New Ford Focus was a car that everybody was expecting. Still, the launch of new Focus was a challenge as the big first campaign developed by Romania NSC.
It has been a mandatory request to use social media channels and develop an impactful campaign in social media environment.
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New Ford Focus digital and social media case study
1. New FORD FOCUS
Social Media Campaign - Case Study
August 2011
New FORD FOCUS
Last update: 11.08.2011
2. The Brief
Product: new Ford Focus
Brand positioning: Style and technology combined with emotional benefit
(affordable technology in the segment)
The opportunity is to ground this promise of a thoroughly involving driving
experience on the advanced technology of new Focus - technology that
delivers the control that enables the driver to exploit and enjoy this driving
experience. ‘Starting more than a car’ has to dramatise or demonstrate is the
‘more than’. This is the emotional benefits that arise from the Focus pillars: The
exhilarating experience of driving the car.
Brand message: Start more than a car (explore technology & innovation)
Competition: Dacia Logan, Opel Astra, Skoda Octavia, VW Golf
New FORD FOCUS
3. The Brief
Task: to create a pre-launch and launch campaign for the next generation of
Focus.
Background: new Ford Focus was a car that everybody was expecting. Still, the
launch of new Focus was a challenge as the big first campaign developed by
Romania NSC.
It has been a mandatory request to use social media channels and develop an
impactful campaign in social media environment. This was a challenge for the
local Wunderman agency, as Ford Romania started to use social media
channels starting with December 2010.
New FORD FOCUS
4. The Objectives
Create interest and direct consumers to experience the test drive with the new
Focus – 5000 test drive taken / leads
Create an impactful teasing campaign for the pre-launch phase
Generate awareness for the new product. Ensure visibility beyond Automotive,
Business, Economy, Lifestyle, Entertainment in online environment
Generate social media content through earned media channels and social
media environment
New FORD FOCUS
5. The Target
Men (70%) 20 - 45 years old; AB segment (ESOMAR)
Married
Medium to high education
Medium to high income: 15.000 - 20.000 €/year
Job: middle management; free lancer / entrepreneur
Statements:
I try to always learn something new
For me, the quality of the product is more important than the price
For me is very important to have a sporting activity
I try to convince the others to go out
When on holidays, I like discovering other countries, places,
people
New FORD FOCUS
6. Product Positioning
The new Ford Focus is the car to have, as it offers the most innovative &
advanced technologies to meet your every need, while remaining
affordable (compared to other C segment models).
Advanced yet affordable technologies within this segment enhace the
driving experience beyond what regular cars can normally provide,
allowing for an unmatched sense of fulfillment and exhilaration.
Ford’s “4 pillars” approach results in a product able to meet all the
consumers’ needs, be they focused on safety, gadgets/new tech,
driving experience, or minimizing the environmental impact.
New FORD FOCUS
7. Campaign Concept
• The new Ford Focus is more than just a car. With new
technologies unprecedented in its class, it answers the
concerns of both those preoccupied by safety and gadget
afficionados; it provides both an exhilarating driving
experience and every means to reduce the environmental
impact.
• Learn of the advanced technologies. Experience the drive.
START more than a car.
New FORD FOCUS
8. Local Campaign Approach
Focus Pillar Techno Talented Addictive Driving Experience
Start a totally involving driving experience, Start a more rewarding driving experience,
enjoy your driving experience: more ‘drive per litre’ through a more efficient
What we’re and exciting drive
asking • Feel more connected
people • More exhilaration
• Have more control
to ‘start’ • More control
• Make more happen
• More efficiency
Local concept:
Discover the newest Auto Technologies (www.tehnologieauto.ro)
Brand message: Start more than a car (explore technology & innovation)
The car remains the hero of the communication even when these feelings and emotions are
expressed through metaphor and evocative language.
The attitude and exhilarating tonality of the communication are as important as the content.
