2022 Dealers United Wrap Up
Wow, what a year.
It’s safe to say a lot happened in 2022. The days seemed to fly by as fast as minutes, and I think we are all asking the same question: “Where has the time gone?”
The biggest lesson from the year is also a great reminder for 2023: Stay ???? Resilient????.
As the automotive industry evolves and customer behavior changes, so do our processes and strategies. In the words of Friends’ Ross Gellar, “PIVOT!” ????
However, there is a ton to celebrate!
At Dealers United, this Annual Wrap Up blog is one of our favorite end-of-year traditions. Thank you for being a part of our year, and enjoy seeing how our team spent 2022!
January
- We officially launched Omnichannel Advertising so that our dealers can advertise on ALL available channels: Meta (Facebook & Instagram), Pinterest, Snapchat, and TikTok. ????
- We started a monthly wine club, where our team sips and streams for a virtual Tasting Room. ????
- Our team onboarded 2 new members to help our dealer-partners grow! MJ Belada and Aleena Bowman both joined the DU Customer Experience Team!
February
- Launched a brand-new format of Partner Updates! Instead of a live webinar, we now offer a short video + blog! Watch or read, your choice: See “What’s New At DU” here.
- We welcomed Mitch Lucky to the DU Customer Experience Team! ????
- Eric Lichon, Operations Specialist, welcomed baby girl, Claire Elizabeth, into the world!
- What an HONOR it was to be recognized by #GrowFL as one of “Top 50 Companies To Watch!”
March
- We proudly hosted a breakout session at NADA (our first time! ????), “7 Undercover Direct to Consumer Platforms You Need In 2022.” Watch a replay of the session here.
- While in Las Vegas, DU sponsored a GROW! Women’s Leadership Luncheon. ????????
- A brand-new Success Story with Auto Centers Herculaneum was published. Check it out here!
- Our entire team flew down to Sarasota, FL for a 3-day company retreat, where we held team-building exercises, workshops, outdoor activities, and more! ???? ????
April
- Andrew Rogers, Director of Customer Experience, officially passed his Meta Blueprint recertification! Great job AR – way to #learnandlead
- We released our 30th Dealer Success Story ???? with Nelson Auto Center! Check it out here!
- An eggciting spring tradition: egg painting competition! Each team member painted an egg and we voted on the best…Social Media Designer Samantha’s “Mon-egg Lisa” took 1st place! ????????
May
- We partnered with Pinterest and Healey Brothers Auto Group to publish the first-ever Pinterest Tier 3 Automotive Case Study.
- Justin Friend, DU’s VP & GM, co-hosted a breakout session at Digital Dealer Tampa with Allison McConeghy, Senior Partner Manager, from Pinterest: “How to Sell Where Your Customers Are Shopping with Dealer Inventory Feeds on Pinterest.”
- The morning of our Digital Dealer session, we learned Healey’s Shopping Ads Pinterest Case Study was featured by Adweek!
June
- Sometimes getting started with an organic video strategy is the hardest part. We hosted a webinar, “Taking on TikTok: Your ‘Need to Know’ Dealership Strategy” to help dealers with best practices for the #1 most downloaded app.
- We also put together some of our favorite Dealership TikTok examples here!
- Digital Dealer picked up our blog, “The Ultimate Ad Placement Strategy for Today’s Auto Buyer Journey”
- Director of Ad Operations, Phil M, popped the question and got ENGAGED!! ????
- Our Co-Op specialist, Murray H, welcomed a baby-girl into the world! ???? ????
July
- Our blog, “How to Boost Your Dealership’s Brand With Social Media Videos,” was published by Digital Dealer! And it made the Digital Front Cover ????
- Meg Hughes-Ritter joined the Customer Experience Team!
August
- Our Director of Ad Operations, Phil M, tied the knot and took on another role as “husband!” ????
- We welcomed Carrie Zaydel to the Customer Experience team!
- Awesome press highlighting Healey Brothers Automotive’s success with Pinterest in Auto Dealer Today!
- It’s never too early to get into the holiday spirit…especially as advertisers! We hosted “Unwrap Your Holiday Ad Strategy With Pinterest” webinar with the Pin-team!
- We published our *First* Omnichannel Success Story ???????? South County Dodge Chrysler Jeep Ram leveraged Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest and Snapchat to drive some impressive Q2 results. Download your copy here!
September
- Hurricane Ian hit South Florida, the hub of Dealers United’s team…thankfully the non-Floridian team-members embodied our “Jump In” core value to help the team with tasks where needed…everyone stayed safe and even made the best of it!
- Performance Manager Alix Knox became a proud homeowner! I mean… could the house (and the couple) be any more adorable?
- To help dealers maximize their organic video strategy on Instagram, we produced the “Get Reel with Reels” webinar.
- And we put together this list of of our favorite dealership reels!
October
- What a month for leveling up our skills! Aleena Bowman, Mitch Lucky and Bryan Moore passed the Meta Blueprint certification! ???? ????
- Huge shoutout to Allison McConeghy from Pinterest and Jay Healey of Healey Brothers Auto Group for joining Justin Friend on the Digital Dealer keynote stage! Their session focused on how to diversify messaging and ad strategy on Pinterest: “Yes, Pinterest Can Sell Cars…But That’s Not All!”
- The DU Culture Club hosted a virtual Murder Mystery Party! The crew dressed to impress for the Speakeasy theme, and had a blast acting out their characters.
November
- DU proudly sponsored the University of South Florida’s “Brunch on the Bay” that raised funds for the construction of a planned Nursing/STEM building.
- Our VP of Marketing, Brooke J, got ENGAGED to her Man! ????
- We launched the annual State of Automotive event in a big way! Justin Friend and Molly Dennehy produced 12 on-demand interviews with some of the biggest thought leaders in the Automotive and Digital Marketing industries. PLUS produced over 35 actionable resources to help auto dealers go into 2023 strong.
- We were thrilled to welcome Kevin O’Rourke to the Dealers United team as the VP, Country Manager – Canada, to lead the expansion of our social advertising solutions into Canada for automotive dealers, agencies, and OEMs!
December
- We welcomed a brand new VP of Business Development and Strategic partnerships, Ali Fawaz, to #TeamDU. ????
- To celebrate the holidays, the entire team joined in on a virtual White Elephant gift exchange.
- The Annual Gingerbread Contest was a HIT! And wow do we have some talented, creative people on our team…but Meg Hughes-Ritter’s “Hagrid’s Hut” took first prize! ????
- While we enjoy being a remote company, it’s always a treat to meet up in person! Justin Friend had the opportunity to visit with our partners at Zeigler Automotive Group (check out that studio!), and join Ali Fawaz with our partners at Pinterest!
And that’s a wrap!
We are so lucky to work with the best team and coolest clients. Thank you for being along for the ride!
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Written By Molly Dennehy
Molly Dennehy is a marketing expert who has evidenced effective digital marketing strategies across six different industries. Now, she brings her diverse experience and creativity to automotive dealers. From audience targeting, campaign set-up, and content creation, Molly is passionate about sharing new and innovative ways to drive results.