We’re millennials, and we have the world at our fingertips, quite literally. We’re not great at waiting for anything, and if we don’t have to, we won’t. We like to keep our options open, and we’re not afraid to explore new brands, updated styles, and fresh trends; and we’ll always find what works best for us.  We love to be involved, and we love to be connected.  And just as important is the fact that we really, really appreciate businesses that make us feel like we’re part of the process, like we’ve done our research (because we have!), and like we’re getting the best deal in a marketplace that’s full of pitches and over-the-top offers.

Car shopping is an experience for us, so when we’re ready to buy, we’re on the lookout for a dealership that’s not only got our best interests at heart, but is also able to meet a whole list of criteria we consider pretty important.  Millennials make up 27% of new car sales, so we’re definitely in the market, and our demand for vehicles is growing.

There are several opportunities for dealerships when it comes to selling to millennials, and by pinpointing exactly what drives this target market, sales professionals will be better able to provide solutions that meet shopper needs while boosting sales in the process.

So, What Exactly Are Millennials Looking For?

Millennials are interested in experiences, rather than simply buying things.  That’s not to say millennials aren’t buying; they are.  However, businesses that invest more of their time and make an effort to get to know millennials are more likely to be able to provide a better overall brand experience.  When you guide your dealership toward maximizing the consumer experience for a specific demographic—in this instance, millennials—you’ll be better able to create lasting relationships and drive sales.  To capture the attention of your millennial market, focus on these tips:

Respond quickly. Millennials are a fast-moving demographic, and waiting simply isn’t a favorite activity.  The more quickly you are able to respond to calls, emails, or posts on social media, the more likely it is you’ll gain our attention.  We love to do online research, and we’re likely to reach out to several businesses before purchasing, so those who respond in a timely manner with reliable information are, more often than not, the ones who will gain our business.

Give your best offer. Millennials are researchers and comparison shoppers by nature.  We like to know we’re getting the best deal available, so if you’re able to top a competitor’s offer or throw in perks, you’re on the way to winning us over.  Be sure we know about dealership specials and offers that make you stand out above the crowd, and be sure to keep your online information updated with what’s going on—because that’s likely where we’ll check.

Be available and accessible. We’re technologically adept, and we love our mobile devices—which means we’ll look for your dealership online and on social platforms.  If we can’t find you online, on Facebook, Twitter, or otherwise, you’re running the risk we’ll discover your competitors instead.  When you empower us to answer our own questions by providing an easily accessible website and great online content, you’re creating a valuable connection with us.  And by posting and interacting on social media, you’re be sharing your brand personality, which allows us to feel more connected and secure when purchasing from you.

Show character. We gravitate toward businesses that are unique and original, so when your dealership finds a creative way to stand out and get our attention, it will pay off.  Businesses that are authentic, as well as adept at getting to the point in inventive ways will both earn our trust and spark our interest.  Show your dealership’s true colors and let us get to know your brand personality.  We’ll feel more connected, and we’ll be more willing to form a relationship and purchase from you.

Get to know us. It’s the same for every generation: the little things end up being the BIG things.  When you let us know you recognize us and you’re interested in what we’re really looking for, it goes a long way toward earning our trust.  Do your best to remember names, learn about our past purchases, and show an interest in why we’re looking to purchase whatever vehicle we’re currently looking at.  When we stand out in your eyes, we’ll feel like you’re truly invested in helping us though our buyer journey.

In the end, appealing to millennials isn’t too tough. We may seem like a complex generation, but when you get to know us, you’ll see we appreciate a lot of the same things every consumer wants.  We’re on the lookout for authenticity and uniqueness, and we love businesses that empower us to utilize our online skills to enhance our consumer experience.  When dealerships partner with us and facilitate the purchasing or lease process, they’ll gain our trust and loyalty!

Sincerely,

​The Millennials

Who are You Speaking To? ​

Internet users, marketers, and the consumer industry are overwhelmed when it comes to the number of social media platforms available to them today.  There is a seemingly endless number of outlets and websites consumers visit to interact and get their information, and it’s important for dealerships to know who they’re speaking to when they’re sharing information online.

In order to take full advantage of your marketing strategy–and more specifically, targeted marketing–we’ve put together a list of the social media platforms that are projected to remain relevant in 2016, along with a description of the users who are frequenting them the most. Having this information available makes it simple for your dealership to utilize the best platforms and make sure you're speaking directly to your social media platforms’ top users while taking your marketing strategy to a whole new level.

Facebook 

It’s hard for steadfast users to understand, but Facebook’s popularity is actually beginning to wane with younger users like Generation Z, especially teens who are more intrigued by platforms like Snapchat and Instagram. Fortunately, for dealerships, much of the generation that finds Facebook “uncool” is not yet old enough to drive or have the need for a vehicle, making the platform a viable way to connect with shoppers who are interested in building online relationships. According to a survey of over 3000 marketers across the world, Facebook is still a core tool for engaging customers.

What’s different about Facebook in 2016 is that it’s beginning to make a large transition into video marketing. Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg said he expects the platform’s feed to be primarily video in the next few years. With Facebook’s introduction of live video, dealerships’ marketers now have the ability to connect with followers and can both talk about their business and give people a sneak peek behind the scenes. This is a great way for dealerships to bring customers closer, show their personalities, and gain more attention—in turn acquiring more customers. 

Facebook dominates as the social media platform where people get their news and information. 88% of millennials rely on Facebook for their news, and Facebook is primarily popular among adults under age of 35. Although, millennials on the younger side of the generation tend to use a broader mix of social media platforms and a small percentage have even begun deleting their accounts in favor of other networks.

