It’s a question I get asked time and time again by everyone from owners of car dealerships to the CEO’s of Fortune 100 companies.

“What’s the next big thing in marketing?”

What if I told you that in a recent focus group, we learned that what may be the next “big thing” in marketing…has already happened?

You’re probably thinking about Pokemon. That’s a fair assumption, given the recent reincarnation from the Gameboy graveyard.

But that’s not what I’m referring to.

I’m talking about Twitter.

To Learn, Listen

Let me start by giving you some insight as to how we’ve been so massively successful as a marketing agency.

We follow the eyeballs … and we start with the kids. I’ll explain to you why.

It all started with my first cellphone.

It was back in the 90’s and our family plan had something like five text messages a month. Remember those days?

One afternoon, my mother called me on my cell and I ignore her call and responded with a text – “what’s up?”

Her response? “When your parents call you – you pick up the phone.”

“Ok. Cya at 5.”

My parents raised hell. Not long after, they were also texting.

Look at where we are today. I have family friends in their 70’s and 80’s texting me (granted IT’S IN ALL CAPS AND A PAGE LONG FOR EACH TEXT MESSAGE). But you get the point.

The Eyeballs Moved To Social

How about Facebook? Started out with college students. The parents followed.

The demographics have shifted. A May 2015 study found that 73% of people 30-49 are on the platform, 63% of those 50-64 and 56% of those 65+.

Then the kids went to Twitter. The parents followed.

So the students went to Instagram. And the parents followed. The fastest growing demographic on Instagram? 40-60.

So much for your “my demographic isn’t on social” card.

Then what? Snapchat. Hundreds of millions of users. We’ll end up spending millions of dollars on Snapchat marketing initiatives, because it’s where so many eyeballs are.

What We Learned From Our Focus Group

From time to time, we’ll put together various focus groups of various demographics for clients or for our own research.

Last week, we brought a group of teenagers together at the local Dave and Buster’s. The goal? To get in their heads.

We spent an afternoon pigging out on junk food and chatting marketing before we handed them gaming cards and let them run wild.

It wasn’t long before a couple of my suspicions were validated.

None of the kids had Facebook. And they’re all extremely aggressive on Snapchat and Instagram.

But the hot “new” social platform that they’re all flocking to? It’s not Music.ly, After School, Peach or any of the others we’ve been following.

It’s Twitter.

The main reason?

It gives them access to people and businesses that you wouldn’t normally have access to and it’s easier to cut through the noise.

Go. Freaking. Figure. What’s not really that old is apparently new again.

The Verdict

Before you all go invest in Twitter advertising (which I am NOT recommending you do – yet), take a step back and breath. Social media – any platform – is only as good as your ability to innovate and provide tremendous amounts of value to your followers.

It's time to start marketing like it's 2016.

I want to know about you and your companies. Which platforms are you on? Where are you finding your customers?

Do share…I think everyone can benefit from your perspective!

POSTED BY

Kyle Reyes is President and CEO of The Silent Partner Marketing. He's also an acclaimed Keynote Speaker on entrepreneurship, leadership, marketing and social media. You can find him on Facebook, LinkedIn and of course on Snapchat @dasilentpartner.

When the debate over presidential candidates hits the sales floor, who wins and who loses?

It was Thanksgiving dinner.  I was maybe 10 or 11-years-old.  We were at my grandparent’s house along with all of my aunts and uncles.

That side of the family has a bunch of big Italian mouths.  Combine that with the fact that we grew up in Jersey and this dinner conversation only had one way to go.

I don’t remember much – but I do remember everyone yelling.  And I remember the words of advice my parents shared with me after.

“There are two things you’ve always got to be careful talking about – religion and politics.”

How true it is, especially now in 2016 as we’re in perhaps one of the most polarized times we’ve seen in years.

But do you entirely have to avoid talking politics in business?  Or can it actually help you grow?

Risk Assessment

There are a few different important factors what a business owner has to consider when determining whether or not she or he will make a policy against talking politics.

1. What is the political and socioeconomic climate of your area?

Take, for example, the car dealership that started giving away certificates for AR 15’s for people who bought a car from them.  If your company is in a very pro 2nd amendment region or state, this could be a spectacular marketing and public relations strategy.

Take that approach in a state that’s uber liberal – say, Connecticut – and you’re most likely going to be destroyed and vilified.

2.  How thick is your skin?

It doesn’t matter which side you’re on – conservative or liberal – you’re going to take heat when you get political.  Period.  You’re trying to do business with an economy of scale, which means that there are going to be people who are pissed.  You just can’t avoid it.

And what do pissed people do?  They turn to the internet.  How thick is your skin and how willing and able are you to deal with internet trolls?  What’s your social media strategy for dealing with backlash?

3.  What’s the climate of your staff?

Are you a die-hard Republican with a staff full of Clinton supporters?  If so, you’re going to want to rethink your strategy (and your data security).

Let’s keep in mind, in this massively divided country, people are often looking for something they can use to “stick it to you”.  Proceed cautiously when executing marketing strategies or even policies that involve politics.

Core Values

Every business owner has core values that guide them.  One could argue that leaving politics and religion out of the workplace is crucial.  But we’ve seen otherwise.

