Nearly everyday I’m asked about how to build fans and engage customers on Facebook.  Engaging the Social car buyer is getting a lot of air time these days…and for good reason. The more car buyers that migrate to the Social web, the more that engagement becomes a priority for dealerships. It’s not enough to simply put up a Facebook page and wait for your customer to find you.  You must lay out a clear content plan for attracting your audience and building your community.

Social Media has rocked our world at dealerships.  Buying a car is no longer a “transactional” relationship.  It’s now one of trust and engagement.  Fundamentally, it’s about the customer experience and, positive or negative, experience trumps everything else. Your claims of “bigger” and “best” mean nothing when your customers have friends who are telling them otherwise.  Here are 15 Facebook “best practices” to attract and engage the right fans:

1. Post frequently to keep content fresh. 2-3 times per day is ideal.

2. Make your page interactive by asking questions in your posts. Stick to subjects that are relevant to your audience and your store.

3. The Share and Like buttons have become powerful tools.  Include these on your website and blog to foster sharing and make it easier for your customer to engage with you and their network.

4. Mix in the use of other media to help engage.  Video testimonials are particularly useful in making content personal and building trust.

5. Personal connections are powerful. Personalize status updates using “real ” humans…use names and other personalization often.

6. Sharing is caring. Recognize and promote local heroes, members of the community and causes you support.

7. If you have a dealership blog (and you should!) syndicate it on Facebook. It builds credibility and enhances SEO because of it’s fresh content and keywords.

8. Everyone likes free stuff. Infuse your content with coupons, discounts, even Service specials. BUT, don’t overdue it. It’s about community not broadcasting.

9. Deal with negativity openly and clearly. This is your chance to show the community how you make things right for your customers.

10. Include Facebook links and tags in all of your traditional media. Make it easy for customers to find you.

11. Measure and analyze your results to remain consistent with improving your customer’s Facebook experience.

12. Encourage your offline customers to become fans. Put signage up and train your staff to promote your Facebook page.

13. Add value to the conversation: Bring in outside content that’s relevant, recent and local.

14. Always respond to comments quickly. It’s a conversation and people expect a timely reply.

15. If you make a mistake (and you most certainly will) apologize.  Social Media is about transparency. Admit the mistake and move on.

Is your dealership’s Facebook page getting results?  Have you been able to sell cars on Social Media? I’d love to hear about it.