Toyota Recall and Media Overshare Great Opportunity for Local Dealers and Social Networking

The key to Social Networking is having a community of friends and followers that are in need of information you have, and will trust YOU to bring them that information in a timely and comprehensive fashion. The Toyota recall has been far "overshared" by the media outlets, and consistently full of misinformation. This misinformation is causing Toyota real damage, as KBB.com came out yesterday and said that Toyota products could lose 3-5% of their value when the dust settles. That is a dangerous figure, and really something Toyota has not had to deal with before. The innocent bystander in this situation are the dealers. When the media overshares a situation, the local outlet, in this case the dealers, carry the brunt of the public outrage. Those dealers are local folks, that in many cases are just learning information about the recall and how to best help their customers complete the repairs, only shortly before anyone else. So how can Social Networking help?

First step is obviously to create a Twitter account and a Facebook fan page. Begin looking for local fans or followers that are expressing interest in the recall and issues around their vehicle. With the level of confusion out there right now, it should be very easy to grow the community. Secondly, remember not market product to this community right now, at all. If a dealer must market, showcase the extended service hours, the master tech's available and other ways that the back end of the shop is going out of its way to make sure recalled customers are being treated. What else is special about your store in this process? What are extra available options for the VIP customers, ie Twitter followers and Facebook friends. This is an opportunity for information share and misinformation clean up. Think Tweet length for the successful amount of detail to share at one time. That's 140 characters for those that don't know - palatable amounts of data. Begin tweeting real information about the recall - share the details the factory has shared with the store. Minimize the risk and create comfort amongst the store's customers. Repeat this information as follower base increases, make sure everyone is up to speed. Then begin giving updates. When are the parts available? Real time Tweet when there are appointment openings to come in and immediately get the vehicle worked on. And never forget, this is a huge opportunity to outshine the competition and how they are handling the recall. Just because Toyota has allegedly lost some credibility with customers, there is no reason the dealership cannot use this opportunity to gain some.