Chick-fil-A, In-N-Out, Forever 21, Tyson Foods, Mary Kay, Timberland, Alaska Air, Marriott, JetBlue, Interstate Batteries, Trijicon, and Hobby Lobby are just a few national companies not afraid to hide their religion or in some cases political perspectives.  And these companies are absolutely killing it.

If you’re the kind of business owner who is willing to put their values forward and not just stand behind them, but rather double down on them, then having these conversations could serve you well – especially when incorporated with a strong marketing and public relations strategy and crisis communication plan.

In the past couple of months, we’ve brought on some unbelievable new clients – all of whom contacted my agency after hearing and seeing some of my guest appearances on shows from Fox and Friends to The Jim Polito Show.  On these shows, we were talking about everything from millennials (somehow they’ve ended up dubbing me The Millennial Whisperer) to politics (where I picked up the nickname The Caffeinated Conservative).  Being on these shows and embroiled in controversial conversations is enough to make countless business owners cringe.  Luckily, it also works the opposite way as well – it’s enough to make countless business owners pick up the phone and call as well.

Let’s Make Business Great Again

Love him or hate him, Donald Trump is a genius.  He’s not running a political campaign.  He’s running a marketing campaign.  And there’s an important lesson for you to all take from him if we’re going to REALLY think about whether we should talk “politics” in the workplace or with customers.

But to understand what’s happening – what’s REALLY happening - I need you to cast your feelings about him aside for a minute.  Don’t think of him as a political hopeful.  Think of him as a marketer.

This is about niche marketing.  

The internet has given us this incredible opportunity to reach more people than ever before.  And as a result, countless business owners and leaders are dumbing down their message and their identity.  They're walking on politically correct eggshells, desperate to win over everyone.

It's time we stopped the insanity.

So removing the politics surrounding Trump for a minute, I need you all to take a look at what he's doing.  Because it's powerful.

He's leveraging one of the most underutilized tricks in the book - authenticity.

Let's take that a step further.  His authenticity in marketing is accomplishing the most important thing you can possibly do in this digital age - niche marketing.

All of a sudden, he's got a group of Republicans supporting him...Democrats supporting him...and people who don't even know what the hell a Democrat or a Republican is.  He has a message and he knows that that message will resonate with not everyone - but with many.  He knows that being a bull in a China shop (no outsourcing pun intended), he's set himself apart from his competition.

I'm not looking to get into the back and forth in the comments about politics.  But I DO want you to think about your own marketing.  Are you being 100% authentic in your marketing...or are you trying not to ruffle feathers?  Are you speaking to a highly targeted demographic...or are you trying to appeal to everyone?

Perhaps it's time we pull the Trump card when it comes to marketing yourself or your business.

I’d LOVE to hear your perspective about when it is and isn’t appropriate to talk politics in the dealership.  Leave your thoughts in the comments below.  And give this article a share on your LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter.  Let’s see what kinds of conversations we can start.

POSTED BY

Kyle Reyes is President and CEO of The Silent Partner Marketing.  He's also an acclaimed Keynote Speaker on entrepreneurship, leadership, marketing and social media.  You can find him on Facebook,  LinkedIn and Snapchat (@dasilentpartner).

“But how many cars is it going to sell RIGHT NOW?”  It’s a question that I’m surprised hasn’t lead a marketing director in an automotive group to choke out a sales guy yet.

A couple of months ago, I gave a keynote at a big conference about marketing.  The premise was that you can’t have a “marketing and sales team” because the two are polar opposites.  And because they’re polar opposites, the best sales teams often struggle to understand the long game when it comes to marketing. 

All “sales” can often see – and in fairness all they really should heavily focus on  - are the prospects that are in front of them RIGHT NOW.  The marketers should be paying attention to those prospects, but should also be focused on the long game of constantly driving an increasing number of people into that sales funnel.

Take today, for example.  The owner of a Ford dealership and I locked ourselves in a car in the hot sun.  We had wireless body temperature gauges stuck to our bodies, cameras stuck throughout the car and the Fire Chief and EMT’s monitoring our rising temperatures while we talked about the impact of leaving a kid or a pet in a car on a hot day.  The Facebook Live and Snapchatting definitely brought in a ton of eyeballs.  But you know what else did?  The fact that EVERY major media outlet in the state was there filming and conducting interviews for every evening, night and morning newscast. 

How many people will it bring in the door tomorrow?  Perhaps none.  Perhaps many.  But the value of free media earned through some creative and strategic marketing and public relations?  You can’t put a price tag on that.

So that brings me to my next point.  When it comes to determining the R.O.I. of the long game, it’s time the pundits and the experts get the hell out of the way.

Your parents. Your grandparents. Your aunts and uncles. If they knew how you were calculating ROI to make business decisions, they'd be incredibly disappointed in you.

If you're one of those business decision makers who has decided to NOT jump into the world of social media because you can't figure out the exact ROI of it, then you have missed the crucial lesson of growing up.

Your upbringing was everything. The way you were nurtured and taken care of. Your family spent hundreds of thousands of dollars on you in money and support. So...what was the ROI?

Can you put a dollar amount of it?

In many regards, the same can be said for social media and content marketing. I'm not talking about the ROI of your advertising spend. I'm talking about everything ELSE.

We're constantly having this conversation with clients and prospects. Everyone want's to know, "what is my ROI going to be if I DO (insert social media outlet here)".