New FORD FOCUS
9. Strategic Overview
April 16th - May 8th
Build buzz
PRE-LAUNCH
Social media (Club Ford; 4 Key Opinion National caravan PR
Facebook; Youtube) Leaders Consumer contest
Focus landing page
www.tehnologieauto.ro
May 9th
LAUNCH
ATL Key Opinion Leaders Showroom Lead management PR
-TV & activation - emailing
- print Social media (Club (Open - National caravan
- radio Ford; Facebook, Weekends) - Consumer contest
- OOH Youtube)
- digital
New FORD FOCUS
10. Focus Communication Lines
Quality Technology
It looks fantastic and it feels just as great. From the slick and dynamic exterior,
embodying the Kinetic design, to the modern, high-quality interior, the new Focus will
fit you naturally. And it goes way beyond simple looks. Focus keeps its trade-mark
agility, but at the same time has become more environmentally-friendly and
economic. It features advanced technologies, driver assistance systems, vast
entertainment and multimedia options. Every bit of the new Focus builds up to a high-
quality driving experience.
Green Technology
Our constant strive for a cleaner, healthier environment has lead to us looking for fresh,
innovative technologies, which allow people to enjoy their every-day routines with less
concerns regarding their environmental impact. We have Focused all these efforts in
the Green approach towards building More Than a Car. And we go beyond simply
providing economic, low-emissions technologies – we work with our drivers on
achieving a most ecological and economical driving style.
New FORD FOCUS
11. Focus Communication Lines
Safe Technology
Ford strives to provide owners with an ever safer experience. The new Focus is fitted
with numerous safety features, so as to minimize the whole span of unwanted
incidents – from minor fender-benders to serious, life-threatening situations. That
doesn’t mean the driver is less in control than before – just that, now, drivers have
more tools to help them keep that control.
Smart Technology
The new Focus will work with you, instead of working for you. It will make your tasks
easier, to let you focus on enjoying the ride. It understands more and, when needed, it
can even jump in independently and assist a tired, inattentive or simply endangered
driver. Also, it can accommodate more from the driver than ever before – the intuitive
interface lets you tell the car –in a simple and effective manner – precisely what you
want it to do for you. Even more – at times the car can even give YOU some pointers!
New FORD FOCUS
12. Campaign Approach
In order to drive traffic to the dealers’ showrooms and to raise awareness and
interest in the new model, we have established a website detailing all the
technologies which make the new Focus such a special car to have, to drive
and/or to be driven in.
www.tehnologieauto.ro has four sections, one for each technology, so as to cater
to the various needs of our target audience. The site acted as the campaign
hub, with all communications directing traffic to it. According to the path
followed to the site, the users found details on the pillar they were interested
in, and have been encouraged to explore the other three dimensions.
The campaign has included a strong social media component, with relevant
public (and popular!) figures endorsing specific car features. The website has
been, in effect, included in the social media activities, being more than just a
destination of the generated traffic.
www.tehnologieauto.ro has also served the very important purpose of allowing
users to book test drives (as TDR and Lead Management is not yet
implemented in the Romanian NWP).
New FORD FOCUS
13. www.tehnologieauto.ro Structure
The website structure:
D. Auto technologies
- present the Ford dimensions and create buzz around the new Focus
technologies (each technology will be associated with one dimension). We
plan to generate an Action taken by the viewer getting a Reaction in the
showroom.
B. Endorsers Platform
- social media content generation supported by key opinion leaders
- generate earned media content
C. Consumer Test Drive
- test drive request form
- share your opinion
- consumer promotion with prizes
New FORD FOCUS
14. www.tehnologieauto.ro Structure
The dedicated website has three main structural components:
C. FORD technologies
- This component presents the most relevant features in each of the four
technological approaches: safe, smart, green and quality
- The information is presented comprehensively, with a video for each
technology, presenting the respective features, interconnected with a list of
text descriptions detailing the features. A click on the list of features also jumps
to the relevant sequence in the video.
http://www.tehnologieauto.ro/tehnologie_inteligenta
New FORD FOCUS
15. www.tehnologieauto.ro Structure
B. Endorser-generated content
The endorsers’ sections contained brief descriptions of the endorsers, as well
as feeds from their respective social media channels (Facebook pages, blogs,
twitter). The feeds included comments posted on the said channels, but
tehnologieauto.ro visitors also had the option of posting comments on-site.
