If You Only Read One Social Media Article This Year...

If you only read one social media article this year… let it be a strategic wellspring At present, it’s fairly safe to say that almost everyone is at least aware of social media. Hopefully, most dealerships are aware of why it’s important to have a strong presence on the internet, no matter which platform you use: The Pew Research Center itself has revealed the startling statistics of every age group as they flock to the internet instead of the traditional methods of television, newspaper and radio for information. Today, with the rise of inbound marketing, dealerships have a choice – “Budget vs. Brains,” as HubSpot calls it. The genre of social media is almost defined by Facebook and Twitter, with over 750 million users between them – and they’re both free to use. That’s not to say that these are the only platforms to be used; according to the Top 50 Brands in Social Media, what matters most is knowing how to best use the platform you choose. As previously mentioned, Facebook is wellknown as the “biggest kid on the block” when it comes to social networking platforms, but what isn’t yet common knowledge is that Facebook has cleverly evolved into more than static pictures and status updates. It’s now one of the most powerful inbound marketing tools, and if used correctly, it can literally expand your brand presence as a secondary website. In fact, many of the most expert marketers argue that a social media presence can, and in some cases should, come before a brand’s own website. Why? Because your customer base is now more likely to seek out information about your brand on Facebook, as they won’t have to leave the platform to find what they want. With Facebook now equipped to provide you with calls to action, strong geo-targeting and exclusive deals for your customers, mobile marketing and even a paid-search platform that’s showing a higher ROI and lower cost than Google’s AdWords, it’s time to call your Strategic Account Manager and start using brains instead of...