But let me tell you something outright. Social media isn't about selling. It's just not. It's about building and nurturing relationships - much like your family did for you when you were growing up. And the value of THAT is priceless.

Here's the incredible irony of the conversations about ROI that we have with many business owners. They'll spend millions of dollars a year on traditional advertising (television, radio and newspaper) where they can't track the ROI. But that's because they KNOW traditional advertising. They get it. They understand it. Social media? It's outside their comfort zone. And so they'll continue to dump millions of dollars into something they know even if they can't calculate an ROI. Why? Because it's comfortable.

I don't know about you, but here's where I'm comfortable. When I walk into the bank and I see a positive balance...because when it came to advertising, I forced myself outside of my comfort zone.

So here's what you need to start doing as a business leader in regards to social media ROI.

1. Stop talking to people.

That's right - stop talking to people. Social media isn't about you, as a business, talking to people. It's about you having conversations WITH them. Want to know why nobody is answering the questions you're posting on Facebook? Because nobody CARES. It's NOT about you. It's about THEM. Show ME value. Answer MY questions. Provide ME with an experience.

2. Start tracking and measuring social media ENGAGEMENT.

I could care less how many Facebook or Instagram followers you have. Because if we were going to play that game of "you show me yours and I'll show you mine", then I could go BUY more followers. But that does nobody any good, except the company selling false hope and fake followers. Show me ENGAGEMENT. Show me CONVERSATIONS. Big numbers are only as good as the conversions that they lead to.

3. Be where your customers are.

You don't like Twitter? Think your customers aren't on Instagram or Snapchat? Guess what? You're wrong. Want to start growing your business? Get out of your own way. Want to know where to spend money on advertising? How about looking at the platforms that allow you a hyper-targeted way of connecting with consumers?

4. Speak to your customers on social media in the native language of the platform they are on.

Are you speaking the same language when you go from Pinterest to Facebook to Twitter to Instagram to Google+? Then you might as well be speaking a foreign language. Trying to talk to people the same way on Facebook and on Twitter is like walking into a biker bar with a bowtie. Don't be THAT GUY. More on this in a future blog - so make sure to keep following.

5. Engage. Converse. Repeat.

Imagine the customer who has a bad experience with your business, writes about it on social media, and then shares it with all of their friends. What is the lost opportunity cost of this for you? Now imagine responding to it, eating your humble pie, and having that customer come back in again and again and again and tell all of their friends about it? What's the ROI on THAT? I'd argue it's priceless. And yet so many "highly educated leaders" will demand that you demonstrate the numbers. I'll tell you what. While you work on the number crunching trying to figure out what relationships are worth, I'll be working on making another business money by helping them nurture those relationships.

6. Remember - nobody cares about your business.

They don't. Do you think someone is going to shop with YOU instead of your competition ONLY because you have been in business for 100 years? Nope. People don't give a damn about how long you've been around if you can't get them the product they are looking for in the way that they want it. Nurture relationships by making it all about the consumer. THEN your unique selling proposition about how long you've been around or how good you are to people comes into play.

7. Monitor your competition on social media.

Have you set up a thorough process to track what your competition is doing on Facebook and other forms of social media? NO? How are you not watching this right now? Oh, is it because you can't measure the ROI of social media management? Get over it. Because guess what? Your competition is watching YOU and STEALING YOUR CUSTOMERS while you sit around and drink your green tea latte in a peaceful world of ignorant bliss.

8. Start creating sales funnels through custom landing pages.

If you are doing ANY kind of advertising - traditional or digital - and you DON'T have custom landing pages, then you are failing yourself. The ability to track and measure is only as good as the value and experience you're able to provide to your consumer.

9. Start using Facebook and Instagram Dark Posts.

Actually, DON'T start using Dark Posts. As a matter of fact, don't even ask what they are. Because it's a tool that we've been using for years to more than double and in some cases quadruple the conversion rates of Facebook and Instagram advertising for our clients. It's the same reason why we've seen some clients increase their social media spend tenfold while all but dropping out of traditional advertising. So do me a favor. DON'T start doing this - because it's the best sales tool we've seen in YEARS and I want the costs to stay low.

10. Start having fun.

99% of you take advertising FAR too seriously, which is probably why you're reading this article. If you want me, as a consumer, to want to do business with you - you'd better make it fun. Don't constantly republish reviews of your business on social media. NOBODY CARES. Don't push your product on Facebook. Nobody cares. Share with me content that I'll want to share with my friends.

There's a LOT of noise out there on social media. If you want your voice to be heard and your message to be received, you'd better make sure that people are first paying attention. Be where your consumers are. Start nurturing relationships. Track and measure the ROI of advertising - and if you're going to moan and complain about the ROI of social media to me, you'd better be able to first show - in detail - the ROI of EVERY penny you've spent on traditional advertising.

Remember - social media is about relationships. Start being a little better about having them.

POSTED BY

Kyle Reyes is President and CEO of The Silent Partner Marketing.  He's also an acclaimed Keynote Speaker on entrepreneurship, leadership, marketing and social media.  You can find him on Facebook,  LinkedIn and Snapchat (@dasilentpartner).

Many of you have dealt with them.  The pain in the butt customer who had a bad day at work, kicked the dog, then wrote a lousy review about your dealership on Facebook.

First, you were bewildered.  Then, you were pissed.  Finally, you decided to reach out to Facebook about the fraudulent review – only to find that Facebook really doesn’t give a damn.

