Social Media for Dealers

A resource from HuebnerPetersen's Dealer Marketing Services

February 17, 2012 • 10:00 am 0

Creating content with donuts.

Every business, large or small, feels the overwhelming obligation from consumers to be on Facebook.  They sign up, put all their information and get ready for the fans and posts to come flowing in! Wait… No one is commenting… what should I write…. BLANK PAGE! EEKK! Setting up a page on Facebook isn’t the hard part; thinking of content to get people to interact on your page is!  Today we have a delicious list of ideas to help you get your creative posting-juices flowing.  We used a recent post from the HuebnerPetersen blog as inspiration for example posts… DONUTS! They might just be taking over the world!

  • Fun: If you were going to eat a 200lb donut, what kind would it be?
  • Preference: Do you prefer sprinkles on your donut or just frosting?
  • Tips: Where can you find the best donuts in town?
  • Contests:  We’re having a donut-eating contest Tuesday! How many donuts do you think you can eat in 10 minutes?!?! OR  The first 10 people to name this donut gets 10 free donuts!
  • Photo: How many donuts can you count in this photo?
  • Controversial: Do you feel it’s bad to give your kids donuts for breakfast?
  • Yes or No: Are donuts better with filling?
  • Finish the sentence: I ALWAYS crave donuts before I….
  • Event: There is a donut expo this weekend… Who’s coming with us!?!?
  • Responsive: I glad to hear you visited our store, Amy! How was your experience?
  • Facts: Did you know, a 16 year old actually invented the whole in the donuts we’ve all come to love?!? Do you have any donut fun facts?
  • Specific: What is your favorite kind of donut?
  • Emotional: If you could send a donut with anyone special in your life, whom would you send one to?
  • Opinionated: Do you feel donuts should be banned in the state of Colorado?

Do you have any ideas for posts that have worked well for you? Help others out by adding them in the comment section of this blog!

*photo by kimubert

Filed under: what to write, , , , , , ,

February 1, 2012 • 12:51 pm 1

YouTube Is Your Friend

There are so many ways dealers can utilize social media to promote their dealership. One outlet that is often overlooked is video. Here are three reasons why YouTube should be part of your social media goals and a key player in your social media strategy.

1. The majority of RV buyers do online research before heading into a dealership. Every day, people are surfing the web to explore options before actually heading into a store to purchase, especially on big-ticket items. If you have a video showing the features on one of your best selling campers, people are going to be more likely to come in and see it for themselves. They want to know what to expect before walking through your door.

2. YouTube is the second largest search engine after Google. This means that having a video for your dealership is just as important as having a Facebook page. When a buyer searches YouTube for a great camper, you want to make sure your name comes up. People don’t just want to see pictures of a unit, they want a virtual tour!

3. Having a video shows great customer service. You want to show people that there are friendly, knowledgeable people working at your dealership. Wouldn’t you be more willing to walk into a store if you already knew that the staff had great customer service? Having a video shows the “humanness” of your RV dealership. Video allows you make a connection with your customers before they walk into your dealership!

Making a video for your dealership can be a very easy way, to interact with customers online. When customers know what to expect before they even walk through your door, they’ll be much more likely to stop by your dealership!

photo by ukberri

Filed under: Video, , , , ,

January 18, 2012 • 8:00 am 0

The Importance of Updating

We cannot stress enough how important it is to update your social media regularly. Social media is a virtual extension of your dealership. The values you portray in your dealership need to also be portrayed through your social media. Would you shut down your dealership for a week at random? Of course not! If someone came in to your dealership with a customer service question, would you ignore them? No way! You need to act the same way in your social media outlets. Here are a few tips on how to keep your social media current:

1. Make an appearance.  At the very least, post something weekly. If your last Facebook post was in September 2011 promoting your last sale, you have a problem. People need to see you engaging in their community. If someone walked into your dealership but couldn’t find a soul around, that would be an issue. It is the same way with your social media outlets. You need to show them that you are there.

 2.  Make it a customer service priority. More and more people are using social media, rather than an email or phone call, to resolve customer service issues. If someone posts on your Facebook wall or tweets you with a question or comment, respond! Even if you don’t have an answer right away, tell them that you will find out and get back to them ASAP.

3. Don’t be afraid of negative comments. You should always respond to comments immediately, especially negative comments or complaints. When you immediately respond, it shows that your dealership takes customer service seriously.

