Carole-Anne Mccann

Social media & car dealerships.... This could be controversial. But I see this a lot! Social media is the beast that every business knows it needs to use, but very few really understand or appreciate its impact. From my experience, that's usually because it isn't valued as a serious lead generation source; therefore, it's something that gets given low priority by dealer groups. This leads to: ❌ 'Vanilla' content (content that isn't engaging or valuable to the audience) ❌ Regurgitated brand content ❌ A lack of genuine engagement by customers All of this results in low expectations and even lower appreciation for what can be achieved when it's done right! But it's not all doom and gloom! In fact, this leaves a huge opportunity for dealerships that are ready to take full advantage of this lack of industry awareness. Here are some things I would recommend to dealerships wanting to level up their social media: ✅ Behind-the-scenes content People buy from people. By showing the people and activities that go on behind the scenes in a business, you're able to build real trust and transparency with your audience in a genuine way. Make it fun and personable. Get stuck in with the team in every department and showcase the PEOPLE within the business. ✅ UGC (User-Generated Content) This is going to sound a little wild, but you should make each individual a mini-celebrity and authority for the brand and geographical area. Get them on camera, sharing fun and insightful perspectives, answering questions on LIVE streams, etc. This helps connect the audience with your business in a more personal way! I'd also add that this should be coupled with Facebook Group page activity, as it's a key way to build that authority and stand out locally, along with a focused TikTok strategy to utilize trends for growth and awareness. ✅ Paid advertising - the RIGHT way Lower the use of generic 'vehicle' ads online, and increase the attraction lead gen ads. i.e., think about what the customer ACTUALLY wants to know/see when scrolling on their phones. Would they rather see a picture of a car with an offer on it, or would they rather have access to a finance calculator or p/x value tool? The latter is more likely to generate interest and create a lead that can be followed up on. ✅ Improved product photography I appreciate this isn't directly 'social media' related, but it has a big impact on the way you can stop people from scrolling and influence them to view your product over someone else's. While this should obviously be implemented across the website and online listings, these high-quality, standout images could also be used for social marketing, as they are much more engaging than the standard images usually shared online. ✅ And more... Social media has changed so much in the last few years, and the way customers engage with brands and businesses has shifted. How does your social activity fit with the new type of online customer?

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I’ll admit, as I’ve gotten older (and as a single mum), I can occasionally feel like a bit of a Grinch on the inside—especially when juggling the many hats needed to pull off a family Christmas when I’m but one person! But there’s one tradition I absolutely enjoy on the lead up to Christmas: mulled wine. 🍷 It’s become a little guilty pleasure for me, particularly when I’m working on my master’s assignments or supporting revision notes for my son’s GCSEs. Nothing quite motivates me in the evenings to keep writing a little longer like a warm cup of mulled wine to power through the to-do list! As we near the end of the week, I’m eager to connect with anyone looking to grow their team. Here’s a little insight into what I bring to the table: ✨ Core Skills & Expertise: 🔍 Talent acquisition and recruitment: Experience sourcing for highly technical roles across engineering, motorsport, and public sector industries. 📚 CIPD training: Currently pursuing my Level 5 qualification, expanding my knowledge of employee relations, learning and development, and recruitment best practices. 🤝 Employee experience and onboarding: Strong track record of supporting onboarding processes and engaging with candidates at all levels. 💻 Digital recruitment tools and systems: Proficient in ATS, Workday, and AI-powered tools to streamline recruitment and identify top talent. 🤝 Collaborative approach: I value Talent Acquisition teams working closely as allies with hiring managers to align business goals and deliver a positive candidate experience. Whether you’re looking for a recruitment partner who can build meaningful connections, or someone who can manage talent pipelines efficiently, I’d love to hear from you. Feel free to connect, message, or share opportunities! Let’s end the year strong! 😉 #TalentAcquisition #Recruitment #CIPD #JobSearch #OpenToOpportunities #MastersStudies