Twitter

The majority of people using Twitter say it’s to see what people are really talking about or what’s trending. Many users are also on the lookout for entertainment such as funny articles or videos when scrolling through their Twitter feeds. It may be beneficial for your dealership to use that marketing knowledge to its advantage by creating clever lists, article titles, and short videos to both entertain and promote via Twitter.  

Twitter is actually most popular among younger millennials versus adults overall. Unlike Facebook, news and information is no longer the primary reason millennials use Twitter. However, almost half of millennials using Twitter will regularly read and watch news stories, links, or videos available on Twitter.

Instagram

Now commonly referred to as IG, Instagram is most popular among people ages 18-34. Its users are also, surprisingly, predominantly men. The most strategic way your dealership can use Instagram in 2016 is by coming up with a personalized hashtag and encouraging followers to use and share it. According to Iconosquare’s 2015 Instagram study, 70% of IG users look up brands on the platform and 62% follow just because they like you.

Consumers use this platform to take in images and view your marketing messages without the hard sales pitch. The moral of IG is to convert passive shoppers into confident customers through what you show them. It’s also important to remember the only place a link is clickable on IG is in your bio. Connect a trackable link to your website in your dealership’s IG bio.

LinkedIn

LinkedIn is quickly pushing to become the most popular place to connect business to business (B2B) and share content. The platform drives 80% of B2B social media leads, so it may be most beneficial for your dealership to use LinkedIn to connect with other businesses, services, CEM and CRM providers, and people who can help benefit your business.

Your dealership can also use LinkedIn to keep track of industry news tailored specifically to your interests. It’s one of the most professional platforms to stay informed with what’s going on in the professional and business world.

YouTube

This platform is a useful tool to keep in your back pocket because its users are primarily Generation Z, ranging from ages 14-17. This is great for your dealership because this is the exact age range where teens have the ability to begin driving and start showing interest in finding a vehicle. Millennials come in a close second with 81% using YouTube on a consistent basis.  

If your dealership is interested in creating a YouTube channel to broadcast itself, it’s important to have a call to action in your videos and begin by promoting videos to current followers and customers. Video marketing is quickly becoming the most popular avenue to connect with followers, consumers, and customers; and YouTube is a great place to get started and share great video content.

Pinterest

You may be surprised to find out Pinterest is not just about food, fashion, and design anymore. Actually, since 2014, there’s been 118% increase in car and motorcycle pins along with a large growth in popularity among both men and women. In terms of traffic, Pinterest is now the third most popular social network in the US, in terms of traffic.

43% of Pinterest members agree they use Pinterest to “associate with retailers or brands with which I identify,” compared to just 24% of Facebook users who agree to the same use with Facebook. The largest percentage of Pinterest users are ages 18-29; however, Pinterest also has a large percentage of older users with around 28% between the ages of 30-49.

It may be beneficial for your dealership to pin useful content related to automotive along with current inventory that has a price tag included in your pins because Pinterest pins with prices get 36% more likes than those without. Currently, Pinterest drives more referral traffic than LinkedIn, YouTube, and Google+ combined.

For upcoming buying generations and current consumer generations, it’s important your dealership is speaking and able to market specifically to them via the most relevant outlets. Knowing which generations and age groups primarily gravitate toward specific platforms will help your dealership do just that. It’s key to focus your dealership’s energy on the platforms that will dominate 2016, because that’s where you will find your shoppers, your influencers, and your brand advocates.

News for the Week of 1.6

Pinterest Privacy Policy

Pinterest recently updated its privacy policy in order to make the user experience feel more ​personalized and be more useful.  Users can now connect their Pinterest accounts to different apps to Pin directly from an app to Pinterest, and Pinterest has also been working with advertisers to make ads more relevant.  Users can see changes in the privacy policy, which details exactly what’s been updated and built, as well as how Pinterest will be working with partners in the future to improve the overall user experience.  Dealerships that are using Pinterest can up their game by interacting on the platform and building relationships with industry influencers in order to gain even more attention from their target audience.  In addition to regularly posting, be sure to like and share others’ Pins and observe what influencers are posting and sharing.

Pablo Google Chrome Extension

With this new Google Chrome Extension, users are able to create social media images from anywhere on the web.  While the image-creation process may have previously been more complicated or time consuming, now with just the click of a button, users can easily and seamlessly create images.  There’s no need to download or upload pictures; instead the Pablo extension cuts image-creation time in half by skipping these steps.  With the Pablo extension, users are able to simply right-click an image and select Pablo, and then create.  Additionally, with Pablo, users can save customer logos and create social images without text.   Dealerships that are engaging consumers online know the importance of visual imagery when it comes to impacting and capturing the attention of consumers, so be sure to check out the Pablo extension to help you quickly and easily create social images.

Twitter for Mac App Updated

Users have been eagerly awaiting the Mac app update, known as Twitter 4.0, and with its arrival come several new features.  The updated app now includes support for inline video playback, timeline GIFs, muting capability, group Direct Messages, “quoting” tweets, and other options that offer Mac users the enhanced Twitter features that were previously available on other applications.  In addition, users can also choose a darker theme and a Today Center Widget that allows Twitter highlights to appear on the desktop.  The Mac app will also finally be updated to display hearts instead of stars to highlight user-favorited Tweets.  The new features are accompanied by an updated design that includes changes to icons, buttons, and interactions, making Twitter 4.0 quite noticeably enhanced.  Dealerships can lean into Twitter to expand their audience by focusing on two-way conversations and engaging influencers and potential customers.  Consider participating in Twitter Chats to discuss specific topics with your target audience.

