We all know that social media sites are important to your digital presence and SEO purposes but I believe that not all dealerships are fully utilizing their social media potential. Here is a look at why each social site is important.

Facebook

Right now Facebook is still the biggest fish in the social media pond. It has the most users (a total of 955 million to be exact) and is still the go-to site for a lot of your potential customers. They can find relevant content, see reviews of your dealership, as well as see any great specials you are running.  The goal with Facebook is to be the go to page with all your brand and dealership information. To have the most successful posts you want to make sure to post 80% social content (but you want to make sure it’s relevant) and 20% about products and specials. One of the biggest mistakes dealerships can make is to over post, the number 1 reason (73%) that customers said they unfollow a business is because of overposting.

Twitter

Twitter is a little different than all the other social media sites. You only have 140 characters to provide your customers with the information they want, which sometimes can be a daunting task. But the payoff if you are successful is worth it. 67% of people said they would rather purchase from a brand they follow on Twitter. Social listening tools are a great way to see what the people in your area are saying about your dealership and brand. They can be also used to find people that are looking to purchase or need service in your area!

Google+

Google+ might seem less important since it doesn’t have as many users and not as much engagement as Facebook and Twitter, but that is far from the truth. The reason why is simple: Your Google+ page has the potential to reach every Google search user, whether they are a Google+ user or not. Your Google+ page is linked to your Google listing and your Google reviews. So you might not see the likes, comments and retweets you see with the other sites. But it definitely has an impact on your potential customer’s impression of your business.

Instagram

The growing popularity of Instagram is getting hard to ignore for businesses. It can be difficult to post since it is app only and doesn’t have specific business pages. But we can take care of all that for you! We create and manage your instagram with 2-3 posts a week. We make it easy for your salesmen to post as well! Instagram is a great way to showcase models without it looking like you are trying to sell your followers something.

Pinterest

Just like Instagram Pinterest can seem insignificant in the grand scheme of social media sites, but just like Instagram it can be vital to dominating your digital market. The average Pinterest spends 1.5 hours on the site a month (it’s third place to Facebook and tumblr) in that 1.5 hours a customer can look at everything under the sun including your dealership. They might be looking specifically to purchase a car but your dealership has the opportunity to make a lasting impression that will influence that Pinterest user to look at your dealership first when they are in the market for a new vehicle.

Posting to social media can feel like a daunting task. But it can really benefit your dealership in a positive way!

One of the most important aspects of social media marketing is blogging. It might not seem that important but it can be something that not only drive online traffic but show your potential customers your dealership is going to be knowledgeable and helpful not just with the car buying process but after as well.

As a long time content writer for car dealerships (and general business) I understand it can be difficult to come up with 500+ words on a variety of subjects while still staying relevant to your brand. Here are a few tips for a successful blog:

• Find out what is going on in your brand.

Interesting things happen in the car industry daily, and finding out what those are could make your blog post fun and easy to write. Here is an excerpt of a blog done for a Kia dealership:

Kia is proud to announce that they are the exclusive sponsor for the first annual Youtube Music Video Awards! Just as our some of our vehicles are creative and unique; such as the 2014 Kia Soul, we believe that our drivers are just as creative and unique. That’s why Kia is a proud sponsor of the Youtube Music Video Awards, because we celebrate the creativity not only with our vehicles but with our drivers as well.

• When in doubt, write about what you know.

So you’ve searched and searched and you can’t find anything interesting to write about, we’ve been there. When you are in a writing rut, write about something you know: Your Dealership! Do you have a vehicle that everyone is talking about? Or maybe there is a feature on one of your redesigned models that puts it a step above the rest, you should write about it!  Here is another excerpt from a Kia dealership:

Fall is here! Kia of * knows that there is nothing better than taking a drive around to watch the leaves turn. There is no better car than the Kia Optima to do this in. Kia of * has a full lineup of new and pre-owned Kia Optimas just waiting to be picked up. As with any new Kia model, the Optima gives you as many features for your money as possible. Kia of * base model Kia Optimas come standard with features like alloy wheels, cruise control, Bluetooth and an iPod/USB audio interface which is unavailable in most comparable models. The Kia Optima features are not only skin deep. The Optima also comes with front and rear parking sensors so you no longer need to worry about playing bumper cars while parallel parking. It gets an estimated 29 mpg, so its perfect for those scenic trips.

Simple, and to the point. But also showcases some of the highlights of the model.

• Try to make it at least 500 words

• Make sure you mention your dealership (and link) in your blog.

• Also, make sure to mention your location! It’s great for SEO purposes

• Always include an image. This entices your customers to click and read your post.

These are just a few hints on how to run a successful blog for your dealership. So get to typing!

Every business gets online reviews, and no one can deny the impact these reviews can have on a business. In no industry are reviews more important than in the automotive industry. And while dealerships have taken measures to gather more feedback and reviews from customers another important aspect of reputation management is often ignored by dealerships: responding to the reviews.

With the hustle and bustle of the normal dealership’s daily operations customer’s online feedback can often fall by the wayside. We either see a negative or a positive review and don’t always pay attention to the content of the review. Which in your potential customer’s eyes is more important than the star rating. So when your future customer see’s that review left by Mrs. Smith about her negative customer experience, it could influence their decision to visit your dealership. If you don’t respond to the review, it will always turn out negatively; but if you respond to the negative review in the right way you could turn the situation around, not only for the customer leaving the review, but you could also show your future customers you have invested time and effort to fixing the problem.

But responding to reviews (especially negative reviews) is not always easy. As you are reading this you are probably thinking of at least one instance where an online review can turn into a he-said-she-said argument between business owner and their customer. Here are a few tips and tricks to cultivating the perfect response to online reviews:

Respond to every review

Responding to every review is essential, in doing so you not only provide attention to your customers, but you show your potential customers you are at the top of your game.

Take responsibility and don’t play the blame game.

Your potential customers are not surprised by your negative reviews online. Every auto dealership has them. But they want to feel assured that if a problem does arise that you will be there every step of the way trying to fix the issue. If Sally Johnson posts a review saying that her financing was wrong and took long, and you respond with “Well Sally all the information you gave us was wrong, and you never returned our phone calls.” Instead of “Sally, I apologize for the inconvenience of the wait time, I would like the chance to follow up and make sure we fixed the financing. Please give me a call or shoot me an email.” Which one do you think would show your potential customer that you want to fix the problem?

Keep it short and sweet.

It can be easy to get long-winded responding to reviews. But you should keep it short, respond to the problem, say thank you, and leave it at that.

Don’t be generic.

Again, this can be hard. Sometimes dealerships can get 5+ reviews a day. But if you humanize your responses you will see a lot better return. Tailor your responses to their problem, address them by name, and don’t use the same wording in each review.

And finally, don’t let your emotions get the best of you.

This is the most difficult tip. It can be hard when a past customer is writing negative things about your dealership that may or may not be true. But if you can keep a level head and not let your emotions get the best of you can show your potential customers that you can fix any problem. (And if it’s really not true you can petition the site to take it down.)

Responding to reviews is an easy way to make a big impact.