For this project, I chose a local company that I am very familiar with. It is Stokes Mazda on Ashley Phosphate Road in North Charleston. This is where I bought a new car, a Mazda 6, in October 2014. I had just taken my teaching job at SC State University and felt I needed new wheels for the daily commute to and from Orangeburg, which is almost 70 miles from where I live.
Stokes Mazda is only three or four miles from my house. It is the only place I have taken my car for service. I like the proximity, the showroom, the people in the service department are professional and friendly, and the quality of the work is excellent.
This car, which cost just north of $30,000, should be paid off in March 2021. I've piled more than 150,000 miles on it to date but it has been pretty much trouble-free (knock on the leather seating) and I plan to hold on to it for years to come. It will be great for family finances to not have the monthly $475 payment, for sure.
I also will go to the dealership's website to look for other deals. I bought a new set of tires there a few years ago using a discount I found there.
I have been contacted twice recently by sales reps there about trading in my car. Tempting but like I said not having that payment will be great.
This is confirmed after I looked at Midlands Mazda in Columbia, S.C., and found the exact same homepage with just a different address and phone number.
Both websites, at the top, show social media icons for Facebook, Twitter and YouTube. I will also check Instagram and Pinterest to see if and what kind of presence Stokes Mazda has on those platforms. To follow are my observations and suggestions about these five powerful social media platforms and how this car dealership uses them.
First Impressions: A smaller screen quickly appears for asking questions with a "typically replies instantly" assurance. I would say this Facebook site is very well developed and comprehensive, having everything from store hours and a map showing how to get there to a link to the current used car inventory and a video link that is well stocked with mostly corporate videos but some local Stokes Mazda ones too, including this one of a salesman swinging a golf club, saying it's not all work at the dealership. The new posts look to be frequent, with several over the past week. A "pinned post" at the top is about a $100 gift card drawing, which has drawn a dozen entries and nine shares as of today's date (Oct. 28).
Numbers of Likes and Followers: It looks like just more than 1,800 (1,803) people have "liked" this Facebook site and that it has 1,866 people follow it.
Improvement Suggestions: I would say a lot of thought and attention goes into this Facebook site. It has just about everything you could want to find out. I like the gift card contest. I might suggest more such interactive contests and giveaways. The dealership's Instagram site has many photos of customers and the cars they bought here. Such images, showing new and used car sales and happy faces of owners, could be used more on the Facebook site.
First Impressions: The number of Twitter followers is not impressive; there has not been a tweet since April 2017 (maybe that's why). Have they forgotten about Twitter?
Number of Followers: 314; 214 tweets
Improvement Suggestions: Get busy and add Twitter to your social media mix Stokes Mazda! Twitter can be considered the "first responder" of social media. It where many people learn of news, especially breaking news, on a daily basis. Twitter could be used for a "Car of the Day" (new or used). Visuals are important so include photos. Be aware of approaching holidays and special days and tie in with them whether it's Election Day, Halloween, Thanksgiving, or Christmas. Use Twitter to promote special sales and events, just as you would Facebook.
YOUTUBE
First Impressions: YouTube also seems to be neglected by Stokes Mazda. There has not been a post since 2017. The golf video at the top is good, unexpected, but it's good to show Stokes supports local causes. There is also, as you scroll down, a section on Fort Dorchester High School football. Stokes, back in 2016 and 2017, sponsored a Fort D. football coach show. Cool! Also, the subject categories of videos here are well organized, such as "Test Cars and Reviews," "Promo Commercials," and "Meet the Team." This last one is especially good I feel, as it personalizes the staff. But all these videos are several years old, so new content needs to be added periodically.
Number of Subscribers: 186 (seems low)
Improvement Suggestions: Videos are more involved to produce and post, especially high-quality ones that this dealership, I'm sure, would want and expect. Maybe once a year or twice even a freelance video producer could be brought in to shoot, edit, produce and post several new, fresh videos for this YouTube channel. The "Meet the Staff" ones need to stay current. There could be some videos of sales reps showing and talking about new cars, and used ones too. There could be some expertise videos too. I have gone to YouTube a number of times to find out how to do something to my car. And I've found car dealership professionals who show how to do things, such as changing the cabin filter yourself or removing the part covering the car battery in my wife's Acura SUV.
First Impressions: Why there is not an Instagram link on the Stokes' website is a mystery. There really should be, because IG is effectively used here. There are many photos of happy people with their new cars.
Number of Followers: No number is visible
Improvement Suggestions: I get the sense that Instagram may be neglected but it certainly should not be. The site is missing some of the data usually seen at the top such as a nice photograph, the number of posts and followers. There can also be a link to the homepage, the address and phone number too.
It's easy to take pictures and post them on IG. It looks like a Stokes sales rep named Riley does some posts here, but most are from customers. This should be encouraged so have wording at the top saying folks can submit photos, and have more sales reps taking photos of happy customers with their new cars. And please add the IG icon to the top of the website with Facebook, Twitter and YouTube. Instagram's popularity has grown tremendously during the was five years.
PINTEREST (NO SITE FOUND)
Stokes Mazda apparently has no official Pinterest site. Stokes Kia, on the other hand, does. Folks at Stokes Mazda should take a look at the Kia site because, to me, it seems very well organized with numerous "boards" covering a variety of topics. They include "Car Advice," "I Love Goose Creek," and boards on individual car makes and models. The Stokes Kia Pinterest site only has 18 followers so it may not be cultivated much there. It has 185 total pins, which is a good number. It is not clear when things are pinned so it's unclear if new content is added regularly.
Pinterest sites are easy to set up and easy to "pin" things already online by subject category. Stokes Mazda could start out by thinking up five or six topic categories or "boards" and start pinning appropriate news and other items. One board, or three really, could be "Things to Do and See in Charleston" as well as North Charleston and Summerville.
FINAL THOUGHTS
There's a lot of good in Stokes Mazda's social media presence. But some parts should be given more attention, especially YouTube, Instagram and Pinterest. Perhaps the dealership or its ownership group should hire a local (not national) social media company or person with expertise to come in, consult and make improvements, make it all more current and up to date with regular, systematic postings of content across all social media platforms.
It's all about engagement in social media so develop and flesh out content that will click with people and make them want to click back, share your content. More sales and money will surely follow!
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