6 social media hits and misses from the car industry

18Feb/110

6 social media hits and misses from the car industry

From How the Auto Industry Is Embracing Social Media [INFOGRAPHIC] @ mashable.com:

1. A huge win for Ford

Ford gave 100 folks Ford Fiestas 18 months before they were released and asked that they share their experiences online.

It resulted in:

11 million impressions
11,000 video views
13,000 photos
15,000 tweets

2. Chevy's road trip results

Last year Chevrolet sent out eight teams of social media folks on a road trip/scavenger hunt competition. They had to complete challenges and interact on social sites.

It resulted in:

61.1 million impressions
1,216 video views
8,764 new Facebook likes
13,400 tweets

3. Volkswagen's "The Force" video

While most companies keep their Super Bowl ads a secret until game time, this video was intentionally released earl to create pre-game buzz. It lead to millions of views, thousands of likes and the miniature Darth Vader, actor Max Page, even appeard in the Today Show.

4. GM's viral plan backfires

In 2006, GM teamed up with "The Apprentice" to create a site that allowed Chevy Tahoe fans to make their own commercials online. However, the reponse was largely negative as SUV critics made films bashing the Tahoe and others made satirical ads.

Chevy Tahoe Apprentice Commercials - Watch more Funny Videos

5. Honda's cyber critique

In the summer of 2009, Honda created a Facebook fan page to help promote the new Crosstour. However, it turned sour when "fans" outside of the target demographic only had negative things to say. Honda didn't issue a response until september.

6. Toyota's Flickr flop

In 2009, Toyota and its ad agency put together a Web site for the Toyota 4Runner. The problem was that the images had been stolen from Flickr and were used without the photographers permission. Toyota soon removed the images and apologized.