Good news.  It’s all going to be changing soon.

Our agency found itself in a similar situation recently – and it’s entirely my fault.  I’ll take responsibility for this one.

Two pieces I wrote went massively viral – An Open Letter To College Crybabies From A CEO and Enjoy Your Transgender Bathrooms.  We Just Lost America.  Millions of views and dozens of national media appearances later, a handful of entitled little brats (no, I don’t draw out controversy at all…) decided to create fake accounts and leave a few nasty and clearly fake reviews about us on Facebook.  (Because as the “social justice warriors” will tell you, words hurt, DAMNIT.)

I responded on behalf of the company and reached out to Facebook.  Considering we spend hundreds of thousands of dollars each month on Facebook and Instagram advertising, and considering the accounts were clearly fake accounts created by internet trolls, I figured it would be a quick and easy process:

Hello,
My name is Kyle Reyes - I'm the CEO of The Silent Partner Marketing.  We're an agency that works directly with businesses - including many of which we represent the advertising for on Facebook.
Last week, a piece that I personally wrote was published on a media outlet.  Over the weekend, a number of people who didn't like the piece - and who have never heard of us or done business with us before – attacked us, leaving fake one star reviews.  As a matter of fact, you can see that they were created with fake accounts. Each of these one star reviews is in violation of your terms.  What do I need to do to have these removed?

The response was less than I expected, to say the least:

Hi Kyle,
Thank you for emailing our Facebook Global Marketing Solutions Team. 

I understand that you are seeing false reviews on your Page.  Ratings and reviews must follow the Facebook Community Standards, focus on the product or service offered by the Page and be based on personal experience.
Reviews that don't follow these guidelines should be reported and may be removed.         
You can report a review by following the steps below:
-Go to the review and click in the top right corner
-Click "I don't like this review"

Follow the on-screen instructions

If you have any additional questions please let me know.  Thank you again for contacting Facebook Ad Support.

That was all well and good, but we had already done that (not to mention responded to the “reviews”).

One of my employees reached back out to Facebook:

We have been able to successfully “report” the reviews, the issue is in that there is no place to explain why we are reporting the reviews.

There have been several reviews posted on the page that seem to be fake profiles (just created the day of the review). These reviews have come in response to an article the Kyle has written, and as a matter of fact have never done business with Kyle or the company what so ever.  I hope that we can come to a resolution for this matter.

Facebook’s response:

Thank you for reaching back out to our team.  The reporting itself will help trigger a manual review by our Pages team who do not take these types of reports lightly.  If after about a week you do not see any changes please reach back out to us.  If you have any additional questions please let me know.  Thank you again for contacting Facebook Ad Support.

I’ll save you the next two months worth of back and forth and share with you now Facebook’s most recent message:

Thank you for reaching back out.  Good news and bad news.  Our Pages team is working on a complete overhaul of the ratings and reviews system.  As a result, we're unable to remove the review from your Page unless someone with the Policy team is able to review the posts.  If you have any additional questions please let me know.  Thank you again for contacting Facebook Ad Support.

At this point, I reached out to our ad rep – which, frankly, I should have done months ago.  The rep confirmed that they are in fact working on a massive overhaul of the system.  The way that scores will be calculated, reviews will be posted, reputations will be managed and fraudulent activity will be dealt with should be shifting significantly in the coming months. 

Here’s the silver lining.  A couple of prospective clients saw the BS reviews – and my response to them – and thought how we handled it was great.  One point, us – zero points, internet trolls.

So on the bright side, it sounds like there’s a light at the end of the tunnel – and I promise to keep you informed when we get the details!

POSTED BY

Kyle Reyes is President and CEO of The Silent Partner Marketing.  He's also an acclaimed Keynote Speaker on entrepreneurship, leadership, marketing and social media.  You can find him on Facebook  LinkedIn and Snapchat @dasilentpartner.

I keep f’ing up as a dad.  But apparently I’m not alone.

I was meeting with a dealer last week and he had a good laugh when I showed him a video of our 20-month-old saying “damnit” when she dropped her water bottle – then immediately saying “sorry daddy” followed by “oopsie”.

Having a toddler puts your potty mouth into perspective and makes you realize you need to stop swearing.

But as I was leaving the dealership, I overheard a sales guy on the showroom floor drop a mighty f-bomb with a customer.  The two had a good laugh together when the customer responded, “damn right.  F--- Obama!”

Replace that customer with a little old lady and it might not have gone over so well.  But I’d guess he probably never would have dropped the swear.  Or would he have?

Check out this study by Careerbuilder about swearing. It found employers may be inclined to think less of an employee who swears at work – and said that 81% believe the use of curse words brings the employee’s professionalism into question. 71% said they are concerned with the lack of control, 68 percent said it shows a lack of maturity and 54% said it make the employee appear less intelligent.

Well that’s just a crock of…chili.

My search for cussing justification continued.

I found a great book called Holy Sh*t: A Brief History of Swearing, written by Melissa Mohr and published by Oxford University Press.

I like this woman. Let me highlight some of her points.

