Driven to be More Social with Vehicle Buyers

With more and more people steering toward social media each and every day, car dealers are really starting to use social sites to drive traffic to their dealerships.

The question is how exactly are car dealers using social media to get the word out about their vehicles, deals, and service?

With social car shopping in mind, here are a handful of ways car dealers are turning to social avenues to promote their dealerships as well as some marketing examples from major manufacturers:

Social Techniques for Car Dealers

With millions of people logging on to sites like Facebook and Twitter every second of the day, it’s no wonder car dealers are going the social route when it comes to promoting their dealerships.

But, a post here and a tweet there does not necessarily guarantee social success.

Here are just a few things dealerships across the country are doing to turn social traffic to their car lots:

• Social Media as a Buzz Generator – When it comes to promoting an upcoming sales event or marketing the new model year with a few sneak peeks of a vehicle’s exterior, car dealers use social media and the massive audience that goes along without to create buzz around their vehicles.

• Third-Party Car Content – Because local dealerships sell vehicles manufactured by large brands, many dealers promote their cars by posting third-party content such as popular national commercials and reviews from major car authorities like Car and Driver Magazine.

• Social Engagement is Customer Engagement – Car dealers that engage with their followers on a social level have an easier time finding new customers. Posting or tweeting things like, “the top reasons why you buy a car ”why you buy a car” or “what do you look for in a new car” opens up a line of communication between dealers and the social masses.

With the social techniques above in mind, the following are some examples of how major car brands are putting their social influence into top gear.

Chevy’s Parachuting Car

While promoting its 2012 Chevy Sonic, Chevrolet unleashed an epic social campaign that included parachuting drivers being pushed out of a plane while inside a new Sonic.

Part television spot, part viral video, the parachuting Chevy received over 120 million YouTube views and was shared just as many times on sites like Twitter and Facebook.

Although the majority of local dealerships can’t afford advertising like this, dealers can link their posts to massive brand campaigns like the Sonic stunt in order to gather a little attention for their dealership.

Toyota and the Game of Life

Upon releasing its new line of Prius’ in 2012, Toyota had its Prius family play The Game of Life board game, which garnered the car brand a ton of attention on social channels.

Local dealers can create buzz around their dealerships by relating the cars they sell to their followers’ memorable childhood moments as well.

Fiat’s Outreach

When Chrysler and the Italian manufacturer Fiat joined forces to release the new Fiat 500 Abarth in the United States in 2011, they knew customer outreach was the only way to go.

So, they developed a beautiful viral campaign to go along with TV spots that answered just about every question followers could think of about the Americanized Fiat.

The campaign, which also flooded every major social channel, resulted in the Abarth selling out before the cars even hit American shores.

Again, although local dealerships probably can’t go to these lengths, this example proves that customer outreach via social media is an invaluable tool for dealers.

With car dealers in the driver’s seat and social media riding shotgun, it’s plain to see that dealerships can’t go wrong.

Photo credit: mblb.com

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