The case for an internal hire
If you need a person to handle local community relations, respond to customer comments, and maintain a consistent brand voice across all touchpoints, an internal hire is the right choice. They can be a valuable part of your local team. But if your goal is primarily to reach as many people as possible and fill your sales pipeline with leads, one person simply cannot compete with a network of 50 accounts. You have to decide if you need a brand guardian or a traffic generator.
Scaling reach without scale problems
A content network gives you the ability to occupy more space on social platforms. Every page in your network is another opportunity to show a vehicle walkaround to someone in your area. TIDE manages the technical upkeep, so you get the benefits of scale without the management headaches of an internal team. You can reach thousands of people daily, which is the kind of volume that drives real car sales in a competitive market like yours.
Managing risk as a founder
An internal employee is a safe, predictable expense. A content network involves technical risk, such as account bans, but it is much faster and more effective. You have to weigh the comfort of a known cost against the potential for high growth. If you are aggressive about capturing local market share, a network is a much better tool. You are essentially trading the control of one account for the reach of many, and letting the provider handle the churn.
Aligning your hire with your goal
Look at where you need the most help. If you need someone to manage the complexities of your local marketing and community building, hire a manager. If you need to drive as much traffic as possible to your website so your salespeople can do their job, use a network. The most efficient dealer groups often do both: a lean team for the brand work and a powerful network for the heavy lifting of lead generation.
Hire for brand and community, but use a network for the high-volume reach and traffic needed to sell cars.
See your network before you hire.
Tell us what your automotive dealer group already makes and how you get customers today. We'll show you a real network running live and tell you honestly whether it fits. It costs about the same as one marketing hire.
Follow-up questions
Can a network do community management?
No, that is a human job. A network is for reach and lead generation. You need a person to handle the customer interactions.
Is the network really a better investment?
It depends on your goals. For pure reach and traffic, yes. For brand and community building, a human is better.
Can I start with a network and then hire?
Yes. That is a great strategy. Start with the network to build traffic, and then hire someone to handle the leads and community building.