Ford Social Media Presentation at Google Gearshift Conference
1. Ford’s Approach to Social Media Google Gearshift, London 24 March 2011 Scott Monty
2. We have a fundamental challenge: Q: Thinking about everything you have read, seen, or heard about business in the last year, in general, do you trust corporations a lot less, a little less, the same, a little more, or a lot more than you did at the same time last year? Source: Edelman Trust Barometer, 2009
Customers are starting to notice. This is a look at online consumer sentiment comparing Ford and competitor quality. You can see that we’ve been making great progress over the last two years, following a consistent messaging plan. We’re now second only to Honda for consumer perception of quality.
In order to get there, we needed a plan. And that plan manifested itself in One Ford One Ford : One Team. One Plan. One Goal. The plan: Aggressively restructure to operate profitably at the current demand and changing model mix Accelerate development of new products our customers want and value Finance our plan and improve our balance sheet Work together effectively as one team
Great products abound – the all new 2010 Ford Taurus, the Ford Flex, the 2011 Ford Fiesta, the Electric Focus, and the 2010 Ford Fusion Hybrid, to name a few. Overall, Ford has the freshest lineup in the industry. And more importantly, we’ve advanced our quality – no one surpasses Ford in initial quality, and we’ve got the highest levels of customer satisfaction in the automotive industry. 70% of our vehicles are recommended buys in publications consumers trust most.
It starts with vision – a lofty goal that causes us to reach for more. Bill Ford, Jr. carries on the vision of his great-grandfather and pushes the company to be more than just a business – we’re
We subscribe to the Woody Allen philosophy of social media: “90% of social media is just showing up.” We also believe in the Yogi Berra corollary: “It’s the other half that’s hard.” You get points for simply having a presence in social media. But it’s more than just registering an account – it’s about participating and making sure you’re an active member of the community. Our presence counts in unexpected places: CES Urban Mobility Project Green Roof Warriors in Pink
Some examples of Ford’s social media presence
And what do we do that makes people sit up and pay attention? We listen. We respond. We demonstrate that we’re different.
They want to be able to speak to people directly at the company, or with someone who represents the company in some fashion. In short, they want to ensure they’ve been heard. This is vastly different for the direct marketer who’s used to replies in the form of BREs, click throughs or data filled out in forms. This is in some cases real-time.
They want to understand the process and be communicated to regularly, to ensure they’re being treated fairly.
Straight, honest answers – no spin You can’t outsource authenticity.
It’s not a new concept, but it’s one that we as marketers and communicators may have forgotten.
First uttered by Cicero, some 2,000 years ago, it’s still as relevant today.
And we’re thinking and speaking like our customers in a number of ways – the Fiesta Movement was a first and very significant step. Real-time updates from real people driving our cars – 100% authentic, not edited/censored/filtered in any way. In addition to buzz, the feedback that our engineers are getting allows them to improve the North American version before it event comes to market . http://chapter1.fiestamovement.com
(play Fiesta agent launch video “zombie”) Did you ever think you’d see a Zombie in a Ford ad? That one may not be for everyone, but isn’t that the most interesting demonstration video for keyless entry that you’ve ever seen? And like Fiesta Movement, we started with some of our best agents. These agents have a massive following, and will help us spread the word to their social circles because they were part of the creative process. Combined, the eight agents featured in The Fiesta Project have more than a half million Twitter followers and a half million YouTube subscribers . With a single tweet or YouTube call to action, an agent can flood our Fiesta Web site with fully-engaged visitors -- equivalent to a week’s worth of paid media. And it gets even better….like our brand TV campaign, content like this gives us more for our money on the production side. We’re producing nearly 20 of these videos for the same cost as the typical TV campaign.
Success seen from the Fiesta Movement http://chapter1.fiestamovement.com
The reveal of the 2011 Ford Explorer on http://facebook.com/FordExplorer
In addition to the public, the industry pundits took notice.
In addition to the public, the industry pundits took notice.
Rather than focus on our own content exclusively, we’ve highlighted what others are saying about us.
And we reap the benefit through earned media.
And what do we do that makes people sit up and pay attention? We listen. We respond. We demonstrate that we’re different.