Digital Dealer - February 2020 - 31

Three essential golden nuggets that will refresh your personal brand in
2020 and separate you from the rest of the pack
Have a new pro-

B fessional headshot

taken from the showroom of
the dealership you presently
work at (within the last six
months). There is an old saying: you only have one chance
to make a first impression,
make it a good one! Your
image is important to be consistent across everything you
do at work. It also represents
the professionalism of the organization you work for. You
do not need a photographer
to have a professional image,
however, if you want to invest
in yourself, hiring one to do
a new headshot for you once
a year is not a bad idea. You
can also have a co-worker or
friend take the photo for you
with a cell phone - the smartphones on the market today
produce beautiful pictures.

Create a LinkedIn

C profile. LinkedIn is the
most undervalued, underutilized social media platform in

February 2020

our industry. It is your online
business card (and resume).
allows you to not only
network and connect with
people in the auto industry,
but you have a chance to stay
engaged with your customers!
BTW, just under half (44%) of
all LinkedIn users are women.
Women influence and drive
the car-buying experience,
as we all know. Become the
specialist for your dealership's brand by being part of
their professional network!
Ask your customers for the
connection, just as you would
ask for the happy CSI factory
survey. LinkedIn provides an
opportunity to consistently
showcase your achievements,
your work history, any volunteer work you may do, as well
as write or post articles on
what you sell. You can post on
topics from delivery photos,
product model launches,
how-tos, video walkarounds,
and updates from the dealership. LinkedIn is a huge

opportunity, it's growing, and
your customers are on it.

Create videos! Video

D is expected to make

up 82% of internet traffic by
2021. Customers are researching brands on YouTube and making purchase
decisions. Facebook Live,
Instagram TV, LinkedIn Video,
TikTok, and Snapchat are just
a few channels where video is
consumed and there is a significant opportunity for. Pick
one that you want to focus
on and become the expert on
that app. You can invest in a
tripod for your phone or start
to create a video without it.
There are many types of
content that you focus on,
including video introductions,
thank-yous, walkarounds,
what to expect at a dealership, customer reviews,
events, or informational/
business advice. This content
is invaluable and will differentiate you from the rest.

In closing, I like to write
personal goals on why I
want to work on my brand.
Define for yourself why
you want to make these
updates, and then create
a plan and write it out.
Identify who it is that you
are and what image you
want to portray to best
represent yourself and your
dealership. Be yourself
and authentic. Remember,
people buy from people
they like. Whether you want
to set a new goal of selling
five extra cars a month,
want to learn social media
apps to promote yourself,
or just want to challenge
yourself with going outside
your comfort zone. Take
that goal and plug it into an
alarm on your phone. Set it
every day for when you get
into the office. This goal will
serve as a daily reminder of
the changes you're making
and why you're making
them.

[ d i g i t a l d e a l e r. c o m ]

31
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