June 26th, 2012Comments (0)

Do You Have Klout? How Chevrolet Engaged New Online Influencers by Dawn McKenzie

Brands have been trying to reach the influencers for years.  It is no secret that when someone has an experience with a brand, whether or not it is positive or negative, they often share their experiences, opinions and recommendations with their online and offline networks. Considering that 90 percent of consumers trust peer recommendations while 33 percent trust ads, the tonality of these conversations affect brand consideration, loyalty and sales now more than ever. As a result, we’re finding that more and more companies are concerned about engaging influencers rather than dedicating resources to traditional media outreach and advertising campaigns. When 6.2 percent of social media participants produce 80 percent of influencer impressions, how can brand managers strategically reach those who are most influential among their target audience?

The MSL Chicago team decided to use a new approach to reach target consumers when Chevrolet launched its new small car, the Sonic. We leveraged Klout, a company that measures an individual’s influence online, to provide millennial social media influencers the unique chance to get behind the wheel of the Chevy Sonic during three-day loans.

The program not only generated significant online buzz and thousands of pieces of content and millions of online impressions, it increased awareness, created authentic conversations, provided opportunities to engage with untapped influencers, developed new brand advocates and increased opinion, consideration and purchase intention during the five-week program. The campaign earned the team a PRSA Bronze Anvil in addition to other prestigious industry awards. Take a look at this video case study for more results from this ground-breaking program.

When engaging new influencers, a strategic approach, specialized counsel, real-time engagement and behind-the-scenes management, monitoring and follow-up is essential. You may find that when done right, influencer engagement will benefit your brand well into the future.

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