In the world of social media, change is constant. As social media sites transition from niche social platforms to public companies, there will be an increased focus on revenue and profitability. One way these sites are trying to monetize is through their ever-developing ad platforms.
For automotive dealers, the world of social media advertising (SMA) presents a rich opportunity. Below are just a few recent developments that can be used to expand reach and prospect rates.
Earlier this year, Twitter announced its mobile app promotion tools which will allow advertisers to use Twitter’s advanced targeting capabilities to directly market their app to consumers. These capabilities include: keyword, interest, tailored audiences, gender, geo-targeting, language and mobile platform.
While not all auto dealers have mobile applications, Twitter has a wide range of affordable advertising opportunities and other free options like Twitter Cards. Each of these has the same capabilities as the mobile app promotion.
Facebook also announced last week that it acquired video advertising startup, LiveRail. LiveRail is a supply-slide platform that connects marketers and publishers on the web through video ad targeting. It has a real-time bidding platform where publishers like Major League Baseball, ABC Family and others can bid on video ad space, which is then funneled through LiveRail’s system to targeted customers. This means the video ads only reach the customers who want to see them. The move is seen by many as a way for Facebook to bolster its online video ad space through hyper-targeting.
From a dealer perspective, these new hyper-targeted video ads represent a potential SMA goldmine. Consumers who visit your website or the manufacturer website will automatically be targeted with a video ad that includes your location and current offers.
Social media advertising is a crucial component of advertising going forward. What separates these social media companies from other traditional ad buys and sources is that they have reams of user data. This “smart” data allows these companies to advertise only to the demographics in which their messages will resonate. Hyper-targeted ads will allow auto dealerships to reach through the noise and target interested consumers within their area and, ultimately, combine to make a sale.
