“So what do you do for a living?”

How often have we all heard that question come out of someone’s mouth? Usually uttered at cocktail parties where few people know each other, this question establishes a framework for the relationships we have with everyone around us.

When we find out what people do for a living, we can determine what they can do for us and what we can do for them, creating networks that can last a lifetime. And who doesn’t want a friend who sells cars?

Except there are only so many people you can invite to a cocktail party, and only so many cocktail parties you can attend. So how do you turn this handy piece of information into more car sales without spending the next 30 Saturdays at cocktail parties?

- Utilize social media to make local contacts -

Social media has changed the way the internet — and the world — works. People are connecting with other people in ways they never could before. They would never have the time or ability to meet before this new technology became available. Now they’re not only meeting, but becoming friends.

To use social media to forward your business goals, the first thing you have to understand is who it is that buys your product. In the auto salesperson’s case, those people are local. Focus your energies on meeting new online contacts that you know are within driving range of where you are. There are local communities on all of the major social networks, most prominently Facebook. These are where you’ll meet the people who can come out and buy your cars.

- Make them aware of what you do -

Don’t hide your occupation. Make it easy for them to find out that you sell vehicles, either by putting something simple in your forum signature line or making sure to fill in the occupation and employer categories on Facebook and LinkedIn.

- Don’t sell anything -

Social media is just what it sounds like — social. This is not a way for you to sell cars. It’s a way for you to meet people to whom you may eventually sell cars. Do not try to sell through your social media profile, ever. Just be social.

- Go about your business -

Probably the most important thing to remember about building a personal social networking profile is that you have to be yourself. You can be yourself on your best behaviour, but you have to be honest about who you are and what you’re doing. Don’t pretend to be a churchgoer or a Democrat or a kite-lover, just to sell cars. Do what you would do anyway and meet like-minded people. That will be the secret to your success.

A few short decades ago, automotive dealerships tacked advertisements to telephone poles. Except in smaller, rural communities, telephone poles have gone the way of this form of advertising - disappeared - simply because we now have better ways of doing things.

When we place calls today, signals fly through the air instead of zipping down a wire, and so should advertising messages. There is still the option of television advertising or print promotion, and maybe you still use those mediums.

There’s also a very convenient, inexpensive way to get your product and your brand out there. It’s called Online Brand Marketing.

Online Brand Marketing is the communication equivalent of telephone pole ads on leaflets. Get that name and product out there, everywhere - in your email signature file, in comments on blog postings, etc. Communication doesn’t end at your website. Keep it going in every online transaction, correspondence and message posted. It’s easy, and it doesn’t cost much.

Beware of too much self-promotion, though. When talking about your vehicles or your dealership in a message forum or blog, be careful to serve the topic at hand and avoid posting just for the sake of getting on the board.

Talk about the related post or subject at hand and work your brand into your comments lest you be branded yourself: as a spammer. No one wants that label, so find a way to correlate the subject with your brand.

Be sure to use a healthy brand signature at the bottom of all online correspondence too, whether it be in an email, forum or blog comment. Your name, telephone number and email address aren’t sufficient if you’d like to let everyone know about the great deals you offer.

Add your branding message into your signature or your comments. Readers will see it, even if it’s a quick discussion about next week’s game. That’s called online brand marketing, and it’s the telephone pole of today.