Update to Twitter Rules

Twitter recently introduced updates to Twitter Rules that are intended to protect users from abuse and harassment while expressing themselves on the popular social platform.  Twitter Rules have been updated with language that clarifies that Twitter “will not tolerate behavior intended to harass, intimidate, or use fear to silence another user’s voice.”  Twitter continues to encourage diverse voices and conversations and is working to protect users and protect them from abuse.  Additionally, throughout the past year, Twitter has given users the ability to block and mute other users, as well as report abusive behavior, in order to protect its online community.  Dealerships, continue to leverage your reach on Twitter.  As one of the top most relevant social media platforms, especially for younger consumers, it is smart marketing to listen, interact, and share content where your potential shoppers are gathering.

Topic-Based Feeds for Facebook

Instead of one main News Feed, Facebook is testing the idea of dividing News Feeds into topic-based feeds on its mobile app.  While it’s not widespread yet and many users won’t yet notice the updates, keep your eyes open as the social media giant continues to update based on user preferences.  In October of last year, Facebook began allowing some users to see specialized interest feeds via the web, and this latest update stems from that functionality.  The newest mobile testing automatically sorts posts from people and pages followed and puts them into different sections or feeds.  The traditional News Feed remains in place, however, the topic-based feeds have been added as secondary feeds that can be accessed with a simple swipe.  Dealerships, your followers will soon have yet another way to cut through the clutter on their News Feeds, so be sure you’re providing them with quality content that educates, entertains, and highlights what’s going on in your dealership and in your life.  Remember to refrain from overselling, as this is a quick way to get organized right out of a follower’s News Feed!

Tip of the Week – You’ve Heard it Before…

…but I’ll say it again.  Remember that social selling is all about building relationships; it’s not about overtly selling.  When you position yourself as a trusted resource and online confidante, your followers will be more likely to turn to you when it’s time to buy.  When posting online, avoid clobbering people over the head with sales and deals, and instead, offer up timely insights, helpful tips, and frequent interaction that lets them know you’re listening to what’s being said.  When you contribute quality content and show that you’re a good online listener, the relationships you forge will carry over onto the showroom floor! If you’re committed to building your personal brand, improving your professional brand, and becoming a great social salesperson, remember not to post:

• Negative comments or content.
• Curse words.
• Strong political or religious opinions.
• Embarrassing pictures—or yourself or anyone else.
• Things intended to make others envious.
• Negative opinions about your job.

However, some great things to post include:

• Links to relevant or industry-specific articles.
• Rich content about your goods and services.
• Requests for advice or suggestions regarding movies, books, restaurants, etc.

Remember you are working toward becoming an influencer, and as you do that, every piece of your content will contribute to your online reputation.  Be sure to keep your posts and comments professional and directed toward the reputation you want to create.  By doing that, you’ll build a broader and more loyal audience, and you’ll master the art of social selling.

[tweetthis]This Week in Social Media with @SocialLittleMan via @AutoAlertLLC[/tweetthis]

Most of the time, businesses wrongfully perceive the concept of creating a “Personal Brand at Work” to be self-serving for the employee and not having any form of positive outcome for the ​business. But the reality is there is no downside to having employees who are positively representing themselves to the world around them. When the words “personal brand” are brought up, characteristics such as self-awareness, willingness to improve themselves, and presenting themselves in a fun and professional light are what should come to mind. These are the foundation for a stellar online reputation. Additionally, personal branding means knowing what people are saying about a person or business, being diligent and conscientious, and helping to paint an accurate picture online. None of these qualities should be forgotten for businesses who want to remain profitable.

In fact, developing and maintaining a strong, personal brand can be an incredible asset for an institution. Employees with strong personal brands tend to share their current happenings and stories through their online identities which can in turn increase the number of customers a business has. This is partly due to the rise of social media, and the thin line between people’s “personal” and “professional” lives becoming increasingly blurry online. Sometimes this may become a problem if employees aren’t aware that their information, what they post, like, retweet, and favorite can show up anywhere. A simple Google search of someone’s name can turn up a multitude of useful information. Although this may be a bit frightening for businesses regarding their employees, it is worth noting that if employees are working to improve their personal brand online, the positives that represent them online will be equally as prevalent as the negatives. Through personal brands of companies’ team members, businesses are becoming successful in not only representing their company in an online space, but in moving forward in online engagement. Some professionals go beyond simply “spreading the word” about their employer by actively blogging, tweeting, and engaging audiences online to strengthen both their own and their institution’s brand.

Believe it or not, there are other important reasons why companies should invest in and encourage their employees’ personal branding efforts. Here are three key benefits that businesses should consider.

Improved Reputation

A simple phrase that sums up the idea of personal branding is this: “Whenever someone has contact with you, your personal brand is either strengthened or weakened.” If an employee takes that concept seriously, and has been encouraged by managers to improve his or her personal brand, the personal brand improves. By monitoring what is said and posted online, an otherwise toxic company can blossom into a healthier one simply because a positive online image is a key motivator for visitors. A good way to increase an organization’s positive reputation is to align it with someone who already has a positive reputation. The brands or an employee and their employer strengthen and lend credibility to one another.

