If you've been alive the past two months (which, you have, if you're reading this--also, if you've only been alive two months but you're reading this, congratulations, you're the smartest baby in the world)  I guarantee you've seen at least one ad in Kia's New Sorento campaign--the damn thing spans magazines, television, social media, online, and includes a "The Official Mid-Size Sport Utility Vehicle of the NBA" sponsorship--even as sponsorships continue to become more ridiculous in their specificity like, "ULINE: The Official Contractor-Grade Staple Gun of the WNBA".  Seriously, how many other staple gun manufacturers were clamoring for that distinction?  [Answer: they weren't, I made that up.]

As far as the social media component of the (I'm assuming) successful--and I forgot to add earlier, giant-toy-themed--Sorento campaign is concerned, Kia has a Sorento-specific Facebook Fan Page (of which, as a Sorento owner myself, I am a fan...  alright, who cares if I own the '04 model? I can still like the new one--especially its gas mileage, which infuriated me when it was first posted: 26 mpg. My '04 seriously gets fifteen. Fifteen. Miles. Per. Gallon. 15 MPG!  I didn't realize when I bought it that it came with an invisible 22-foot trailer) as well as a Sorento-specific Tweets via Kia's Twitter feed.  These two mediums are great, but I first discovered the new Kia via TV and later Wired Magazine.  It wasn't until I saw these and then the Facebook page that I became a Fan.

So how effective would their product launch marketing have been if Kia had decided to forgo the traditional mediums--and even *GASP!*, a major car show like the Detroit Auto Show--and rely solely on the Facebook marketing?  You'd think not as much. Who would ever gamble on that kind of strategy, though?  Interestingly enough, our own Ford Motor Company.  As Marketing VOX recently reported, Ford plans to roll out the new Explorer--yeah, you know, like the most famous SUV of all time--on just Facebook alone.


That's correct, one of America's largest and most storied corporations--a pillar in our nation's industry--is fully embracing the power of social media to market one of their flagship products.  Many (presumably, large traditional media-buying agencies) are questioning the decision, especially considering Ford isn't even going to announce the new Explorer at any auto shows. If you ask me, this is exactly why Ford is head-and-shoulders above GM and Chrysler (who?) in the domestic car-manufacturing race:

They're religious about collecting customer feedback, they experiment with alternative mediums (see: Fiesta Movement), they embrace unique designs and, in doing so, they connect with buyers, especially younger ones, on many levels.  And it's those younger buyers that will be the key to their continued success.  Ford should be lauded for this new Facebook strategy. Why? You mean besides the fact that they're a [serious] multi-billion-dollar corporation not afraid to take risks on unproven social media retail marketing tactics? Because it will probably work for them.  And if it works for them (Ford of all companies!), expect others to follow suit.

{Insert clever conclusion here}

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