As social media grows within the collective conscience of the automotive industry, many dealers have been looking towards the NADA Convention in Orlando as the point where they will learn or enhance their knowledge of how they can take advantage of it as a marketing and engagement platform.
The convention itself is jam-packed with activities, including a presentation that I would like to attend by Eric Miltch, Glen Garvin, Paul Potratz, and Tom White. Jared Hamilton is also doing a workshop on Advanced Online Thinking for Dealership Leaders. As someone who has heard Jared speak, I can’t wait for that one.
There will be plenty of vendors offering their social media wares, both in conjunction with their current product offerings as well as stand-alone products. The one thing that dealers must always keep in mind is that engagement is the name of the game in social media. Bulk is irrelevant. Automation doesn’t work. As the NADA social media presence itself has proven, quality always wins over quantity.
Unlike most other forms of online marketing, social media is not a matter of “the loudest voice wins”. Exposure is a key, but it must be managed properly. Being able to speak to people, to make them feel welcome and ready to do business with the dealership, is something that social media has above all other forms of marketing or advertising. It’s a conversation more than anything else and positioning your dealership’s social media presence in a way that is open and available is the best way to take advantage of it.
Dealers will hear pitches and learn things that will contradict other things they hear in seminars, in meeting rooms, or at booths. Social media is an enigma and everyone has an opinion about the best way to use it. At the end of the day, being able to differentiate between what really works and what can actually hurt in social media will determine whether your dealership is successful through social media in 2010 or not.
TK Carsites is holding a series of workshops at the convention. These are educational only – there will be no pitching or discussion of products during the workshops. Our goal and hope is that if you find value in what we say, you’ll inquire about what we can offer. If you learn from it and are able to apply this knowledge without our assistance, that works too! What we want to see is that dealers are doing it right with or without us. The stronger the industry is, the stronger we will become as a company. That’s our philosophy and we’ll be engaging car dealers with that in mind.
For more information or a schedule of events, please see our NADA Convention information page.
