Shamefully, I neglected to write such a blog post at that time.
However, many months later, General Motors (or Chevrolet, anyway) is making some marketing moves that give me some hope for the company: Chevy is one of the sponsors for the South by Southwest (SXSW) Festival in Austin, Texas, March 12-21, 2010.
SXSW is an annual pilgrimage for many in the music, film, and interactive media industries. The conference showcases the top talent and thought-leaders from each of these industries (the music side alone features nearly 2,000 musical acts), not to mention that it aggregates nearly 200,000 creative, innovative, artistic, tech-savvy, and entrepreneurial attendees into one city.
Chevrolet is using SXSW as an opportunity to test some new interactive and social media marketing initiatives:
- Gowalla couponing - When smartphone users check in via Gowalla at any of several locations in Austin during the conference, they will receive text messages with free offers from Chevrolet and SXSW. One such offer: a ride from the airport to downtown in (what else?) a new Chevrolet.
- QR & iReveal augmented reality - Chevy will be placing Quick Response (QR) codes on its vehicles that are on display at SXSW. When visitors photograph a QR code using their smartphones, a microsite opens that provides more information about the vehicle. Plus, a mobile application called Chevy iReveal allows users to view 3-D models of several Chevy vehicles.
- "Chevrolet Volt Recharge Lounge" - Chevy provides a "charging station" for SXSW attendees near the northwest entrance to the Austin Convention Center. At the Lounge, visitors can recharge their electronic devices, grab a drink, receive a massage, and check out the 2011 Chevy Volt.
- "Catch a Chevy" - SXSW visitors can ride through the city of Austin in style, by hopping a ride on complimentary shuttles between several SXSW locations - in one of 14 Chevy vehicles, of course.
- "See the USA in a Chevrolet: A SXSW Road Trip" - teams from eight U.S. cities participate in an "Amazing Race"-style road-trip/scavenger-hunt to get to SXSW. Along the way, each team must complete 50 different "challenges" (all submitted by Chevy Twitter followers and Facebook fans). The winning team will be the one that completes the most challenges and interacts the most with their Twitter and other web communities.
Chevrolet seems to be putting forth a good effort to provide a fun experience for SXSW attendees and online participants. And, as Christopher Barger (GM's director of global communications and technology) was quoted in MediaPost's Marketing Daily, Chevy also hopes to use this opportunity to learn from the brilliant and connected visitors to the conference.
Of course, successfully [re-]building a brand requires more than an outstanding social media effort. The promotion that Chevrolet is doing at SXSW is just part of one of the "4P's" of marketing. The others - product, price, place - are just as important for creating what Barger calls "a better experience" for customers. Chevy needs to invest just as much - if not more - time in creating remarkable vehicles for their customers, as they do in creating a fun interactive marketing campaign.
Brands do not live by social media alone. But if Chevy can put the same amount of effort, service, and ingenuity into its products as it does into this promotion, I have reason to believe that this brand, indeed, will live.
Hi Haley - thanks for your post. I know I'm going to sound like a PR guy (and I'm sorry in advance for that!), but I think if you had the chance to drive a Chevrolet recently (or in the near future), you'd find that we have in fact put even more effort & ingenuity into our products than our social programs, and that we have in fact created some "remarkable vehicles" lately. I'd be happy to arrange that chance! :-)
ReplyDeleteMore importantly, though, I agree with you. The best social program in the world can't save or help a bad product or a company that doesn't get customer service right. So many times we see companies looking to social as a panacea for all their market and business problems... it's not. It's a way to learn from customers what they want from you & your products; it's a way to make people more aware of what you do have and what you've done; it's a way to strengthen brand loyalty among your supporters and build affinity where none's existed. But it can't make your stuff better if it's not good.
Anyway, thanks for the comments - and please, if I can talk with you further about anything we're doing or even (here comes the PR guy again) give you the chance to drive one of our vehicles some time soon, feel free to tweet me up at @cbarger. Thanks again!
Christopher,
ReplyDeleteThank you for commenting on my post. As a writer I am honored, and as a marketer I am impressed, with your attention to online chatter about your brand.
Coming from a large family of Chevy fans, I am delighted to hear from you about the effort and ingenuity that you are putting into your products. I have not yet had the pleasure of test-driving any of your latest vehicles; if I do get that chance, I would be delighted to share my honest opinion of my Chevy experience.
