Does Facebook Work?
By: Chris Travell
There’s been lots of press on this one lately with varying opinions across the spectrum. But what do customers tell us? Is Facebook an important source of information in the car buying decision? What about Twitter? What does the hard data tell us?
I apologize in advance for the wind noise that you hear at the start of the video. Darn on-location shoots. Don’t worry, it gets better as it progresses.
Let me know where you stand on this discussion.
Chris
- August 1, 2012
- 4 Comments
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- Industry News, 2012 automotive industry, 2012 Canadian car market, 2012 US car market, automotive analysis, automotive industry, automotive marketing, car buying, car industry, chris travell, customer experience, customer satisfaction, facebook, facebook and car buying, facebook effectiveness in car buying, maritz research, twitter, twitter and car buying, twitter effectiveness
Here’s the thing and I’m just repeating what Gary Vaynerchuck would tell you … BIG companies are using Social Media in sprints (quarter by quarter, American Idol by American Idol w Ford). The real investment in SM is in marathons. You talk about it yourself when you address how to keep customers loyal over the long haul. So what is the ROI then of SM? Here’s the problem – and you can google this along with Gary’s name – What’s the ROI of your mother?
You can’t measure it but it’s priceless!
Car companies need to form loyalty on SM at the grass roots – right where the dealers live. It’s not a marketing tool meant to sell cars – it’s called “social” for a reason! Would you walk into a cocktail party and start selling cars? No – and it’s nearly impossible to measure the conversations people have about how much they “hate” or “love” the (insert name of) dealer they just dealt with. They have a social conversations – right there in front of the world!
If you could follow those conversations – and dealers should be all over that on a local level – then you are being social. And how do you measure it? When someone comes in to look at a car you ask, “How did you hear about us?” The SM platform doesn’t send them (necessarily) … but the social conversations on SM may have influenced there being there!
One last quote from Gary V:”
Local matters: however the marketing battle is going to be individual from here on in!”
PS nice kilt
I agree with John – except forthe kilt comment. FB & T are more tailored in the auto space not so much about assisting with the purchase decision but to allow a space where people with similar loyalty behaviors can interact and socialize. The better the job is done by the car companies utilizing SM in their marketing mix the better the bi product of the actual purchase outcome may occur.
If your research was to ask the question where you would go to voice your opinion on the actual purchase or experience of an automobile, I believe you would find the FB & T results at the opposite end of the spectrum.
Cheers Chris and Team – thanks for “The Ride”
The same information is not utilized across the buying process. Different information is used at different points across the non-linear and many times recursive decision process. Secondly, I wonder if this speaks to who effective the auto industry has been using the tool. IT would appear that Citroen might be an example of how to do it…http://adage.com/article/special-report-book-of-tens-2011/ad-age-s-book-tens-social-media-campaigns/231498/
Thanks for that link.