Improved Employee Satisfaction and Retention

As an employee becomes clear on his or her personal brand, personal and professional values become clearer as well.1 In this clarity, the employee may ask if they’re happy where they are, if they like this job role, or if the company mission meshes with their personal values. The employee has to know “who they are and who they want to be” in order to perform in management and leadership roles, as well as their job, effectively.1 So what if there’s a fantastic employee who doesn’t like a specific job or boss? It would be better to know that information rather than lose the employee to the competition. Empowering employees to focus on personal branding can help foster open dialogue and communication with supervisors.1 Knowing the answers to these questions benefits companies because it improves the odds of having employees “truly happy to be there,” thus improving the odds that a business’ staff will consist of highly satisfied and talented employees.

Improved Reach and Visibility

When team members of a business focus on their personal brand, it allows the organization to reach more targeted audiences with increased credibility. Maintaining a personal brand alongside the institution allows employees to engage other audiences. Most businesses have a very diverse team. With this in mind, if every employee is using his or her personal brand through social media to promote jobs and the organization, the reach of the organization will skyrocket. Along with an increase in the number of people employees could reach using their personal profiles, imagine how much more trustworthy the information will seem coming from a known friend instead of a business. Word of mouth marketing is powerful, and positive messages to the inner circles in which professionals are personally involved allows the organization to reach a targeted group with more built-in credibility.

The concept of creating a “Personal Brand at Work” for employees has many clear benefits for businesses. Just remember, if a company encourages its team members to improve their personal brand, it can lead to improved reputation, improved employee satisfaction and retention, and improved reach and visibility.

News for the New Year

Google 360-Degree Storytelling on YouTube

Storytelling is BIG and YouTube doesn't plan on missing out. Google Spotlight Stories are now available for select Android users on the YouTube app, bringing an in-the-moment, virtual reality feature to users. Now, video creators are able to share even broader perspectives with viewers using a 360-degree view of the story being told and an interactive element that brings the story to life via Google Spotlight Stories. Sensors on users’ phones make the stories interactive, unlocking various aspects of stories as phones are moved.  Created by Google ATAP (Advanced Technology and Projects group), this app is sure to have users engaging and sharing as they enjoy the immersive and interactive experience. Dealerships, keep your eyes on Google Spotlight Stories, as they’ll be expanding in availability next year. Focus on creating video and in-the-moment updates from your dealership and posting via your social platforms to increase engagement and reach consumers who are drawn to a variety of content formats.

Facebook Professional Services

Facebook has joined the latest list of sites vying for consumer attention when it comes to user reviews and ratings. With its recently-launched Best Professional Services site, it joins a crowded market that caters to local businesses and organizations seeking shopper reviews. The Professional Services page allows users to quickly search businesses with the highest reviews and ratings across Facebook, following the widely-recognized 5-star review format. In its new searchable directory, businesses now earn ratings based on user reviews, which means Facebook just entered the space that has, until recently, been reserved for platforms like Yelp, Amazon, and Google. As more consumers utilize online rating and review sites, it’s extremely important for dealerships to monitor and be aware of their online reputations.  Be sure to interact with consumers, stay on top of online feedback, and if you get a negative or less-than-savory review, respond quickly and with a positive solution to remedy the situation.  Not only will the unhappy customer see your reply, but other potential buyers will also notice your attentiveness and see that as a positive sign.

Blab Adds Audience Map Feature

The latest feature from Blab allows you to see where your audience is from based on the location listed on their Twitter profiles.  Built to better the connection between Blab users around the world, the map feature doesn’t track users’ locations; instead, it simply puts a dot on the map based on the hometown location listed on user profile pages.  When users change their hometown on Twitter, they’ll be able to change their hometown location on Blab.  It’s as simple as that!  For social-savvy dealerships, keep an eye on Blab.  A fun and easy-to-use chat forum, you can go live or schedule Blabs to engage your online audience.  With the popularity of live streaming, you’ll reach a broad audience and keep your followers up to date with what’s going on at your dealership.  Think of quick, fun updates you can share and be sure to interact with followers by engaging with their content as well.

Facebook Supports Apple Live Photos

Although Live Photos are still fairly new, Facebook is already starting to support Apple Live Photos via the iOS app for iPhone 6s and 6s Plus.  While some are already seeing support for Live Photos pop up in their feeds, others won’t see this latest update until after the new year.  To upload Live Photos, the process is almost the same as uploading standard still photos.  When users upload a Live Photo, a LIVE box will appear at the bottom right of the screen.  When they tap the LIVE box, the photo will upload as Live.  If users skip tapping the LIVE box, the photo will appear as a still.  Live Photos include 1.5 seconds of video and audio—much like a video, however, Live Photos have the intentional feeling of capturing a short-lived moment, rather than a lengthier broadcast.  Dealerships, remember the importance of visuals as you post via your social platforms.  Your online followers will be more engaged and intrigued by your content when you give them something they can see.  Keep watching Live Photos and consider using the latest tech as it comes your way in order to connect with and engage shoppers.

Vine “For You” Channel

Vine recently introduced its new personalized channel, aimed to give users instant updates on Vines they won’t want to miss.  Updated with content Vine has curated for specific users, it’s now even easier for users to find new content from accounts they may not already follow.  Based on user interests, Vine personalizes “must-see” posts across its platform and presents them to users via the For You channel, a feature that is currently only available for iOS.  Dealerships, be sure not to overlook Vine as you work to boost your social presence.  A lot can be communicated in 6 seconds, and your online audience is increasingly flocking toward visual storytelling platforms that engage them and capture their attention.  Consider a New Year’s post to get things rolling!

