3 Automotive Brands Whose Twitter Campaigns Hit the Bull’s Eye

The global automotive industry had been on a decline ever since the rise of COVID-19 and a 15% shrinkage in global automotive sales during March-April 2020 weakened the industry further. However, to everyone’s delight, the automotive sector is showing signs of strong recovery.

Trends like electric vehicles, mobility services, and autonomous driving will further fuel the market and lead to an overall recovery in the coming days. The global automotive industry is expected to hit almost $9 trillion by 2030. With the fog of the economic downturn finally subsiding, it’s high time for car manufacturing brands to get their marketing game right to convert potential customers.

As challenging as that may sound, it can be done if brands understand what their customers want from them, just like these three brands who knew how to leverage the power of Twitter.

1. Uber

At a time when various communities were struggling with COVID-19 challenges, Uber positioned itself as a champion of CSR and urged other brands to showcase their commitment to CSR too.

Their Objective

Uber wanted to portray itself as a brand that was conscious of the hardships being faced by people and showcase itself as a company that would stand with them during rough times.

Approach & Solution

Uber committed 10M free rides and food deliveries to help people who were most impacted by the crisis. The brand joined forces with restaurants, hospitals, and food banks to #MoveWhatMatters, delivering food and rides for people in need.

Also, Uber encouraged people to stay home to slow the spread of the virus. Its campaign #MoveWhatMatters struck a chord within local communities and played a big part in convincing people to stay home. The appeal came from Uber’s top management as the brand enlisted its CEO, Dara Khosrowshahi, to get the word out about #MoveWhatMatters before the launch of the campaign.

On the day of the campaign launch, Uber used a Twitter Takeover for maximum impact. The brand shared a Video Website Card using First View- a 15-second video that didn’t move. The static video was a unique way of capturing people’s attention to deliver the message.

The Result

#MoveWhatMatters turned out to be more successful than many of Uber’s past campaigns and was viewed at a higher rate. Apart from delivering 10M free rides and generating overall positive sentiment and press, the #MoveWhatMatters campaign also registered 42% higher impressions. The campaign also witnessed a 33% increase in positive sentiment.

2. Audi

Audi was about to launch e-tron SUV, its first-ever fully-electric model and it needed an exciting and innovative marketing plan to drive awareness about its latest vehicle.

Their Objective

Audi wanted to create a buzz around their new vehicle and keep consumers talking about the e-tron SUV and reinforce their messaging by aligning themselves with the biggest events from sports and pop culture.

Approach & Solution

Audi collaborated with media agency PHD and worked with Twitter to create a unique marketing campaign. Starting from September 2018, Audi launched multiple campaigns using various Twitter products to create excitement around the e-tron SUV.

To create the hype of the introduction of a new product to the market, Audi kicked off the campaign using a Promoted Tweet featuring high-impact video teasing an upcoming live stream where consumers could find additional information.

Audi previewed the e-tron SUV using Periscope on Audi’s Twitter handle to invite people on Twitter to witness its debut in a world premiere industry event. Audi ultimately announced its arrival in the US market with Promoted Video showcasing the capabilities of its fully-electric car when the e-tron SUV was finally launched.

Audi further bolstered its brand relevance by using Twitter to link the e-tron SUV to the movie, Avengers: Endgame. The automaker also sponsored the movie’s red carpet premiere and used Promoted Video featuring “Avengers” Endgame” content. Audi also began joining conversations related to Avengers: Endgame on Twitter during moments that mattered the most to its customers.

The Result

The launch was a massive success as the live-streamed debut event received more than 1.8 million views. During the big game, Audi won the Auto Category for Twitter’s #BrandBowl and received the highest number of video views on Twitter during the event.

3. KIA

KIA Motors was the Platinum sponsor of Copa America 2015 and therefore, wanted to become involved in the conversations that were happening around the event.

Their Objective

As the Platinum sponsor of the event, KIA saw Copa America as a golden opportunity and sought to boost its brand recognition among its Latin American audience.

Approach & Solution

KIA Motors joined hands with ESPN to create and share relevant content that would go viral instantly. KIA Motors sponsored ESPN’s best Cop Americamoments using Twitter Amplify to boost its brand awareness during the tournament. @SportsCenter_NT and @SC_ESPN tweeted exclusive post-match highlights that included a @Kia_Motors branded pre-roll and mentioned the brand’s country-specific usernames. The hashtag #KiaPassion featured consistently in the brand’s Promoted Tweets and was used as a Promoted Trend in a few matches.

KIA Motor’s partnership with ESPN led its username and campaign hashtag to be included in a Twitter Amplify campaign the featured post-match highlights from @Sportscenter_NT and@SC_ESPN. This allowed KIA Motors to leverage a large regional audience and boost awareness.

KIA Motors also made the most of the event’s regional nature through its individual country usernames. The automaker used Twitter Amplify to geotarget Promoted Tweets from @Sportscenter_NT and@SC_ESPN based on content relevant to each country. Also, KIA Motors shared video content of every game’s highlights along with a pre-roll that showed fans from across the region supporting their teams. These short-form ads highlighted the passion around the event and aligned this emotion with the KIA Motors in the region.

The Result

KIA Motors’ Twitter campaign that ran for almost a month generated 26.3 million impressions with an average view rate of 4.42%. Also, the average cost per view was $0.09. Also, the brand mentions saw an increase of 279% to hit 55,000 mentions.

Kia’s brand perception improved drastically , especially in Chile, where it soared by 65%. The engagement rate for the Brazil vs. Columbia game was 6.5% while the Chile vs. Peru game enjoyed a view rate of 21.9%.

Wrapping Up

Social media platforms today have become the best mediums for driving brand promotion and awareness and Twitter is a certainly a front-runner. Through its various features like Audience Targeting and Creative Canvas, Twitter lets the brand communicate directly with the audience they want and connects with them in unique and creative ways. All you need is a solid marketing plan and a fun and creative way to use these features.