Content in components A and B is interconnected, alowing users to adapt the
information flow to their specific interests.
New FORD FOCUS
16. www.tehnologieauto.ro Structure
C. Consumer Test Drive
- The website also includes a test drive request form, alowing the users
to book a test drive at the time and dealershop they find most
convenient. Test drive requests are forwarded automatically to the
selected dealers, alowing them to follow up on the lead.
- During the launch phase, there has also been a contest page,
containing a form used by users in order to enter the contest.
New FORD FOCUS
17. Data capture and consumer contest
Objective:
- Create a fresh and relevant data base
- Generate leads
- Generate showroom traffic
Timing:
- 15th of April – 30th of June 2011
Mechanics:
10. The consumer could register for a test drive via 3 possible channels:
- Online -> a dedicated TDR journey on www.tehnologieauto.ro
- Offline (during the caravan activations) -> via iPad test drive application
- Offline (at the dealers, in their showrooms, via printed test drive forms)
2. After registering for the test drive, the dealers had to call the consumers and schedule
a date when they could take the test drive with the new Ford Focus
3. After taking the test drive, the dealer provided the consumer with a card with an
unique alphanumeric code. The consumer had to subscribe to the online contest
page and introduce that unique code, as a confirmation that he/she took the test
drive.
Prizes:
- 20 iPads At the end of the campaign, 20 winners won (lucky draw).
New FORD FOCUS
18. Data capture and consumer contest
Consumer contest dedicated page on www.tehnologieauto.ro
New FORD FOCUS
19. Data capture and consumer contest
- Communication channels – Ford Romania’s Facebook page, ClubFord.ro, www.
ford.ro , eDM, the caravan -> informative flyers regarding the contest and the
test drive registration
Promotional/informative flyers for the contest:
Contest card with the unique codes:
Informative cards/flyers (distributed via caravan activations):
New FORD FOCUS
20. Tehnologieauto.ro – traffic results
Traffic Results:
- The website has been live since 15.04 and remains live as a mean to
both provide the consumer with product information and allow the
visitors to book test drives.
From April 15th, the live date, and until June 30th, the website (
www.tehnologieauto.ro) has had:
- 106,993 Visits
- 90,154 Unique Visitors
- 224,943 Pageviews
- 1:41 minutes Average time spent on site
- 2.1 Pages viewed per visit
New FORD FOCUS
21. Tehnologieauto.ro – traffic results
Traffic Sources:
Traffic sources:
66.44% paid
media (endorsers,
online ads) Direct traffic figures
25.27% direct indicate strong
traffic awareness
8.28% organic and
paid search
engines
New FORD FOCUS
22. Social media – Local Approach
Social media refers to dialogue. Between people, between consumers, brands,
influencers, journalists. Social media is about sharing information. It is a free
channel to express our thoughts, our feelings, dreams, expectations, values. We
share the information with our friends, family, audiences and the ones we care
about. And we care a lot about our audience in social media. The audience is
the one that gives us the public status.
The new Focus is more than a car. It refers to the Ford philosophy about
technology and safety.
Our objective in the pre launch phase is to generate social media content. So, the
new Focus brand message should be: Start more than a conversation!
Start more than a car: Start more than a conversation. Start a test drive.
New FORD FOCUS
23. Social media – Mechanics
Campaign mechanics
• For the new Ford Focus launch we have chosen a new approach of the
social media campaign – the presence of 4 Romanian KOLs as
endorsers.
• Each of the 4 technologies to communicate (eco, quality, safe, smart)
had it’s own endorser.
• The chosen endorsers (Cristian Manafu, Cristina Bazavan, Horia Brenciu,
Zoli Toth) had to follow a timing and the steps established in agreement
with Ford Romania during the campaign period.
• Each endorser had different tasks co complete, according to their
social media channels and offline profile, but all communicated under
the same umbrella concept: Start a conversation about the new Ford
Focus. Start more than a car.
• They’ve organized contests on their blogs, have written posts and made
movies, and also communicated the Ford Focus launch on their
personal social media channels (Facebook, personal blog, Youtube,
Twitter).
