Why?
Well that’s a good question isn’t it? I find it hard to believe, but I’ve heard that some business owners think it’s either too costly or not worth the time. If you fall into the first group, please keep reading. If you’re in second group, go read this and only come back when you’re ready to apologize to the rest of us.
Before we remove the drapes on today’s guest product, lets consider some of the things you DO spend your marketing dollars on.
Newspaper ads? Of course. Most dealers say they’re moving away from them, but few are the dealers who don’t advertise in the Sunday paper at least once a month.
Cost? Minimally between $5,000 and $10,000 a month.
TV ads? Please. Are you still doing TV ads? Not only are consumers becoming more and more blind to them they are working to avoid them. How much do TV spots cost? Last dealer I spoke to spent $40,000 for a three-month contract on a cable television focused on sports and the Detroit Tigers. The confirmed return on investment? Over the three month period there were eight phone calls – zero sales.
Billboards? $2,500 a month on average.
Radio spots? Roughly $232 per 60 second spot in the Detroit market.
Print Mailers? Not only do you spend thousands of dollars per mailing, you also spend money to buy mailing lists.
So what’s the tool you’re missing out on? You already know.
Social Media.
So that we’re measuring apples to apples; when I say Social Media I’m including the following:
- A branded custom blog with weekly blog postings
- Monthly sweepstakes proven to increase Facebook fan base by as much as 200%
- Daily engaging posts to Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest
- Ongoing fan engagement through coupons, contests, quizzes etc.
- Online reputation management via Yelp, Google Plus Local, FourSquare and Twitter
- And all the accountable metrics that go with it – number of fans, number of people talking about you, depth of reach, email addresses for your fans, mailing lists…
What can you expect in return? Well let’s start with the numbers. How about;
Facebook Likes that move from a few hundred to a few thousand – all from your database and all within your sales demographic? People you can continually touch through your social presence or through email addresses you harvest during the process.
Think about this, PLEASE. If you’d spend several thousand dollars for a one-time mailing list, why would you not invest a lesser amount for an ongoing organically growing list you can measure and respond to?
Here’s the stat that gets forgotten the most often – but might be the most important – Search Engine Optimization (SEO). The proper use of Social Media means search engines are more likely to spot your brand, score you higher and move you further up the rankings list.
This is to say nothing about fan engagement and creating brand advocates who champion YOUR brand – loudly – without being paid.
What do you get for your traditional marketing spend? Let’s be honest, you really don’t know, do you?
Cost comparison? If you’re not presently using Social Media, you might want to close your eyes.
- Ten radio spots = one to two months of Social Media
- Billboards = one to two months of Social Media
- One full page Sunday ad = six months of Social Media
- TV ad? Are you sure you’re ready for this? For the three month spot listed above (the one that generated eight calls and no sales) you could run a robust Social Media presence for more than… two years.
When I hear dealers say that Social Media doesn’t sell cars I can’t help but think of that TV campaign. Oh yeah? Well I guess neither does TV.
The Bottom Line
It’s the most cost effective, wide reaching, consumer engaging, accountable tool in your potential marketing repertoire and you’re not using it.
Enough said.
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