We successfully helped Volvo become part of the design conversation online using new kinds of visual social media platforms. We created an innovative Pinterest contest that leveraged existing uses of the platform and asked users to create pin-boards of their ideal road trip. They were able to pick everything from their destination, their outfit, roadside stops, the music playlist, and of course, a Volvo vehicle. While most auto marketing involves sleek cars making turns on curvy mountain roads, Volvo took a different track (ahem, tack). They wanted to focus on the design of the car – not just on the road but on today’s most-hyped visual social media platform, Pinterest. Our challenge was to become a part of the design conversation and, as an innovator and leader in the social space, Volvo knew that to attract fans their outreach had to be a natural extension of the Pinterest platform. Our strategy was three-fold: 1. Leverage Existing Use of the Pinterest Platform We created a “Wish List" (a widely popular usage of the platform) of Pinterest users’ ideal Road Trip. Called “Volvo Joyride", users were able to pin their entire road trip experience, including their final destination, their outfit, the music playlist, the car (a Volvo, of course) and the stops they’d take along the way. 2. Organic Promotion Through Partnership with Influencer As a way to organically launch the promotion, we partnered with influential Pinterest user Victoria Smith (who has more than 450,000 Pinterest followers) to participate in the promotion prior to launching it to the general public. Victoria created her own Volvo Joyride Pinterest Wish List to inspire her followers and others to enter the contest. We then surprised her by making her dream trip from San Francisco to Lake Tahoe come true! We followed her on her road trip, capturing video in which Victoria told users how to enter the contest and encouraged them to enter to win their own trip. 3. Work with Media Partners to Promote Campaign Finally, we worked with our media partner, Havas Media, to identify and leverage existing media partnerships for promoting Volvo Joyride. In addition, we worked with My Modern Met (a Federated Media blog) and Mashable to craft articles about our promotion. The results zoomed in! The promotion really revved up Volvo’s Pinterest love. The brand’s Pinterest page grew from 155 to 1,033 followers in just three weeks, making them the most followed luxury car brand in the U.S. on Pinterest. Volvo now has more than 1,500 followers! We received more than 827 user interactions (like, comment, repin) – meaning roughly 80% of our followers interacted with our board, even though the promotion did not require it. We crossed the finish line with earned media coverage in more than 20 blogs/online publications, equaling over 66 million impressions.
Pinboard Link: http://pinterest.com/volvocarsus/volvo-joyride Promotional Video: http://www.youtube.com/embed/f0Gb9BsbP1I?list=UUm5fiZ57ufkcZJE9tkUDvHA Mashable Video: http://www.youtube.com/embed/2KOF5WTHwwE?list=UUm5fiZ57ufkcZJE9tkUDvHA
