Last night the new season of Mad Men premiered, the show that follows the tale of an ad agency on Madison Avenue NYC, garnered much hype last year after the Jaguar episode.Either way, this season opener caught my attention because of the message Don was trying to sell to Sheraton Hotels.

 “I think we’re not selling a geographical location; we’re selling an experience, “ Don said when he was presenting his ad idea.

Don was sent to Hawaii on, “a work junket”. When he returned to the office from Hawaii he told his colleagues, “I had an experience. I don’t know how to put it in words.” The experience Don had in Hawaii was superb, even so much so that he kept thinking about it, couldn’t get the sound of the ocean waves out of his mind. The experience.  Now Don might be questioning his existence in this episode but that’s not the point I’m trying to drive home here.

Dealerships need to sell the experience

This is something that ActivEngage does very well for your dealership. When a person comes in and chats with one of our Virtual Sales Assistants (VSAs), they are professionally greeted and immediately find themselves receiving answers to their questions while also being guided through your dealership’s website to the pages they are looking for. They are not pushed for their contact information or for a salesperson to call them right away.

Your sales staff should be doing the same on your showroom floor. It is not just selling a car from your inventory so you hit your monthly sales goals. It is about providing an elite consumer experience whenever someone comes in contact with your dealership. Start selling the type of experience a visitor can have at your dealership or on your website (You can buy a new car in less than an hour, professional and knowledgeable staff help you decide what vehicle is best for your family, etc.)

How can you sell the experience--Mad Men style?

First, let’s reword this statement Don said about his experience in Hawaii, “I think we’re not selling a [insert vehicle name], we’re selling an experience.”

Now it’s time to consider:

What can it offer for a specific demographic? (busy mom, soccer dad, college grad...etc.)

How does it feel to drive your vehicle?

What is the primary purpose for purchasing this vehicle? (Leather seats for easy cleanup, cargo space, MPG saver...etc?)

What is it like to buy a car from your dealership?

Let’s put it all together now:

I think we’re not selling a Honda Fit, we’re selling an experience. This vehicle is easy-to drive, with the back seats fully down it has a lot of cargo space, and it’s fuel efficient. For you, this means you’ll never have to worry about fitting into a parallel parking spot, seeing if you’ll be able to fit your drum set in the car, or worry about too many trips to the fuel pump. It’s perfect for a musician like yourself.

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What do you think of last night’s episode? Do you think you’ll be able to sell the experience of owning a certain vehicle to a potential customer? Comment below!

There is a reason your social media icons aren’t doing anything. Simply put consumers will ask--what’s in it for me? While browsing many dealerships websites I found these social media icons slapped on the homepage with no value proposition or very lackluster call-to-actions.

As a consumer, why do I want to connect with you? One dealership thinks I want to be friends while many others did not give me a reason for me to follow them.

While browsing print ads I found the same trend:

The solution

There are three things to consider when you are looking to add social media icons to your newspaper ads and online.

1. If you want more people to connect with you on your social media channels, what’s in it for them?

2. If you want more people to connect with you on your social media channels, you must make it easy for them to follow/like you whether its online, in print, or collateral. 

3. If you want more people to connect with you on your social media channels, you must ensure there is a clear call to action!

Let’s break it down:

What’s in it for them?

A cosumer goes to your digital showroom and sees social media icons all lined in a row. That’s it? Why should I like your dealership on Facebook/Twitter? What’s in it for me? Can I expect to be updated with breaking news or when new vehicles hit the lot? Will I get to see pictures of your staff? Or maybe I’ll be lucky enough to follow you because you’ll include service coupons/discounts or special follower pricing on a new vehicle!

Did you make it easy?  

In regards to print or any other marketing collateral you slap social media icons on--ask yourself, did you make it easy for me to follow you? How do I like you on Facebook? How do I follow you on Twitter? Where do I go? (hint: What’s the URL?). What do I do when I get there?

Also, the homepage isn’t a very good place to place your social media icons. It is already crowded enough with rotating banner ads, new vehicle information, and current specials. Try placing social media icons where it makes sense, in the About Us section, or under Specials/Coupons section of your website to get people to follow you for updates on money saving coupons. You could even make a section on why consumers should follow your dealership. 

Where’s the call-to-action?

