One thing I’ve noticed while teaching a BTA service management course is that many service managers are not active on social media, either professionally or for their companies. Many don’t have a profile on LinkedIn, and any other social media they have is strictly personal. Among the technicians, there is a wide range of involvement as well.

It is important that company employees have an active role in social media, especially managers. Let’s discuss some of the reasons for this.

Why Social Media Matters in Sales

In general, buyers use online resources more than ever. They complete much of their research and decision making before the sales representatives even know there might be an opportunity.

Among the information that buyers consider is the public persona of the company. They look at the company’s website, Facebook page, Twitter and LinkedIn accounts, and also look at what the employees post.

Buyers look for independent reviews of the company and the...

Over my 30-plus years in various roles within our industry, one common issue I’ve seen is the need for service managers to share knowledge. In my travels, working with two different manufacturers, I saw dealers constantly struggling to re-invent the wheel.

I became convinced that individual service managers, and our industry as a whole, had the opportunity to get better if there was a way for them to share ideas.

In most cases, the opportunities are not open to service managers. I attend BTA events regularly and there are two things I notice: there isn’t much content for service managers, and there are not many service managers attending even when there is content available. I do see owners and sales managers all the time, yet service generates the majority of the profit in a dealership. So it makes me wonder why these events aren’t more geared toward service.

Most Service Managers Don’t Share

I believe that several factors create this situation. Service...