Tip of the Week – Happy New Year: Resolve to Build Your Social Media Strategy

It’s easy to think social media is something that takes a lot of time, meanders for long hours through endless online platforms, and doesn’t leave us with anything quantifiable.  And if you jump off the deep end into the quagmire of social sites and spend hours wading through post after post—with no real purpose in mind—it can turn into exactly that.  However, if you look at social media as a tool, and if you have a solid strategy for utilizing your time, energy, and valuable content to engage your online audience, your dealership will benefit from it, and your time will be well spent. When you create a social media strategy, you’re putting a plan into place that will help your dealership build solid online relationships that will carry over onto the lot and the showroom floor when it’s time for consumers to buy.  Check out these tips for building your social strategy:

• Focus on the story you want to tell. Know your dealership’s history, the story of its relationships and friendships in the community, and how you can share this with consumers.  Do you want to talk about volunteerism?  Are you known for donating vehicles to the needy?  How do you give back?  Know what you want to share and how you want to share it.  You’ll build better, more lasting relationships with your online followers when they can find a variety of ways to connect with you.
• Discover where your consumers are. A majority of shoppers frequent online social sites, and it’s a pretty good bet you’ll find many of them on Facebook.  Do your research and find out what percentage of your demographic is on Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, and other social sites you may be interested in publishing to.  It won’t do you any good to post great content if you post it on sites where your consumers aren’t hanging out.
• Make a daily plan. Social media doesn’t have to be all-consuming.  In fact, when you have a plan and some general guidelines regarding how much time you’ll spend, where you’ll post, and what you’ll post, you’ll be better able to monitor the time you spend on social platforms.
• Know your goals. Imagine setting out to climb a mountain without having a goal.  It’s pretty fruitless.  For most, the goal is to reach the summit; for some, the goal is to make it a certain distance.  Nonetheless, you’ll feel more accomplished—and you’ll know when you’ve arrived—if you have a goal.  The same goes for social media.  What do you want to accomplish?  Do you want more followers?  Do you want to drive more foot traffic to your dealership?  Do you want a great turnout for a big charity event?  Set goals—and then keep track of how you’re doing so that you are able to tweak your strategies and improve.

When you tackle social media, from Google to Facebook to Vine, with a plan and set goals for your dealership, you can save time and effectively leverage the platforms where your consumers are shopping and researching.  Tell your dealership’s story, build strong online relationships, and drive sales for your business by doing a little research, knowing exactly what you need to accomplish, and measuring the outcome of your posts.  This year, instead of letting social media overwhelm you, strategize!

What’s the Difference for Your Dealership? ​

Ever wonder about the difference between your CEM and CRM?  What are the specifics of each, and how do they benefit your dealership—both individually and when strategically positioned to work together?  At first glance, it’s easy to think they’re synonymous, and while they have overlapping features, there are definitive differences that make each ideally suited for individual aspects of your dealership’s business.  Respectively, they are powerful tools, however, when your dealership uses them together to their full potential, they can be the catalyst that drives you toward a healthier bottom line and a broader and more loyal customer base.

According to Gartner, Customer Experience Management (CEM) is “the practice of designing and reacting to customer interactions to meet or exceed customer expectations and, thus, increase customer satisfaction, loyalty, and advocacy.”  Successful Customer Experience Management is a strategy that requires both process change and powerful technology.  In short, CEM is about getting to know your customers and collecting data and information from various touchpoints and, in turn, analyzing that data to get greater levels of engagement.

Customer Relationship Management (CRM) is a database of customer information that allows a company to easily access and view interactions such as conversations, emails, requests, products purchased, and specific customer solutions.  Used as a tool to manage and analyze consumer actions and interactions, the goal of a CRM is to improve business, drive incremental sales, and retain customers by continuously tracking and compiling pertinent shopper information.

Who Benefits From CEM and CRM?

It can be argued that Customer Experience Management (CEM) is a relationship-building tool that functions highly effectively on the marketing side of your business, while the Customer Relationship Management (CRM) tool functions effectively for your sales professionals.  While the CEM seeks to build well-rounded customer relationships and provide personalized experiences throughout every buyer journey, the CRM remains focused on collecting and organizing useful data and serving it up to your sales professionals in a way that will help them successfully leverage consumer insights and gain valuable sales leads.  With both a strong CEM tool, as well as a CRM that’s capable of housing and organizing up-to-the minute shopper data, your dealership can be a sales and marketing powerhouse, leading the marketplace in consumer insights and shopper intelligence.

Just like you want everyone in your dealership to work together as a team, that’s what you want from your CEM and your CRM as well.  When you are able to provide the best in Customer Experience Management, coupled with a CRM that gives you the most insightful views of your consumers, you’ll win in the marketplace every time.

What CEM Technology Can Do

With the right CEM technology, your dealership can leverage the reach of your entire organization and engage consumers like never before.  By using the power of social media to create and build authentic relationships with your audience, you’ll be able to broaden your reach and effectively impact your dealership’s bottom line.  While traditional selling techniques may be less effective—with the average cold call appointment rate sitting at approximately 2.5%—digitally-driven sales are skyrocketing.  In fact, a recent study shows 72.6% of salespeople who used social selling outperformed their peers.

Additionally, powerful and well-rounded CEM technology will enable you to engage your audience throughout the buyer journey, stay up-to-date with customer feedback and reviews, as well as tune in to potential shoppers entering the market.  When you interact with your audience by providing quality content, interaction, and feedback of your own, you’ll create lasting relationships that position your dealership as a marketplace leader, and in turn, a top choice when it’s time to lease, purchase, or find a quality repair and maintenance destination.

By getting your employees in on the action and encouraging their engagement, you’ll not only see an improvement in workplace morale and participation, but you’ll enjoy their extended online reach as well.  Your employees are an extension of your brand, and when you empower them—and even incentivize them—to engage and interact with consumers on your behalf, you’ll create even more visibility for your dealership.