Dedicate more real estate to your social media icons and add a call-to-action. Let’s be friends isn’t sufficient enough. Again think, what’s in it for me? Something more appropriate would be:

Follow/Friend us to:

Get exclusive updates and money saving coupons!

Be a part of exciting contests and prizes!

Learn how to maintain your vehicle!

I could go on with more examples of good call-to-actions, but I think you get the point.

The next time I’m browsing dealership’s websites and print ads, I hope to find more value in the social media icons dealerships display, and if I do maybe--just maybe, you’ll gain a follower/like. =)

The new season of Game of Thrones is underway and I’m eager to see where the 7 Kingdomstakes us in the third season. This show adapted from George R.R. Martin’s series of fantasy novels has become more popular than ever, even being the most pirated show to date. As an avid viewer of the show, I wanted to point out managerial and leadership lessons that can be learned from the series’ characters and applied to your dealership. That being said, if you haven’t seen the 2nd season stop reading, as I will be revealing some spoilers.

What can today's manager learn from these feuding fantasy clans?

King Joffrey - Just because you have Power, doesn’t mean you have to use it.

Joffrey is by far, the most unqualified leader Westeros has ever had. Cersei thought she could be the puppeteer and control him, but Joffrey is a coward and he has no love for his people. Which we saw when a mob attacked him in the market.

Dealers: Managers need to realize that they aren’t always right. Good ideas come from all ranks of your dealership’s infantry. Be open to hearing ideas and even--complaints.

Stannis Baratheon - Know when to break the rules

Business leaders must be flexible and opportunistic – the opposite of the single-minded and stubborn Stannis Baratheon. A great weakness of Stannis is his belief in the red woman, Melisandre. Her religion scared away many who would have joined Stannis’ cause against the hated Lannisters. Yes, her super creepy shadow baby did kill Renly, but this red haired woman forced Stannis to attack King’s Landing and ignore the wisdom of one of his trusted advisors.  

 

Dealers: Be flexible and opportunistic. Know that it is okay to not follow the rules once in awhile when it concerns the best interest of your dealership.

 

Cersei Lannister - Be ambitious AND Assertive 

Cersei lacks assertiveness and the skillset to be anything but second in command. We saw this when she plotted her husband’s, King Robert, death and her attempt to rule behind her son, Joffrey. But instead of owning her newfound power, she merely sits back and lets Joffrey run wild.  

 

Dealers: Without assertiveness, ambition will get you nowhere. When you want to accomplish a new task or implement a new service at your dealership, you must properly train your staff and be stern. You can’t just sit back and expect to be successful.

 

Daenerys Targaryen - Plan for the Future

 

Daenerys has a lot of things going for her, she is humble, a servant-leader, and she hasDRAGONS. The only thing is that her dragons do take some time to grow.  As a result, she awkwardly attempts to get loans from the merchant kings of Qarth with no gain as she has found the richest man in Qarth had absolutely nothing.

 

Dealers: There are slow months, there are busy months, there are days when not one person comes on your lot or showroom. This is where you must plan for the future. Take a look at last year’s business trends and this year's predictions and try to plan accordingly.

Robb Stark- Do not Misplace your Trust 

The Young Wolf has the same fault as his father: blind trust. After winning a battle in the South, he loses in the North, and his own mother releases the only bargaining tool that Robb had against the Lannisters – Jaime. Goes to show that you must be careful where you place your trust.

 

Dealers: You need smart and dedicated colleagues to help your dealership excel. Hiring the right staff is essential to the success of your dealership.

 

Tyrion Lannister - Be creative in problem solving.

Tyrion has a lot of things going for him; he’s smart, witty, and shrewd, but he was born a dwarf. Because of his dwarfism, it has given him the worldview that sets his character apart from Lannister clan. Due to his quick thinking and not being afraid to take a risk, he saved King’s Landing from Stannis’ attack.

 

Dealers: When it comes to getting the most out of your digital showroom, be creative. Write blogs that are engaging, consumer driven, and that answer the questions your customers are asking. If you’re looking for a way to increase your leads, consider using live chat!

 

While anyone can rule with a sword, a true leader must serve in the interest of the majority. Unrestrained power undermines authority while power used in a thoughtful conservative manner grants legitimacy.

 

What do you think of the Game of Thrones character’s leadership styles? Which house are you rooting for to take the Iron Throne? Comment below!

