For anyone who doubts the effectiveness of social media to share information and opinions, consider results from Ford’s nontraditional approach with the Fiesta Movement initiative. Using a fraction of a typical marketing and advertising budget, Ford relied on social media to drive the buzz about the new Ford Fiesta, generating awareness for the small car to levels equivalent to models that have been in the market for two to three years.

The Fiesta Movement and test-drive program resulted in more than 50,000 handraisers, or people who asked to receive more information about the car. And 97 percent of those handraisers currently do not drive a Ford!

“We didn’t break the bank. We didn’t use traditional media. We tried something different, and it is working,” said Connie Fontaine, Ford Brand and Content Alliances manager. “We’re delighted with how Fiesta is gaining traction with consumers. It’s a whole new way of introducing a car to market.”

The Fiesta Movement promotes Ford’s new small car through 100 socially vibrant “agents” who have been driving Euro-spec Fiestas and taking part in monthly themed “missions” such as volunteerism, adventure, and style and design. After each mission, the agents relate their experiences through their social media outlets.

Social networking sites allow Ford to meet consumers it might not connect with through traditional advertising, making it easier to open dialogue with a whole new set of consumers. The Fiesta Movement also realizes that people trust people like themselves and that everyone has a car story.

Agents are taking advantage of their time in Ford Fiestas, accumulating more than 1 million miles total. And their Fiesta Movement-related content is gaining huge traction on the Internet, with:

• More than 4.3 million YouTube views
• More than 540,000 Flickr views
• More than 3 million Twitter impressions

Through the accompanying nationwide test-drive program, more than 162,000 customers have interacted with the Fiesta through walk-arounds and social interactions, and 35,000 have taken a test-drive.

Fiesta Movement agents are also providing key product insights to Ford. Exterior styling, driving dynamics and unique color offerings top the list of their favorite attributes.

You can follow the Fiesta Movement at http://www.fiestamovement.com/. You can also see the content the agents generate on the following social media sites:

YouTube: www.youtube.com/fiestamovement
Flickr: www.flickr.com/photos/fiestamovement
Facebook: www.facebook.com/fiestamovement
Twitter: www.twitter.com/fordfiesta