Your marketing innovation, attention to detail, and commitment to listen to the customer are outstanding. If your entire organization is filled with people as committed to excellence and customer-service as you, I have little doubt that Chevrolet vehicles are top-notch and that the company has a bright future.
Thanks again for honoring me with your feedback. Well done. Best wishes for SXSW and into the future.
@haleydd
Haley, Awesome Post! I enjoyed it a lot. Let me pose a quick question... how does all this play in with GM's obvious entanglement with the US Gov? I don't want to sound like I'm spouting some daytime talk radio nonsense... not trying to further their label of "Government Motors," etc... my question really is about how Americans are going to trust GM while they are still repaying the US Government for that bailout... which, according to today's WSJ.com, is about 60% of the company and approximately 40-45 Billion. I mean, sure it's great to see them out with wise sponsorships like you mentioned above, but isn't that sort of like a man polishing his brand new car in the drive way while his house is under threat of foreclosure? Thoughts?
ReplyDeleteHi Matt. Thanks for your question and I appreciate that you're still displeased with the events of 2009 involving my company. I respect your thoughts and ask that you consider two points:
ReplyDelete1) We're on track to repay the government on time, when we said we would. In fact, we made the first payment on the loans on December 31.
2) More importantly, I'll use your analogy for my second answer. In order to repay the government and become a private company once again, we need to sell cars. Selling cars takes, among other things, effective marketing strategies (including new efforts like social web outreach). Without marketing or advertising or PR efforts, we will not be able to make people aware of our vehicles, or even earn some business and convince people to buy our products. So in order to get the loans paid back and get GM back in private sector, we have to do things like this.
Suggesting that we shouldn't be doing things like SXSW would, in your analogy, be like saying that the homeowner whose house was about to be foreclosed is not allowed to go out and get a job because their credit is bad. So in order to make payments on the house and get back on schedule with the bank to avoid foreclosure, the person needs a job... but someone says they shouldn't be able to get a job because they're so deep in debt. Doesn't seem to make sense to me.
I don't mean to diminish your dislike of the current situation; I only mean to point out that in order to address your concern and fix the situation, we have to be able to sell cars. I'm firmly convinced that our product line stands up with anyone's out there (I couldn't do my job - which involves investing my personal brand in the health of the business brand - if I didn't believe that our products met the test). I'm firmly convinced that if we can get people to give us a look, they're going to like what they see. And I'm even firmly convinced that efforts like our SXSW program, through creating awareness and building of relationships we'll continue to pursue long after SXSW is over, will help us sell cars in the long run. Anyway, thanks for your comment and I hope this addressed your question, even if you don't like my answer. :-)
Haley - first & most importantly, please tell your family, from all of us at Chevy, that we truly appreciate and are grateful for your enthusiasm for our brand. Thank you.
Second - you give me too much credit. I just consider this part of what smart marketers/communicators try to do now. But thanks anyway (I'll be sending your comment to my bosses to make sure they stay happy with me!). ;-) I'll look forward to staying in touch.
CB
Matt, thanks for your comments. I agree with Christopher's response. I would also note that GM (among other recipients of the bailout) will need to be very diligent and respectful in earning/maintaining the trust of the people, as you say. I think that two main things will be crucial as they build that trust:
ReplyDelete(1) these companies will need to demonstrate great fiscal responsibility as they repay the U.S. government (or really, the U.S. citizens). Financial stability and adhering to an appropriate repayment schedule will be critical.
(2) these companies will need to demonstrate that they are making good use of the funds that the government (or really, the American people) invested in them. They will need to show that those dollars are being used to provide outstanding products and service - really making a difference for the customer. They can't simply maintain the status quo; they must show excellent stewardship in investing in initiatives that will better serve customers, that will provide revenues enabling them to repay the bailout money, and that will lay the foundation for a long and successful future.
And of course, as you know from our marketing classes together at ACU, marketing is about building relationships with consumers, and it begins by providing remarkable customer experiences based upon excellent products and services. And marketing promotions efforts like social media can be a great way to listen and dialogue with customers, and to build that trust which is essential for any relationship.
I think that building/maintaining the public's trust will be a process for GM and everyone else. Demonstrating responsible repayment of the bailout money and wise investment of those funds will be key in that process. These marketing efforts are, I think, a part of that investment.