Social Media has become an indispensable part of our lives. Be it Facebook, YouTube, Instagram, Snapchat, Skype, the list goes on, it has fundamentally changed the way we interact with each other, how we shop and how we are entertained. It now plays a role in almost everything we do.

With more than 17 million Australians actively using these social media platforms, their importance to business success is now irrefutable. If you don’t have a presence on Facebook, then you are hamstringing your business and missing out on communicating with current and potential customers.

As part of MTA Queensland’s mission to help automotive industry businesses adapt and thrive in a world where digital disruption is now the norm, the Association recently held a Social Media for Automotive Business event, offering insights and advice on how to take advantage of these online platforms.

Delivered by Lysa Dugandzic, marketing and communications manager for MTA Queensland, the presentation covered all the major social media applications while focusing on Facebook – the world’s most dominant platform. Attendees were introduced not only to the basics of how to use these platforms but were given solid tips and tricks – on matters from advertising and post creation strategies, to image choice and comment moderation advice – to make their business presence a success.

Also discussed were new trends now playing a major role in social media, particularly on Facebook. Chief amongst these is the development of new algorithms that make Facebook rank ‘meaningful interactions’, and the shift to make conversations an important form of engagement. This means that a straightforward business post just won’t perform as it might have a few years ago. Now, interactions with customers and other users is vital.

“Chat strategies are important to incorporate into social media campaigns and encouraging direct messaging via Facebook Messenger is integral to this,” said Lysa. “Facebook also announced in 2019 a significant emphasis on Communities and Groups, pushing conversations into more private environments. This needs to be a priority for automotive businesses too.”

Video has also become a crucial part of the social media environment. Smart use of short, original video content can grab the attention and interest of consumers and such content is effective and can, added Lysa, be easily and cost-effectively created.

For those attending the workshop there was plenty to learn, even for those who are well-seasoned social media users.

Grant Malseed, owner of performance workshop Superformance in Brisbane, already has a healthy online following for his business with nearly 5000 Facebook followers. However, there were elements from the workshop that he was enthusiastic about incorporating into Superformance’s proven social media output.

“This has been very beneficial. I have made some good detailed notes and have some good things to take away,” he said.

“I was particularly curious about Instagram as I didn’t fully understand how it works, but this has given me a good insight into it now and I got a lot out of it. It was a good session.

“I think that like all training, even if you pull just one thing out of your participation, then it’s worth it.”

Indeed it is, and learning to be digital savvy is crucial for the health of today’s automotive businesses.

“Research demonstrates that when small businesses are digitally engaged, they are 50 per cent more likely to be growing revenue, eight times more likely to be creating jobs and 14 times more likely to be innovating new products or services,” said Lysa. “Businesses that are actively producing content on their social media platforms, as part of the mix of their online presence, are more likely to be growing.”

For MTA Queensland, workshops such as the Social Media for Automotive Business represents a part of the Association’s mission to assist businesses to adapt to and be successful in a constantly changing business landscape. That long-standing mission has seen MTA Queensland selected as an Industry Association for the federal government’s Small Business Digital Champions Project and the social media workshop has been developed to assist businesses in working with the best social media platforms for them, and to give some ideas on how use them successfully.

Original source: Motor Trader Magazine (September 2019)

11 Sept 2019