New FORD FOCUS
24. Social media – Endorsers Approach
The New Ford Focus endorsers:
• Horia Brenciu – representing the QUALITY technology
Former TV show host, today he is among the most
appreciated Romanian jazz-pop singer, with many
national and regional tours. Known online for his
personal blog, www.horiabrenciu.ro and Facebook
Fan page – with a record number of fans: 80,573 fans.
• Cristina Bazavan – endorsing Focus’s SAFETY
technology
At the time, editor in chief of TABU magazine. The
most influential woman on web in Romania.
Frequently involved in social and brand projects and
speaker at social media conferences and TEDx Sibiu.
Her blog, www.bazavan.ro has 10,000 uniques per
month. She has also a Facebook fan page (600 fans),
Facebook profile (4,723 friends) and Twitter profile
also (4,207 followers).
New FORD FOCUS
25. Social media – Endorsers Approach
Cristian Manafu – communicating the car’s SMART
technology
Former business journalist, currently business events
manager. One of the most active and influent bloggers
in Romania (since 2002) and the person with the highest
number of Twitter followers in Romania (9,957 followers).
Associated with new media, mobile technology, social
media & networks and always involved in the biggest
online projects. Has also Facebook profile (3,002 friends)
and fan page (1,223 fans) and the blog www.manafu.ro
with 15,000 uniques per month.
• Zoli Toth – guest endorser for the ECO technology
The only Earth Hour ambassador in Romania and
member of the Sistem music band. Involved in several
eco projects like Let`s do it Romania, Earth Hour 2010, he
also was a TV presenter for Green Report TV show. Has a
new project - a daily eco show called Eco Frecventa for
a national radio station. In social media, he has a blog
(www.zolitoth.ro), a Facebook Fan Page (2,201
members) and a Twitter account (1,978 followers).
New FORD FOCUS
26. Social media – Endorsers Results
Campaign RESULTS
Horia Brenciu (QUALITY TECHNOLOGY)
• 4 blog posts (www.hoariabrenciu.ro - 5,000 uniques)
• Banner on blog during all the campaign period
• 37 posts on his Facebook fan page (77,857 fans) – 2,841,972 estimated reach*
• 2 YouTube videos - 1,025 views
• Special Focus campaign landing tab on his page – 381 visits
• Special contest - Facebook application made especially for Horia Brenciu. The
contest was called “A day with Horia Brenciu” – after the name of the prize. We had
1,589 participants that entered to the Facebook application and completed the
task. By a certificated lucky-draw we had a female winner that spent a full day with
Horia Brenciu.
* The uniques mentioned in the potential reach represents an estimation made by ZeList
monitoring service. The estimation is a result of an algorithm which includes shares,
likes, clicks on Facebook, blogger's impact in blogosphere, RT on Twitter and number
of followers.
New FORD FOCUS
27. Social media – Endorsers Results
Campaign RESULTS
Cristina Bazavan (SAFE TECHNOLOGY)
• 11 blog posts (www.bazavan.ro –
10,000 uniques/ month) = 130,930 estimated reach*
• 3 blog contests with prizes
• 25 posts on her Facebook page + profile (4,660 friends + 1,067 fans) = 143,175
potential reach*
• 22 posts on her Twitter profile (5,153 followers) = 146,010 potential reach*
• 2 YouTube videos – 1,010 views
• Banner on blog during all the campaign period – 703 visits
* The uniques mentioned in the potential reach represents an estimation made by ZeList
monitoring service. The estimation is a result of an algorithm which includes shares,
likes, clicks on Facebook, blogger's impact in blogosphere, RT on Twitter and number
of followers.
New FORD FOCUS
28. Social media – Endorsers Results
Campaign RESULTS
Cristian Manafu (SMART TECHNOLOGY)
• 11 posts on his personal blog (www.manafu.ro –
15,000 uniques/ month) = 235,936 potential reach*
• 14 posts on his Facebook page + profile (2,684 friends + 1,087 fans) = 37,484 potential
reach*
• 21 posts on his Twitter profile (9,650 followers – the person most followed from Romania) =
238,918 potential reach*
• Twitter contest with one prize related to #tehnologieauto – 170 contestants and 270
mentions of #tehnologieauto
• 6 YouTube videos (interviews taken during the test drive with the New Ford Focus) = 5,122
views
• Banner on blog during all the campaign period – 709 visits
* The uniques mentioned in the potential reach represents an estimation made by ZeList
monitoring service. The estimation is a result of an algorithm which includes shares, likes,
clicks on Facebook, blogger's impact in blogosphere, RT on Twitter and number of
followers.