4. Have a current and quality profile picture. Your profile picture is the first thing your customers see, so make sure it represents your dealership well. If you have a 2009 model of a camper in your picture: change it. If you have a picture of your staff from five years ago: change it. If you have your old logo as your picture: change it. Your profile picture needs to describe the way your dealership looks today.

5. Keep your BIO and information current. Any time your dealership makes a change, think about how it could affect your social media. If you change your phone number, you may need to update your Facebook page. If your store hours change, update your information. If you have a new web address, change it on your social media.

Quite simply, if you remember that your social media is an extension of your dealership, then keeping current shouldn’t be a problem. You want to make sure that people can always reach you with as much ease as possible. The more they trust your social media, the more they will trust and recommend your dealership.

photo by Ias

Filed under: Quick Tips, , , , ,

January 9, 2012 • 10:53 am 0

Creating Your Social Media Calendar

Once you have developed your social media goals for 2012, building a social media calendar will help make sure you will stay on track.  Like traditional marketing, in social media marketing you have to be organized. If you take the time to plan out what you want to say and when you want to say it, your social media goals will more achievable.

Start by thinking about the important dates coming up at your dealership. Maybe you have an annual sales event or you’re headed to a big RV show.  You need to plan out how you will use social media during that time period to alert your customers and drive traffic. Social media is the perfect vehicle for gaining attention leading up to your sales and events.

Beyond sales, RV shows, and local events, be thinking about the seasons when you plan out your social media calendar. In the spring start posting about places to visit and fun things to do while camping. You want to get people excited about the camping season. When winter comes give tips on how to winterize.

On a calendar, mark down all of your dealerships upcoming events.  Then, mark down one topic idea for a blog post per week (thinking about events and seasons).  If you’re ambitious, go put your topics on specific days and challenge yourself to come up with two per week.  Putting ideas on paper and on a timeframe will up your chances of actually writing about key topics at the appropriate times.

If you develop a social media calendar for your dealership, it will help you follow the “Quality Rule” that we continually stress. With your calendar you can avoid the stress of trying to come up with something to say at the last minute.

If you are serious about using social media for your dealership, a calendar is an easy way to stay on track and get organized.  Happy planning!

photo by danielmoyle

Filed under: Strategy, , , , ,

January 5, 2012 • 7:47 am 2

Developing Your Social Media Goals

With this new year, and the season of resolutions, we challenge you to set social media goals for 2012. Whether you are already cruising along or you hardly know where to begin, it’s a great time to set goals for how your dealership wants to use social media. Here are some tips on setting and accomplishing your 2012 social media goals:

1.    Be specific. The more specific you are, the more focused you will be. Don’t just say, “I want to use social media more”. How do you want to use it? What relationships do you want to build? Where should you focus your attention? When you have specific goals for your dealership it will be easier to keep on track.

2.    Aim high. Don’t be afraid to shoot for the stars. If you are just starting with social media for your dealership, you will find that once you get the ball rolling, it can really take off. When you are persistent in your social media habits, then it won’t be hard to reach those lofty goals.

3.    Write it down. They say that 97% of people who do not write down their goals fail to complete them. Don’t just verbalize your goals. Once you have it written down, share it with your team. Let everyone know your social media mission for 2012; then they can help you work toward accomplishing that goal.

4.    Make it a habit. Once you have your goal, practice it every day. Even if you aren’t posting something every day, be checking to see what people are saying. Get in the habit of getting on your social media daily.

5.    Use good judgment. When you set out trying to accomplish new goals for social media it can be very easy to get caught in the spamming web. It is something we always stress: Do not resolve to posting quantity over quality. Make sure that what you are saying is important and pertinent. For example, if your goal is to post onto Facebook x number of times per week, great! But don’t tell your followers what you had for lunch because you can’t think of anything better to say.

Once you have your social media goals identified, go for it! Jump right in and start talking. It might be very helpful for you to go back and look at some of our previous blog posts to get ideas. If you follow these tips in setting your goals, you are already starting 2012 off right.

photo by Nico Soler

Filed under: Quick Tips, , , ,

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This information is brought to you by HuebnerPetersen's Dealer Marketing Services and Front Lines Marketing Programs. Please visit http://HuebnerPetersen.com for further information.

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