The Many Ways Car Dealers Fail At Social Media

Even though this article is about car dealerships failing at social media, if we are being honest, the same can be said about three quarters of the businesses on Facebook.

Without question, there are some dealers who do a good job of managing their presence on Social Media. The vast majority of them, however, are about as good using Social Media as your eighty-four-year-old grandmother, and they’re only slightly less embarrassing when they post.

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I think that the big issue is that 90% of the businesses on Facebook & Twitter don't have a real reason to be there. They were just sold a social networking plan by a marketing company and it doesn't get them anything. People do not want to constantly be bombarded by marketing. Maybe the guy who's looking for a car wants to keep up on his local dealer while he's looking at cars but not ALL THE TIME. And there is already email, snail mail, phone, online ads and tv commercials. There is such a thing as peak advertising and once you exceed that all you do is drive customers away.

Quix has the basics of it.

That and the "persona" car salesmen use to do their job just doesn't translate well when they're not actually in-person. It comes across as what it is. Schmoozy, crass, impersonal and pushy.

Michelle was of no help.

[Michelle] Hello! My name is Michelle. May I have your name please so I know who I’m chatting with?

[Visitor] Hi Michelle, My name is Chris. I am checking to see if the BMW 335 is still on the lot.

[Michelle] Hi, Chris! Nice to meet you. I’d be happy to check the inventory. May I ask if you are looking for a particular year?

[Visitor] i saw a 2008 335xi in blue with a manual transmission was available. That is roughly what I’m looking for

[Visitor] stock number 52999A

[Michelle] While on it, may I ask if you are planning to trade a vehicle in?

[Visitor] no, I am not

[Michelle] One moment while I check.

[Michelle] Thank you for waiting. Please allow me to verify the availability of the vehicle from my Manager and we’ll get back to you with the details. May I have your email address where we can respond to?

[Visitor] sure. [email protected]

[Visitor] I have a friend in Columbia (and a recent machens customer!) coming by after work today to check it out for me

[Michelle] Thank you very much. May I also have your phone number as an alternative?

[Visitor] sure, 816-XXX-XXXX

[Michelle] Do you have a number we can use to contact you by text message? [Visitor] that works

[Visitor] or via this text box works too, haha

[Michelle] Thank you. May we also use this number to call you in case we have immediate questions?

[Visitor] i don’t foresee a question arising. I just need to know if the vehicle is still available.

[Michelle] I understand. My Manager will get back to you with information regarding the availability of the vehicle you are interested in. May I also have the correct spelling of your last name so we can address you properly?

[Visitor] My name is Chris XXXXXXXXX

[Michelle] I appreciate that. For your reference here’s the link to the page for the hours of operation: [http://joemachenstoyota.com/Departments.as.... Are you able to see the page?

[Visitor] yeah, that’s fine

[Visitor] really, i just want to know if the car is available

[Michelle] I understand. Before I let you go, I’d also like to invite you to come in and see what we can offer you. What is the most convenient day and time for you?

[Visitor] Michelle, I don’t live in Columbia. I have a friend who can come by and check out the car, but we need to know you still have it. I don’t need to set up a time to discuss offers yet.

[Michelle] I understand.

[Michelle] I have everything covered and we’ll get back to you with the information the soonest possible time within our business hours. Will there be anything else that you’d like to add?

[Visitor] To be clear, you aren’t sure if you still have this vehicle at the present time?

[Michelle] Yes. I do apologize. I am from the Chat Department and would need to verify the information with my Internet Manager so we can give you accurate details. Rest assured that we’ll get back to you the soonest possible time so you can review what we have for you. Would there be anything else I can help you with?

[Visitor] No, that is all.

[Visitor] thank you

Also, countless dealers don’t know the difference between auto and manual. So many wasted calls,

“The listing says manual, is it actually a Manual?”

“Sure! It has these great flaps behind the steering wheel so you can shift whenever you want!”

“No thanks.”

“Ok, well I’ll just add your cell phone to our list of robo-dialed spam distribution for all our crappy sales events!”

“I hate you”

Car dealers are not into building relationships with customers, which is what social media is about. That is the disconnect.

Quix said:

I think that the big issue is that 90% of the businesses on Facebook & Twitter don't have a real reason to be there. They were just sold a social networking plan by a marketing company and it doesn't get them anything. People do not want to constantly be bombarded by marketing. Maybe the guy who's looking for a car wants to keep up on his local dealer while he's looking at cars but not ALL THE TIME. And there is already email, snail mail, phone, online ads and tv commercials. There is such a thing as peak advertising and once you exceed that all you do is drive customers away.

