Yesterday’s Forbes has an interesting article on how Toyota and VW are using social media to encourage car owners to share positive experiences about their brand. In addition to national traditional commercials, Volkswagen has started the Why VW campaign which includes a www.whyvw.com microsite on the greater VW website and a Facebook page containing the most “compelling” stories and experiences of VW drivers.
“Year after year, we receive countless stories from VW owners that sum up the unique passion people have for the brand, but we haven’t had a great way to curate or share them until now,” said VW’s Kevin Mayer, vice president of marketing, to Forbes. “The Why VW campaign provides a new creative outlet for our owners and fans to share their individual Volkswagen stories with the world, and allows us to engage with them in a more meaningful way.”
As for Toyota, the Japanese automaker is specifically reaching out to Camry drivers with the “Camry Effect” campaign which “marries” the social media site launched one year ago with a more traditional television ad campaign. The Camry Effect site includes tips such as “there are enough Camrys to fill more than 230 Disneyland Resort parking lots, that 7 out of 10 non-owners have ridden in a Camry and that 39% of Camry owners carpool”, according to the Forbes piece.
Through these campaigns, Toyota is looking to reach a younger fan base while Volkswagen, which has already captured a young demographic, is targeting a broader base of customers.
