Google Places.  Facebook.  Twitter.  Foursquare.  Etc.  All free.  Car dealers have to love that price, right?

My caution is not about whether to use these services, as YOU MUST USE THEM.  It’s not an option any longer—it’s just a matter of when you can get to using them with the attention they deserve for the result you need.

My caution IS, however, about knowing what you’re getting with “Free”.   With “Free”, you have no contract , you have “Terms of Use”.  And you don’t have a platform you bought with agreed-to deliverables and some controls, you have a service you are gaining whose deliverables CHANGE.  And whose data presentation and on-screen arrangement is NOT up to you!

The latest case in point is Google Places.  Your GOOGLE business reviews are prominently displayed there, but previously your business “star rating” included 3^rd Party review stars.  You might agree with Google’s business decisions on changing that, but it still impacted dealers who went from hundreds of reviews in the star rating to a handful.  Dealers who invested in 3^rd Party sites for their reputation, and dealers who could use their 3^rd Party sites in their burgeoning “Reputation MARKETING” efforts, were left out of the direct impact of the Google Rating Stars.

SEO, for example, has been like this for years, constantly changing, and so that has made SEO companies viable because there’s always a new twist to getting the dealership high in the search rankings.  So, it appears this story is not new, right?  Except you bought SEO services to chase this rabbit around Google’s “free” search engine race track, and it was always a fight to the top.  With Google Places, now it’s also—VERY importantly—a fight for reviews in a system that the shopper sees on SERP ONE but that are arranged in a presentation YOU DON’T AND CAN’T CONTROL.  And that changes without notice:  Talk to some dealers who have had their Google Places “pulled” because GoogleBots thought they were gaming the system.  YES, Google, this dealer really has SEVEN manufacturers under one address (more than five categories), and YES they all share the same main phone line.  And so on.  Well, maybe you've won that one for now—until something else in this “Free” service changes, whether for information, presentation, search results, or reviews.  Or whatever else becomes “Free”.

You can only stay on top of this part of your advertising if you dedicate the time to use them AND to get and stay educated on what all these “Free” services are doing.  And what they may be planning.  PCG Consulting (Brian Pasch) is on top of it.  Tier 10 (Ralph Paglia) is on top of it.  And there are more educators and consultants that I don’t know about who are on top of it.  They can educate you, but in the end be sure YOU are on top of it.  And that you get what you need from it.

Because “Free”, like Freedom, Ain’t Free!

by Keith Shetterly, www.keithshetterly.com
Copyright 2011, All Rights Reserved
keithshetterly@gmail.com

Google Places.  Facebook.  Twitter.  Foursquare.  Etc.  All free.  Car dealers have to love that price, right?

My caution is not about whether to use these services, as YOU MUST USE THEM.  It’s not an option any longer—it’s just a matter of when you can get to using them with the attention they deserve for the result you need.

My caution IS, however, about knowing what you’re getting with “Free”.   With “Free”, you have no contract , you have “Terms of Use”.  And you don’t have a platform you bought with agreed-to deliverables and some controls, you have a service you are gaining whose deliverables CHANGE.  And whose data presentation and on-screen arrangement is NOT up to you!

The latest case in point is Google Places.  Your GOOGLE business reviews are prominently displayed there, but previously your business “star rating” included 3^rd Party review stars.  You might agree with Google’s business decisions on changing that, but it still impacted dealers who went from hundreds of reviews in the star rating to a handful.  Dealers who invested in 3^rd Party sites for their reputation, and dealers who could use their 3^rd Party sites in their burgeoning “Reputation MARKETING” efforts, were left out of the direct impact of the Google Rating Stars.

SEO, for example, has been like this for years, constantly changing, and so that has made SEO companies viable because there’s always a new twist to getting the dealership high in the search rankings.  So, it appears this story is not new, right?  Except you bought SEO services to chase this rabbit around Google’s “free” search engine race track, and it was always a fight to the top.  With Google Places, now it’s also—VERY importantly—a fight for reviews in a system that the shopper sees on SERP ONE but that are arranged in a presentation YOU DON’T AND CAN’T CONTROL.  And that changes without notice:  Talk to some dealers who have had their Google Places “pulled” because GoogleBots thought they were gaming the system.  YES, Google, this dealer really has SEVEN manufacturers under one address (more than five categories), and YES they all share the same main phone line.  And so on.  Well, maybe you've won that one for now—until something else in this “Free” service changes, whether for information, presentation, search results, or reviews.  Or whatever else becomes “Free”.

You can only stay on top of this part of your advertising if you dedicate the time to use them AND to get and stay educated on what all these “Free” services are doing.  And what they may be planning.  PCG Consulting (Brian Pasch) is on top of it.  Tier 10 (Ralph Paglia) is on top of it.  And there are more educators and consultants that I don’t know about who are on top of it.  They can educate you, but in the end be sure YOU are on top of it.  And that you get what you need from it.

Because “Free”, like Freedom, Ain’t Free!

by Keith Shetterly, www.keithshetterly.com
Copyright 2011, All Rights Reserved
keithshetterly@gmail.com

Here we finally have a car dealership using Groupon for CAR DISCOUNTS (Cadillac and Groupon).  People can purchase an amount off the car later for buying a coupon for a lesser amount now.

