Auto Dealer Monthly Magazine is the daily operations publication serving the retail automotive industry. This automotive publication serves dealer principals, officers and general managers with the latest best practices.
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©ISTOCKPHOTO.COM/ANDREAROAD "retarget" them. Tat means they will see my ads on approximately 92 percent of all the websites they visit, including Te Weather Channel, eBay and ESPN. Better yet, I can include sites relevant to their situational needs. Kathleen and Frank might not be interested in gardening or decorating, but now that they've purchased a new home, I assure you they will be. And you can bet I'll be on those pages to build my brand identity. You see, it's only a matter of time before Frank wants a new truck and Kathleen needs a new SUV to make room for the new baby. And let's not forget about the couple's daughter, who will likely be getting her frst car for her 16th birthday. What will spur and justify the new purchase is they will require service on a vehicle, so my ad promoting those extended service hours and free loaner vehicles should appeal to their needs. You can create a similar campaign with Facebook's new Partner Categories. It's a tool that sources data from Datalogix and Polk to help dealers pinpoint inmarket buyers. FACEBOOK VS. GOOGLE Facebook's new tool allows for targeting so precise you can drill down to new homeowners, the type of dog or cat an individual owns, the college they attended, and much more. Heck, you can even target individuals based on what they type in their Timeline post, e.g., "My car just broke down," or "I hit a deer." Facebook has created a virtual community that is flled with potential customers. But you don't have to wait for the next Rotary Club meeting, Chamber of Commerce mixer, Little League game, Bible study or Sunday service to kick of your next campaign. With Facebook, individuals can do all of that in one location. Users can even shop and view recommendations from their friends. Ten there's Google. It now recognizes the power of a social network. Yes, it has tried several times to launch its own social community. But it's not a matter of if Google will become a serious player, it's a matter of when. So, what do you need to do to take advantage of all of this? Well, here are six things you can do now to get started: 1. Create a Marketing Strategy for Facebook: Do this based on customer lifecycles, as well as the information you collect on the individuals you want to target. 2. Watch and Listen: Te key to Facebook is to study how individuals interact, especially people who seem to have a strong following on Facebook. And I'm not talking about your competitors; I'm talking about everyday people. Tis will allow you to spot patterns in how popular Facebook users engage real people as if they were standing in front of each other. 3. Own Your Social Community: Take ownership of the communities you build online and teach your staf how to be social online. And that goes for of all your employees, not just your sales team. Just think about how you interact with people at your kid's soccer games or at Rotary club meetings, and mirror that interaction online. 4. Test, Test and Test: Te goal here is to push for more conversion, which means you need to test what works and what doesn't. 5. Create an Editorial Calendar: What this entails is creating a schedule for when ads go up and when posts need to happen. Te key here is to stick with the plan. 6. Don't Expect Immediate ROI: I always tell my clients they need to stop shooting for ROI so quickly when it comes to their social community. Heck, you wouldn't go to your child's recital expecting to convert customers, would you? So don't expect that from your social media pages. Te takeaway here is to establish a presence in today's digital communities. But to be part of one, you need to virtually get out and start networking. Remember, there is a diference between social advertising and social networking, and the terms can't be merged together. If you try, you will become the cheesy sales guy everyone avoids. M AY 2013 • AUTODE ALE R MONTHLY.COM 9