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Exactly. The law of diminishing returns applies to EVERYTHING.

Twitter isn’t Craigslist, dude. Nobody gives a shit about that 2012 Chevrolet Impala Fleet Edition that you just bought from Enterprise.

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I think a better question would be why are you following an auto-dealership on Twitter in the first place if you don't care about what cars he has.

I don't understand the complaint the author is making. All you need to know is the inventory of the dealership and the hours they are open. They're not going to post their whole inventory on FB or twitter. Why is there a need to "follow" them on FB or Twitter?

Article's author was a little too smug and condescending. I wanted to !@#$!@# slap him he was so arrogant. So the point of his article was lost. And I'm glad he's not my social media manager.

DigitalGriffin said:

Article's author was a little too smug and condescending. I wanted to !@#$!@# slap him he was so arrogant. So the point of his article was lost. And I'm glad he's not my social media manager.

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Exactly.. besides who would really want to follow a car dealership on social media anyway..

DigitalGriffin said:

Article's author was a little too smug and condescending. I wanted to !@#$!@# slap him he was so arrogant. So the point of his article was lost. And I'm glad he's not my social media manager.

RipperMac said:

Exactly.. besides who would really want to follow a car dealership on social media anyway..

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What's funny is that he quoted a GM at a dealership giving him the same common sense answer:

Recently, I heard a perfectly frank answer from a GM that both amused and concerned me. “Who the hell follows a car dealership on Facebook or Twitter? Do YOU follow any car dealers on Twitter? Wouldn’t that be boring as shit?” Well, Mr. Dealer, based on that attitude, I’m fairly certain that I’m not going to be following you.

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This is how I bought my 2015 Challenger R/T this last Feb.

1st, I learned WHAT I wanted to buy. I researched the car, the different models and very importantly, the option packages.

2nd, I learned WHO had what I wanted to buy. I used AutoTrader.Com to search for the model and options I wanted, the search results supply a link to both the VIN and more importantly, the Window Sticker which details exactly what each car is.

3rd, I Prepared for the buy. I used TrueCar.Com to find the exact car I wanted, I knew who had it so when I did the search on TrueCar I used the Dealer's Zip Code instead of my own for the center point of the search. Naturally TrueCar pulled up the exact car I had found on AutoTrader, notified the dealership I was interested in their car, and in no time the Dealership was emailing me and putting me in touch with my Sales Rep.

I set up and had my loan pre-approved, drove to Tucson to the dealership, did a little fine tuned bargaining even though your not supposed to need to bargain with TrueCar pricing, it is what it is.

All that was left was Selection of Warranty Options, they don't tell you right away but it didn't take me long to figure out that Dodge actually will let you "Build You Own" Warranty, just take every option and ask for separate pricing on each, choose the ones you want, leave the rest on the table.

Now I am not saying this is the best way but it really went well for me. I didn't have to run all over the place dealing with a bunch of different salesman etc. I got exactly the car I wanted to get and I knew before I ever went to the dealership about what it would cost. You just have to account for warranty and TTL.

Yes, because when I'm planning to make a purchase equivalent to half a years salary, instead of doing weeks of research to get the best deal on exactly the car I want, I'll just check my Facebook feed for the latest dealer post and drive over and hand them my wallet.

Wrecked Em said:

Yes, because when I'm planning to make a purchase equivalent to half a years salary, instead of doing weeks of research to get the best deal on exactly the car I want, I'll just check my Facebook feed for the latest dealer post and drive over and hand them my wallet.

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Hahaha, your wallet. If only that's all dealers wanted to take from you these days.
I tried purchasing a (well priced, used) car a few weeks ago, as soon as I told them I didn't need them to finance anything for me they stopped responding to all communications. Too bad, it was pretty much exactly the car I was seeking, no sunroof but that was the only option missing.

Quix said:

I think that the big issue is that 90% of the businesses on Facebook & Twitter don't have a real reason to be there. They were just sold a social networking plan by a marketing company and it doesn't get them anything. People do not want to constantly be bombarded by marketing. Maybe the guy who's looking for a car wants to keep up on his local dealer while he's looking at cars but not ALL THE TIME. And there is already email, snail mail, phone, online ads and tv commercials. There is such a thing as peak advertising and once you exceed that all you do is drive customers away.

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This is so true. My company is a distributor of products. They moaned and complained they need to be on facebook and twitter. When they finally forced our hand we let them access it and guess what no one uses it or follows them. Then one of the owners wanted to send out spam marketing mail, I was like helllllllll no.