Tag Archives: Mashable

The Vital Signs of Social Media Marketing

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Social media is essential for every business these days, including car dealerships, and some dealerships make the mistake of underestimating the amount of work that goes into an effective social media campaign. They put up a Facebook page, set up a Twitter account, and call it good.

The problem is, social media might look easy (though it is far from easy), and gauging the translation of Facebook Likes to sales is tough.

A recent article by Jacqueline Zenn on Mashable.com laid out the top nine measurements of social media health. Think of it as someone going to the doctor’s office and having the doctor take your height, weight, temperature, and blood pressure.

The nine vital signs for your car dealership’s social media health include:

  1. Share of Voice
    Definition: How many times the dealership is mentioned vs. how much their competition is mentioned through social media outlets (Facebook, Twitter, etc.)
  2. Brand Volume
    Definition: How many times the dealership is mentioned over a day, a week, a month, etc. through social media outlets
  3. Engagement
    Definition: How many times consumers engage with your dealership. Example – Posting a positive review on Google Local, tweeting a question about your services, etc.
  4. Interaction Per Post
    Definition: How many likes, comments, retweets, etc. are received for a Facebook update, a Twitter post, a blog post, etc.
  5. Sentiment Analysis
    Definition: The ratio of positive mentions and engagements with your dealership to the negative mentions and engagements with your dealership. Overall, whether people tend to have a positive or negative impression of your dealership based on online engagement.
  6. Social CTR (Click-Through Rate)
    Definition: How many times people see your ads, blogs, posts, etc. and how many times they will click on that ad, blog, post, etc.
  7. Key Influencer Mentions
    Definition: Key influencers are social media users who have a loyal following, and if your dealership is mentioned by a key influencer in auto news, car buying, etc., it establishes credibility for the dealership.
  8. Platform Reach
    Definition: Social media outlets (Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Google Local, etc.) that your dealership has set up accounts and frequently engages (following other users, giving feedback, etc.)
  9. Mobile Mentions
    Definition: The number of times that people engage with your dealership via their mobile devices. Ways to encourage mobile social media engagement are setting up deals with Four Square or offering other discounts for smart phone users.

When all of these vital signs are strong, the social media campaign will translate into new customers and sales. Now, here is where dealerships will run into problems running their own social media campaign. Do they know how to measure the click-through rate? Do they know what kinds of posts work for Facebook vs. Twitter? Do they have time to keep up with all of their social media outlets and extend their platform reach?

This is exactly why Special Finance Group is the perfect partner for your car dealership. Our SEO/IRM team will take care of all of your social media marketing needs and turn those likes and followers into sales for you. To learn more about Special Finance Group’s Complete Special Finance Solution, click here, and make sure to like Special Finance Group on Facebook and follow Special Finance Group on Twitter.

Image courtesy of FreeDigitalPhotos.net

What You Need to Know About Pinterest (And How Special Finance Group Can Help!)

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One of the hottest new social media outlets of 2012 is Pinterest. Over 10 million users have signed up with the service and approximately 8 million are active monthly users. Though some would argue that its popularity has already peaked, it is still important to know how to use it as part of an overall social media strategy.

A new study from EyeTrackShop suggests that Pinterest is a unique social media outlet and that campaigns for Facebook, Tumblr, or Twitter will not work the same with Pinterest. This might seem obvious to people involved in social media marketing, but it isn’t so obvious to people unfamiliar with Pinterest (and other social media outlets for that matter).

First off, it doesn’t do much good to put a lot of time into the profile on Pinterest. Users rarely look at each others’ profiles, so it is wasted effort. Second, the layout of your pins is important. Just like a Broadway star, the pin that is front and center will get more attention than the ones along the outside. Thirdly, you want the pins to tie in strongly with the brand. For example, a car dealership will want to highlight a mix of the 2012 vehicle line-up along with old favorites. If the pins only tie in loosely with the brand, users will see the Pinterest account as disingenuous and just trying to drive traffic. Basically, the profile might get more clicks, but those clicks will not translate into brand loyalty and new customers.

The great news about Pinterest is that users who view a company or brand’s Pinterest boards will typically have a more positive view of that company or brand, so it is definitely worth having (and more importantly, maintaining) a Pinterest account. Special Finance Group’s social media team understands Pinterest, Facebook, Twitter, and every other main social media outlet, and they know how to use social media to bring in new customers. The Special Finance Group social media team is part of the Complete Special Finance Solution, and they can handle all of your social media marketing needs.

Click here to learn more about the Complete Special Finance Solution, and keep up with the latest from Special Finance Group by liking Special Finance Group on Facebook and following Special Finance Group on Twitter.

Mashable: When It Comes to Online Marketing, Don’t Do It Yourself

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Special Finance Group has a message for car dealerships looking to gain an online audience. The message can be summed up in 4 simple words: Don’t do it yourself.

A recent article on Mashable, the web’s premiere resource for social media news and technology, had suggestions for companies who are looking into mobile ecommerce. Most of the list pertained to marketing in general like choosing the right platform or simplifying the look, but the last and best suggestion they offered was “Quit Building It Yourself.”

Most business people are overachievers. This isn’t a bad quality, but sometimes they will wrongly believe that they can still manage all of their responsibilities and take on social media and online marketing as well. The problem with this strategy is that the business will focus less time on the actual product and more time learning new technology and online tools. Car dealerships will be spending so much time worrying about their online presence that they will be distracted from providing good customer service to people walking through the door. Dealerships might think they are saving money by doing online marketing themselves, but they are much better off hiring social media and internet marketing specialists like the team at Special Finance Group.

At Special Finance Group, we have you covered in internet marketing, online engagement, and lead generating. Our team is experienced in targeting and bringing in interested car buyers, earning associated dealerships hundreds of thousands of dollars in additional revenue every month. To learn more about what Special Finance Group can do for your dealership, read the Complete Special Finance Solution here. For the latest news from Special Finance Group, like Special Finance Group on Facebook and follow Special Finance Group on Twitter.

Image(s): FreeDigitalPhotos.net