• Swearing has been around since the Roman times.
• The average person’s daily language consists of about .7% of swear words each day (mine is probably closer to 70% to be fair). That number sounds small until you realize that we use first-person plural pronouns like “we and our” at about the same rate.
• Kids often learn at least one swear before they learn the alphabet.
• Our bodies have a physiological response to swears. It can make our palms sweat. But it can also alleviate pain. A study found that if you put your hand in a bucket of cold water, people can keep it there longer if they use the big s word instead of saying “shoot”. Go figure.
• Studies have found that it can help people bond and create a mutual feeling of solidarity.

Perhaps the problem isn’t in swearing. Perhaps it’s in not swearing effectively. Because shouldn’t there be an art to it?

In the words of Mark Twain, “under certain circumstances, profanity provides a relief denied even to prayer.”

What can I say? He was one smart son of a…gun.

I suppose there are a couple of different schools of thought when it comes to dealerships. 

The first is in knowing your customers.  If it’s a one-on-one setting and others aren’t within earshot, you may choose to take the lead from your customer. 

But if someone is swearing at you on Facebook because you f’d up their car in your service department, I wouldn’t exactly suggest responding in a similar fashion.

What do you think? Should employees get a bar of soap in the mouth for dropping some foul language…or does it actually make the work environment a better place?

POSTED BY

Kyle Reyes is President and CEO of The Silent Partner Marketing.  He's also an acclaimed Keynote Speaker on entrepreneurship, leadership, marketing and social media.  You can find him on Facebook, LinkedIn and Snapchat (@dasilentpartner).

It’s inevitable.  Every.  Single. Holiday.  Your BDC or sales team sends me a Happy (insert special day) automated email.  And, of course, asks me for a referral.

It’s not just the automotive industry.  They just happen to be the worst.

I tend to not get as many on Father’s Day, because it actually requires a salesperson take note of the fact that I’m a dad.  It’s more common on Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Year’s, etc.

But it’s incredibly frustrating – and problematic – for two reasons:

1. As soon as you, in the same paragraph, ask for the referral, you’ve immediately thrown authenticity to the wind and proven that you’re self-centered enough to make the wishes more about a sale than an actual thought of the customer.
2. It generally shows a lack of personalization – and isn’t that the entire point of the follow-up process?

Don't get me wrong. I appreciate you thinking about me.

Or, in most cases, not forgetting about me is perhaps more of an accurate statement.

Come on now - you know exactly what I'm talking about. You're going through your email list or scrolling through your contacts when sending a mass text going, "did I miss anyone?"

How about making me feel like I'm an important customer...not just another customer?

Your customers are thinking it. Hell, you are probably thinking it too. And now you're shaking your head in agreement because you realize what a bozo move you've been pulling on every major (or minor) holiday.

So please, stop the mass texts and emails right now, because nobody cares. They just DON'T.

So at the very least, personalize it.  Or remove the damn “send me your referrals”. 

Focus on building actual relationships – not BS, self-serving and completely transparent relationships.

Find a different reason to contact them on a regular basis - just because.

Drop by the office with some cupcakes on National Cupcake Day just because and tell your customers you wanted to let them know how much you appreciate them.

Call them out of the blue to see how their family is doing.

Send them an email to see how work is going.

Text them a random thought.

But copying me on a mass email wishing me a Happy Father’s Day? Really - you shouldn't have.

POSTED BY

Kyle Reyes is President and CEO of The Silent Partner Marketing.  He's also an acclaimed Keynote Speaker on entrepreneurship, leadership, marketing and social media.  You can find him on Facebook, LinkedIn and Snapchat (@dasilentpartner).

In an age of ever increasing noise thanks to all things digital and social media, dealerships – and many industries – are finding it harder and harder to cut through the noise.

And when it comes to so many businesses, while they might understand the idea of engaging content, they often all but rule out public relations.

As a matter of fact, the thought of many business owners of having to deal with the media usually conjures up images of investigations and nosey reporters. 

I get it, I do.  I’ve worked in BOTH the world of automotive AND the world of journalism, where I was a news producer for nearly 10 years.

But public relations can be a massively powerful tool.  ESPECIALLY when you combine it with a strong content marketing strategy.

Take, for example, a piece I wrote a couple of months ago – An Open Letter To College Crybabies from a CEO, picked up and published by New Boston Post.

As a marketer, I preach to my clients constantly about knowing your demographic.  So at first glance, you might read the piece and imagine that I’m targeting college students.  But the truth is just the opposite.  The piece resonated with countless business owners across the country.  AND with the media, because everyone seems to be talking about – and trying to understand – millennials.

Within three days, there were hundreds of thousands of shares and millions of eyeballs on the piece.  Media appearances and radio interviews all across the country.  A live interview on Fox and Friends (and of course countless eyerolls from liberals who hate Fox).  And more than 30,000 emails and messages – the vast majority of which were overwhelmingly supportive.

There are a couple of powerful lessons that came from this, and I hope you’ll take note:

1. Engage with your target demographic.  Know what they’re talking about and understand that social media isn’t about talking TO people – it’s about having conversations WITH them.
2. Don’t fear the media.  Yes, after everyone from Fox & Friends and Steve Crowder to Varney and Company and Barstool Sports started talking about it, I dealt with a lot of idiots anonymously posting crap about myself and the company.  But in the end, it’s all about an economy of scale.  The positive that comes out of controlling a narrative is very, very good.

With that, I’m sure some of you are at least a little interested in the piece that started the firestorm. 

I’d LOVE your thoughts on it in the comments below.  Enjoy!

