Mercedes-Benz is the most popular and successful automobile brand on the social web. On Facebook alone, the Stuttgart-based premium brand has gained the most fans amongst all automobile brands, with more than 3.2 million new users last year. Moreover, with around 22 million interactions, the Mercedes-Benz users were the most active automobile fans in this social network; seen from the current figures published by socialbakers.
Even in comparison with global non-automobile brands, Mercedes-Benz is in 2nd place with respect to interaction with its Facebook fans. Only the fans of Walt Disney have more Likes, Shares and Comments. A similar result emerges from the latest study by eBench. This shows that on Facebook, YouTube and Twitter, Mercedes-Benz easily shows the largest growth, the greatest interaction and the most positive assessments among premium car manufacturers. In this year, interactions on Facebook increased to three million per month. For Instagram the figure is even higher. With 4.5 million customer interactions, Mercedes-Benz was the most active Inter-brand 100 performer here in January 2014. With the new Social Cloud on the international brand website www.mercedes-benz.com, Mercedes-Benz is now expanding its presence on the social web.
“We regard this positive customer response from a wide variety of digital channels as confirmation that we are taking the right approach. We will therefore continue to expand our presence on the social web,” says Dr Jens Thiemer, Head of Marketing Communication at Mercedes-Benz Cars. “With the Social Cloud we will intensify the dialogue with our customers and give them a unique opportunity to experience Mercedes-Benz at the digital level.”
Social Cloud – digital world of experience for customers by customers
The Social Cloud is where Mercedes-Benz gathers all published material relating to the Mercedes-Benz brand, from independent sources such as blogs, Twitter, YouTube, Facebook, Google+ and Instagram, as well as from official Mercedes-Benz social media channels. The Stuttgart-based premium brand is therefore expanding its digital brand magazine www.mercedes-benz.com with an open and transparent platform. This gives customers and potential customers an inrivalled insight into the Mercedes-Benz world of experience – also from the perspective of the customers themselves. With the help of the Categories function, the news can be sorted by model series, events, topics and sources. Using the Search function, reports can be scanned for certain key terms.
The Social Cloud is a further development of the “Mercedes-Benz Social Publish” platform, which was created for bloggers and online journalists in 2012. This is where all items published about Mercedes-Benz on external websites, in blogs and in digital magazines or on Twitter are automatically collated and teasered. This makes the portal a comprehensive research source for bloggers and journalists. On the basis of experience with this platform and feedback from users, the Social Cloud has now been developed for customers and all online users interested in Mercedes-Benz.
Mercedes-Benz on the social web
For many years Mercedes-Benz has been among the most successful and active automobile brands on the internet – partly thanks to unusual measures such as the world’s largest Instagram wall during the International Motor Show (IAA), or the Mercedes-Benz Instagram Shootout. Since 2013, and with varying topics, Mercedes-Benz has made it possible for automobile photographers to photograph vehicles bearing the Mercedes star and post their images on Instagram. The photos can be assessed by all users. Another example for the successful collaboration with the digital authors: in January 2014, bloggers and other opinion-leaders participating in a five-day road trip were able to accompany the new C-Class from Tuscaloosa in Alabama, USA, to its world premiere at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit.
The extensive online and social media activities are integral part of the ‘Digital Media House’ where Mercedes-Benz editorially transposes and publishes premium brand content throughout the various digital channels. Since many years Mercedes-Benz focuses on premium branded content in the digital world as well as on the establishment as brand publisher. Apart from further development of the Social Cloud, further shootouts as well as a Mercedes-Benz Wiki, will soon be appearing.
