AAPEX: Using social media to promote your business

There are a lot of good reasons to put your business on social media, but none bigger than this:

"It's where your customers are," Sara Fraser, creative director for Haas Performance Consulting, said.

Consequently, it also is where your competitors are.

Ms. Fraser led a virtual session, "Social Media from Concept to Engagement," at the 2020 AAPEX show. She said nearly 90% of people age 18-29 in the United States use some form of social media, which probably isn't surprising to most readers.

What may be surprising is that roughly 37% of people over 65 also use social media, a number that is only expected to grow.

"If they're on there (social media) and they're scrolling and they're viewing information, we should be putting information out there to connect with them, to engage with them and to educate them on our business," she said. "(That way) they can know a little bit more about us and to help them make their decision as to where they want to do their business."

Ms. Fraser's session focused specifically on Facebook (74% of people in the U.S. use that site every day) and Instagram (where 75% of users are under 35), but her tips can also be used on sites such as Twitter and LinkedIn.

"I think sometimes we hear those words 'social media' and it can be so daunting and it's going to be so time-consuming and so hard to do," Ms. Fraser said. "It's really not."

The key, Ms. Fraser said, is to think like a customer. Customers aren't always thinking about their cars breaking down, so social media content doesn't always have to be automotive-related.

Is your business collecting items for a local food drive? Did you have a particularly good meal at a local restaurant? Is today a fun holiday, like National Hot Dog day? All three could lead to good social media posts, Ms. Fraser said.

"It should be something that engages customers or something they can relate to, comment on or share," she said. "It should be something that drives them to click on the link to your website.

"Don't just do a post to do a post."

According to Ms. Fraser, content on your social media accounts should:

• Be engaging (i.e. a post or a photo that's going to stop somebody's scroll);
• Be consistent (posts should have the same voice, something that's true to your brand and mission statement);
• Be transparent (people want to see the real experience they're going to get).

"What does the waiting room like look like?" she said. "What does the back of the shop look like? Use photos of your technicians and your service adviser. Use photos of your shop, not stock photos."

Here are four other suggestions:

Show gratitude.

Businesses should respond to all reviews — not just the negative ones. It's important to say thank-you, or recognize a customer who did something nice.

"Maybe you had an awesome customer who dropped off donuts," she said. "Take photos of that, put it up on social media and thank the customer for stopping by and giving you a treat."

Try educational posts.

Teach your customers something they may not know. For instance, post a photo of the fuel gauge arrow on the dashboard and write, "Did you know the arrow on your fuel gauge tells you what side your gas tank is on?"

"That might be something you've known forever, but you've taught them something new," she said.

Educational posts can also include a call to action. For instance: "Did you know that the average car has 30,000 parts? Don't worry, our shop can repair all of them. Just visit (website) or call (phone number) to make an appointment today."

Introduce your staff.

It could be work-related — like if someone just got ASE certified — but it doesn't have to be. If you have an employee who has five dogs or loves to go fishing on the weekend, that information can be a great way to connect with customers, she said.

Use hashtags.

If you repair Audis, don't just #Audi in your posts. Research hashtags that Audi users love.

Hashtags are most effective in the first 24 hours and the best ones hit the sweet spot between obscurity (far more people will search for #AudiQ3 than #ILoveAudiQ3) and popularity (adding #Christmas probably won't help much).

"People don't just follow accounts and other people," she said. "They follow hashtags. It makes posts easier to find, they categorize content and they make you more discoverable."