I understand how important leads are, I mean I work for a company that supplies a service to dealerships that ensures quality conversations, leads and sales appointments. That’s why I decided to investigate dealership lead follow up processes across the country and to say the least, I am disappointed.

Out of the several emails I’ve received in response to a website form I submitted, only onedealership took the time to READ my email and answer my questions quickly. I also submitted a lead in Spanish (being Boricua) and it took three emails for someone to finally realize the difference in languages. Not to mention, the countless automatic response emails that kept asking for my phone number when I clearly do not want to be contacted by phone.There were also a few auto-response emails asking me if the email address I entered was the correct email to respond to -- is this even necessary?

Your dealership’s online showroom is the best source of quality leads and can have the most powerful impact on your Internet sales. When I look at a dealership’s website, I see the value you can provide potential buyers. However, when your visitors fill out a lead form and receive a handful of template emails, that’s when the value drops significantly.

You can have the best website design in the industry and have tested your websites pages over and over again to ensure the highest conversion rates. But, when your internal processes dictate that gathering a visitor’s contact information is more important than answering their questions first, all of your website optimization efforts will be for nothing.

My experiences lead me to write our newest eBook, Automatic Lead Follow Up Is Killing Your Dealership’s Sales. In this eBook, I provide 7 tips to improve your follow up processes and point out follow up activities that, when corrected, can lead to a boost in your sales. You’ll learn everything from asking proper follow up questions in your response emails to writing email subject lines which entice shoppers to open your emails.

Don’t hesitate to download this FREE eBook today, and start increasing your dealerships sales!

About 95% of Americans watch TV using traditional cable or satellite options, whereas the other 5%—the so-called "Zero-TV" viewers—are bucking tradition (because of cost or lack of interest) in favor of non-traditional devices and services, according to a report by Nielsen. 

I’m not saying to stop your traditional TV advertising and I’m definitely not saying the entire population will convert to a Zero TV Households within the next year, but it is important to notice this trend and cater to the 5 million people that do not watch cable TV. Your website is the best tool for gaining more customers and leads so use it to capture the attention of 5 million Zero TV households.

Now that you have this data, let’s review ways you can beef up your online and mobile advertising as less than 10% of the Web is currently mobile ready (mobile search now accounts for abouthalf of all searches).

1. Keep Messages Simple

Complex language, metaphors, or details that require too much thinking should be avoided. Follow this rule of thumb: if someone can’t understand the ad within two seconds, the message needs to be simplified.

2. Provide a Strong Call-to-Action

Use straightforward descriptions -- “Click here for 20% Off,” or “Value your Trade Now!.”

3. Use Visually Compelling Imagery

Use images that capture the value of your message as consumers are more likely to click to your site.

4. Create a Sense of Urgency

Take advantage of seasonal and time-sensitive trends. Like VW’s SPRINGTOBER or Chevy’s Truck Month.

5. TEST!

When you've decided on the right messaging, call-to-action items, and images, your next step is A/B testing. A/B testing allows you to understand what features of your ad are compelling to a mobile user and which type of messaging and creative resonates best with them. There is always room for improvement so test, test and test some more.

Utilize these tips in your next website redesign. If your mobile site is set up poorly, you can expect that over half of these potential customers would not recommend you. Furthermore, 40% would then visit a competitor site after a bad mobile experience on yours.

If you need help in making your website mobile and tablet friendly,  check out my previous blog post!

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As always, follow @activengage and @kettyc for marketing tips, live chat updates, and more! 




















 

Blogs are more influential than social networks in shaping consumers’ opinions and purchase decisions, according to Technorati’s 2013 Digital Influence Report.

Even so, brands seem to be investing more on other social channels, particularly Facebook, than on blogging

When making decisions about what to buy, consumers rank blogs as the third most influential digital resource (31.1%), behind retail sites (56%) and brand sites (34%).


In fact, blogs were found to be the fifth-most trustworthy source overall for information on the Internet. YouTube, Facebook and Google+ are the most popular social properties for consumers.

With the big investments brands are making on the social platforms, consumers said keeping up with a company’s activities and learning about products and services were the top reasons for following brands on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Pinterest and Instagram.

In short, where brands are spending is not fully aligned with how consumers are seeing value and being influenced.