----

Dear College Students,

I remember the stress of college. The anxiety of papers due. The uncertainty of relationships. The concerns about what I was going to do after graduation.

I get it. It’s tough.

I also remember professors who challenged our perceived notions of “right” and “wrong.” I recall being exposed to movies, books and papers that I massively disagreed with. Looking back, I can visualize the heated debates between people with different perspectives. I can almost hear the yelling, the screaming, the passion and the CHALLENGES.

You’re studying and learning during the Industrial Revolution of our generation. It’s exciting. It’s encouraging. It’s liberating. And yet somehow, it’s also leading to your wussification.

Before you get all offended and run to your “safe place,” understand that I pulled that word right out of one of your trusted resources of knowledge – urbandictionary.com.

Here’s the first hit for the word:

wussification (verb): The act of turning one into a wussy.

The mother has been wussifying her children from young age. 
The wussification of American children is notable.

I’m sorry. I hope you didn’t mistake this letter to be one that would tell you how wonderful you are and that you’re going to make the world a wonderful place. No, my friends, that’s not what this letter is at all. This is an open letter to all those of you who are whining your way through college looking for a safe place and an entitled hall pass.

I come with a very simple message. When you cast off that safety blanket and enter into the real world, this thing called life is going to slap you faster than you can say, “Do you want fries with that?”

I recently saw an article about these so-called “marginalized students” at the University of Arizona issuing 19 pages of demands.

Then, of course, the students at Emory University who needed counseling because they didn’t feel “safe” when they saw writing in chalk that said “Trump 2016.”

To all those of you looking for your “safe place,” I have to wonder: How the hell do you walk out of your dorm (or your parents’ basement) without getting hit by a bus every day?

So on behalf of CEO’s across the country, I’d like to share with you a few lessons that you might want to learn before graduation.

1. The Business World Doesn’t Give A Damn About You

No, really – it’s true. You saw something on the internet that you found offensive? You’ve got the sniffles? Your boyfriend broke up with you? Well, that sucks. Deal with it. I expect you to get your work done on time. Hit traffic that made you late for the fourth time this week? You should have learned after the first time that you needed to leave your house early.

Listen, even the best bosses have their breaking points. Excuses might fly in college, but they’re NOT going to fly when we’re paying you to actually get things done.

2. The Only Safe Place Is Your Home

In the real world – and especially the business world – we’re going to challenge you. We’re going to push you. We’re going to demand that you consider other perspectives. We’re going to rip your ideas to shreds from time to time. And we’re going to insist that you play nicely with others to find ideas that actually work and implement them.

We’re going to get really pissed when you don’t deliver, and we’re going to get even more pissed when you cost us money because you weren’t willing to hustle hard enough to get the job done. And if you slack off enough, there’s no “bell curve” that’s going to save your ass from a big fat pink slip. Lucky for you there are enough people working in the unemployment office who’ve also been wussified by the system to make sure that even though you were fired for not showing up to work, you’ll probably still get to collect unemployment and sit on your ass.

3. There’s No Such Thing As “Free”

I get it. You’ve been told that money grows on trees, that education should be free for all and that everything in life should be handed to you on a silver platter.

But welcome to the big kids’ playground. You want that health insurance? It’s going to cost you. Oh, you don’t want it? That will cost you too. You want an apartment? A house? A car? Believe it or not, you need to actually come up with some money for that! Oh, and you can quit your whining about taxes. Because SOMEONE has to pay for all of that “free” stuff – and now it’s you, sucker.

4. If You Don’t Want To Be A Victim, Then Don’t Be

In college, any time your feelings were hurt, you were a victim. If you were challenged, the challenger was a “bigot” and you were the poor person who had their feelings hurt. Here in the real world, we expect you to be challenged and to understand that humility is just as important as bravado. Selflessness is more important that selfishness. The content of who you are as a person is more important than the color of your skin or your socio-economic background or your sex or your weight or your religious affiliation.

5. Success Is Hard Work

We’re not going to give you five breaks a day. You’re going to have to work nights and weekends from time to time. You want to make “the big bucks”?  Then consider a nine-hour workday to be a part-time job. You’re most likely NOT going to graduate college and find a six-figure job. Hell, you’re going to be lucky if you find ANY job … and you should be grateful when you find it. Grateful … and prepared to work like a maniac to get ahead. Because in the real world, you don’t get a pass just because mommy and daddy are paying your bills.

So, ladies and gentlemen, enjoy the remainder of your time being gentle little snowflakes. Revel in the time you have at the world’s most expensive daycares across the country. Because soon, you’ll be in OUR world. And it’s about to get real.

Sincerely,

Kyle S. Reyes
President/CEO

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Kyle Reyes is President and CEO of The Silent Partner Marketing.  He's also an acclaimed Keynote Speaker on entrepreneurship, leadership, marketing and social media.  You can find him on Facebook, LinkedIn and Snapchat (@dasilentpartner).

We all know that drinking and driving don’t mix.  But drinking and car shopping?  Perhaps that’s a different story.

Check this out.  A new study called “Behind The Bottle: An Exploration of Trends in the Spirits Category” found many millennials buy expensive booze so they can post pictures of themselves drinking “cool” brands on Facebook, Instagram and Snapchat.  They say it impresses their friends and helps them gain social equity. 

