Last week as I read through the social media newsletters I get sent to me via email, I realized a subtle trend. They all were being dominated by stories on car brands leveraging social media for new campaigns. Within the last few weeks I found seven big stories about an auto brand using social media in some way to help spread awareness for new models and in turn sell cars. This doesn’t surprise me, and not just because social media is the first word out of any CMO’s mouth these days.
The automotive industry has been hurting bad the last few years. Worldwide production of cars dropped 13.5% in 2009, including down 21.2% alone in the United States. In the last few years, the terms bailout, doors closing and all inventory must go have been too closely associated with car dealers and factories. To me, this is why it makes perfect sense that the auto industry has overwhelmingly adopted social media as a huge part of their marketing mix in 2010 and show no signs of stopping.
With the recession, Super Bowl ads, expensive billboards and endorsements just weren’t moving the needle anymore. Executives got smart on the shift in how consumers are spending their time and brought their advertising online and in places where their consumers are – Facebook, YouTube, and Twitter to name a few. Car companies are creating experiences around car launches and encouraging car owners to share their own personal story around their cars. Maybe you can call all of this Ford Fiesta Fever after that out of the box campaign idea, but here are the recent examples I have seen of the auto industry involving social media heavily in their marketing:
Kia Contest Is Casting Call For ‘Lifecasters
Inside the 2011 Ford Explorer Facebook Reveal
Subaru Teases WRX With ‘Get More G’s’
Can Mazda’s DriverVille Facebook Game Improve Sales of the Mazda2?
Suzuki Program Rewards Social Media Visits
Toyota Pushes ‘Auto-Biography’ Facebook Campaign
Buick Aggregates Feedback On Its Regal
What do you think? Is the auto industry trying to do too much with social media or is it a great fit for the car buying experience and life cycle? Which campaigns do you think have been the most successful?
