As the White House is poised to reach a deal this week with Congress to bail out the Big Three auto makers for $15 billion in taxpayer-funded relief, the Big Three is taking its message to the masses via the web and social networking.
Ford, GM, and Chrysler have all launched lobbying efforts-slash-marketing campaigns on a number of popular internet sites, including Google, Yahoo, YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, and a number of related blogs. Their message? The media isn’t giving us a fair shake—and here’s the real deal.
According to the Wall Street Journal last week, Ford went into “crisis communications” mode in early December, launching a multi-pronged digital strategy that aims to differentiate itself from GM and Chrysler. The centerpiece of its strategy is a new site called TheFordStory.com, which touts Ford’s business plan going forward, and offers the public various ways the American public can gauge its progress in achieving its long-term business goals. As part of launching the site, Ford bought Internet search ads that appear when web surfers search for the terms “auto bailout,” “Ford bailout,” “9 billion loan”, and “cash flow.” Ford also posted several videos on YouTube, and bought display ads on new web sites as part of its “Myth Busters” campaign. The Wall Street Journal reports that Ford has enlisted staffers to respond to blog postings and Twitter messages.
Not to be outdone, Chrysler launched a virtual road show to pitch its business plan to the public. GM, meanwhile, purchased search ads for terms about the auto bailout, the United Auto Workers, and the economy, while posting videos of their own on YouTube, and buying ads on third-party web sites where Google sells ad space. GM’s goal is to drive traffic to GMFactsandFiction.com, which it launched in November to reach out to employees, suppliers, media buyers, and others.
According to the Boston Globe, if lawmakers in Washington hope to get a vote on the bailout by Tuesday, they need to provide legislative language to the White House. The White House is currently trying to bolster bipartisan effort on the proposed bailout in order to get a deal done as soon as possible.