6 Free Ways to Boost Your Automotive Marketing
Do you ever find yourself struggling to find new ways to market your automotive business online? To ensure you are constantly engaging your target audience, you should be actively searching for fun ways to interact online.
There is a misconception that most marketing tactics require financial investment to get started, but that is not the case whatsoever. There are many FREE (yes, free) options that you can use to improve your automotive marketing. Here are six free digital marketing options that you can participate in to improve your automotive marketing strategy.
1. Creating a Google Listing Will Get Your Business on the Most Powerful Search Engine
Google is the most powerful search engine on Earth. If your business is not on Google, it is like your business does not exist.
Many small businesses choose to neglect their social media presence because they cannot see the benefits of an online image. This can cause them to miss out on new clients who are looking for them online. Without ownership over your online listings, communicating with your target audience is next to impossible.
With Google, if there are enough search queries about your business, a listing will be auto-generated for your business. If you do not already have access to your business listing, sign up for a Google Business Profile. There, you will be able to successfully claim your business listing.
If you need to make a listing, you can sign up and follow the prompt. An active Google listing allows your business to be found easier by your online visitors.
Consumers will be able to use Google Maps to provide them with the best route to your shop. On your Google listing, you should have as much information about your business as possible. This includes your services, links to your website, and other relevant information like an address, store hours, and phone number for consumers to call.
Another benefit to having a Google listing is running advertising on the platform. Consumers can search for your shop and be served any promotional material that you are running. Google Search Ads are shown on SERPs (search engine results pages) to give your business the best chance of incentivizing consumers to visit your shop.
2. Social Media FTW
Nowadays, consumers spend an exorbitant amount of time on their mobile devices, scanning multiple social media platforms during their downtime. Platforms like Facebook, Instagram, Yelp, and Twitter all allow for B-2-B and B-2-C interactions. And the best part about this is that all those platforms are free to use for small and large businesses alike.
When it comes to engagement, Facebook gives you the best chance at communicating effectively with your target audience. Consumers can post reviews and even DM (direct message) your business if you make that option available.
Your Facebook Business Page is diverse in terms of the options available to bridge the gap between business and consumer. Consumers can follow your business so that they do not miss any potential promotions or events taking place at your shop.
Instagram is the most content-dependent platform for your business. The most successful IG pages are the ones with the most compelling and engaging content. With it mainly being video and picture driven, the content posted must be high-quality. A modern camera or even your smartphone should be able to give you the quality content your Instagram needs.
Although the platform has gone through a lot of changes over the last few years, it is important to highlight that Twitter may give your business the best place to show off your brand voice. On the platform, it allows you to use a certain character limit to disseminate pertinent information to consumers.
If you were to upgrade your Twitter to Blue tier, you would be able to increase that limit to four thousand characters. Twitter allows you to use your brand voice more effectively than others. It makes sharing business news and updates simple and easy.
LinkedIn is the best employment search platform for your business. You can easily post your vacant positions with space to elaborate on what you look for most in a candidate.
Not only does it make hiring easy, but it also is a place where you can share information about your business. This sheds light on what your business is about and what you value in your staff and customers.
Yelp
Over the years Yelp has gone to great lengths to improve the experience of the user, as well as businesses. Consumers are provided with more information to make an informed decision about where they take their vehicles.
Consumers can see the normal business information, like address, phone number, and business hours. They can also see what services are provided, and what amenities the business provides.
Yelp launched Yelp Ad Syndication, which allows businesses the opportunity to share their promotional ads on third-party sites and apps. This allows consumers to see your ads in more places with the goal of garnering more engagement and conversions.
To be included in the Yelp Ad Syndication, you must be a client of a Yelp Partner. The good news is that Optimize Digital Marketing is a Yelp Partner, meaning that we can facilitate your automotive marketing campaigns.
3. Add Facebook Groups to Your Marketing Efforts
Do you want to improve your engagement on Facebook even more? If that is something that may be of interest, Facebook Groups give you another way to do that.
According to Facebook, they put a high value on groups. Their algorithm looks at consumer behavior on the platform to deliver the content that they think a specific consumer wants to see the most. Groups, people, and pages are number one on their list and will show up at the top of your feed, meaning that the likelihood of your group being seen is increased.
4. Employees Make Great Brand Ambassadors for Your Automotive Business
In the automotive industry, you must be able to think creatively to grab consumers’ attention. If you want to spread the word about your business, who better than your employees? They provide an insightful look into what you do and what your business values most.
Brand ambassadors are an extension of your business, allowing word-of-mouth marketing, as well as social media marketing. This puts faces to names and makes your business familiar to your audience.
The goal is to allow your brand ambassadors to be genuine and authentic when talking to people about your business. Finding any pitfalls will be the next step in creating a message that is palatable to consumers.
Providing the platform for your employees to operate will give them the best chance at giving consumers what they want.
5. Email Newsletters Should be a Facet of Your Marketing Campaign
When you open your email, you might notice brands will send you emails highlighting upcoming sales or deals. A consumer can click on the ad, and that will direct them to the site for the promotion. As an automotive repair shop, you can send emails about your current tire or service promotions.
For businesses, it is an awesome way to show off services, company news, and promotional material. Create engaging content to build a loyal audience interested in your shop’s updates.
A way to generate interest in your newsletter is to promote it on your business’s social media platforms. You can also do the reverse by promoting your social platforms through your email, targeting people who do not follow your social media pages.
6. Blogs are a Wildly Underrated Tool in Marketing
Blogging is another tool that allows you to create engaging and genuine content, all the while creating an opportunity for more conversions down the line.
Although text content is not as popular as it once was, there is still a place for it in modern business. Creating cool how-to blogs, employee updates, store updates, and community events are excellent topics to discuss on a blog.
Blogs are written for consumption through digital means. This is especially important because they will need to be written with performance in mind.
SEO (search engine optimization) is the practice of researching for relevant keywords that can be used within the content to assist in making your business more visible online. Businesses that participate in SEO will be ranked higher on SERPs (Search Engine Results Pages).
These six options may be free, but they are all important things to consider when creating an automotive marketing plan that works for your business. It is true that these six options are not a guarantee of success, but they are stepping stones to get there. If you want to learn more about other options that are available to you, view our website for more digital marketing solutions.