I tried to get four separate dealers to try this last year. I'll get the same push-back here, perhaps, as I did from them, but this guy quoted in the article gets it:  It's not a coupon, it's ADVERTISING.

$199 buys you $500 off a car purchased this year.  The customer commits to buying from you by spending money NOW, and you apply this as an advertising expense.  Really, how much do most of you spend now per vechicle to get the phone to ring, leads/emails to come in, and to get walk-in traffic?

It's going just like pricing did:  We used to hold all the cards for brochures and price, and some of us played games in the newspaper.  Nowadays, if you're asked a price in a lead, you answer with a price (as well with calls to action and enticements, but you send a price).  THAT began when the first dealer sent a price and got business when others did not.  It will be the same here, if this works out, and I think it will.  It's just the first.

by Keith Shetterly, keithshetterly@gmail.com
www.keithshetterly.com
Copyright 2011, All Rights Reserved. 

Here we finally have a car dealership using Groupon for CAR DISCOUNTS (Cadillac and Groupon).  People can purchase an amount off the car later for buying a coupon for a lesser amount now.

I tried to get four separate dealers to try this last year. I'll get the same push-back here, perhaps, as I did from them, but this guy quoted in the article gets it:  It's not a coupon, it's ADVERTISING.

$199 buys you $500 off a car purchased this year.  The customer commits to buying from you by spending money NOW, and you apply this as an advertising expense.  Really, how much do most of you spend now per vechicle to get the phone to ring, leads/emails to come in, and to get walk-in traffic?

It's going just like pricing did:  We used to hold all the cards for brochures and price, and some of us played games in the newspaper.  Nowadays, if you're asked a price in a lead, you answer with a price (as well with calls to action and enticements, but you send a price).  THAT began when the first dealer sent a price and got business when others did not.  It will be the same here, if this works out, and I think it will.  It's just the first.

by Keith Shetterly, keithshetterly@gmail.com
www.keithshetterly.com
Copyright 2011, All Rights Reserved. 

Grand Theft Auto - Customer:  It’s not a video game—it’s your real profits.  How do other dealers steal your customers?

They park a PPC campaign on your dealership name.  They use your dealership name in their SEO work.  They hijack your Google Places results (just found and undid one of those!).   And your Bing.  And Yahoo. And so on.  All because you’re not watching your digital presence and stopping it.

And you cooperate as theft victim, as well.  You push your customers to review you on third-party review sites that sell ad space around your reviewsto your competitors.  You pay to drive your customers to online inventory sites that lead shoppers off to other offers.   And I’ve even seen links within a dealer’s Internet Autoresponder that invite customers to visit these sites to get stolen by competitors!  In one particular case,  a dealer’s Autoresponder was sending the shopper to a review site where they had 2-star reviews…

And this is all before these other competing dealers make any honest effort to reach out via a marketing campaign to conquer your customers in your area.  And perhaps you help, as well, by not reaching out to your sold customers to get them in to your service drive—and your competitor has a strong customer retention program that keeps them once they get them.

So grab your Google Places, Yahoo, Bing, etc.  Get ready for Google’s new “+1” strategy.   Protect your dealership name with trademark and/or vigorous efforts as you can, plus SEO/PPC efforts of your own and (perhaps) a letter or two from a lawyer.  Give great customer service and get great reviews from your customers in both sales and service.  Get your sold customers in to your service drive.  Set up a great customer retention program.

And stop being a victim of Grand Theft Auto - Customer!

by Keith Shetterly, Copyright 2011
keithshetterly@gmail.com
www.keithshetterly.com
Come see me at Brian Pasch's PCG PitStop!  www.pcgpitstop.com
Dallas, L.A., St. Louis, Toronto, Vancouver, Seattle! 

Grand Theft Auto - Customer:  It’s not a video game—it’s your real profits.  How do other dealers steal your customers?

They park a PPC campaign on your dealership name.  They use your dealership name in their SEO work.  They hijack your Google Places results (just found and undid one of those!).   And your Bing.  And Yahoo. And so on.  All because you’re not watching your digital presence and stopping it.

And you cooperate as theft victim, as well.  You push your customers to review you on third-party review sites that sell ad space around your reviewsto your competitors.  You pay to drive your customers to online inventory sites that lead shoppers off to other offers.   And I’ve even seen links within a dealer’s Internet Autoresponder that invite customers to visit these sites to get stolen by competitors!  In one particular case,  a dealer’s Autoresponder was sending the shopper to a review site where they had 2-star reviews…

And this is all before these other competing dealers make any honest effort to reach out via a marketing campaign to conquer your customers in your area.  And perhaps you help, as well, by not reaching out to your sold customers to get them in to your service drive—and your competitor has a strong customer retention program that keeps them once they get them.

