Every car dealership’s marketing strategy should include social media. Nearly two-thirds of automotive consumers discover new vehicles online on third-party review sites, dealership websites, and social media platforms.
Automotive consumers use the information they find online to research their options, compare vehicles, and make purchase decisions. In fact, 78% of automotive consumers use social media content to help them make a purchase decision.
In other words, if you aren’t on social media, you are missing out on an opportunity to connect with your target audience as they decide which vehicle to purchase and where to purchase it from.
Your dealership should have a presence on various social media platforms, but Instagram is one of the most important ones for car dealerships. Why? Instagram is a visual platform, and images play a major role in the average automotive consumer’s decision making process. Using Instagram gives your dealership a chance to connect with consumers who are in the midst of their car buying journey.
But implementing an effective Instagram marketing strategy isn’t easy. Here’s what you need to know about using auto stock photos on Instagram:
What Are the Different Types of Auto Stock Photos?
Before learning about how to use stock photos on Instagram, it’s important to understand the different types of auto stock photos that are available to car dealerships. Some of the most common types of auto stock photos include:
- Full still sets: This refers to a set of dozens of stock photos that highlight every interior and exterior feature of a vehicle.
- Three-angle sets: This is a set of stock photos that shows the exterior of a vehicle from three different angles.
- 360-degree exterior spins: These images show a 360-degree view of the exterior of a vehicle. The viewer can interact with the image by rotating it to see every angle of the vehicle.
- 360-degree interior panoramas: These images provide viewers with a 360-degree view of the interior of the vehicle. The viewer gets to see every inch of the vehicle as viewed from the driver’s seat.
- Splash images: A splash image features an image of a vehicle composited onto a realistic background. An example of a splash image is an SUV sitting among pine trees. In this example, the image is used to convey that the SUV is ideal for people who love the outdoors and off-roading adventures.
You can incorporate all of these different categories of auto stock photos into your dealership’s Instagram marketing strategy.
What Are the Best Ways to Use Auto Stock Photos On Instagram?
There are countless ways to incorporate auto stock photos into your Instagram marketing strategy. Here are some of the best ways to use these photos to promote your dealership on Instagram:
- Supplement Your Photos
- Background Images
- Carousel Posts
- Instagram Stories
- Vehicle Tours
- New Releases
- Reels
Supplement Your Photos
Stock photos are eye-catching images that are ideal for Instagram. But your car dealership’s Instagram page should feature a mix of both stock photos and photos taken in-house. This means you should use stock photos to supplement your car dealership’s existing Instagram content, not replace it completely.
Your in-house photos can make the page more personal and relatable, whereas the stock photos are used to make your dealership look more professional and for marketing purposes.
You can also incorporate user-generated content into your Instagram marketing strategy. For example, if one of your followers posts a picture of the new car they recently purchased from your dealership, ask them if you can reshare their image on your page. Not only is this a great way to connect with your followers, but it also makes your Instagram content more interesting and appealing to other users.
Background Images
You may use Instagram to share important news about your dealership, announce upcoming deals, or provide helpful tips on automotive financing, maintenance, or repairs. If you share this type of content, you can use auto stock images to enhance your posts.
For example, say you want to post a helpful tip on how often car owners should get their oil changed. Make sure this image pops by using an auto stock photo as the background.
You can use a free photo editing tool online or on your smartphone to add text to an auto stock photo. Simply type out the helpful information you want to share with your followers, choose a font and font color that is readable, and post it on your dealership’s Instagram. Be sure to choose a simple stock photo as your background so it doesn’t interfere or distract from the text.
Using an auto stock photo as a background image can make your content look more professional. It’s also much more exciting than using a plain-colored background, so it may stop users in their tracks as they scroll through their newsfeed.
Carousel Posts
An Instagram carousel is a standard Instagram post with more than one photo or video. Only the first image or video will be shown on your main Instagram page. However, if someone taps on the post, they will be able to swipe through all of the photos or videos within the carousel. You can add up to 10 images or videos to every carousel post.
Use a carousel post to showcase the interior and exterior of a vehicle. Make sure to put the most eye-catching image up front. Remember, this is the only image that users will see when they are scrolling through their feed or visiting your main page. The others are only visible to people who choose to swipe through all of your photos.
Some users may not realize that your post contains multiple videos or images. To avoid this problem, include a caption that instructs users to swipe through for more photos. This way, everyone will know that they can see more of the vehicle just by swiping their finger across their screen.
Instagram Stories
You can do more than just post auto stock photos on your Instagram page. You can also use these striking photos to create interesting Instagram Stories.
Instagram Stories are photos or videos that are only visible to other users for 24 hours. This feature gives you a chance to post additional content without flooding your followers’ timelines with your posts.
You can incorporate auto stock photos into your Instagram Stories in a number of ways. For example, post two different vehicles and ask your followers to vote on which one they would rather own.
Because there is no limit on how many Instagram Stories you can post, use this feature to show photos that highlight all of the interior and exterior features of a specific vehicle. This way, your followers can see all of the photos that wouldn’t fit in your carousel post.
Vehicle Tours
Most automotive consumers start their car buying journey online, which means they use online resources to research their options before deciding which vehicle to purchase. Make sure your followers can quickly find the information they need to compare their options by using stock photos to provide virtual vehicle tours on Instagram.
For example, post select photos from a full still set so you can highlight the main features of a specific vehicle. Then, write a detailed caption that helps your followers understand what they are looking at in each picture.
You can also use car stock footage to provide virtual vehicle tours on your Instagram. Add a voiceover to this stock footage to explain each feature that is shown in the video. You can post up to 60 seconds of video footage, which is plenty of time to highlight the most exciting features found in a vehicle for sale at your dealership.
New Releases
Using auto stock photos is a great way to get your followers excited about newly released vehicles. You can tease the release of a new model by showing a different stock photo of the vehicle on your Instagram page every day. Posting one image per day will make the experience more suspenseful for your followers. If they want to see more, they will have no other choice but to visit your page again and again to see each new photo.
Make sure to include a caption for every photo that explains what the vehicle is, when it will be available, and how to contact your dealership for more information.
Reels
Reels are 15-second, multi-clip videos that you can share with your followers on Instagram. Your Reels are visible to anyone who visits your Instagram page. Other users may also discover your Reels in the “Explore” section of Instagram, so posting these videos is a great way to attract new followers.
You can create unique Reels that show a 360-degree view of the inside or outside of a vehicle. Then, use Instagram to add audio and special effects, which will make your Reel more exciting for the viewer.
These are some of the many ways in which you can use auto stock photos on Instagram to attract new followers, generate sales, and grow your car dealership.