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Social Media Marketing for Car Dealerships
Become an expert in social media marketing for car dealerships with these practical tips, platform insights, and content ideas that boost your online presence.
So, you’d like to reach more customers, build your reputation, and sell more cars? Then you need to look into social media marketing for car dealerships.
Using only a few apps, you can showcase your inventory, connect with potential buyers, and even close sales—all from your phone.
Whether you’re managing a B2C dealership with a physical lot or a B2B operation that sells online in bulk, social media is a powerful tool that can transform your business. This guide will show you how to make the most of automotive social media marketing.
How to improve your car dealership’s social media presence
Did you know that 72% of car buyers use social media to research before making a purchase?
However, we want you to see the results of your automotive social media management efforts as soon as possible, so let’s focus on practical steps you can take.
Optimizing your social media profiles
Your first online marketing strategy should be making sure your social media profiles on platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn look professional and consistent. Good tips to achieve this include:
- Using a high-quality logo
- Adding your contact details
- Adding a link to your website
- Writing a compelling bio or “About” section
We follow this approach at eCarsTrade ourselves. Take a look at how put-together our LinkedIn page looks like.
So, tweak these little details, and you’ll have a good foundation that attracts buyers.
Engaging with your audience
The ultimate goal of auto dealer social media marketing is to build a genuine connection with your audience.
This means responding to comments and messages promptly, showing appreciation for positive feedback, and addressing concerns transparently. The last element is especially important, so we’ve crafted a guide to responding to negative reviews for car business owners.
Essentially, if you’ve built an audience that interacts with your dealership online, you should always make the effort to engage back.
Posting consistently to build brand awareness
Regular posting helps keep your dealership on top of your customers’ minds.
You can regularly share photos of new arrivals, behind-the-scenes looks, customer testimonials, and more. All of these post types can boost engagement and make your audience more familiar with your business.
For instance, this Berlin-based dealership posts reels and photos every couple of days, highlighting different aspects of their business.
Image source: Autohaus Meklenborg on Facebook
Posting regularly keeps them showing up in their followers’ feeds, letting people know what they offer and reminding them that they’re always around.
The best social media platforms for smaller car dealerships to use
Now, you want your posts to make an impact, so it’s crucial to select the right platforms that your customers use daily.
Good news: you won’t have to jump on any obscure platforms—you can focus on the popular ones where your audience is already active.
If your dealership focuses on selling cars to other businesses, LinkedIn is the ideal platform for you. Since it’s more professionally oriented than some other networks, you can use it to share industry insights, build connections with other businesses, and showcase your expertise.
Crestanevada, a Spanish used car dealership, has mastered LinkedIn marketing. They regularly share posts highlighting their community involvement and their industry knowledge.
Image source: Crestanevada on LinkedIn
Just don’t forget to include some personality in your LinkedIn posts, too! Showing the human side of your dealership can make your content more engaging and relatable.
TikTok
TikTok’s short-form videos are perfect for showing off vehicles in fun and creative ways. For example, you could post clips of newly refurbished cars or showcase the refurbishing process itself. This platform is a great way to reach younger audiences, like young people looking for their first car.
Posting on Facebook is a classic move in automotive marketing on social platforms. Facebook is still the most popular social media platform in 2024, so it’s a great place to reach a broad audience, especially older demographics who are often in the market for used cars.
We like posting on Facebook ourselves. Showcasing available cars, talking about company updates, and sharing articles from our blog are just some of the ways we connect with our audience on Facebook.
Image source: eCarsTrade on Facebook
Due to its visual nature, Instagram is perfect for showing off high-quality car photos.
Don’t forget that you can also use this platform to show a more personal side of your business.
For instance, you could post Instagram Stories that give followers a behind-the-scenes look at your team, highlight fun moments on your lot, or promote limited-time offers.
Targeted social media advertising to boost sales
Organic posts can help build your brand and engage your audience, but let’s not forget about how paid advertising can bring in more leads and increase sales.
After all, the biggest players in the automotive industry use targeted ads to reach the right customers, so why not join in. Here’s how to get started.