What CRM Technology Can Do

By utilizing a great CRM tool, you’ll be giving your sales team the power they need to fire up their numbers and reach the right customers at right time—with valuable information that gives them an edge in the marketplace.  Your CRM is full of useful information, and when your professionals are armed with knowledge that includes things like past sales, current online shopper searches, in-market customers, price ranges searched, and even shopper equity status, they’ll be able to conquest even more customers.  When you implement powerful tracking and tagging tools, you’ll have up-to-date consumer insights, allowing you to manage leads and opportunities and drive impressive sales numbers.

CRM and CEM Working Together

When your dealership allows the information in your CRM to fuel its driven sales professionals to dig deeper and utilize the valuable information that’s available, you’ll realize you’re able to provide a more individualized level of customer care.  Combined with an excellent CEM tool, you’ll be able to overlay a more personalized experience and build consumer relationships, leading to increased satisfaction, brand loyalty, and increased sales.

While the CRM and the CEM provide different results for your dealership, you can benefit from what each has to offer.  Utilize the sheer volume of data available via the CRM to delve into customer interactions and experiences, thus enabling your sales team to have an inside track when it comes to shopper preferences; and leverage the relationship-building power of a quality CEM tool to help you create meaningful connections.  By utilizing the best of both tools, your dealership will come out on top with leads, sales, and loyal customers.

Facebook Reviews Matter​

Look out, Yelp.  Facebook has joined the latest list of sites vying for consumer attention when it comes to user reviews and ratings.  With its recently-launched Best Professional Services site, it joins a crowded market that caters to local businesses and organizations seeking shopper reviews.  If you’ve been working on the social media presence of your dealership, you probably already know the importance of engaging your consumers on Facebook, however, the recent enhancements to the platform make it even more important for you to zero in on specifics that will help shoppers find and interact with you. The Professional Services page allows users to quickly search businesses with the highest reviews and ratings across Facebook, following the widely-recognized 5-star review format.  In its new searchable directory, businesses now earn ratings based on user reviews, which means Facebook just entered the space that has, until recently, been reserved for platforms like Yelp, Amazon, and Google.  In addition to up-to-date consumer ratings, businesses that appear in Facebook’s Best Professional Services directory will also be able to provide a brief description of their products and services, their location, contact information, as well as hours of operation.

Your Profile Is Important

Although you already have a presence on Facebook, this latest development means you’ll want to pay even more attention to your Facebook profile.  Be sure to fill out your dealership information completely in order to let customers know where to find you, when you’re available, and what services your shop specializes in.  The more you can tell online consumers about your dealership while they are in the process of doing their online research, the better chance you stand of convincing them you’re the dealership for them.  By providing complete profile information, you’re not only allowing new customers to find you, but you’re making it easy for current and previous customers to leave feedback and ratings for your service. It’s easy to see why Facebook wants in on the consumer services action.  Just this year, Angie’s List estimated the U.S. market for local services at approximately $800 billion.  With some companies narrowing their scope to specific business models, like home service contractors or handymen, others—like Facebook—are taking a broader tack and including businesses across a wide range of specialties.  This is important for your dealership because now, not only are you able to interact one-on-one socially with online shoppers, but you’ll also be able to convey other shopper opinions and reflections via Facebook’s new review format.

Consumer Reviews Boost Your Business

Today’s consumers are often overwhelmed by the crowded marketplace and aren’t sure where to start if they don’t have trustworthy recommendations to turn to.  By leaning into feedback from shoppers who have visited your dealership in the past, potential customers are able to get to know you vicariously through the experiences of others.  In fact, according to a recent BrightLocal survey, 92% of shoppers now turn to online reviews to obtain information regarding businesses, up from 88% in 2014.  As this number continues to rise, it highlights the importance of both maintaining your presence on social media and ensuring consumers are satisfied and willing to interact with your brand to provide their insights. In order to most effectively allow consumers to access your information and learn more about your dealership, you’ll want to make sure your Facebook Page is up-to-date and full of valuable information consumers will find interesting.  Remember, you want to be easy to find and interesting so that shoppers will want to interact with you and seek you out online.  Check out the following tips to get started:

• Complete your profile.  Make sure you have your dealership’s address, operating hours, and even important milestones listed on your profile.  Offer a clickable link that leads shoppers directly to your website, making it easy to get directly to you and your sales professionals.  Don’t go overboard with descriptive copy; keep it short and engaging so consumers get enough information, but aren’t overloaded with your dealership’s entire history.

• Be a continuous presence.  In addition to posting photos, engaging videos, and dealership updates to your timeline, be sure to interact with consumer posts to your Page as well.  Remember, social media is about creating relationships, and the more you offer of yourself, the more shoppers will want to give in return.

• Vary your content.  Social media users love visual content, but be sure to shake things up and keep it fresh.  Photos, video, quick interviews, and blogs are creative ways to offer up a variety of content and keep followers interested.  Be sure to provide relevant content that positions you as a subject-matter expert, but don’t use your Page to sell.  Instead, use your Page to be social and build relationships.

• Add a call-to-action button.  Facebook is continuously innovating, and one of its fairly recent additions is a call-to-action button that allows you to choose between messages like “Shop Now,” “Watch Video,” or “Contact Us.”  Use the tools that are available to you to help you interact with consumers on a higher level.