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⛔ WARNING - Long Post alert 🚫 The Truth!! Well Sunday the 1st September 2024 marked 2 years since we launched Auto Elite Network UK - So HAPPY BIRTHDAY to us!! 🎂 Looking back, it's quite an emotional task - I started with Nothing, no candidates, no clients, no business, no systems. I just have my industry knowledge, my work ethic, and a desire to succeed. Now, it is not all ice cream with the kids and roses —it has been extremely difficult at times, and still is to balance building this business from scratch, running our home, and funding our life. I have had to make some big decisions and cutbacks to ensure the business is still here today. To be totally honest I have considered going back into an employed role on a number of occasions, it can be just how you feel on a particular day and finding that self-motivation within to get up and follow that process and be disciplined. Today I remind myself that we are only 2 years in - how many businesses make it to this point? What were other successful business owners doing in year 2 in their business? 💫 We have managed to fill 50% of the roles we have listed in the 2 years - well above the industry average 💫 84% of the candidates we have placed are still in their roles - we can place good candidates, but then it's down to you as business owners/leaders to nurture and hold on to them 💫 It has taken us on average 29 days from live advert to job offer across all roles in the 2 years. If you remove Technicians from that the average becomes much lower We are proud of these statistics too ❤️ Thank you to all clients and candidates over the last 2 years - sorry for being a pest at times, BUT we are just doing our job, the same as you do yours. Here is to another 2 years! 🍻

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I've seen a lot of the external validation posts about employers giving staff Monday off!! If you are, great ⚽️ If your not, that's fine to ✔️ But let's get real, true leaders don't need to tell the world how great they are to their staff for 1 day, it's done 365 days a year without the external validation 👌 #justsaying #validation #insurance #insurancebroker #theinsuranceceo #itscominghome 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿

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YOU GET WHAT YOU PAY FOR.... This is something I think we can all agree on. You wouldn't walk into a car dealership with £1000 and expect to walk away with a Porsche So why does the narrative change when hiring? You can't attract the best talent when you are offering below market rates. The point of this is, if you don't have the budget, lower your expectations. It's the best way to hire within budget.

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YOU GET WHAT YOU PAY FOR.... This is something I think we can all agree on. You wouldn't walk into a car dealership with £1000 and expect to walk away with a Porsche So why does the narrative change when hiring? You can't attract the best talent when you are offering below market rates. The point of this is, if you don't have the budget, lower your expectations. It's the best way to hire within budget.

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Question: How do you convince #automotive HR teams that you have an incredible recruitment service to offer without sounding like every other agency on the planet? *Read more* I genuinely hate the thought that people see my message in their inbox and instantly assume we're 'just another recruitment agency' trying to get terms signed. Here's what we're NOT: ❌ A CV-forwarding service ❌ An agency that rushes to send CVs to get paid ❌ Looking for any old role to try and fill Here's what we ARE: ✅ A retained partner that focuses on 'fit' and candidate quality ✅ An agency with a robust process that saves HR teams 90% of their hiring time ✅ An expert in Automotive Management positions So please, if I ever send you a DM mentioning that I've seen a Management vacancy on your website and that I'd love to help fill it for you with the best person, don't think I'm like everyone else. ❌ I WON'T be sending you CVs that just look good on paper and match your search criteria... ✅ I WILL be taking candidates through a process of telephone interviews, video interviews, McQuaig assessments, screening, and more, to ensure they are the best of the best before you even lay eyes on them! Recruitment at this level can't be done wrong. Bad hires kill motivation and business profitability. We not only find the best people, but we also stop the bad ones from getting in! Automotive Recruiters #recruitment #hiring #automotiverecruitments

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ATTENTION Employers - Business Owners - Managers - Leaders - Auto Enthusiasts and especially YOU! Make sure the #apprentice you hire is passionate about the industry and WANTS to get out of bed to learn and perform their skill. So if you're looking for an auto apprentice to jump-start their automotive career then do we have a surprise for you! We currently have an influx of eager candidates coming through looking for amazing #employers and homes in the #automotive industry just like yours. And we are always building and maintaining a pipeline of talent ready for you and your business. These kids go out as quickly as they come in - do not sit and wait. The time is now. Take your first pick before your competitor does. So, with any of your Q&A's, simply get in contact with me directly or hit our offices up by simply calling 1300 277 736 (and ask for me) or visit 1300apprentice.com.au LIKE and SHARE with your network and colleagues so they too are aware and can fill in the missing link they may have. The #ContractLabour, #Apprenticeship & #Traineeship. #1300apprentice #jobs #apprenticeships #careers #findanapprentice #apprentice #lookingforwork #employers #australia #cit #hiring #automotive #jobsofthefuture #technology #EV #electricvehichle #NSW

