Is your dealership social savvy? 6 top social media tips for success

Vehicle retailers must have an online presence in today’s world if they want to compete for sales, and of all the digital channels, social media is one of the most important at reaching customers early in the consideration stage of their next vehicle purchase.

To make sure your dealership is making a splash on social media, follow these tips…

1. Choose your channels

You’ve got your obvious platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter, but in today’s video-obsessed world the likes of TikTok and YouTube are just as important.

Every social media platform has its pros and cons. For example, TikTok is a fantastic channel for reaching a younger audience, but you will need to invest time in creating fun video content. Twitter is great for sharing news and engaging with your customers, but you will need to post regularly to break through the noise.

Early on you should define what you want your dealership to be known for, assess what time and resource you can put towards social media, and test the waters. You may decide to focus on just one or two platforms to begin with, before branching out to others as you start to see results.

2. Get creative with your content

A common mistake made by dealers is to see social media as a tool to only promote and sell stock, but it’s important to remember why most people are on social in the first place – to interact with people, learn something, or be entertained.

 The types of content you post could be the difference between someone engaging with your brand or scrolling past. Here are just some of the things you could post about:

 Stock photos and videos

• Meet the team
• Customer testimonials
• DIY car tutorials
• Behind the scenes at your dealership
• Car trivia
• Deals and promotions
• Take part in the latest viral trends (TikTok specific)

3. Create a platform-specific strategy

Some content you post will work better on one social media platform than another due to their different audiences. What works for an older demographic on Facebook is unlikely to work on a younger TikTok audience, and vice versa – one size certainly does not fit all!

 Try to think about how the same message can be told in different ways. For example, if you’re promoting a special car you have in stock you could:

 Post an eye-catching photo of the car to Instagram, along with relevant hashtags to reach enthusiasts.

• Share a video walkaround of the car to Facebook and write a long post with all the vehicle details.
• Share a photo of the car to Twitter along with an interesting piece of trivia about it.
• Create a short, mobile-friendly video for TikTok talking about some niche and interesting features of the car.

4. Use platform-specific features

Make sure you are utilising all the tools at your disposal on each platform to create an easier experience for your customers.

For example, are you making use of Facebook’s built-in messaging and booking features to make it easy for customers to get in touch? Are you utilising Instagram Stories or Reels in your content strategy to make it easier for people to find your content?

If you want to generate site visits or sales through social media, then ensure all your contact details and links are correct and up to date, and regularly check for incoming messages multiple times a day.

5. Consider spending money on paid advertising

You can massively increase the number of people who see your brand on social media with a surprisingly little amount of spend, but it can be scary if you’ve never done it before!

Most platforms come with sophisticated targeting options so you can reach the right people with your ads. Also consider installing a Meta pixel on your website, which will allow you to track users from your website and then target them with adverts related to the webpages they were on.

To begin with, run a short advertising trial on Facebook with a small amount of money you’re willing to set aside. Use this as chance to learn what works and tweak the campaign for next time. From there you can expand the scope of your paid campaigns if you’re seeing the results.

6. Create a schedule

It’s simple, the more you post, the more likely you are to be seen by customers. Consistency is key, so create a schedule you can stick to, try to plan your posts at least a week in advance, and build time and resource into your weekly work schedule. It can take longer than you think to create good social media content, but it is well worth the effort.

 You should consider investing in a social media management tool such as Sprout Social or Hootsuite to help. These come with helpful features to create and schedule posts, and well as handy data and metrics so you can see the impact your content is having.