Car Dealers Need Social Media

Social media starfish

I know most are used to catchy titles and snippets of secret wisdom flowing from this blog. Today, we're going to keep it simple. Car dealers, you need social media.

I could end the post there and we would be okay. The question, of course, would then become "How does a car dealer use social media?"

That's not such an easy question to answer.

For the most part, car dealers have rightfully embedded the mentality of advertise and promote to the public while building relationships face-to-face at the dealership. It just makes sense to be in "promotion mode" during commercials, in newspaper ads, and on their own websites and microsites.

Social media is a completely different beast. This is where most dealers (and most business altogether, for that matter) miss the boat. Social media is all about building relationships first, then promoting oneself second.

I'm going to (reluctantly) use myself and my own branding first as an example. Right now on Twitter I have just over 75,000 followers. I interact with them when they interact with me.  If I see something in my public stream that someone else posted that I like, I'll respond to it. I engage those who follow and converse with me and therefore I am in a constant state of building relationships.

When I tweet a link out that I want people to see, anywhere from 300-3,000 visitors check out that link depending on the title and how often it is "retweeted" by my peers.  I can do that because I have built relationships. I have not spammed the network from the start by telling my followers to go visit this link or look at that image or check out this video. Instead, I engaged. I listened. Over time, I was able to build up a strong following.

Car dealers (and most business altogether, for that matter) need to do the same thing. This is just using one microcosm of a network in Twitter to demonstrate, but it can be said pretty much across the board. If you engage, you are doing it right. If you build relationships and have an interest in what others are saying, you're doing it right.

If you join Twitter and start posting your inventory or specials, you're doing it wrong. People don't go to Twitter to find a car (yet).  They go because they want to engage. Participate. Play the game. Enjoy.

Now, the big question comes up, "But when do I get to talk about my dealership, my cars, or my specials?"

Once you've established some credibility by being engaged with your followers, talking to local Twitter users about local things, brand enthusiasts about brand related things, and everyone else about everything else, you are ready to start letting a little "self-promotion" seep into your stream. Keep it interesting. Posting your special on a 2005 Ford Focus isn't going to do the trick. On the other hand, if you get in a 2000 Ford Focus with under 10,000 miles, a 2009 Ford Focus with over 100,000 miles, or a lime green Ford Focus, you might want to tweet about it. These are exceptions. They are not available at anydealer, anytown, USA.

This is just the beginning. With more social media products rolling down the pipe, it's important to understand what to get involved with and what not to. We will be covering it more in-depth here, but in the meantime, feel free to contact me.

jrucker@tkcarsites.com

Talk to you soon!

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Read more about automotive social media on this blog.