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Through advertising, public relations campaigns, and social media, many business leaders try to get their customers or fans to take action on their behalf. Many times this is to buy a product, donate money or support a cause. Does it always work? More importantly as a business leader, are you trying to be influential or do you just want to be popular?

Brian Solis of Futureworks defines the difference:

Popular is to be regarded with approval or affection by people, i.e. Lady Gaga, a winning sports team or the 2012 Olympic athletes.

Influential is defined by the ability to get someone to take action i.e. Bono. His work in promoting public causes is legendary. Bono was named by NBC Nightly News as someone who is making a difference in the world.

How do you become influential to get your customers to take action? Solis suggests that the best way is good old fashion social networking. Spread a message that people need and then support the community of individuals that forms around your company. Solis suggests that your business’ brand has to be authentic since social media is rich with emotion. It is easier to get people to take action if they spread your message. Remember, an influencer triggers action and that is the main goal of any business.

Unfortunately, many companies are only obsessed with the number of social media followers or friends they have. The Palms Hotel in Las Vegas asks for your Twitter ID when you check in and looks up your Klout score (one influential metric on the web). If your score is high enough, you get special complimentary services at the hotel. But remember, numbers do lie. In order to be influential, quality engagement matters more than numbers. How many followers or friends of the company are willing to share or retweet your message? How many are willing to become evangelist on your behalf?

Remember, anyone can be briefly popular. Andy Warhol called it “15 minutes of fame”. It feels good, but will not accomplish any business goal. Being influential delivers results.

Originally posted on Forbes.com.

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Automotive retailing’s superstar and Certified Professional Speaker, Jim “Alpha Dawg” Ziegler, brings his highly successful Internet Battle Plan XI to the brand-new Revel Resort & Casino in Atlantic City, NJ on November 8-9, 2012. Ziegler and thirteen leading automotive industry professionals will discuss cutting-edge strategies and processes in sales, social media, marketing and technology for the automotive industry. The Internet Battle Plan panel of experts takes their lessons beyond the stage to provide dealers with real-life examples and situations. Each presenter teaches practical, hands-on techniques that help dealers embrace technology-enabled tools and realize their true Internet sales and marketing potential.

Ziegler and his panel of automotive-industry experts, teach strategies and techniques that both individually and collectively catapult dealerships and businesses to the pinnacle of market leadership in their regions. All have been hand-picked by Ziegler and assembled with the purpose of providing attendees with a comprehensive, in-depth understanding of how to leverage online relationships for sales and profits.

Sponsored by Car Woo!, Contact At Once!, Dealer e-Process, Mouthful Social Media, POTRATZ, Service Turn and Stream Companies, Ziegler’s eleventh Internet Battle Plan seminar brings together some of the most successful entrepreneurs, educators, writers, and seasoned professionals in the automotive industry:

Kevin Bookbinder, Dealer Evangelist for CarWoo!, has over a decade of automotive background having managed internet, sales and finance departments at import, domestic and highline dealerships during good times and not so good times. He talks “dealer” with the best and has been instrumental in shaping CarWoo!’s dealer products. Kevin launched the CarWoo! Dealer Evangelism, Dealer Skills Development and Dealer Account Management programs.

Bill Hamlin, CEO of TEGA Technologies, LLC has been featured in Automotive News countless times and has spoken at numerous automotive conventions including the prestigious Automotive News World Congress. Hamlin founded TEGA Technologies in 2003 and it has become an industry leader in marketing and technology innovation within a wide variety of industries. He has been published in Success Magazine, INC. Magazine and the New York Times.

Rachel Haro, Partner & Social Media Strategist at Mouthful Social Media, has over 15 years of marketing experience and has spent the last ten of those working with dealerships across the country on strategic, grass roots, and social media advertising. Rachel has been featured in Dealer Marketing Magazine, and is the creator of Facebook Fan Friday, a growing movement that is a grass-roots effort to support local businesses on Facebook and facilitate online B2B and B2C networking.

Cory Mosley, Founder and Principal of Mosley Automotive Training, has built a reputation as a go-to sales strategist, consultant, and trainer by challenging the status quo. His new-school techniques and progressive strategies have help dealers dealer’s both large and small build and restructure profitable sales, BDC, and Internet operations. Corey’s monthly column “Sales Driver” is read by thousands of dealership personnel nationwide.