So grab your Google Places, Yahoo, Bing, etc.  Get ready for Google’s new “+1” strategy.   Protect your dealership name with trademark and/or vigorous efforts as you can, plus SEO/PPC efforts of your own and (perhaps) a letter or two from a lawyer.  Give great customer service and get great reviews from your customers in both sales and service.  Get your sold customers in to your service drive.  Set up a great customer retention program.

And stop being a victim of Grand Theft Auto - Customer!

by Keith Shetterly, Copyright 2011
keithshetterly@gmail.com
www.keithshetterly.com
Come see me at Brian Pasch's PCG PitStop!  www.pcgpitstop.com
Dallas, L.A., St. Louis, Toronto, Vancouver, Seattle! 

1) Keep It Short.  People don't watch commercials, they Watch Shows and Put Up With Commercials.  And the Internet did NOT improve their patience!

2) Make It Fun to Watch and Share.  Entertainment is the largest video audience, NOT education--so tell a great story, show your product, and leave the detailed info for a store visit.  And remember:  If your video makes them smile, they'll share it.

3) Include Calls to Action and SEO.  Tell your viewers to come buy something and how and why!  And remind them to share your video--and don't forget to tag the video with your website URL, keywords, etc. so that you get the full value of online video SEO.

Copyright 2011 Keith Shetterly
keithshetterly@gmail.com
www.ShetterlysLaws.com
www.KeithShetterly.com
www.twitter.com/keithshetterly
www.fullofshetterly.com

1) Keep It Short.  People don't watch commercials, they Watch Shows and Put Up With Commercials.  And the Internet did NOT improve their patience!

2) Make It Fun to Watch and Share.  Entertainment is the largest video audience, NOT education--so tell a great story, show your product, and leave the detailed info for a store visit.  And remember:  If your video makes them smile, they'll share it.

3) Include Calls to Action and SEO.  Tell your viewers to come buy something and how and why!  And remind them to share your video--and don't forget to tag the video with your website URL, keywords, etc. so that you get the full value of online video SEO.

Copyright 2011 Keith Shetterly
keithshetterly@gmail.com
www.ShetterlysLaws.com
www.KeithShetterly.com
www.twitter.com/keithshetterly
www.fullofshetterly.com

Those that know me or read my professional blogs know that I'm a GREAT believer in processes, and that I consider that many, many dealerships' profits would increase dramatically from just making THOSE EXISTING PROCESSES WORK FOR THEM.  And we never want process to fail us, sure, but it's especially painful when we've gotten a customer in from a call, landed them on a car--and our process blows up in, say, finance.  And they walk out.

Well, we need to consider our web conversions ARE JUST AS PAINFUL IF NOT MORE.  We do SEO, PPC, integrated marketing campaigns, email, etc. . . . spend many thousands of dollars a month on all that . . . to get the shopper on to our website.  And that visit somehow still blows up on, say, online pricing.  Or website usability.  Or unanswered questions and no one to talk to.  And they click out.  We call that "bounce rate", as in "We need a low bounce rate!!!".

Except what we should be saying is:  "We need a high conversion rate!!!"

My mantra for 2011 for all vendors, consultants, and 3rd parties I deal with who want a dealership's business:  "Shut Up and Help Me Convert!"  Or go home and come back when you can.

Your website better be fewest clicks to inventory and get the shopper to submit a lead.  You better support easy landing pages for a PPC campaign that offer incentives to convert.  Your chat better offer a great experience that leads the customer to give up contact information.  And your ability to drive phone calls from the web better be second to none.

I am not kidding.  You had better shut up and help me convert, or get the hell out of my way, for the rest of 2011.

by Keith Shetterly, Copyright 2011 All Rights Reserved
keithshetterly@gmail.com    www.keithshetterly.com 

Those that know me or read my professional blogs know that I'm a GREAT believer in processes, and that I consider that many, many dealerships' profits would increase dramatically from just making THOSE EXISTING PROCESSES WORK FOR THEM.  And we never want process to fail us, sure, but it's especially painful when we've gotten a customer in from a call, landed them on a car--and our process blows up in, say, finance.  And they walk out.

Well, we need to consider our web conversions ARE JUST AS PAINFUL IF NOT MORE.  We do SEO, PPC, integrated marketing campaigns, email, etc. . . . spend many thousands of dollars a month on all that . . . to get the shopper on to our website.  And that visit somehow still blows up on, say, online pricing.  Or website usability.  Or unanswered questions and no one to talk to.  And they click out.  We call that "bounce rate", as in "We need a low bounce rate!!!".

Except what we should be saying is:  "We need a high conversion rate!!!"

My mantra for 2011 for all vendors, consultants, and 3rd parties I deal with who want a dealership's business:  "Shut Up and Help Me Convert!"  Or go home and come back when you can.

Your website better be fewest clicks to inventory and get the shopper to submit a lead.  You better support easy landing pages for a PPC campaign that offer incentives to convert.  Your chat better offer a great experience that leads the customer to give up contact information.  And your ability to drive phone calls from the web better be second to none.

I am not kidding.  You had better shut up and help me convert, or get the hell out of my way, for the rest of 2011.

by Keith Shetterly, Copyright 2011 All Rights Reserved
keithshetterly@gmail.com    www.keithshetterly.com