If you have ever heard me speak or heard one of our webinars, you’re most certain to have heard me say this. I believe it so much that I have it on the back of my business cards.  Every opportunity I get to have the ear of a dealer I try to stress this point. Social media is not just a sales tool; it is a marketing/relationship building/reputation management tool.

Erik Qualman wrote an amazing book about social media entitled Socialnomics and one of my favorite quotes that he says is this: “Why are we trying to measure social media like a traditional channel anyway? Social media touches every facet of business and is more an extension of good business ethics.”

This quote speaks to two important facets of social media. First, trying to measure results which is obviously one of the largest challenges, we will be addressing in coming editions of this magazine. Second and more important to this article is that social media is good business ethics which is not a sales or a service thing, it’s an entire dealership thing.

Let’s look at a common situation that happens in most dealerships across the country and add a social media strategy to increase the impact.

Dealership Sponsors Little League Baseball Team

Most dealerships will sponsor a local team at some point or another. How does this process normally go for a dealer? First the dealer writes a check. Then, he forgets about it until the coach of the team brings a team photo to the dealer as a sign of the appreciation. Last, that photo ends up on the wall of the service waiting room.

Nice, shows community involvement which is extremely important for a local business but who sees this picture? Your existing service customers, the people that already love you! Let’s see how we can influence some other people and get people talking, all while not coming across as a self promoter.

At that meeting where you hand the check to the coach, ask him for game photos, updates on the team, winning pitchers, star performers, pictures of the team training, after game pizza party photos, tournament and league updates; basically everything that is happening with the team.

Now you have constant updates and content being sent to you about “your” team. Take this information and share it on your social networks. Post about the home run Johnny hit and congratulates him. Imagine Johnny’s proud parents are going to be telling everyone they know to go check out the publicity Johnny is getting from ABC Motors.

You can also create a page of your blog about following the team through, on their road to greatness. Post a link on your website and this is sure to get traffic to your blog.

Invite the team to your dealership for a pizza party and autograph signing party. Treat “your” team like they are super stars. Again, every parent will be singing the praises of your dealership to every one of their friends!

Getting Other Departments Involved

What about getting video testimonials in the F&I department? Ask a handful of customers a month if they would let you shoot a quick video of them explaining why they purchased a service contract or GAP or financed with the dealership instead of going to their credit union. Take these videos and share them on video sites as well as upload them to your Facebook page.

How about getting Google reviews from your service department? Your service writers see a lot more customers than your sales people do, have them ask for reviews. Ask if a customer has a Gmail account and if so let them put a review in right there on an iPad or an iPhone with the Google Places app.  If they don’t have a Gmail account, have business cards printing up customers asking them to give you a review on Google when they get home.

How about having Facebook day in parts and service? Create a coupon that can only be found on Facebook for people to print out and bring into the dealership on a certain day. Chose a day of the week that historically slow in the back of your dealership so that you will be able to handle the increase in traffic.

How about getting pictures of before and after work from your body shop? Take these and share on all your social networks. Create a page specifically for these on your blog. Put them in a slide show and share them on your video sites. Bonus tip: Every new car delivery says to introduce new car customers to the service manager, add the body shop manager. A lot of people probably don’t even know you have a body shop. Everyone likes to do business with people they already know, like and trust!

How about finding new Fleet customers through LinkedIn? LinkedIn is the number one professional networking site and there are big opportunities to interact with decision makers of companies.

How can social media help you hire better quality people? Quality people want to work for quality employers. Your reputation, how you’re viewed in the community, will play a role in some people looking for a career with your dealership.

This is only scratching the surface of what can be accomplished by incorporating a social strategy throughout your dealership.  What are some of the other ways you are using social media in your dealership?

In September I presented one-half of a workshop at the Industry Summit in Vegas titled, Profits and Pitfalls, Joining The Social Media Revolution.

Talking about the profit of social media I went into detail about how to find and connect with social objects in order to engage your community to influence both word-of-mouth and create brand loyalty. I had camera issues at the last minute so I decide to redo it and upload it for all of my awesome readers!

If you have any questions or comments, lets have a conversation in the comment section below.

Related posts:

1. Connecting With Your Customers On Facebook – Automotive Social Media Video
2. Finding Social Objects To Connect And Become Synonymous With
3. Creating Word-Of-Mouth Through The Creation Of Community

Life has changed, the way we sell cars has changed, business, in general, has changed. Now, it’s time to embrace it, or fall by the way side. We live in an exciting social world where the new economy is more social in nature. Why? Because we are an untrusting lot. We are putting less and less stock in traditional advertising and more and more into what our peers think. Opinions matter. Reviews matter. What our friends think  matter. Even the opinions of complete strangers matter. Are you embracing this new philosophy or fighting it tooth and nail? It’s time you start embracing it.