Dave Page, Owner & Director of Dealer e-Process, began at a Chicago dealership and his immensely successful strategy prompted a write up from Automotive News which brought dealers from all over the country to learn about the dealership’s internet process. Dave created Dealer e-Process in 2007 out of this dealership and it has quickly become one of the top website providers in the industry as witnessed by numerous awards in 2012.

Ed Parkinson is VP of Sales, Automotive Solutions for Contact At Once!, and has been working with automotive dealers for 27 years and has championed many new services that “move the needle” for his customers. Ed helped pioneer the use of call tracking and measurement to increase sales and quantify the return-on-marketing during his 7 years at Who’s Calling Inc. and began selling and coaching auto dealers on ContactAtOnce! services in 2006.

Bill Parlaman, Digital Marketing Director at Stream Companies, is a featured author of the book “The Ultimate Success Secret,” co-authored by Dan Kennedy and Mike Capuzzi. Prior to joining Stream, Mr. Parlaman founded Radical Marketing Solutions, a Philadelphia-based small business Internet marketing and SEO agency that has helped small business owners and entrepreneurs get more traffic, more leads, and more sales from their websites.

Brian Pasch is CEO of PCG Digital Marketing. Brian has built his business insights and strategy on a foundation consisting of over 20 years of Information Technology and Marketing leadership. His career history includes work in the public sector, Senior Telecom Analyst on Wall Street and has an incredible talent for building successful private enterprises. Brian is an active speaker at automotive industry conferences, 20 Groups, and digital marketing workshops.

Paul Potratz is COO of Potratz Advertising. Headquartered in Schenectady, NY, Potratz is a full service automotive advertising agency that specializes in integrating the power of digital marketing strategies for retail automotive dealers and dealer groups across the United States. Paul has been interviewed on digital marketing and automotive trends by The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, NY Post, CBS and several regional newspapers and radio talk shows.

J.D. Rucker, Director of New Media at KPA, is responsible for overseeing the direction of digital marketing for the KPA Internet Marketing product line for automotive dealerships as well as for non-auto dealer clients under the Hasai brand. He has personally optimized over 150 individual websites and coordinated the optimization of 1000 websites. JD is recognized in the industry as the foremost authority on automotive SEO and is a renowned social media expert.

Paul Sansone Jr. is a Dealer Principal & Owner of the EZ Referral Network, which brings relationship selling back to the car sales process. He was on the National Dealer Council for Mazda for 3 years including 2 years as President. Since 2009, Paul is the owner of Sansone Jr’s 66 Automall in Neptune, New Jersey, which includes Nissan and Kia as well as an on-site accessory center. In 2010, Paul formed The PMB Group, a firm specializing in dealer-focused products and services.

Myril Shaw, COO of CarWoo!, has been with CarWoo! since the name was invented and the company was incorporated. He has done every job in the company except write code (and jokes that there is good reason for that.) He built the team that has grown the CarWoo! dealership network from 0 to over 7,000 today as well as launching the CarWoo! Dealer Plus product for dealers.

Jerry Thibeau is President of the Phone Ninjas, a company focused on helping dealerships improve phone skills. He has earned the nickname “The Phone Ninja” for his ability to turn even the hardest of phone shoppers into real appointments that show. Having personally listened to and provided coaching feedback on more than 10,000 sales calls, Thibeau is one of the industry’s best and brightest when it comes to evaluating a phone conversation.

For more information about Jim Ziegler’s Internet Battle Plan, Speakers, Sponsors, Ziegler SuperSystems, or to request information on discounted group rates, please call 1-800-726-0510 or visit InternetBattlePlan.com.

Originally posted at http://www.prweb.com/releases/jimziegler/internetbattleplan/prweb9977137.htm

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Jim Ziegler has done it again and we’re proud to return as a sponsor… and to have our own Rachel Haro as a speaker!

Is your dealership realizing its true Internet Sales and Marketing Potential?

OR, is your store already a top-performing technology-enabled dealership searching for an even higher level of success?

