerships deliver exactly the right message to every consumer—at exactly the right time.  All of this information is available via a simple click on each dealership’s individually tailored dashboard.

Boosting Your Online Presence

Analytics are vital because they help you measure your success as you work to build your online presence, which is necessary in today’s increasingly mobile market. While social ROI makes a difference in how businesses interact online, it’s not always about getting the next sale. Think about it like this:

You won’t make a sale every time someone clicks one of your links or visits your website, but what you will do is get visibility. First, the fact you’re getting clicks shows interest, which is great. This means potential customers are thinking about buying.  It also means they’ll likely go to a friend or family member to get an opinion, and people will start talking about and sharing your brand. This type of social media presence creates hype about your dealership, which often leads to even more sales. And that type of recognition is priceless!

Improving ROI doesn’t have to be hard. There are some quick and easy things you can do to increase the amount of attention your dealership gets on social media:

• Define goals. Setting a standard on where you want your ROI to be gives you a great place to start, but make sure it’s attainable. By keeping your numbers reachable, you’ll see yourself making gains—and you’ll leave room for even more improvement later.
• Create variations. Nobody wants to see the same old post over and over again, but at the same time, don’t be afraid to get some good traction from your best content. Just be sure to change things up, make some tweaks, and always keep your eyes open for fresh ways of sharing insights with your audience. This will keep their attention and ensure they’re always looking forward to what’s coming next.
• Run tests. Testing your strategy before going full scale will allow you to work out any bugs before the big reveal. This ensures it’s launched without major setbacks and is fully ready for your audience to view.
• Measure results. Keep a constant eye on what’s working best. When you monitor your ROI and focus on providing the content your audience loves, you’ll be on your way to having the strongest social media presence possible.

ROI can be the thing that revives your social media marketing strategy.  If you’ve been flying in the dark or throwing darts at the social media dartboard while blindfolded, it’s time to tackle your platform with eyes wide open.  66% of companies are placing more focus on their social ROI because it’s important.  When you turn the focus on your dealership’s social ROI, you’ll differentiate yourself in the marketplace and stand out to even more consumers.

Check out the video too!