Collectively, we’ve gone back to what I like to refer to as the village mindset. There used to be a time before the internet, a time even before the phone, when neighbors asked neighbors their opinions on certain things and made purchasing decisions based off of what their neighbors told them. For instance, Farmer Bob needs to buy a new dairy cow, and in a hurry. Instead of jumping on Google (remember this was before the internet), Farmer Bob would ask his neighbor Farmer Frank if he knew who sold the best dairy cows around. Because Farmer Frank just bought a dairy cow himself, he recommended that Farmer Bob buy one from Farmer Dan.

Take a look at what’s happening today, it’s the same exact thing, more or less. True, we have Facebook, Twitter, Google+ and other social networks to help us connect, but the desire has always been there. In fact, I’d argue that the desire to find out what others think about a particular business is stronger today, than it ever has been. Why is that? First, we are social creatures. Second, we are tired of all the slick advertising who’s only aim is to take our hard earned money, not necessarily to aid us in finding the best product for our particular situation.  That’s where word-of-mouth comes in, and why it’s vitally important to your dealership, that you influence as much chatter as possible.

It shouldn’t be an epiphany when I state that the two most powerful  forms of advertising are word-of-mouth amongst friends, and word-of-mouth amongst strangers. In fact, you should be shaking your head up and down in agreement. So, how do you influence word-of-mouth anyway? First step is to admit that there has been a fundamental change in the way people are buying cars, most anything for that matter, especially big ticket items.

The second, is to think in terms of engagement. Of course, a new definition of engagement is in order. If you take a look at how traditional engagement was defined, it was defined by us, the business owners, the dealerships. We defined it by how many people we could get to scratch-off a winning number on a direct mail piece, but as Forrester Research points out, the revised definition of engagement is defined as, “the level of involvement, interaction, intimacy, and influence an individual has with a brand over time.”

Of course, I’d like to expand on that definition and say that engagement is not only the level of involvement, interaction, intimacy, and influence an individual has with a brand over time, but also the level of involvement, interaction, intimacy and influence an individual has within the broader community that supports the brand. The idea, as I pointed out a few paragraphs earlier, is to influence as much word-of-mouth as possible, so the addendum makes sense.

Social As A Relationship Tool

Thus far I’ve been talking about using social media as a way to market your brand, but in reality, it can be used more than just as a marketing tool. Social media should be used to bring both awareness about your dealership and to build relationships with your current client base. For years and years we’ve heard it over and over again that the best type of customer are referrals, but most dealerships fail miserably in the referral department. In my honest opinion that is a total waste of money.

Think about it, each and every month, 10′s of thousands of dollars must be spent to generate new business, when it costs pennies on the dollar to generate referrals from old business. Yes, I understand that you may be sitting there reading this, shaking your head, saying that you can’t get your salespeople to follow up. You know what I have to say about that? Stop! Use social networks, Facebook as an example, to engage your customers. Salespeople come and go but if you spend time, on the dealership level, engaging your customers in order to build community, you will go a long way in creating massive amounts of word-of-mouth.

I’ve seen a lot of dealers fight the idea that the way they market has to change. No, I’m not saying that you should stop advertising on television, radio and print. All I’m saying is that your advertising techniques must evolve if you want to influence word-of-mouth. Try to work in ways to engage your audience in order to create a dialogue. The whole idea with social marketing is to create a conversation surrounding your brand. A conversation that goes on without you, long after the campaign is over. Stop hitting a brick wall with your current advertising, no matter how hard you hit, it won’t budge. Instead, grab your social media ladder, climb it and embrace the new social world, it’s not that scary, it’s just different.

Related posts:

1. Creating Word-Of-Mouth Through The Creation Of Community
2. Busy, Busy, Busy!
3. The 3 Phases Of Dealership Social Maturity

It’s only technology after all, social networks. They’re a communication device that aids in the connection of people. Their true power lies in that actual connection, the human side of what the technology helps to facilitate. It’s within that human element that the true magic happens, it’s in the humanizing of business that we learn more about who we are and what we want out of our business affiliations that sets us apart from our yesteryears.

It’s always been there of course…it. We’ve always had it. The desire was always there but it wasn’t until technology came around that it was unearthed and really brought to bear. Much like the telephone, invented by Alexander Graham Bell all those years ago, the internet and the social web in general, have brought about a way for us to connect with each other and be the social creatures we always were. So you see, social media isn’t about the networks… not really, it’s about the relationships that are built because of it, the friends created, the marriages formed, the love discovered, and the moments we share that holds the true power of what social networks have done for us, the human race, they have become the tie that binds us.