Graduates have consistently provided us with phenomenal testimonials regarding the profit and market share increases their dealerships have experienced after returning from Internet Battle Plan. There are virtually hundreds of video testimonials from Internet Battle Plan attendees, dealership managers, dealer principals and industry executives on Jim’s YouTube Channel.

Battle Plan presenters deliver tremendous value to the audience. One of Jim’s many requirements of first-time Internet Battle Plan speakers is that they provide attendees with relevant and up-to-date techniques, processes and strategies that attendees can replicate immediately upon returning to their dealerships.

As always, Dealer Principals may attend free of charge.

For more information visit:

http://www.InternetBattlePlan.com

or call 800.726.0510

SPEAKERS:

CRISS CASTLE
Multiple Momentum Marketing
Achieve Quantum Sales with Exponential Marketing

KEVIN BOOKBINDER
Old School is the New “New” School
What worked best on the lot works best online too!
(Presented by – Myril Shaw and Kevin Bookbinder)

RACHEL HARO
Say It… Don’t Spray It
Eliminating social media posting and creating a dynamic organic social networking strategy

VOLKER JAECKEL
Win Every Moment
Selling Across the Entire Digital Consumer Journey

ANDREW MYERS
Chances are your Dealership’s Video Sucks

GEORGE NENNI
The Power of Pinterest
The Newest Powerhouse Social Medium

DAVE PAGE
Exploding Website Conversion
An Insiders Road Map to Benchmarking & Converting 50% of Website Visitors to Leads

ED PARKINSON
Connecting with Customers at Every Moment of Truth

BILL PARLAMAN
The Google Search Effect
How To Get Your Dealership Found Online

PAUL POTRATZ
Your Dealership Needs a Dynamic Strategy for Recapturing Potentially Lost Customers

MYRIL SHAW
Old School is the New “New” School
What worked best on the lot works best online too!
(Presented by – Myril Shaw and Kevin Bookbinder)

JIM ZIEGLER
Alpha Dawg Guerilla Marketing with Social Media
Twitter – YouTube – and FaceBook – Oh My!

The post Internet Battle Plan X Comes to Las Vegas on July 17-18 appeared first on Mouthful Social Media.

OR, even if you are already one of the top-performing Internet Dealerships, are you looking for still a higher level of sales and results?

Regardless of where you are, this is the event that will deliver immediate results beyond your expectations.

Jim Ziegler is excited to announce his highly successful Internet Battle Plan IX is coming to Cleveland, May 9th-10th.

Battle Plan Graduates have given incredible testimonials for profit increases and market share increases through technology-enabled sales and marketing tips they picked up from the powerful team of experts Ziegler has assembled here. There are virtually hundreds of video testimonials from Internet Battle Plan attendees, dealership managers, dealer principals and industry executives on Jim’s YouTube Channel.

This is NOT a conference with multiple breakout sessions happening at the same time, but rather; it is a seminar with one speaker at a time diving deep into the subject and delivering real-world information, processes and techniques you can go back to the dealership and perform immediately.

This is the 9th time Jim has held this event, AND, it’s NOT the same old gang that speaks at all of the other events. Ziegler is putting the final touches on the speakers lineup in coming weeks. All of the presenters are A-Team Players with documented track records, not some “Digital Drop-Outs”

Jim makes sure that the speakers complement each other with specific topics that encompass every piece to the dealership Internet Puzzle. For this occasion Jim Ziegler has selected The DoubleTree Lakeside Hotel next to the Rock n’ Roll Hall of Fame in heart of the action in the restaurant and entertainment district of reborn Cleveland. Famous for the best restaurants and high-energy nightlife.

As always, Dealer Principals attend FREE whether they bring paid attendees with them or not.

Ziegler SuperSystems, Inc. has arranged a highly discounted room rate for the event with a limited number of rooms available at this price. PLEASE reserve early once you’ve committed to attend.

Register online at www.InternetBattlePlan.com or call (800) 726-0510 and speak with Jim.

The post Internet Battle Plan Comes to Cleveland on May 9-10 appeared first on Mouthful Social Media.

