■ Dealership Recruiting and Retention in the Age of Social Media!
■ Social Media Is Always On
Social media can accelerate yearlong reputation building and make dealership culture, values, behaviors and attitudes all the more transparent.
Source: GDK Global
■ With the EU unemployment rate at 5.9% and the U.S. unemployment rate at just over 4%, recruiting and retaining staff at auto dealerships is a significant challenge for dealers of all sizes.
The need to replace 76,000 qualified Technicians annually in Service bays nationwide is well-known. However, it's also hard to find and retain good front-office staff, especially for the Sales department.
Approximately 73% of sales professionals leave their jobs within two years or less. Additionally, in the 2024 CDK Dealership Workplace Study, nearly one-third of all employees reported that they are considering leaving their current dealership job. This indicates that dealerships are facing a significant retention problem, making the recruitment of new staff essential.
This dire need is running right into a new generation of employees who aren’t only engaged with social media. They’ve grown up with it not only as entertainment but also as a tool for communication and education.
■ The Double-Edged Sword of Being Constantly Online
Anyone old enough to remember the days before the Internet knows that new and pre-owned vehicle shopping has dramatically changed over the last 25 years.
Just as online pricing has established transparency as the norm, the Internet has also enhanced transparency in employee retention and recruitment. Nowadays, platforms such as Indeed and Glassdoor enable job seekers to easily explore new job opportunities and share their workplace experiences, including negative ones, much more effortlessly than in previous decades.
While dealerships can’t prevent employees from leaving negative comments on platforms (especially anonymously), they should monitor these sites and reviews and respond when appropriate. These days, your youngest hires may find out about career opportunities from these sites as well as guidance counselors and yes, social media.
Ninety-three percent of Generation Z reports using YouTube, while 78% use Instagram, 67% use Facebook, 65% use Snapchat, 62% use TikTok, 45% use Pinterest, and 44% use Reddit. LinkedIn is less popular among this generation, with only 32% utilizing the platform. Although not all their time on these sites is dedicated to job searching, social media significantly influences the job search process.
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■ Recruiting
It’s a given to post job openings to LinkedIn and online job boards, but to stand out online, especially on mobile devices, you need to post shorter messages as well as more video and photo content. You also need to creatively repost your job openings on other social platforms where qualified candidates are more likely to spend time online, including community college social pages, professional trade group pages, and even enthusiast- and community-based social sites, like local car and coffee meet pages.
TikTok deserves special attention on the recruiting front. In a March 2024 survey of 1,000 Gen Zers, 70% reported that they encounter career advice on TikTok weekly, and 41% have made a career-related decision based on TikTok advice. Fifteen percent received a job offer for an opportunity they found on TikTok, and four in five have used TikTok to network. TikTok even has short video resumes for young people seeking employers who “get it.”
Savvy Social Media Managers at many dealerships these days can use simple and often free analytics tools to find and fine-tune the unique combination of sites, unique content and the best times to share employment opportunities.
■ Retention
While social media can cut through online clutter to target potential recruits, it can also aid employee retention. While traditional methods — like bonuses, profit sharing, promotions and sales training beyond OEM offerings — remain useful retention tools, they aren’t as budget-friendly as social media.
Having a Sales Manager or General Manager recognize exceptional employee performance on social media is a great way to increase employee morale and build a reputation for a culture of caring for dealership employees. In doing so, dealerships can reinforce and amplify their values.
A number of dealership employees are taking to social media to promote themselves as salespeople, breathing authenticity into the lead process. Dealers should encourage any staffers to take to social media if they feel they represent their stores appropriately, even if the tone may be unique to the social audience.
■ Social Media Is Always On
At the end of the day, social media can accelerate yearlong reputation building and make dealership culture, values, behaviors and attitudes all the more transparent.
Few, if any, alternatives allow management and staff to authentically reach such a wide audience. Don't be shy if you’re not already engaging with potential employees and your existing staff online. Experimenting costs little, and any positive results will boost your overall recruiting plans.
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