Setting up your first Facebook and Instagram ads
You should start with creating ads that highlight your best deals or newest arrivals.
❗TIP - Use high-quality images and short, catchy text to grab attention.
Take a look below to see an example of a compelling Facebook ad.
Image source: ZervTek on Facebook
Want more ideas for Facebook car ads? We’ve got you; you can find some really interesting ones in our Facebook ad ideas list created specifically for used car dealers.
Also, remember that Facebook’s ad platform allows you to target specific demographics, helping you reach those most likely to buy.
But, what happens when potential buyers spend some time looking at your offer without making a purchase? That’s where retargeting comes in.
Retargeting visitors to your website and showroom
Retargeting with Facebook ads allows you to re-engage potential customers who have already shown interest in your dealership.
There are two retargeting methods you can try out.
- Custom Audiences: Use a list of past customers or leads to target them with ads. It’s perfect for reaching out to people who have already shown interest in your cars.
- Meta (Facebook) Pixel: Install this small piece of code on your website to track visitors and their actions. It lets you create ads specifically for people who viewed a car but didn’t make a move, nudging them to come back.
Measuring the success of your social media ad campaigns
Finally, you need to measure the performance of your ads so that you know you’re getting your money’s worth from your ad budget. You should use analytics tools to track metrics like clicks, conversions, and engagement rates.
Once you’ve measured these metrics, you can adjust your ads based on what works best to maximize results from your social media marketing activities.
Social media content ideas for dealerships
The automotive industry is a dynamic one, so there should be no shortage of content ideas, especially not with AI tools to help you research and brainstorm.
But if you’re looking for some inspiration right now, here are some ideas to get you started:
- Car of the week: Spotlight a new arrival or a popular model.
- Behind the scenes: Show how cars get ready or fun team moments.
- Quick tips: Easy maintenance tips like checking tire pressure.
- Virtual tours: Go live and show off your latest inventory.
- Car trivia: Fun facts about classic cars or cool features.
- Special deals: Highlight discounts or limited-time offers.
With ideas like these, you can come up with well-performing content even on days when creativity feels a little low. Keep your posts fresh, engaging, and relevant, and your followers will keep coming back for more!
Tools for social media management
Running your dealership’s Instagram account? Piece of cake.
But how about running Facebook, TikTok, LinkedIn, and YouTube at the same time?
The high number of platforms can make it tough to keep up. That’s why it’s important to use the right tools and simplify the process. Here are some top tools to help manage your social media accounts effectively:
|
Tool |
Best for |
|
Buffer |
Easy-to-use scheduling tool that works well with Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn. |
|
Meta Business Suite |
Facebook’s own tool for managing both Facebook and Instagram. It’s great for scheduling posts, replying to messages, and checking insights. |
|
Canva |
Great for creating social media graphics and professional-looking posts and stories quickly, even without design experience. |
|
Sprout Social |
Its in-depth analytics help you understand what content resonates most with your audience. |
There you have it—we don’t want you spending hours of your time juggling multiple platforms, so use these tools to keep things simple.
Don’t forget to take care of other marketing channels!
Social media is powerful, but don’t forget to diversify your efforts. You should take full advantage of the marketing channels that automotive businesses use and combine them for best results.
Email marketing, for example, is a great way to nurture leads. You can see one of the messages in the email chain that eCarsTrade sends to our newly registered members so they can start participating in auctions.
Automotive search engine optimization (SEO) is another channel that can help your website rank higher, bringing in more traffic from people searching for cars.
In addition to optimizing your website with the right keywords and technical SEO practices, it’s also important to plan and create high-quality automotive content that appeals to both search engines and your target audience.
Throw in some content marketing, online review platforms, or even influencer collaborations, and you’re on your way to reaching more potential customers and increasing sales.
Handle dealership social media with ease
Social media for car dealerships now sounds completely doable, right?
It definitely is, and you should feel confident diving in! Whether you’re running targeted Facebook ads to bring back potential buyers, or using LinkedIn to connect with B2B clients, the right approach can make all the difference.
Remember, every social media post is a chance to connect with potential buyers, so make sure you put thought into each one.
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