On Twitter, every Friday is “Follow Friday” (#FF). Brands and businesses offer recommendations and encourage others to follow specific users. Employing the same networking principles as Twitter’s #FF, businesses are able to do the same on Facebook.

Facebook Fan Friday attracts relevant fans to fan pages and encourages like-minded businesses to network on Fridays by sharing other business fan pages. Facebook Fan Friday mentions can be as simple as posting a brief comment and direct link (such as a Facebook @ tag) to the business, or for greater impact on optimization, creating and posting simple YouTube videos. Whether businesses are global or local, shared mentions on Facebook Fan Friday create both an online chamber of commerce and Yellow Page ad effect. Similar to Twitter’s “Mentions,” Facebook has a “Talking About This” metric for fan pages, allowing the admin(s) to monitor page mentions, demographics and viral reach.

Image courtesy of www.facebook.com/ jimzieglercarguy

Facebook Fan Friday is about being strategic with your Facebook fan page; as with Twitter,it assigns one day for networking and promotion so your fans and followers aren’t overwhelmed. Brands or businesses with established networks should have no trouble finding local businesses, peers, employees, customers, associations, and vendors to swap mentions.

For the less established or smaller businesses, they can create a network based on their target market. For example, ABC Toyota in SmallTown, USA would create an online presence that starts with the “likes” and comments of their employees and continues to the local chamber of commerce, a customer’s restaurant, favorite café, etc. Fan Friday is savvy (and free!) way for businesses to grow.

Some creative ways to participate in Facebook Fan Friday:

• Write a testimonial of services- include pictures and the link to their fan page. Tag them!
• Record a YouTube video and share why you recommend them and post a link to their fan page. Be sure to include their company name in your YouTube tags!
• Write a brief post that explains your business is supporting local vendors and post their link.
• Post a photo of a special event or happening and tag them. Include a link to their fan page!
• Share one of their posts.

The concept is simple: social networking and not social posting. With enough participation from businesses, Facebook Fan Friday will make it a lot easier for fan pages to build an interactive, targeted audience. Have fun networking and see you on Friday!

For more about strategic social networking for your business or to contact Rachel Haro about Facebook Fan Friday, please email: rachel@mouthfulsocialmedia.com.

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One of the points was that business cards are becoming obsolete… what do you do when you have a stack of business cards in a drawer or Rolodex (remember those?) and can’t find the one you’re looking for?

When I attended the Web 2.0 Expo in San Francisco back in March, there were certainly a lot of QR Codes there.

This seems to be where we’re heading… a paperless world, connected by the Cloud.

The post QR Codes are spreading appeared first on Mouthful Social Media.

1)  Publish unique, engaging content.

The retweet and “Like” are certainly useful tools but sooner or later you’re going to have to put your own stuff out there.  For restaurants or car dealerships, this is easy: announce specials, new campaigns, new management, anything new.  Then…

2)  Engage your followers.

Talk directly to your followers and fans.  Respond to them, ask them questions, and treat them like your friends.  People love to feel special, and your customers are no different.

3)  Interconnect your social media marketing

Connect Twitter and Facebook, then connect Yelp, Foursquare and LinkedIn.  Connect your blog and website.  Get active on YouTube!

A word of caution: too much tweeting and posting on your wall will annoy your friends and followers… be careful of your settings on these social sites!  Need help?  Ask us.

4)  Post often – but not too often.

Are you the type of person who gets on RedBull kicks at midnight and then shoots off half a dozen tweets for no reason?  Be cautious of information overload.  Pick your posts carefully and keep them relevant.  We’re all fascinated with Charlie Sheen but your customers don’t want to read about him when they’re checking out your services.

5)  Be consistent

Keep all your posts in the same “voice”.  One of the big tricks of social media, especially if there are multiple people posting, is consistency with tone.  If one poster implies they like something and another implies the opposite, it’s going to confuse your customers and potential customers.

6)  Have patience!

Social Media takes time.  It takes a lot to build a social following.  Stay consistent, even-keeled, and keep on it.

7)  Never miss an opportunity to market.

Pass out your business card everywhere you go.  Have all your social sites on it.  Promote yourself relentlessly.

Happy trails!

The post 7 Quick Tips for Social Media appeared first on Mouthful Social Media.