Why do consumers follow brands?
Consumers engage with brands via social networking sites for various reasons:

• Facebook users tend to “like” brands to learn about products and services (56%), keep up with brand-related activities (52%), and for sweepstakes and promos (48%); some 32% interact with brands to provide feedback.

• Twitter users follow brands mostly to keep up with brand activities (57%) and learn about products and services (47%); some 27% do so to provide feedback.

• YouTube users engage with brands mostly to learn about products and services (61%), keep up with brand-related activities (41%), and provide feedback (23%).

• Pinterest users follow brands primarily to learn about products and services (56%), keep up with brand activities (35%), and for sweepstakes/promos (28%).

• Instagram users follow brands to keep up with brand-related activities (41%), learn more about products and services (39%), and make purchases (27%).

Dealer Takeaway:
Blog, blog, blog! Then share your blog on social networks! Seriously! Why aren’t you blogging yet?

At ActivEngage we know that a happy employee will result in better services for your dealership and your online customers that chat. We take pride in keeping our Virtual Sales Associates (VSAs) happy and we do so by offering a multitude of perks and benefits.

I’m bringing this up because keeping your warriors happy (i.e. corporate culture) is your best marketing plan yet. Take a look at Suzuki of Wichita (soon to be Subaru of Wichita), they havecountless awards and have been named the #1 Suzuki dealership in the USA for 4 years in a row. That doesn’t happen by chance, and if you look further into their award page you can see that this dealership takes the time to recognize their employees.

Aaron Wirtz, Social Media Manager of Suzuki of Wichita states on maintaining a happy atmosphere:

"I feel that the biggest sense of team cohesion at Suzuki of Wichita comes from the work itself. While we do have Tvs, video games, free soda, and a claw machine in the showroom,  it's understood that those are for customers. You'll never see any of our employees standing around using them because there's enough work for everyone to do. People are rarely tempted to goof off because the feeling of accomplishment always trumps the fleeting pleasure of wasting time.

Since our salespeople are non-commissioned (salary based with customer service and volume incentives), there is a sense of working with customers instead of against them. This isn't just some line that we feed people to trick them into trusting us, either. It really is true. Yes, we're in business to sell cars, but the reason why  people come back for their 2nd, 3rd, 4th, even 7th cars is the way we treat them.

Don't get me wrong--employees are treated very well here. Every Friday, the company provides lunch for the employees, and on Saturdays, lunch is provided for employees and customers. This is not a cause of happiness, though, just one of its many effects. At other jobs I've had where morale was low, any sort of gesture from management (free pizza, prizes, etc) was only a cause for more complaining.  

Why do we have so many pictures of smiling employees? Two reasons:

1. People are generally happy here.

2. We make it a priority to document that happiness.

There's nothing fake going on, either. If you've ever been tasked with trying to make miserable car people have fun for the camera, you know it's next to impossible. If you can do it, you're better at persuasion than I am."

If that wasn't enough to explain the importance of keeping your employees happy, here are some additional tips to keep your employees happy:

Keep Communication Open

Business research repeatedly underscores the important role of the middle managers in building an open and honest rapport with employees. This goes beyond regurgitating the company line, which employees can usually spot as easily as an elephant in a driveway

Recognize Success

According to the principles of Six Sigma, a business management system initially developed at Motorola, employee recognition isn't a tool to incentivize success, but rather to establish a standard for excellence.

Set Clear Goals

Psychologists agree that people work their best and hardest when endeavoring to meet a specific, challenging goal. A study conducted by researchers at the University of Albertafound that people who focused on the meaningfulness of their jobs exhibited a 60 percent drop in absenteeism and a 75 percent reduction in turnover.

Provide Growth Opportunities

Career experts rate career development opportunities as one of the top five most important benefits that employees wish for.This especially rings true among the emerging Generation Y workforce. Integrating that need for variety and feedback while potentially improving job performance could prove to be the perfect storm for honing the newest wave of recruits.

Give Employees Respect

A crucial part of nurturing engagement is acknowledging and utilizing the unique skill sets that employees bring to the table. Thomas Britt, an organizational psychologist at Clemson University, suggests that if people aren't tapped for their talents, it squanders engagement and diminishes job commitment.

Provide Feedback

Providing consistent feedback opens up a line of communication between employees and managers -- and the resulting benefits go both ways. Employees gain a better understanding of where they're succeeding and what requires more attention; managers glean insight into office dynamics and daily work flow.

