Reading about the Mini Cooper’s successful social media campaign in Li and Bernoff (2008) and the Ford Motor Company’s social media engagement strategy in Communication World (Jan/Feb 2010) instilled in me a drive - a drive to follow in the tracks of these marketing geniuses who have mastered the art of social media! Time to step on the pedal! Alright, enough of this car analogy…onto more serious business.
We’ve all read about the Mini Cooper case study; let’s bring you up to speed with the Ford case study. Ford realized it needed to change how it talked to its customers. In July 2009, Ford invited 60 prominent women bloggers from the BlogHer network to be a part of the Ford experience in Chicago. These women created an instant buzz by posting their test drive experience on their blogs. Check out some of these blogs at TheFordStory.com
In another initiative, after identifying key online influencers in the North American market, Ford created programs to engage its publics through Facebook, Twitter and corporate blogs. For instance, Ford invited 40 bloggers to swap their cars for a Ford Flex, Ford Fusion or Lincoln MKS to drive on their spring vacations. Ford hoped these drivers would post their stories and share their honest opinions about the cars on their blogs. Throughout this program, Ford ensured transparency to enable readers to decide for themselves the credibility of the blogs. Some of these blogs can be found at TheFordStory.com
Ford also published its "Rules for Social Media Engagement"at TheFordStory.com These are specific guidelines on how Ford would practice ethical and effective online engagement. These rules echo Li and Bernoff's (2008) advice to "listen to" and "talk with" the groundswell. Simply put, listening carefully to what customers are saying online about your brand can generate valuable insights to enhance product quality and publicity efforts. Talking (not shouting) with customers and engaging them in conversation builds trust, credibility and an effective relationship between an organization and its stakeholders.
Ford’s social media engagement strategy was a great success, bringing much publicity for the company. With technology rapidly changing the motoring experience, it makes me wonder what automakers have in mind for the future. What might customer engagement be like in the future? What’s next? Automobiles that are fitted with Facebook, Twitter and Blog technologies? Certainly adds a new dimension to how social media is being integrated into the car business. Thoughts anyone? I'm listening. Let's talk!
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Another great post Neha! Ford's women blogger campaign was such a brilliant idea. With ROPES model, the campaign managed to address research, programming and evaluation all at once- three birds with one stone :)
ReplyDeleteI happened to write something about automobile industry as well- go check out my blog about Toyota's blogging hibernation and I'd like to hear your thoughts! http://yuanjingwang.blogspot.com/
Yes, Jean - there's so much we can learn from these brilliant marketing minds about integrating social media effectively with public relations. The ROPES model makes a solid foundation for any PR plan.
ReplyDeleteI loved your blog as well - a very timely case study. Looks like we both had a similar theme this week with the focus on the automobile industry...you've got the drive, Jean! : )
Neha, a very good post once again! the Ford and Mini Cooper cases are valuable learning materials for the automobile players.
ReplyDeleteMini Cooper's strategy of reaching out to owners instead of targetting prospective customers was brave and it paid off.
I think Toyota should learn from Fordstory.com.
ReplyDeleteWhen its newly-repaired cars come back to the market, they may think of some creative ways to draw the audience/consumers' attention and confidence to their products. Like a test drive. Hopefully, people will have the guts to do it by then.
Check out my blog on Toyota Apology.
You make a great point Paromita - sometimes one just needs to be a little daring and adventurous and try out a new and innovative social media strategy. It may seem a risk at first but if it pays off - it can pay off well! : )
ReplyDeleteHi Jing, that's great advice. You should consider becoming a brand consultant for Toyota. : )
ReplyDeleteWe all learn from one another and Toyota could pick up a tip or two from Ford about valuing customers.