This Week in Social Media

News for the Week of November 7

Twitter Beefs Up Customer Service Efforts

Twitter announced they have added two new features to Direct Messages: welcome messages and quick replies. These new features allow businesses to provide customers with a better overall service experience. Welcome messages let businesses greet customers as soon as they enter a Direct Message Conversation and set expectations for how the interaction will play out. Quick Replies is a way for businesses to reply to customer messages in a timely manner, cutting wait times down to a minimum. These latest updates allow for a simpler way to handle customer interactions and provide them with the help they need more quickly and efficiently. Dealerships, there are always new and improved ways to help you communicate and monitor customer needs.  Be sure you stay on top of shopper needs and concerns to keep them happy and ensure they return to your dealership for all their automotive needs.  By staying in contact via multiple channels and providing consumers with top-quality customer service, you’ll win over life-long advocates.

YouTube Listens, Adding New Comment Features

YouTube took the comments and feedback left by their viewers to heart and added some new comment features, including Pinned Comments, Creator Hearts, and Creator Usernames. Pinned Comments give viewers the option to pin a specific comment to the top of their feeds, meaning the those comments are promted over the rest. The Creator Hearts feature allows viewers to pick and show their favorite comments by “hearting” them, while the Creator Usernames feature changes the way usernames appear under comments made by specific creators, showing viewers which comments were made by specific creators. These new tools create a more personalized and involved interaction experience, and they offer users more options when it comes to utilizing and viewing comments. Dealerships, make your presence known after the initial posting of your content. Viewers want to see you are there and reading their comments, and you can ensure you’re recognized with the newest YouTube enhancements. It is good idea to go through comments on your videos and interact with the feedback; you’ll demonstrate your willingness to interact, and you’ll keep your viewers engaged with your continued presence.

New Image Tools and Features Added to Medium

Medium added some new features to improve the story-telling experience on all platforms. Image grids can now be viewed on iOS and Android apps, as well as on any mobile device via the web. Images will appear as thumbnails that can be viewed as full versions when tapped and swiped. Medium also included the ability to format inline code. This was consistently one of their top requests, so they worked to offer the ability to include code blocks in user text that will be rendered automatically whenever code is pasted in the text. Also, users now have the option to click and drag images around in their stories simply by clicking on an image with the cursor and dragging it to a new location, preserving all formatting and layout options throughout editing. Dealerships, don’t discount the importance of mobility in today’s marketplace.  Your customers are on the go, and they’re looking for content they can easily access from any device.  To get the best interaction and traction with everything you post, ensure your content is compatible for all mobile devices.  You’ll avoid potentially being passed by simply because shoppers can’t get to your information.

Facebook Adds Resources to Help Business Influencers

Facebook has added a way to help business leaders get started, build a strategy, and connect with their audiences on Facebook. They have even added a downloadable Business Influencer Guide in their new resource center. Facebook is aware that businesses use their social media platforms to interact and connect with their customers and employees, so they aim to provide the best experience possible. Therefore, they have added these new features so businesses can communicate directly, control their messages, target specific audiences, and access their publishing tools so they can offer their communities a great experience as well. Dealerships, it’s a great idea to go above and beyond for your customers as well.  When you provide this kind of extra information and aim to educate and guide shoppers through every experience, you’ll be seen as a thought leader. On your website, consider posting car-shopping guide, a new-car maintenance guide, or even a financing guide.  You’ll be helping potential buyers, and you’ll give them more reasons to visit your site.

Tip of the Week – Help Your Customers, and They’ll Help You

Building customer relationships that last is important for your dealership to survive and remain on top. There are some quick and easy things that can be done to turn customers into life-long advocates, and advocates are important to you because they help spread the word about your dealership and extend your reach to even more shoppers.  Here’s what you can do:

• Always be ahead. By staying on top of every situation, you can provide a great customer experience for everyone. Work to keep shoppers informed throughout the buying process and be sure those who are waiting for service know what to expect in advance.  This helps everyone get the experience they’re looking for, and it helps earn trust for your dealership.  The more your customers know, the more they’ll trust you—and the more they’ll brag about you to all their friends.
• Interact on social media. Looking on social media to find brand advocates is like shooting fish in a barrel. Consumers who are already interacting with brands on social media are eager for brands to reach out to them. Look for positive comments from customers and thank them for choosing you and for their feedback. Be sure to interact with everyone, however.  Offer solutions and answer questions whenever you can, and you’ll build solid relationships that will lead to brand advocacy in no time.
• Personalize the experience. You’ll help your dealership stand out when you offer a personal experience for every shopper, and this means getting to know your consumers, what they’re looking for, and offering specific solutions that meet their needs.  By utilizing data and actionable insights, you’ll be letting shoppers know their needs are important to you, and you’ll win loyal advocates with your personalization efforts.
• Gather shopper opinions. When you ask customers for their feedback, you’re letting them know their opinions matter to you.  Especially online, your followers will likely be more than willing to share insights regarding products and services at your dealership.  Not only will this build trust between you and existing customers, it also gives you a way of gauging shopper needs and understanding ways you can improve the dealership experience.

Building brand advocates isn’t extremely difficult; it simply takes a little extra time and attention directed toward your customers.  It’s well worth the effort you’ll put in, however, when you realize the benefits you’ll get from creating life-long customer relationships that help you boost your dealership’s reputation and extend your reach to countless consumers.