New FORD FOCUS
29. Social media – Endorsers Results
Campaign RESULTS
Zoli Toth (Pillar ECO)
• 1 post on blog – 3,400 potential reach
• 1 post on his Twitter profile (2,246 followers)
• 1 post on his Facebook page (2,195 fans)
* The unique mentioned in the potential reach represents an estimation
made by ZeList monitoring service. The estimation is a result of an
algorithm which includes shares, likes, clicks on Facebook, blogger's
impact in blogosphere, RT on Twitter and number of followers.
New FORD FOCUS
31. BTL – National Caravan
Objectives:
Tease & generate buzz for the pre-launch phase
Arouse interest towards new Focus technologies & style and direct
consumers to the dealers’ showrooms. Expose the car where possible.
Test drive registrations -> generate leads (consolidate a new fresh data
base)
Generate traffic and test drive registrations on www.tehnologieauto.ro
Generate content for the www.tehnologieauto.ro and owned social
media channels
New FORD FOCUS
32. National Caravan – Timing and Locations
Timing
The consumer activation took place over 4 extended weekends (starting with
16th / 17th of April – 6/7th of May;
2 symultaneous consumer activations per weekend
The activation have covered the busiest period of the day – from noon until
evening (12:00 p.m. – 20:00 p.m.)
Locations
The caravan was implemented in 8 cities (Constanta, Iasi, Brasov, Bucuresti – 2
times, Craiova, Timisoara, Cluj) during 4 weeks.
The location: popular malls - one of the cities’ high-traffic commercial venues
New FORD FOCUS
34. National Caravan
Consumer engagement activation
The caravan team: 2 female hostesses and 1 male team leader
General profile: Attractive, well-spoken, able to pleasantly sustain conversation,
autoshow host profile
Special outfits: Resembling lab-specific outfits – white coat/suit; very trendy.
Split of activities:
- The 2 girls invite people to play/engage with the Ipads applications and register
for a test-drive.
Test drive enlistment carried on by means of iPads with direct access to the
form on the website.
Flyers handed to people not having time/inclination to visit the mobile lab. The
flyers promote the campaign website and dealers showrooms .
- The male host assists people visiting the lab, provides information on the new
Focus, guides the prospect target.
New FORD FOCUS
35. National Caravan
Consumer engagement activation
iPad Application: Quiz + Test Drive data capture form
Number of test drive registrations via the iPad application: 2.567 (16.04.2011 –
08.05.2011)
The iPad application was also used during the B’estfest activation and the
number of test drive registrations increased during 01.07 – 03.07.2011, therefore
the total number of test drive registrations via the iPad application is: 2.879.
New FORD FOCUS
36. Campaign Overall Results
CAMPAIGN RESULTS - DIGITAL
PRELAUNCH LAUNCH TOTAL FIGURES
www.ford.ro (trafic to tehnologieauto.ro)4,962 Visits (16.52%) 9.370 Visits (12.07%) 14.332 Visits (13.40%)
106,993 Visits
30,029 Visits 76,964 Visits 90,154 Unique
25,935 Unique Visitors 66,546 Unique Visitors Visitors
www.tehnologieauto.ro (trafic) 65,070 Pageviews 159,873 Pageviews 224,943 Pageviews
3457 Test Drive 2,866 Test Drive 6,323 Test Drive
www.tehnologieauto.ro (subscriptions) 777 Contest 4,350 Contest 5,127 Contest
Period: April 15th - June 30th
106,993 people visited the site (www.tehnologieauto.ro) with an average of 1.52 minutes
per visit and 2.14 pages viewed per visit.
