By Keona Frasier, Boatmart.com
Social media outlets provide an invaluable avenue for you to reach consumers right where they are (here’s a hint: they’re on their phones). Connecting with your customers in such a direct way has some major benefits for the reputation, growth and profits of your dealership:
- Build & Maintain Awareness
Having social media accounts gives you a chance to make yourself known to potential boat buyers who otherwise would not have known you existed. Growing your customer base is a major advantage of growing your online presence. And there’s always the chance that one of your more inventive posts goes “viral,” exposing you to hundreds or thousands more people. Even if you don’t go viral, staying active on those accounts also helps your business remain at the forefront of your followers’ minds when they think about buying their next boat. When they see your name a few times a week, you’ll be the first name that pops in their head when they start contemplating that purchase. - Develop Reputation and Relationships
When your social media activity is authentic and transparent, offering your personal perspective or giving a behind-the-scenes look at your dealership, those accounts serve to humanize your brand. Coming across as relevant and personable gives the impression that you are a dealer that buyers can trust. Your unique perspective, experience and industry insight also mean your social media accounts can showcase how your dealership is a leading voice in the industry. As followers engage those posts, you have the opportunity to develop personal and productive relationships, further bolstering their perceptions of you and strengthening their connection with your dealership. - Grow Your Business
While the word “social” is in the name, social networks should also serve as business networks for your dealership, actively contributing to moving potential buyers down a specific sales path. Your accounts give you the opportunity to share and promote provoking content, as well as directly advertising your for-sale inventory (content posts are a great counterbalance to inventory posts, ensuring your page doesn’t look like it will spam followers with sales ads). Ultimately, social media accounts are phenomenally effective tools for generating website traffic, connections, leads and sales. - Listen & Respond
Social media isn’t just about speaking; it’s also about listening. Browsing your personal social media might distract from real work, but browsing your professional accounts is smart business, as it allows you to learn more about your customers, monitor conversations about your products, business, or industry, keep an eye on your competition and keep up with industry news. Armed with such knowledge you can tap into trending topics, remain relevant and competitive and continue to manage your reputation by engaging in responsible customer service and support (you’ll be surprised how many followers will reach out to you via social media with customer service concerns). Social media accounts also provide a rapid response tool for crisis communication if a major recall or other emergency announcement is required. - Advanced Advertising and Reporting
Finally, social media also comes with a number of pretty advanced tools and strategies for dealers to utilize. Posting for-sale inventory to be seen by your followers is one thing, creating an actual ad that targets specific audiences is another. Extended advertising and retargeting campaigns are the bread and butter of social media sites, because they work. You can start with a scrappy, small-dollar amount, and see if it’s worth expanding that spend amount. Social media accounts also allow for relatively in-depth reporting, helping dealers keep statistical track of how accounts – and ads – are performing.
The plethora of social media channels allows you to select the ones that are most relevant to your audience when sharing content. Maybe all your consumers are on Facebook and that’s the only platform you need. Maybe you’ve got a mix between casual users on Instagram and professional contacts on LinkedIn?
Whatever the platform may be, find out where your audience is and then make a splash on that platform. Be willing to try new things, find what works for you, then set up a robust posting routine. Check out 10 social post ideas from Boatmart to get you started.
About the Author
Keona Frasier is a writer and editor at Boatmart, an MRAA Education Champion, bringing a background in mass communications and journalism to her work. Outside of work, she enjoys exploring art, culture and entertainment. For more marketing tools and tips visit the Boatmart Dealer Education site.