Businesses, in general, now have a way to plug in and connect with their customers like never before. They can become part of their everyday, not just the “transaction,” the wam-bam-thank-you-ma’am, no, they have a way, a real way, to become part of the lives of the people that keep them in business in the first place. They have a way to interact with, learn from, and get advice from the best consultant they could ever hope to have, their customers. It’s time that businesses really start to listen to what is being said. It’s time for them to get out there and have a conversation with their customers about what they can do better as a business, because they are the ones that truly know.

Why social media though? Because it’s where they are, that’s why. But even deeper than that is the fact that they are there to interact, and if a business interacts without trying to push their marketing message, they will be accepted as “one of us,” instead of as “one of them.” It’s about the dialogue, the conversations that happen around topics that don’t necessarily have anything to do with business. It could be about kids, or dogs, art, or skydiving. Be human, interact and have fun. Don’t worry, if done right you will sell stuff, lots and lots of stuff, but first you have to become human. Build trust, tell stories, and laugh with your customers, be their friend, influence word-of-mouth and encourage loyalty. Life is way too short to live life as a business, open up and live, enjoy who you are, it’s okay to take the tie off and be “one of us,” live a little… will ya?

Related posts:

1. [VIDEO] Creating Influence On Social Networks
2. Social Media, BHPH and Decreasing Delinquency Rate
3. Increasing Customer Retention With Social Media

One thing I learned during the 30 minutes of training that I received before hitting the floor, that still holds true today is repeat and referral customers are golden, they sell easier and you usually make a higher profit margin. Why is that? It’s because TRUST has already been built, more specifically the T.R.U.S.T. Factor.

TRUTH – Let’s be honest, the old saying “customers are only lying when their lips are moving” gets turned around by the buying public when they speak of car salespeople. They don’t believe us and they don’t believe our advertising. Do you still run ads that say “Now is the best time to buy?” STOP NOW! People are tired of it because you have been telling them that for years! They know your either lying now or lying then but they know your lying. I spent 15 years in F&I and so many times customers would say “My salesman said that was included” or something to the effect and my response was always the same: “Mr. and Mrs. Customer, you may not like everything I have to say but it will be the truth.” This line served me well for a long time, give it a shot!

RELIABILITY – Salespeople historically drop the ball by making promises and not following through and people are having less and less patience for this. If you upset a person in the past, they would go to their barber or local diner and tell everyone there about the crappy service they received. Now, social media has given people public outlets to express their displeasure in a place where it will be heard by the masses. Do what you say you’re going to do!

UNDERSTANDING through uncommon efforts – My business partner David Johnson loves to tell the story of a customer of his who was in the cabinet business. Dave came across an interesting article in a magazine about cabinets so he cut it out and mailed it to his customer. The gentleman was so impressed he became a great “bird dog” for Dave or in today’s terms he became a “brand ambassador” of Dave. Get to know your customers and truly understand and serve their needs!

SERVICE – According to Consumer Reports, 64 percent of shoppers were so irritated with the poor level of customer service they’ve experienced at a store in the past year that they’ve simply left without making a purchase. Now this wasn’t related to our industry, but what type of service are you proving your customers? Think about every touch point you have with your customers from the time they search for your business till they patronize you, are you providing okay service or are you creating the WOW factor? Think of your favorite restaurant, why do you go there? Food is probably good but it is the customer service and the way they make you feel special that usually has a bigger impression.  Don’t do just enough, go above and beyond!

TAKE your time – Building trust does not happen overnight, be committed! It takes a dealership wide commitment to create exceptional customer service!

NEWS FLASH: The internet has taken the auto industry by storm! Okay, I’m sure this comes as no surprise but I remember the early stages of the internet were not welcomed by dealers because it hurt profit margins. Back to this in a minute but I have to share a story.

Around 1996, a subprime lender named BMAC (Banker Motor Acceptance Corp) came out with a program that eliminated the human element by having being completely automated scoring and application decisions. At the time, the dealership that I worked didn’t even have the internet yet so I would have to take applications home and submit them through my AOL dial up internet. Each application would take me about 45 minutes to submit but I would walk in each morning with a stack of approvals! Great program while it lasted, they were in and out of market in 90 days. I had 12 deals hung up in funding when they shut the doors but I did manage to get 11 reapproved with other lenders.

Internet + car sales = decrease in profit margins

This has been the perception of dealers for years even as they have come to realize they can’t fight it anymore; however, don’t despair, social media and reputation management allows an opportunity to reverse this trend!

Through social media, what are we really trying to do? We are trying to get people to talk about us and become advocates of our brand. Sounds a lot like we are trying to get repeat and referral customers huh?

Three ways in which social media will impact your bottom-line

If you have heard me speak or have one of my business cards, you have heard me say or read on my card “Social media is not just about sales, it’s about your bottom-line!”