In the same study, 42 percent of adults aged 21-and-up say that digital media helps them “get ideas and recommendations of what spirits to buy”.  Only 24 percent cited traditional media including TV, print and radio to influence their alcohol purchase.  The number one factor?  “Word of mouth” which weighed in a 59 percent.

According to the study, 28 percent of millennials endorsed the statement “I sometimes order a premium brand just to impress my peers,” compared to only 11 percent of Baby Boomers.

Apply the mindset to the automotive world now.  It’s interesting data when it comes to the thought process of many dealerships.  Take, for example, this story that a dealer shared with us last week.

A 28-year-old guy came into the showroom and was looking at vehicles on the floor.  The sales guy assumed, based on his age and appearance, that the buyer would be looking for a lower end vehicle. 

Imagine his surprise when the guy ended up buying a fully loaded Mustang.

The guy’s reasoning?  “I know it’s not very practical in New England, but damn am I going to look cool on Snapchat in this thing.”

In order to understand the buyer, we need to understand their desires.  In the case of this particular buyer, social equity was massively important. 

In fact, he went so far as to tell the dealer he came into the showroom because he had seen some of the dealership videos that friends who purchased from there shared on social media.  The fact that the buyer was Snapchatting and posting on Facebook from the lot should have been a tip off for the sales team.

As the press release pertaining to the booze and millennial study puts it, “knowledge of spirits is becoming social currency among millenials.”

But isn’t knowledge of products as a whole social currency?  God knows it is in the world of automotive.

Remember, the road to the sale for the millennial is often a different road than you’re use to taking.  They don’t just want to be sold – they want to be engaged.  They want to feel good about doing business with you. 

But most importantly?  They want you to provide an experience – from social to the showroom floor – that is convenient for them and fits their expectations.

POSTED BY

Kyle Reyes is President and CEO of The Silent Partner Marketing.  He's also an acclaimed Keynote Speaker on entrepreneurship, leadership, marketing and social media.  You can find him on Facebook  LinkedIn and Snapchat (@dasilentpartner).

I don’t think there’s been a single meeting I’ve had with clients in the past year where the term “millennial” hasn’t come up at least a half dozen times. 

All across the country, CEO’s are trying to figure them out.  How to sell to them.  How to hire them.  How to keep them motivated.  How to keep them engaged.  Dealerships are no different.  You guys are just a little behind. 

Oh, don’t get all sensitive on me.  You are and you know it.

I blame it on the old school style of doing business.  Don’t get me wrong – I respect it.  But I also understand that the whole sales floor strategy that’s worked out so well for you for the last 30 years is shifting – and you’re losing ground because you just don’t seem to get the millennial.

And if you want to figure out how to sell to them, you need to figure out how – and why – to hire them.

I didn’t realize how heated people get over just the very word “millennial” until I wrote a piece that was published in New Boston Post a few weeks back – “An Open Letter To College Crybabies From A CEO”.  A few days and a few million hits later, I got the call from Fox and Friends – along with dozens of other media outlets.  “We want to have you on our show to talk about millennials.”

So let’s talk about the group – which, keep in mind, runs a span of more than 15 years.

Here are a few things you might not have known about millennials.

• According to Mobile Enterprise, 73% of Millennials say they should be able to modify and customize their work computer - and 63% say they will go around IT to get what they need.
• According to Cisco, 87% of Millennials say they would choose to work for a company heavily invested in video over one that isn’t invested in video.
• Bentley University’s Center for Women and Business found that 84% of Millennials surveyed believe that it’s more important to make a difference in the world than it is to achieve professional recognition.
• CEB Iconoculture research found that 35% of employed Millennials have started their own business on the side for extra cash.
• According to USA Today, 88% of Millennials either have deposited or would deposit a check by taking a picture of it with an app.
• Baby Center found that 83% of new moms are Millennials.  Of these, 75% search for parenting advice on their mobile phones.

In the world of the car sale, why should we care about this seemingly random smattering of information?  Simple.  

It's changing.

What's changing, you ask?

It's ALL changing.

The workday is no longer 9-5.  The work PLACE is no longer just the office.  And while at dealerships the world has never been 9-5, you’ve got to understand that the consumer has shifted just as much as the employee. 

Is your BDC only working normal business hours?  Are Sundays sacred “closed” time?  Does your service department only work until 6 – when people are just getting out of work?

Millenials don't turn to the local newspapers for information.  They go online.  In the world of automotive, you are probably starting to realize this.  But you’re still relying on third party vendors like Autotrader and Cars.com and don’t understand the power of digital video.

Millennials don't rely on commercials to learn about products.  They read reviews.  They ask their friends on social media.  They don’t go home and watch TV – they sit on Snapchat for six hours.

Listen, I'm not saying an old dog can't learn new tricks.  But when you go to a surgeon, do you want someone who has always lived in the world of medical...or someone who started learning it a couple of years ago so that he'd still have a job?

Most millennials don't remember life B.I. (before internet).  They haven't had to adjust their way of life - they've just always lived it.

Think about it like this.  Boil some water and throw the lobster in there.  He'll go crazy.

Put a lobster in a pot of cold water and bring it up to a boil - he won't know the difference, because things have adjusted while he was in it (let's ignore the whole dying part of that analogy).

This doesn’t mean that your non-millennials don’t get it or aren’t tech savvy or advanced.  Many of them are.  But you’re doing yourself a disservice by not using millennials to better understand millennials.

