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Stop worrying about likes, comments and shares, says Facebook ANZ’s head of automotive

Facebook ANZ’s head of automotive told marketers auto brands should stop worrying about “likes and comments and shares” and instead should focus on their bottom line.

During a panel at Mumbrella’s Automotive Marketing Summit yesterday, Ted Bergeron said: “Facebook and Instagram – it’s a channel. It’s not social. When you talk about likes and comments and shares, that’s wrong. We want to talk about how many cars did you sell? How many leads did you get? How many eyeballs did you get?”

“If you have 15 million people on the platform every month, 12 million every day, on this device: it’s broadcast. There’s no difference to how we used to describe TV, out of home and print,” he added.

Also speaking on the panel was Miguel Garcia, Kontented’s head of strategy and client services; Liz Martin, marketing manager at Col Crawford Lifestyle Cars and Scott Bradley, Rotor Studios’ director and managing partner.

The panel also discussed the rise of influencers, and the important role they play in content marketing for the auto industry.

Bergeron said: “Use influencers, because they’re really good storytellers. Use influencers that align to what your core proposition as a brand should stand for, because at the end of the day they’re going to tell that story in a really authentic way.

“What you don’t use influencers for is scale. Use them to tell great stories around your brands, give them the cars or give them access to your sponsorship properties … use that content and get the eyeballs.”

Session moderator Alexandra Tselios admitted: “According to my Instagram feed, everyone’s a life coach who owns a Bentley.”

Kontented’s Garcia added: “The freedom that cars once gave people years ago in the ’50s and ’60s when that was your kind of independence when you reached a certain age, they’re finding that freedom in their phones. So I think for the automotive industry, it’s how do we offer that same freedom and be where they are … we try and bridge that gap.”

“Influencers in the traditional sense need to be relevant and give a genuine demonstration because they’re seen a third party, whether they’re paid or not. There’s an endorsement there, and from where we sit we look at influence on the category coming from other places.”

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