Yes, I’m talking about Chipotle.

I woke up this morning and checked the Mashable app on my iPhone as I do every morning. The first story I see: Get Free Chipotle Food for Watching NBC Promo on Facebook.

Well, that seemed easy enough. Getting to the office, I checked email and then fired up Facebook, Twitter, Mashable, the Mouthful Blog, Yelp, and Foursquare. Firefox chugged along, cheerfully opening up more tabs. I went on over to the Chipotle Facebook page, clicked “Like” (how did I miss that before?) and saw the post for the Buy One Get One Free Burrito! Clicking on this link takes you to the America’s Next Great Restaurant page, where the instructions are pretty clear from there!

After watching the video, the coupon unlocks, and you can print it out and take it in to your nearest Chipotle and enjoy two for the price of one! This is spreading like wildfire and the newest post on their Facebook page says that the traffic is very high and the coupon unlocking feature might not be working correctly. Patience, please.

Here’s something else really cool: Chipotle has an app to order right from your iPhone. After collecting the orders from the office, inputting them all into the iPhone, and clicking SEND, I was able to drive over, walk straight to the register and pick up my order, all bagged and ready.

The moral of the story: this is social media in action. This is a great idea! This is cutting edge marketing utilizing social media.

Bravo, Chipotle. Bravo. See you soon!

The post Chipotle Got It Right! appeared first on Mouthful Social Media.

However, using social media, they turned a potentially (temporarily?) embarrassing situation into a positive one. Personally, we are unapologetically proud of the way they handled the snafu. This is social media at its best! There are many stories of how a company or restaurant took a negative situation and spun it into a positive outcome through the use of social media.

Perhaps you remember the viral YouTube video of a Domino’s Pizza employee adding his own special ingredients to several orders that were supposedly to be delivered (think back to the kitchen scene in the movie “Waiting…” to get a good idea.) The video took off and something had to be done immediately to head off this potential disaster! What did Domino’s do? They created a Twitter account and started Tweeting! Thanks to quick thinking and a relatively good understanding of social media, the event was able to be handled quickly and spun into a positive one. While the event can’t be erased (think pencil), the permanent ink of the Internet can almost always be turned positive.

In business, a social media manager’s worst nightmare is a rogue misspelling, a wrong tidbit of information slipping in, or even the wrong bit.ly link copied into a post. Worse still is the accidental posting to a wrong account: “Let’s get drunk and do CPR! Oops! Crap!” (Disclaimer: this is not the actual post!!) I’ve seen a post for Toyota on a Chevy account (it was taken down very quickly.) It happens!

I’m by no means berating the poor employee who posted wrong. Let’s face it. We’ve all made those mistakes. The great thing is that the Red Cross was immediately able to turn it around into an amusing mistake as opposed to a disastrous one. Then again, the Red Cross is always up for some disaster control. In the end, the Dogfish Head brewery encouraged donations to the Red Cross while at the same time getting some great PR, and everyone got a good laugh. Both parties benefitted. What a great Internet it is indeed!

Maybe this just proves that HootSuite needs an upgrade!

The post The Internet is written in ink. appeared first on Mouthful Social Media.

Social Media is not just about posting your daily specials or begging people to LIKE your page… it’s not just about reminding people that you’re open on Christmas (although that IS a good idea…).

Social Media is all about interacting with your fans and customers.  Business owners/operators/social media managers must “read” the tone of their customers’ posts and tweets… and interact accordingly!  Do you know what your customers are saying?  Do you ever take the time to respond?  When they post on your wall that they had a great time at the restaurant, do you say thank you and invite them back?  When they post that they love the new car you sold them, are you responding and saying hey, come on back anytime for that special service deal? Do you read your @mentions and direct messages?  Are you hash-tag savvy?

Don’t even get us started on Yelp… businesses simply cannot afford to ignore customers’ reviews!

Between 80% and 90% of people say they trust their peers’ recommendations.  Far, far fewer trust traditional advertising.  This, friends, is the social media revolution in action.  By increasing your social media footprint, you WILL drive sales and WILL create raving fans.  People want to feel important and interacted with.

You’ll be glad you did.

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