Boating Industry

February 2015

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February 2015 | Boating Industry | 31 [ Social media that sells ] www.BoatingIndustry.com company's goal is more about brand recognition than straight sales. "The main thing is just keeping the name in front of people," said Finklestine, noting that engagement eventually leads to business. "Once that's in front of people's face a couple times a day, it generates a lot of activity for service, sales – everything." Making an engagement plan and sticking with it is vital to social media. But managers and owners should take note, it's a long road to social media success and one without any guarantee of a clear return on the investment of time or energy. "For a lot of really successful people on social media, they might be on Facebook or Twitter for two years before they ask anyone to buy any- thing," said DeVlaming. Finklestine said Complete Marine very rarely posts anything specifi c to its sales despite its large fan base. "We like to ask questions, 'What do you think of this picture? What do you think of this boat?' It creates a lot of activity," said Finklestine. "It's not like we're actually trying to sell anything on Facebook, but we're creating a lot of activity. " Even businesses that are incredibly successful on social media fail at the "selling yourself" part of the 80-20 formula. The messaging is either too common and drives potential customers away or the messaging just doesn't resonate. "The fi rst thing is — which sounds so basic but is worth saying because I see people not do this — don't act like you're a marketer from the 1990s when you're selling things," said DeVlaming. Take a moment and think back to the ubiqui- tous local car dealer commercials – the bad tou- pees, the plaid suits and dollar signs everywhere. Don't be that guy. "What I see a lot of times are posts that say, 'COME ON DOWN TO OUR DEALER- SHIP. ACT NOW!!!!'" said DeVlaming. "This is horrible marketing. I tell people just to talk to people like you would talk to your best friend — talk to people like you would normally talk to someone." Do, however, show your enthusiasm about that new boat or fresh used arrival. "Tell them why it's great, why you're ex- cited about it – if you're not excited about it, your customers won't be passionate about it," said DeVlaming. Getting people in the door Traditional platforms and new social media stars like Instagram and Pinterest are great for brand- ing and keeping engaged – essential marketing tasks in their own right – but they might not give the best fl at ROI. In conjunction with good engagement, cou- pons, deal announcements, boat listings and sale invites posted on social media can bring people into the dealership. But what platform or tactic brings the most people in people in and deliver the best bang for the buck? The answer might surprise you. "This is my most asked question of all time. I don't have a straight answer, but I'll try to be as 0 25 50 75 100 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 71% 23% 26% 28% 72% 81% » of people 30-49 that watch videos online 300 million » users ONLINE ADULT USAGE 72% » of men 76% » of women PARENTS USE VIDEO SITES MORE THAN NON-PARENTS { } PARENTS USE { } PARENTS USE VIDEO SITES { } VIDEO SITES MORE { } MORE THAN NON-PARENTS { } THAN NON-PARENTS Source: Instagram Source: Facebook 87% » of adults making $75,000 or more watch online videos. 864 million » active users 74% » of adults use social networking sites "Don't act like you're a marketer from the 1990s when you're selling things." — Lauren DeVlaming, social media manager, Dominion Marine Media Video Stats Source: Pew Internet Project

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