Social Media Success Stories in the Motoring Industry

Social media - once regarded as a passing fad – has become one of the most powerful marketing tools available today. 

Owing to the fact that around 38% of consumers consult social media before purchasing a car, many in the motor trade have realised the importance of using Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

By looking at what the brands are doing, it is possible to pick up on good ideas and run similar, smaller versions of the campaign in your own business (without breaching intellectual property, of course!)

BMW

With more than 18.5 million likes on BMW Facebook fan page, the efforts of the car maker seem to be bearing fruits. There is more than the brand factor contributing to the shares and likes on this social media platform. The company is doing everything possible to interact and engage with fans, which in itself is considered to be a powerful social media strategy. For instance, recently, BMW launched a creative campaign BMW entitled Snowchat. This allowed users to draw, stamp and type holiday messages on a snowy BMW windshield from phone, tablet or computer that could be then shared through Facebook, Twitter and email. It was perceived a sophisticated, engaging and a fun campaign.

Bosch

The company is very proactive in social media engagement, so much so that their campaign #ExperienceBosch won an “Online Strategy of the Year” Award in 2015. It included many activities that allowed it to display the whole range of products and client experiences. The results were astonishing, as the people started perceiving it as the ‘young brand’ despite its history of 125 years. Additionally, it reported a tenfold times increase in sales compared to the invested budget.

Mini

Mini’s NOT NORMAL campaign was a massive success. The company won several industry awards and the maker has taken numerous steps to connect with its vast audience. The company asked people to share videos and images on social media with the hash tag #MININOTNORMAL. They then utilised the best uploads as a part of their promotion campaign. In a matter of six weeks, more than 230,000 people became a part of the campaign on social media. The company had 30,000 new followers and more than 3,853 people visited the campaign hub. 

Sections of the motor trade have already undergone major digital transformation, and overall is moderately mature in the social engagement sphere.

Key Understanding: People consider the vehicles they own as their own reflection and the car brands are making best use of social media to create a buzz about their offerings.