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WHAT THE 4.0? // THE PODCAST SERIES I love driving… I love cars!!! My PC screen saver is, and has always been of my dream car. Motivational! I have had numerous variations over the years, but they’re always Porsche! THAT LOVE OF DRIVING HAS OFTEN… Historically, left me posing the question, why autonomy? Why remove the thing that individuals love? The act of ACTUALLY DRIVING A CAR! Simple… Safety! The ability to predict both scenes and semantics. The ability to remove human error and ultimately save lives! Without doubt the most impactful use case for deploying autonomous features, functions and products… |——————————————————| WHAT THE 4.0? a new podcast coming soon. Hosted by Benjamin Andrzejewski and Lukas Timm who will be speaking with some of the brightest minds across the innovation engineering space! To join the discussion and register interest follow: Umbilical Technology Viral Engineering Content The Lidar Society

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How much is a car? Quoting recruitment services to a new client is difficult. It always feels like I'm deflecting the question when I say "it depends what you're looking for"? I can sense the despair when they feel they aren't getting a straight answer. I don't mean to be 'Billy Big Sales' when I answer their question with a question. I genuinely need some more context than "how much is it to hire an admin person". I want a car. It needs to be a family vehicle, ideally low mileage, a lease will do, preferably grey, heated seats, manual or automatic, and definitely needs a good sound system. I think that will get me a more accurate quote. I know what's essential and what's desirable. Hopefully, then, the car dealer can give me a relevant shortlist of cars to test drive and maybe use for a short time before committing to purchase. Oh, and I want flexible payment terms and a guarantee. Seems good business to me.

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Simple interview tips for any job seekers attending interviews this week! #interviewtips #goodluck #jobsearch #lookingforwork

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Why is it new customers always get the best deals? It’s a constant cycle of changing various insurances, sky have had 3 different emails for me or phone contracts. As businesses we can do exactly the same thing with our people … We focus on what we are doing to attract the best people, talk about the shiny stuff, tell them about their onboarding training and investment in to them … What about the great people you already have? The easiest way to grow is not just hire lots of people and hope they stick … it’s to retain people who feel like this is the place they need to be in order to develop, achieve their goals and be invested in as people. Otherwise you create a revolving door with great people walking out and having to start again with new people finding their feet. As leaders, don’t lose sight on the importance of who you have in the building already. Retention strategies should be equal to attraction strategies if not above. PS an annual trip to the races or a table at Wayne Lineker’s bar is not cutting it

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You wouldn't steal a car... 🚙 ... and then, once caught, try & negotiate the fee payable for the car. You wouldn't steal a handbag and then, once caught, try & negotiate the fee payable from the owner 🚫 You wouldn't steal a television and then, once caught, try & negotiate with your local Currys store for the fee payable🚫 & yet clients feel they can do this with agencies? They feel they can back-door an agency who has legitimately introduced a candidate to them & then, once caught, have the cheek to negotiate the fee payable 🤯 We often fight fights like this for our clients on multiple fronts at any given time - this week (& last) has been no different. 4 back door challenges were raised with us last week with 3/4 already resolved. Credit control - we all love to hate it but damn is it addictive 😅 #recruitmentstartup #recruitmentinvestment #recruitmentbusinesssupport #recruitmentbusinesssetup #businesstips #recruitmentstartuptips

