Social Media Pitfalls and Tips for Car Dealers

Whether you are new to social media marketing or you simply want some ideas about how to improve, this article shares the common pitfalls and some helpful tips.

Social media is an incredibly useful tool, allowing you to reach your customers when they are away from your dealership. Here are some simple things you can do to make the most of this opportunity.

Pitfall: Not Committing

When you introduce social media to your business, you will begin to realise just how time-consuming effective management of it can be. Many are enthusiastic to start off with, but start to neglect it, getting distracted by other tasks.

Tip: Put a Slot in Your Diary

If you are truly serious about making your social media marketing a success, you must be prepared to dedicate time to it. To avoid neglecting it, it is a good idea to have a dedicated slot when you’ll sit down and come up with ideas for posts and engage with other social media users.

This should be done in addition to constantly checking to see if there have been comments or direct messages left by customers, which should be responded to instantly.

Pitfall: Being Reactive

A common mistake that businesses make with a company social media account is treating it like a personal account and posting only when the mood takes them or when they are responding to something. This is a reactive approach, whereas in our experience, a more effective approach is a proactive one.

Tip: Be Proactive

You should create a clear strategy which tells you how often you should post and stick to it. Having to come up with ideas for posts can be a challenge, but people will follow you for your content, so do some research and find out what’s happening in the industry, see what other people are talking about, create your own videos and take photos around your business, don’t just wait for inspiration to strike, go and find it!

Pitfall: Neglecting Comments

Whether it is praise, a criticism, or just an opinion on something you’ve posted, comments should not be neglected. It is much easier to ignore a dissatisfied customer when they are online rather than in front of you, but the situation should be handled in exactly the same way as if they were at your dealership.

Tip: Respond as You Would in Person

Comments on social media should always be responded to in a timely and professional manner, after all, the comment will be public and if it is ignored, other potential customers may be deterred. If their problem is dealt with well, the customer may return to your dealership in the future and others will be reassured by how you’ve handled the situation.

Pitfall: Being Boring

Just because it is a business social media account, don’t feel like you need to be overly reserved and don’t just copy what other companies are doing. The main benefit of social media is that it gives you the opportunity to show people your company’s personal side.

Tip: Be Creative

Your social media page is your chance to show people what makes you special, and you can do this by coming up with unique content that gives an insight into the people behind the business and your values. If your content is relatable and compelling, customers will want to buy from you, and this is what makes social media marketing so powerful.

If you would like advice about social media marketing or to find out about Click Dealer’s social media packages, leave a comment below, or get in touch via marketing@clickdealer.co.uk or 01782 478220!