Earlier this month, the National Automobile Dealers Association (NADA) had their annual show in Las Vegas where vendors and dealerships met to showcase cutting edge products, highlight emerging trends, and network across all facets of the dealership. While I didn’t attend, I recently listened to one of NADA’s Live Stage Sessions where TikTok’s Lauran Driver, Head of Dining, Auto, & Travel, and Drew Baerresen, Vice President & CMO of Turnkey Marketing based in Corona, CA, discussed TikTok strategies for dealerships. Turnkey Marketing supplies advertising and marketing services to dealerships across the country. I am here to breakdown and evaluate some of their key points based on my own experiences of running TikTok for a dealership chain in Dallas-Fort Worth, accumulating over 7 million hits since I took over in late 2022.
Users using TikTok as a search engine, like Google.
Definitely, I agree! Much like Google, I use TikTok in this way to answer a question or learn something new quickly, but also with a quick visual queue. If you don’t know where to start your TikTok strategy, it may be a good idea to work backwards from this. Think of questions that pertain to the brands you carry that people would want to quickly research, but also want a visual queue, like locating and jumping the battery on their Tahoe, or how to initiate SuperCruise on their Escalade. Searching on TikTok can still expedite the search engine process compared to even Google or YouTube, which might take a bit more clicking to get to exactly what you want, due to extra links, or ads. It is critical that your dealership is on the platform to serve as a search engine alternative.
Stores should have their own pages, don’t let the employees control them.
Yes, the store should clearly have ownership of their page, to avoid any disgruntled employees leaving with access. NADA’s Live Stage Session also emphasized supporting your sales team to become social media “ambassadors” of the store. I believe this strategy should in fact be explored within your store. What this means is they should also have and use their own social media accounts that support the dealership and its sales efforts (IE “JackknowsSubaru” or “Jack @ Smith Hyundai”). A common objection to this is the possibility of a salesperson’s brand becoming larger than the dealership, and that they will take their customer base elsewhere. To that I say, this can happen regardless of using social media. Additionally, long tenured salespeople tend to do this. Don’t let this common fear prevent you from supporting your sales staff’s content creation efforts because this will support the dealership in the long run.
Additionally, I have heard from other automotive marketers that some highline brands will not allow dealerships to post funny or lighthearted content to represent their stores. In this regard, focus store and employee presences on producing informative content, explaining features of current inventory, FAQs, how to’s, and even brand history.
Don't overthink it / Post something, better than nothing.
Yes, as basic as this is, it IS better than nothing. However, be intentional with what you’re posting from the start. Take notice of what posts are performing well, what people are engaging with, and what consumers like and don’t like through the comments. Adjust and experiment accordingly.
Users are REALLY looking for authentic content.
Yes! To me, yes, you are in the business of selling cars, but not every post needs to be “hey come buy this Camry, here is an attractive lease payment, no money down” whatever, whatever. Showcase what makes your dealership or group unique – as cliche as that may sound. That is your people, your location/amenities, and your vehicle. Focus on displaying your product knowledge, polishedness, and your customer experience with these traits. Nobody wants to follow or view videos from a page that exists solely to push products. Although, you may get some interest but focus on providing value that few, if any, others can replicate.
You should use Lead Gen Ads on the platform.
I don’t have a lot of experience utilizing paid ads on the platform, and maybe they are as effective as discussed in this session. I am a VERY strong proponent of using TikTok to produce authentic content (see above) to build an organic following. Could paid ads on TikTok play a role in your overall marketing mix? Yes, especially if you’re on the other social media channels running similar campaigns. But with that, I think finding your voice as a dealership, building an organic content strategy through engaging content is just as, if not more, important than paid inventory ads. Creating your own content will be transferable to other platforms and won’t cost you a dime (until you want it to). Definitely look at the whole pie.
OEM Asset Portals should have vertical assets.
Yes, definitely agree that it would be a nice addition to use in suitable instances, however, NOT to build the entirety of your TikTok & social presence. If we all used the same OEM approved media, there would be no originality, and we would push users away on the platform from our cookie-cutter corporate content. I’ll say it again: There is a lot of value in being original and personable, even if it doesn’t come off as clean cut as a billion-dollar automaker.
To conclude, your dealership’s TikTok presence should prioritize organic strategy over running paid ads initially, but don’t overlook the platform for your social ad mix if you’ve been hesitant about establishing a presence on the platform. Stand out with content that represents your brand, your employees, and geographic area to separate yourself from other dealers on the platform and provide viewers value through your content that goes beyond ads for current inventory. TikTok is a powerful branding tool when you prioritize transparency and authenticity; be more than a car dealership just trying to make a buck. This will allow you to succeed with your dealership TikTok in 2024.
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