Offer Perks and Benefits

This doesn’t have to be extravagant, you could do a lunch once a month for employees or have some sort of potluck. At ActivEngage we offer our employees, bi-monthly lunches, massages,  free gym memberships, and free health care benefits.

Don’t fret about the latest viral video circulating around your office of kittens, baby pandas or puppies doing something adorable. A Japanese study found that the people who viewed images and videos of  baby animals improved their performance, and were more focused and careful in their tasks. That's why I always include a cute video in the Top Ten Blog Posts for the Week!

Japanese call this Kawaii. Kawaii is an attributive adjective in modern Japanese and is often translated into English as “cute.” Because cute things produce positive feelings, their influence may extend to other aspects of behavior.

So in essence, let your employees relax a little bit.  Social media is part of company culture, and excluding it will actually hinder employee performance. Also, human beings aren’t designed to expend energy continuously. Rather, we’re meant to pulse between spending and recovering energy.

So, here are some tips for your employees while they are on social media sharing those viral videos:

1. Use it for a purpose --Social media can be a great way to network

2. Teach them how to represent themselves with the highest integrity.

3. Hold them accountable-- Keep them responsible for getting the daily required results for their particular jobs regardless of the time spent on the Web.

Now for your viewing pleasure and to boost your productivity a video of  a baby goat or some baby toucans.

*Blog originally posted at www.activengage.com/blog

If you are one of those people that is buying list of email “subscribers”, stop doing it! Buyingemail lists will damage your sender score and thus limit the amount of people who see your email in the first place! There is a better way to gain more email subscribers than buying them - find out how!

A company's sender score, which is tracked by Return Path, rates the reputation of every outgoing mail server IP address on a scale of 0-100. A company's sender score is determined by an algorithm that takes into account the ratio of undeliverable emails and spam reports for a company's sends.


So how can you gain more email subscribers?
 

• Make sure to provide the option to subscribe to your email updates in every channel possible (email, website, social media updates, etc). You will also want to be clear about what they will be receiving and how often in your request to subscribe. If the customer clearly understands what they are subscribing to, they will be more likely to subscribe.

• Write a blog rich with content that your buyers will be interested in! Blogs, social media, and organic search are the least expensive marketing channels and, according to HubSpot's 2012 State of Inbound Marketing Report, inbound leads have a 13% higher close rate than traditional outbound leads (advertising, events, direct mail, etc). You don’t have to post a daily blog, but at least try once a month to start.

Remember though, once a customer subscribes to your blog, they expect the same quality of information to be delivered to their inbox. So, don’t switch to a heavy sales pitch as soon as you have their email addresses. Stay consistent.

• Provide clear benefits for subscribers: Make sure people who subscribe to your emails have an edge over those who don't. Offer them an email only discount or give them a sneak peek of future vehicle models.

Dealer Takeaway:
An email should provide value to a subscriber, not bombarded them with marketing messages. Your emails should be customer focused - not dealership focused.

*Blog originally posted on www.activengage.com/blog

The Harlem Shake is stupid, yes, we all know it, but that’s why this video trend easily went viral. There is a lesson in marketing that can be learned from the stupidity of this Harlem Shake: it’s super easy to do.

If you want to Harlem Shake you:

• Find a location.

• Film one person dancing for 15 seconds with some sort of costume while everyone else does their regular thing.

• After the bass drops, film a group of people dancing badly with costumes for 10 seconds.

• Slow down the last two seconds of the dancing

• Insert the Harlem shake song into your edited video and you’re done!

But it’s easier than that, it took me all in all 15 minutes of editing video to completeActivEngage’s Harlem Shake. So the marketing lesson here is that you NEED to make it easy for people to contribute.

A lot of social media contests, campaigns, loyalty programs, etc try to get consumers to “get involved”. To contribute. To create content. To vote or participate on some level.

All of these efforts involve a barrier to entry. The trick is to lower that barrier to entry and make it easier for your customers to engage.

The Harlem Shake has the lowest barrier to entry of any video trend I’ve seen. It is dead simple for any office, business, group of friends to decide, film, and publish their version of the video in a few minutes.

Dealer Take Away:

If you want to eventually drive a deeper and more meaningful participation from your audience the first step to getting them on board should be easy.