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he Budget statement from Chancellor Rachel Reeves felt like a beautiful example of using a big shiny thing to distract from some other bits and pieces you’re trying to sneak through unnoticed. Keeping fuel duty frozen for another year was the shiny surprise, and went counter to pre-Budget predictions that the government was planning to hit drivers at the pumps by raising duty that had been frozen for more than a decade. But that headline-grabbing flourish, incredibly welcome as it was, hid some less good news and deflected away from things that were left out completely. Firstly, not mentioned in the speech and only to be found in the accompanying Treasury documentation, was the big hike on first-year VED for any car that’s not electric. Hybrids are less affected, but anything over 75g/km sees the Vehicle Excise Duty on first registration double from next April - which is an extra cost of almost £2,500 on the highest CO2 banding. https://lnkd.in/enuQaUeQ #budget #automotiveindustry #tax

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Stop And Start Interviewing Start - We presented a candidate to an Automotive client who was actively interviewing recently. Stop - Hold on, we'll get back to you when we want to interview. Start - OK, let's set up an interview. Interview. Stop - We're not sure if we are ready to move. Start - We like him, can me he meet tomorrow? We want to make him an offer. Stop - We actually are not able to offer right now, check back in a few weeks. If this has happened to you in the interview process, just know, you're not alone. It doesn't meant the company is a bad place to work. Just means they are going through something. And sometimes, something needs to be worked through, before they can officially move. Hang in there. There are other opportunities for great people like you :). Time to start up again. How .... did the Lions do that? 48-55, clouds, wind. Make it a great day, everyone! #SCNrecruiting #recruiting SCN - Search Consulting Network

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🚗 When did an 8 become a fail? 🚗 Recently, I took my BMW in for some work, and the service experience was superb. The gentleman who assisted me was professional, friendly, and efficient. At the end of our interaction, he asked if I could respond to a survey email from BMW, rating his service from 1 to 10. Naturally, I agreed. He then told me a score of 8 (or lower) would be considered a fail. Wow. When did an 8 become a fail? Striving for excellence is crucial (and actually, the service I received was easily a 10/10 and I would have graded it so anyway), but isn’t it also important to recognise and appreciate strong performances, even if they aren’t perfect? Surely setting realistic expectations fosters a more encouraging environment for continuous improvement? Or am I wrong? Should we be unaccepting of anything less than 10/10 service every time? #CustomerService #Feedback #Excellence #ContinuousImprovement

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Definitely sticking my head in the sand for this one, my car insurance is up for renewal very shortly.. 🚗 💰 "With many people already seeing a steep car insurance increase in 2023, drivers can expect to see a further squeeze on their wallets with an 11% car insurance price increase forecast for 2024" #insurance #costofliving #carinsurance

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I’m happy to share that I’m starting a new position as Self Employed at i-Prospect! This is a new venture I have started which I will be running alongside my current role Easy2Trade I have set up i-Prospect to assist businesses grow and retain their clients for future success. My new role will focus on the below 👇 🟠 Prospecting new clients for businesses 🟠 Customer care calls to their current database 🟠 Taking the stress and worry away from businesses who are uncomfortable prospecting 🟠 LinkedIn profile management So if you are a business that needs to grow but are uncomfortable picking up the phone to gain appointments or if you lack time contacting your current database to gain retention in your field then let’s have a conversation 💬

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🌟 Kickstart Your Week with Positivity! 🌟 Good morning, Monday is here and the sun is shining, in Devon at least!🌞 🔹 Reflect and Set Goals: Take a moment to reflect on your achievements from last week and set clear, achievable goals for the days ahead. Every small step counts toward your larger ambitions. 🔹 Embrace New Opportunities: This week, challenge yourself to step out of your comfort zone. Reach out to a new connection, learn a new skill, or take on a project that excites you. Growth happens when we push our boundaries. 🔹 Stay Positive and Motivated: Remember, attitude is everything. Keep a positive mindset and encourage those around you. Your enthusiasm can be contagious, inspiring your colleagues and connections. 🔹 Celebrate Small Wins: Don’t forget to celebrate your progress, no matter how small. Each milestone is a testament to your hard work and dedication. I would love to hear about the goals you have set yourself this week or any cool projects you are currently working on in the comments. Wishing everyone a productive week ahead! 💼💪 #MondayMotivation #NewWeekNewGoals #StayPositive #ProfessionalGrowth #LinkedInCommunity P.S. This photo is where you will find most weekends when the sun is shining!

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