What Defines A Successful Automotive Social Media Strategy

[ed.brooks]

Game. Set. Match.

Today there is a post on SocialMediaMartketing.com titled "Social Media Marketing is Failing". Here are a couple of excerpts:

"Every company has been jumping on the social media bandwagon, increasing marketing spend in that arena, but few are seeing the returns they had hoped for."

"At conferences and with colleagues, I’ve challenged them on numerous occasions to provide me with irrefutable evidence that social media campaigns can be carefully designed, planned and executed with an expected return on investment. The key here is expected… I can set expectations from email, pay per click and search engine optimization campaigns over time… but never social."

"I believe that social media is an amplifier. When you want to amplify a message – you must first have a relevant message, an audience to distribute it to, and a location for those listeners to come. Get all of your other branding, inbound marketing, search engine optimization, and even corporate blogging in place before you start throwing money at an expanded social media program!"

"I don’t believe social media is dead as a marketing strategy… I just think it’s always been misdirected as a center of a strategy when it should not be."
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Social Media sure is a shiny object, but it's NOT a silver bullet...

 

[davidmoon]

Believe me, I'm a big opponent of social media. But most business have either, too little time to make SM really effective, or don't appreciate the value of branding and top-of-mind strategic thinking. I've worked with a CRM department with a major OEM; they were trying their best to make their dealers aware of the value of embracing customer relationship marketing and branding with only some of the groups or dealers getting it and putting it to action.

Social media doesn't work for every business model, and I don't mean that at the raw vertical level. Many companies are more sales-driven in their marketing efforts. To make SM work, you have to adopt a philosophy that public relations, brand, reputation, referrals and routine engagement between the buying cycle holds value. For others, they can't write a check for "social equity" so they will be slow to adopt.

 

[davidmoon]

"I believe that social media is an amplifier. When you want to amplify a message – you must first have a relevant message, an audience to distribute it to, and a location for those listeners to come. Get all of your other branding, inbound marketing, search engine optimization, and even corporate blogging in place before you start throwing money at an expanded social media program!"

"I don’t believe social media is dead as a marketing strategy… I just think it’s always been misdirected as a center of a strategy when it should not be."
[/INDENT]Social Media sure is a shiny object, but it's NOT a silver bullet...

All marketing is an amplifier; SM is a little more immediate and interactive.

I agree that it's not (or should not be) the center of all marketing efforts--advertising in a "social" space is always touch and go.

Throw existing resources in before you throw money. If your staff can't keep up, engage a following or maintain a stock Facebook page, then close it.

 

[tomwhitejr]

Why is it so hard to find ROI in social media? Answer, because there isn't any. Sorry, but its true. But, let me ask you this - what's the ROI on every single phone call that your dealership places or receives? I'm guessing most dealers have some pretty well-paid personnel placing and receiving the phone calls, but no one can put a return on investment on those calls.

Speaking of the telephone - what percentage of in-bound phone calls have anything to do with selling or servicing a car? It's less than fifty percent at my dealership.

My point is that social media is just another way of communication. Your customers and prospects are out there. Our fans follow us at Suzuki of Wichita because we tell them it's an easy way for them to get our attention and it's easier than picking up the phone and calling. The bottom line is that if you are trying to generate ROI and sell cars using social media - you WILL fail... But, if you want to use it as another way to let your customers and prospects reach you, converse with you, voice their opinions, etc. - then it is invaluable...

I agree with David - it's all about the ENGAGEMENT... Stop trying to sell and start listening. You can learn a lot about what makes people tick - and then use that information to develop your other advertising and marketing campaigns...

 

[craigh]

There are a few things in this conversation, already highlighted above, that I think are incredibly important.
Many, many dealers don't understand the concept of Facebook and Twitter. Companies will have a Twitter account, put it in all the company signatures and on all their marketing material.

Then, when I navigate over to Ryan Nadeau (dealership) on Twitter to see what they're all about - there are no tweets. Or, even worse, the tweets there are all self-serving, links to vehicles they added or links to things that no one cares about. Twitter is a form of communication; despite being used for marketing in endless ways, it is about building a social reputation, and sharing information with others. I don't understand some of these concepts. Dealers expect that Twitter and Facebook are a one-to-one ratio of investment vs opportunity. You can't 'invest' money into these social arenas and expect magical results - you need to invest time and information.

Just my two cents.

 

[Chris Cachor]

There are a few things in this conversation, already highlighted above, that I think are incredibly important.
Many, many dealers don't understand the concept of Facebook and Twitter. Companies will have a Twitter account, put it in all the company signatures and on all their marketing material.

Then, when I navigate over to Ryan Nadeau (dealership) on Twitter to see what they're all about - there are no tweets. Or, even worse, the tweets there are all self-serving, links to vehicles they added or links to things that no one cares about. Twitter is a form of communication; despite being used for marketing in endless ways, it is about building a social reputation, and sharing information with others. I don't understand some of these concepts. Dealers expect that Twitter and Facebook are a one-to-one ratio of investment vs opportunity. You can't 'invest' money into these social arenas and expect magical results - you need to invest time and information.

Just my two cents.

Craig, I also think you could say the same thing about their blog and/or website!

 

[craigh]

Craig, I also think you could say the same thing about their blog and/or website!

I do agree. That being said, I think that websites are more understood in general - they serve a distinct purpose and are generally used for that purpose.

It's the dealers who are using Social Media, Facebook, etc completely incorrectly in order for a 'quick burst' of sales on a weekend or to market a single coupon - this is using it incorrectly and I don't think it will be effective in the long run.

I must say, Marlboro Nissan does a helluva job of Social Media in my opinion. Not perfect, but far, far better than most.

 

[davidmoon]

So, OK ... I'm just wondering for those who've been approached by niche agencies offering social media--what's the pitch? We've beat the heck of the topic here, and am curious what value is a social media provider for car dealers are trying to sell?

 

[Jason]

Using Social Media in our business isn't about selling... it's about attracting people who want to buy.

 

[davidmoon]

An interesting article ... Why I Will Never, Ever Hire A "Social Media Expert"