• Encourage online reviews.  Now that Facebook is playing in the local reviews arena with its Best Professional Services site, be sure to encourage your customers to give you online reviews and feedback.  When they share their experiences, they’ll be boosting your brand recognition amongst potential new customers, and they’ll be giving you the opportunity to stay in contact and offer future service and maintenance for them.  Even a less-than-stellar review can be turned around, because it gives your dealership the chance to shine in the customer service realm and offer responsive solutions to make things right.

With Facebook garnering even more consumer attention by shining a spotlight on reviews and feedback, your dealership has an even greater opportunity to thrive in the social media setting.  In addition to engaging and interacting via posts and content, you’ll now have the benefit of previous customers who want to spread the word about the positive dealership experiences they’ve had with you.  Take advantage of this by ensuring your Facebook profile is as complete and well-rounded as it can be, as well as increasing your social interaction to include a focus on consumer feedback.  By doing this, you’ll see your dealership thrive in a crowded marketplace that depends on word of mouth recommendations and online ratings.

Creating Original Content for Your Social Media Platforms​

There’s no denying auto dealerships have traditional marketing channels down to a science, but modern consumers find every way they can to skip over ads. In response to this problem, content marketing has become one of the most successful ways to engage consumers across the internet and social media platforms this year, according to the CAM Foundation. Content marketing is a great way for your dealership to create and share promotional content across platforms, engage with automotive industry consumers, and encourage shoppers to look into your dealership and begin their car-buying journey.

Even the most creative minds can fall into a slump. Some days there just isn’t that much going on or every topic seems exhausted. When the content isn’t flowing, it’s always good to have a few simple topics in your back pocket to fall back on:

1. How-to. Create a quick demo or how-to explaining, for example, how to change your oil or how to change a tire. It’s pretty easy to come up with topics for a how-to in just about any niche. These types of posts are helpful and available on your site for people to refer to whenever they stumble across a particular problem your how-to article addresses. Even if your dealership offers services to change oil or change a tire, readers still appreciate your assistance, and offering the information to them on your end helps build trust. When your customers feel comfortable with your dealership and feel you have their best interests in mind, they will be more likely to bring their vehicle to you when it’s time for maintenance and repairs.
2. Create short bios to highlight the professionals at your dealership, introducing a different individual each week, so consumers feel acquainted with your dealership before they even step foot onto the lot. It’s also a great idea to interview local car enthusiasts or professionals to add a variety of personable and knowledgeable content to your website. Modern consumers seek out information and are much more receptive when they know who and what to expect at your dealership.
3. Round-up. Put together a list of several articles or websites that can serve as resources for your target audience as they navigate online. For example, consider topics like five of the best vehicle rating sites, eight local shops to accessorize your car, or 10 of the most influential professionals in the industry.
4. Throw together a list of your staff’s favorite car picks for this year or favorite upgrades chosen by a specific group—students, parents, etc. This is a great opportunity to show off your dealership’s knowledge and share some of your personal go-tos as a way of assisting consumers who may be in the market for the same thing.
5. Before and after. If your dealership offers services such as car washing or detailing, it’s always a great idea to create before and after posts showing customers exactly how beneficial your dealership’s services are. 
6. A guide. Consumers are constantly buying new cars or trading in old ones, but often, the industry changes even faster than consumers can track. Take the opportunity to create a guide highlighting the buying and selling process, and be sure to update it every so often, walking your customers through the current car-buying, trading, or selling process.
7. A review. Reviewing products or cars associated with your dealership is one of the easiest post ideas. The professionals at your dealership have experience, both with their own vehicles and those they work on every day, so take advantage of their knowledge and post personalized reviews. Consumers trust individuals more than they trust brand messages, so this is a great opportunity to share the voices of your employees.
8. Best of. Different from “Favorites,” best of posts allow your dealership to create a list of cars or services and then rate or review them for your customers. This may be helpful to consumers when comparing vehicles side-by-side or looking into different versions of the same vehicle. It will give consumers a reason to trust your dealership, and it will help them feel more prepared toward the end of their car-buying journey.
9. Consumers generally jump at the opportunity to win something free. If your dealership has partnerships with companies or has the opportunity to give away gift cards or tickets to an event, it’s time to post a contest. It’s sure to get consumers talking about and interacting with your dealership in a fun and positive manner.
10. A recap. If your dealership recently held an event, helped host an event, or partnered with a local charity or organization for a fundraiser, write up a quick recap. It lets readers know your dealership is involved in the community, and if it was an event they missed, it may help them take note and pay attention the next time your dealership has something going on. It’s also a good opportunity for those who attended or took part in your event to see a few photos of themselves, read about something they were a part of, and feel involved.

Content is one of the—if not the—strongest means of communication with your automotive industry consumers. 70% of consumers prefer getting to know a company via articles rather than ads, and 60% of consumers feel more positive about a company after reading custom content on its site. The statistics on content improving sales and the amount of consumers that find their information via business’s content are vast, which goes to show having consistent and informative content on hand is always a positive for your dealership.

The automotive industry has seen an influx in sales stemming from online traffic over the last few years, and consumers are not letting this trend die down any time soon. Dealerships that take to heart customers’ demands in the online realm will boost their bottom line by integrating live chat software on their sites and utilizing responsive website design. 

Live Chat Is Convenient

With more and more customers conducting research online before even walking into a dealership, why not save time in the car-buying process by selling online through live chat? Real-time communication provides businesses a way to dispel doubts or misconceptions about a purchase and stay true to advertised deals and promotions. A customer with questions and concerns can have them answered right away with live chat, an effective tool when it comes to efficiently responding to customer inquiries.