Start by having a service focus with your social media efforts. Drive more traffic into your service drive by having things like Facebook Friends Free Oil Change day, any make or model welcome. Get people driving competitive brands into your dealership where you can demonstrate your commitment to customer service because J.D. Powers say a consumer is 3 times more likely to purchase a car from a dealership it had a positive service experience.

First opportunity, steal market share!

Couple of stats from RightNow Customer Service Impact 2010 Report:

85% of U.S. consumers say they will pay 5% to 25% more to ensure a superior customer experience.

76% of consumers say they appreciate it when brands and companies take a personal interest in them.

40% of consumers switched buying from a competitor because of its reputation for great customer service.

55% cite great service, not product or price, as their primary reason for recommending a company.

66% said that great customer service was their primary driver for greater customer spending!!!

Second opportunity, people will pay a higher price to do business with a dealer with a great reputation! I’m not saying they will pay sticker but they will pay $300 to $500 more per sale. What would an extra $400 per retail do to your bottom-line?

According to Relationship-Economy.com, one testimonial has an impact on a person equivalent to 200 traditional media impressions. Imagine that for a minute, one person walking around in your community or on your online community singing your praises is equal to you running 200 TV commercials, 200 radio spots or someone driving by your billboard 200 times!

Third opportunity, social media will allow you an opportunity to be market your dealership more efficiently!

Twenty years later, we are still trying to get more repeat and referral customers; the only thing that has changed is the tools. Once you commit and create an environment of exceptional customer service, social media tools allow you to spread your reputation to the masses.

This certainly isn’t all the ways social media can affect your bottom-line as things are constantly evolving. The next big thing that excites me is Facebook e-commerce pages; I see big opportunities for dealers to ramp up their accessory sales! What other ways do you see social media increasing your bottom-line?

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As this will be the first video in a series make sure that you get an alert each time I post something new by entering your email address in the section just below this post.

I’d love to hear your comments, what would you like to add?

Related posts:

1. Social Proof: The Power Of The Review – An Automotive Social Media Video
2. [Webinar Recording] The New Rules Of Automotive Social Media Engagement – The 20-20-60 Rule
3. The 4 Key Steps To Creating A Social Media Strategy [Video]

#1: Automotive Social Media Policy – A Free Download

I wrote this a while back and had no idea that it would garner as much attention as it did. It has been downloaded over 2500 times!

#2: The Extinction Of The Old School Car Dealer

This post caused a lot of controversy, I got a lot of emails over this one but it something I believe in. If you haven’t read it, read it and let me know what you think.

#3: If I Sold Cars Today, How Would I do It Differently?

This is a pretty detailed post, one that every automotive salesperson should take a look at, it will make you think AND give you a starting point.

#4: The Most Powerful Part of Social Media That you’re NOT Using

If you added up all the hits, shares and reads on all sites, not just PersuasiveConcepts.com, this would be number one. Just on SocialMediaToday.com it has been read over 10,000 times and tweeted about over 300 times.

#5: Social Influence, Not Just For Your Sales Department: A Special Finance Perspective

Always keep in mind that social media isn’t just for your sales department, it’s for your bottom line (said first and best by my business partner and friend Rob Hagen)

Well there you have it, the top 5 of 2010, what were some of your favorites?

Related posts:

1. Here’s To A Successful 2010
2. Automotive News Webinar: Social Media Policy Tip#1
3. Social Proof: The Power Of The Review – An Automotive Social Media Video

#1: Automotive Social Media Policy – A Free Download

I wrote this a while back and had no idea that it would garner as much attention as it did. It has been downloaded over 2500 times!

#2: The Extinction Of The Old School Car Dealer

This post caused a lot of controversy, I got a lot of emails over this one but it something I believe in. If you haven’t read it, read it and let me know what you think.

#3: If I Sold Cars Today, How Would I do It Differently?

This is a pretty detailed post, one that every automotive salesperson should take a look at, it will make you think AND give you a starting point.

#4: The Most Powerful Part of Social Media That you’re NOT Using

If you added up all the hits, shares and reads on all sites, not just PersuasiveConcepts.com, this would be number one. Just on SocialMediaToday.com it has been read over 10,000 times and tweeted about over 300 times.

#5: Social Influence, Not Just For Your Sales Department: A Special Finance Perspective

Always keep in mind that social media isn’t just for your sales department, it’s for your bottom line (said first and best by my business partner and friend Rob Hagen)

Well there you have it, the top 5 of 2010, what were some of your favorites?

Related posts:

1. Automotive News Webinar: Social Media Policy Tip#1
2. Here’s To A Successful 2010
3. Webinar: B2B Social Media – Getting The Fleet Department Involved