While I often talk about “basics”, that’s simply because many dealers are still not reaping the benefits of video marketing. But let’s say your dealership is doing video marketing. Perhaps you’ve made a commitment to conduct live video walkarounds for every vehicle. Maybe you’re engaging your customers via personal video e-mail. And perhaps it’s working well. Most people would advise a marketer that is having success to follow the old saying “If it isn’t broken, don’t fix it.” Well, sometimes that may not be the right answer.

 

Consider the “Red Bull” brand. They are widely known for producing some of the most successful viral video marketing pieces ever – including setting a record for the most live concurrent video views, with 9.5 million users watching their space diving video. The brand focused on creating video content that illustrated daring and astonishing feats of athleticism. As a result, it earned the respect and attention of many major brands across the country. But then… they changed their strategy. And everyone gasped.

 

Why would any company change a video marketing strategy that is considered (and measured) as the bar to achieve? Why change something that is working so well?

 

We may never know why Red Bull decided to change their strategy away from big time, exciting event videos that consistently went viral. What we do know is what they changed it to: Consistency.

 

Red Bull decided that producing regular, consistent video content (more quantity) would pay off over producing less video content -- even if the videos as a group are not as “epic.” And what did this achieve? In the last year, Red Bull has created 639 videos that each have more than a million views, with a combined total of 1.7 BILLION views, and almost 33 million engagements.

 

While each individual video itself gets less engagement than one of the EPIC videos, overall the brand is achieving more views and engagement at less expense. Red Bull’s gamble on a consistent stream of video content, over occasional highly produced epic videos payed off.

 

What does that mean for your dealership?

 

Creating consistent content – walkaround videos, creative commercials, etc. – will absolutely engage consumers. But it’s not all about following some straight line on the road to your destination. Creativity will pay dividends – it’s a matter of regular content but also doing something to catch attention and set you dealership apart from the competition.


Take a step off the line and be a little adventurous.

 

Take for example a dealership in Minnesota, White Bear Mitsubishi. They adopted a white bear as their mascot and have created countless commercials and content including a person dressed in a giant white bear outfit. (If you’ve never seen them, they’re great!) But it isn’t the commercial that shot them to stardom, it is the OUTTAKES from the commercial. On their Facebook page alone, these commercial outtakes have had 6.9 million views, over 35,000 likes and over 100,000 shares!

 

It’s also been syndicated, made into memes and featured on television news reports! Did they expect this kind of exposure by simply posting some silly outtakes from a commercial they did to support their local hockey team? No!

 

The point is that they continued to produce content. They stepped outside the box. And because of that, the world is now talking about them. Had they never tried, they’d never have succeeded.

 

Wouldn’t you like to have those kind of results and exposure for your dealership? The only way that’s ever going to happen is to go out and start making video – and never stop.

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Comment by steven chessin on February 2, 2017 at 7:10pm

Tim --- Red Bull's enormous long-term corporate video advertising strategy is both "epic events" and consistent. It is video and more video.Video is a media gun. Any gun can kill someone. From a single-shot '22' mini-derringer. 

 

.....  to a battleship's 9 sixteen-inch "rifles" firing 40,000 pounds of shells in one  salvo. Still ,,,, a gun is a gun and a video is video. 

Elise Kephart has maintained for many years that video is THE primary sales communication & presentation tool.  When used properly the rep or sales  person will be the  leader.

She proved it worked without support from management but at least tolerance  --- and I proved it and was FIRED for it !  They called it "unfair".  Hell yes !  I'd bring that derringer to a knife fight any day ! 

What needs to happen ---  is a PARADIGM-SHIFT  --- starting with some BDC reps /  internet sales people that would communicate mostly with video and phone -- light texting -- little email. The real problem isn't a marketing or advertising issue, it is the obsolete sales communication structure.  And no .... a few doing it this way is not going to change the world  --- but  --- when they make twice as many sales and appointments as their peers the revolution will have the momentum it needs. There are several vendors FINALLY stepping-up to make this happen --- or --- at least to make the tech tools available  ---  but that isn't enough. At some point there will need to be trainers --- and lots of hand-on sessions.  Or maybe that future is finally here now.    

      

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