Live Chat Makes Shoppers Comfortable

Another thing customers love about the live chat feature is anonymity. For example, car dealers who use Contact At Once! have found that chat allows a customer to remain anonymous at the outset of a car purchase, when he or she is skeptical over reaching out with personal contact information. Once the customer gets comfortable with the live chat, then the dealership can follow up with a phone call or email as needed during the car-buying process.

 Live Chat Increases Sales

Different methods of communication result in varying customer experiences, but live chat continues to be a popular choice among consumers in the automotive industry. Forrester Research found that 44% of online consumers feel having access to answers through a live person while deciding on a purchase is one of the most important features a website can offer, with 62% more likely to return and purchase again.

 Live Chat Lets You Interact With Multiple Customers

Live chat not only makes sales professionals more accessible, it reduces costs in phone customer service for the company. Employees can multi-task during online chats, interacting with more than one customer at a time, which in turn boosts productivity and reduces the need to hire more sales professionals. At the same time, the software increases sales. For instance, once a sales professional is able to understand a customer on a more personal level by chatting with them, they are better able to pose recommendations for purchases instantly.

Live Chat Gives You Instant Customer Access

Customers want immediate attention to walk them through a sale. By communicating with them in real-time during a purchase, employees gain instant access to customers’ pain points. Sales consultants can research and find out ways to improve a service or product simply by attentively listening and turning these pain points into profit.

Responsive Website Design Increases Online Traffic

Live chats are not the only tool dealer sites can utilize to create a more comfortable consumer experience. Consumers are not only going mobile, but want a more optimized experience when visiting a dealer site. This is where responsive website design comes into play. Whether a user is navigating the site on a smartphone, tablet, laptop, or desktop computer, the dealer site should be friendly to each device without a lot of re-sizing, panning, or scrolling required. RWD sites are especially mobile-friendly since they cater to the smaller screen, which is beneficial to the automotive consumer, as the number of users who access the internet strictly by mobile has gone up to 60% just within the last year, and this figure is steadily rising.

In an eMarketer study, the number of smartphone users within the U.S. will increase to 192.4 million by 2016. Along with this growth will come customers’ demands for a seamless online experience across all devices. In another study conducted by Stream Companies, a responsive website design earned double the amount of pages per visit over an adaptive website design, 43% more time spent on the site, and 1/3 the bounce rate, or the percentage of visitors who leave the site after only viewing one page, as compared to averages of adaptive sites.

Given the increasing desire to access the web via smaller screens than the average computer monitor offers, it makes sense for dealerships to offer sites that provide a consistent customer experience across any device.

Keeping customers engaged online by maintaining simplicity and convenience is an effective way to increase sales and customer satisfaction at the same time. Live chat doubles as a tool to answer customer questions in real-time and to find new ways to improve a product or service as well. Responsive website design ensures smooth transition of dealer site use across a variety of devices. With an accessible online design and a convenient method of communication between a dealership and its customers, a dealership boosts traffic online and increases its bottom line as a result.

Image used in this post courtesy of freedigitalphotos.net.

It's the Holiday Season

If you’re looking for quick, fun tips your dealership can take advantage of in a big way, below are 7 of our best:

1. Decorate. Spruce up your showroom floor so your dealership feels inviting and visually appealing when customers stop in.  With decorations and music creating a festive atmosphere, it’s hard to resist the holiday spirit, and shoppers will be in a great frame of mind for buying.  Decorating your lot can also increase visibility to those passing by, attract people to your lot, help promote your holiday deals, and create an overall upbeat mood among both consumers and employees.
2. Deck the social media platforms. Update your profile pictures and cover photos to reflect a mixture of your dealership’s brand and the holiday season. Give online consumers a reason to celebrate and land on your website or platforms.  Be sure to highlight holiday specials and incentives, and provide content that offers engaging and educational material that’s relevant to seasonal topics.
3. Make your mail festive. Whether you’re sending out snail mail or email, spruce it up with holiday colors and themes. Consumers are more likely to open mail and emails around the holidays as they search for deals and sales, so if your mail is holiday themed, it will draw more attention.
4. Run contests online. Offer fun, mini contests giving away door prizes or a percentage off purchases, but also offer a couple significant prizes—like a car—to get even more people interested. Ask people to like, share, tweet, and follow your platforms for more entries. And include a hashtag to start your giveaways circulating and give consumers something to search if they want to locate them online.
5. Offer a holiday sale. Sales are one of the best ways to get consumers into your dealership during the holidays. Consumers are in the buying spirit, and you want your dealership to be competitive with its holiday sale. Give consumers a reason to show up on your showroom floor.
6. Give gifts. Offer gifts to those who visit your dealership. If you want customers to stick around longer, do giveaway announcements in-store only throughout the day and give customers a reason to come and stay.
7. Get involved in the community. After all, the holiday season is also about giving back to those around us. An easy way to get your dealership and community involved is to offer a donation or service at your dealership for an organization or cause in the community—like Toys for Tots or an adopt-a-family organization. This also gives people more incentive to physically come into your dealership, knowing they have the opportunity to participate, give back, and feel good about themselves and the positive impact your dealership is exerting.

Although the holiday season comes and goes quickly, the effort put into becoming a part of it, decorating, and showing holiday spirit is well worth it to drive consumers into your dealership. Remember, consumers are on the lookout for savings, both on larger purchases and smaller ones; and they are drawn to businesses that also offer ways for them to participate and give back to the community.  When your dealership pulls its resources together and offers savings, holiday spirit, and gets involved with the community, it’s a great way to entice consumers to shop with you.