106,993 Visits
90,154 Unique Visitors
224,943 Pageviews
New FORD FOCUS
37. Campaign Overall Results – social media
Campaign Overall Social Media Results
PRELAUNCH < 8th of May LAUNCH > 8th of May TOTAL FIGURES
Pillars (Smart, Eco, Quality, Safe)
27 posts
Posts on personal blogs (potential reach*) 13 posts (223700 uniques) 14 posts (167727 uniques) (391427 uniques)
78 posts
Posts on Facebook (potential reach*) 31 posts (492251 uniques) 47 posts (2224826 uniques) (2717077 uniques)
44 posts
Posts on Twitter (potential reach*) 22 posts (169040 uniques) 22 posts (218083 uniques) (387123 uniques)
8 videos
Videos on YouTube (total no. of views) 5 videos 4206 views) 3 videos (2068 views) (6274 views)
Ford Romania Social Media
65 posts
Posts on Facebook (potential reach**) 32 posts (22300 views) 33 posts (28106 views) (50406 views)
6 videos
YouTube Ford Romania Channel (no. of views) 4 videos (7219 views) 2 videos (492 views) (7719 views)
* The uniques mentioned in the potential reach represents an estimation made by ZeList monitoring service. The estimation is a result of an algorithm which includes shares,
likes, clicks on Facebook, blogger's impact in blogosphere, RT on Twitter and number of followers.
** The algorithm is the sum of the number of fans that the page had at that time. It is not taken into consideration the possible number of shares.
New FORD FOCUS
38. Ford Focus Results – endorsers impact
Horia Brenciu insured exposure based on his celebrity and dynamic optimistic
and charismatic personality.
Manafu insured high interest based on his technical masculine
recommendation to his followers.
Bazavan insured feminine awareness on the car’s most helpful safety features.
They already introduced the new car, satisfying the curiosity and describing
the product benefits.
The involvement increased the campaign exposure, product awareness and
test drive submissions, results that we can during the prelaunch and launch
period.
Social Media Potential Reach estimation based on an algorithm which includes
shares, likes, clicks on Facebook, bloger's impact in blogosphere, RT on Twitter
and number of followers.
Prelaunch and launch activities of the 4 endorsers and social media campaign
had an estimated reach of 3.560.026 persons
New FORD FOCUS
39. Ford Focus Results – national caravan impact
The caravan was implemented in 8 cities (Constanta, Iasi, Brasov,
Bucuresti – 2 times, Craiova, Timisoara, Cluj) during 4 weeks.
The tunnel exposed the message to more than 18.000 persons that
were exposed to the message and invitation to discover the Auto
Technologies.
The tunnel brought the Focus technologies closer to the audience
and generated brand awareness and interest to discover the new
Focus.
The 8 caravan activations generated 3457 test drive registrations.
- 3457 test drive registrations
- 16.000 flyers (all distributed)
- 18.000 persons discover the technologies presented in the tunnel
New FORD FOCUS
40. Ford Focus Results – overall campaign
The site’s name had a high awareness and generated 90,154 Unique Visitors in 1
month and half.
The Endorser’s pages have interesting compelling content about the car attributes
and benefits: the wider the endorser’s target- the wider the exposure.
Earned media (endorsers, social media etc) and owned media sell well our site,
with 66.44% of the overall traffic.
Direct traffic accounting for 25.27% of the overall figures indicates the strong and
memorable message sent to the target audience.
45,000 visitors have spent more than one minute and a half on the site, proof of the
consistent, interesting content.
The pre-launch campaign opened the target interest for the new Focus. We can
see the results – the test drive registrations and contest registrations grow after the
pre-launch campaign.
More than 5 famous Romanian bloggers (top 10 bloggers) were interested to drive
the new Focus and asked for the car.
Social media environment and the blogosphere talked about the new Focus for
more than a month.
The estimated reach in social media is 3.560.026 persons. These people were
exposed to the message from online and offline activities during the whole
campaign.
New FORD FOCUS
41. Fur further details please contact:
Cristina Irod
Wunderman Bucharest
Group Account Director
t: 40 21 212 32 28 f: 40 21 210 66 30
m: +40 754 021 621
cristina.irod@wunderman.com
Thank
You!
New FORD FOCUS