A few weeks ago I blogged about the increasing use of social media in the automotive industry. The majority of these examples involved encouraging individuals to share some information about the brand via a social technology such as Facebook. I came across another example of this recently at the Westfield Shopping Centre at the weekend where MINI have been virtually putting as many people in a MINI Countryman as possible, and then encouraging them to share the video there and then via Facebook. Here’s me squeezed into said MINI. Whilst this example certainly helps to raise awareness of the product through a platform which is free to use, an example of this going even further has recently appeared over in the US with a brave, new, virtual product launch.
The Ford Explorer was exclusively unveiled on Facebook, as opposed to a traditional motor show. The big reveal was supported by events across nine US cities on 26th July which helped to generate genuinely interesting content which was also delivered through to Twitter and YouTube. To build interest and awareness of the launch in advance, initiatives such as an online sweepstake to win an Explorer were run on Facebook, resulting in over 25,000 Facebook fans (pre-launch) actively discussing various aspects of SUVs.
This approach illustrates the potential of social media to challenge some of the most traditional and well-versed customer and prospect engagement models. Not only does this approach help to reach and launch the product at a fraction of the cost of a traditional approach, but it opens up opportunities for a broad array of complementary and supporting information to be delivered to the user. Not only can the user browse all aspects of the launch from their armchair, but they could quickly be helped to better understand the array of specs, options and relevant comparisons – all in place where they can engage with like minded individuals. Whilst this approach certainly wouldn’t work for all products, it feels like a great fit for the automotive sector.
So, would you be more inclined to select a car launched virtually?