I’m sure some of you are sitting there thinking about the one or two millennials that you’ve hired, thinking that perhaps they’re not THAT different.  But ask yourself this – are they not that different because they just aren’t, or is it because you’ve created an environment at your dealership where you’ve stifled their innovation and forced them to conform to what the good old boys are doing?

Are your millennials running live video feeds on Facebook, Meerkat and Periscope?  Are you allowing them to mine Instagram and Snapchat?  Are you encouraging them to create custom audiences using social media targeting and then track them across the Google ad network?

Or have you decided that the priority is quibbling over who gets the “next up”?

If you want to understand how to sell to millennials, you might want to start by hiring them.  Then give them a little room to “do their thing”.  You might just like what you find.

I should probably start with a disclaimer.  This article is going to piss off other advertising and marketing agencies.  Especially those that “specialize” in the world of “automotive”.

It’s going to make Dealers angry.  It’s going to frustrate BDC managers.

But perhaps most of all, it’s probably going to have you shaking your head in agreement…because FINALLY someone is talking about that which you’ve suspected.

Your ad agency is taking you, Mr. and Ms. Automotive, for a ride.

I’m talking about display advertising.  You know, all of those banners that you’re spending tens of thousands of dollars a month on.

You’ve long suspected that something wasn’t right.  Not just because of your ridiculously, painfully atrocious CTR that your ad agency insists is well above “industry average”.  But you’ve suspected it because you have fat fingers.  And you’re constantly accidentally clicking on the ads while trying to find the damn (x) button to close the ad so you can just read your article.

You’re not alone.  The entire business model of display advertising will soon be forced to take a knee.

A new report from PageFair and Priori Data shows that nearly 420 million people worldwide, or one in five smartphone users, is now using ad blocking software on their cellphones.  That’s an increase of 90% over last year.

It’s a huge number.  But more important is the fact that it’s indicative of a trend.

Listen, we work in a LOT of different industries…and I can tell you that for as advanced as the world of automotive believes it is, it’s not.  While many industries started shifting away from banner ads more than a year ago…you guys are throwing cash at these companies as if they were a world class stripper in Vegas.  And just like in Vegas, it’s leaving you wondering why you’ve got nothing to show for your money besides frustration and an empty wallet.

So for just a minute, let’s pretend we aren’t selling cars.  Let’s pretend we are just every day people in the market to buy a car….surfing the internet from our smart phones.  Perhaps a change in context will make you just pissed enough that you finally start looking at why you’re throwing away money.

Let’s dive into the secrets behind why so many marketers are still selling you something that stopped working a couple of years ago. 

Be where the eyeballs are. It’s a message that I beat our clients over the head with. It’s why we’re making a massive land grab on Snapchat. It’s why we pushed our clients to be insanely aggressive with Facebook and Instagram Dark Posts. You need to be where the eyeballs are.  A few weeks ago, I appeared on Fox and Friends to discuss millennials – which is an absolutely massive “generation” that dealerships are struggling to figure out how to market to.  These are eyeballs you NEED to get in front of.

But here’s the problem. There are many people who skew the “eyeballs” to make it look like they are actually where they are NOT.

For example, I’ve seen companies make presentations showing the 3.2 million impressions that a banner ad made…but not report on the fact that only 9 people clicked on the ad. So make sure you know where the eyeballs are – but understand how to make sure they look at you.

Viewers are fatigued. It seems like every day, there’s a new study showing that readers on the web glaze over banner ads. As you scroll past them, they’ve become an “impression”. Did you see it? Probably not. Interestingly an “impression” doesn’t actually mean that a person saw it – only that it was sent to your computer. 

The Internet Advertising Bureau defines “impression” as “a measurement of responses from an ad delivery system to an ad request from the user’s browser”.

What does that mean? Well, combined with the fact that viewers suffer from fatigue…and now that we know an “impression” doesn’t necessarily mean someone sees it…we see a recipe for fraud.

How about these two studies? Adobe found that 33% of internet users find display ads to be completely intolerable.

Even worse - BannerSnack reports that: 61% of users say they click ads just because they don’t want to be interrupted while reading content, 57% are afraid of receiving SPAM from advertisers or getting a virus, and 54% of users don’t click banner ads because they don’t trust them.

Another study found that just 2.8% of participants thought ads on a given website were relevant.

That sure doesn’t bode well for the goal of “conversions”.

Fraudulent clicks cost you – big. You can read all over about how companies hire other companies or individuals to “click” ads – something that costs you (or your client) money. 

But have you heard about the “one by one”? Probably not. It’s where advertisers compress ads into one pixel by one pixel squares which are literally impossible to see but can serve up massive impressions. Then malware is used to send people to sites they never planned on visiting.

How about the less illegal and more obnoxious problem here? That’s right – the accidental click.

You’ve all done it when your fat thumb pressed the wrong thing. So you cost the business you ended up on a couple of bucks for accidentally clicking their ad.

But while doing so, you also drove down their Google Quality Score because you spent no time on the website and drove up their bounce rate…which, of course, will result in a higher cost per click for their future ads.

Yes, this is also happening to your business. Be aware.

Be where the eyeballs are.   Understand what the trends are predicting when it comes to consumers.  And start making your ad buying decisions not based on metrics alone, but based on your experiences as a consumer as well.