General Motors Company (GM): How Ford Motor Company (F)’s Attracting a Disappearing Consumer

When the Millennials do get ready to make a purchase, it takes a unique advertising style to cut through all the digital noise and bring them into the showroom. With a social media strategy to do just that, Ford Motor Company (NYSE:F) is now a step ahead of its competitors.

Fiesta campaign
Ford Motor Company (NYSE:F)’s first Fiesta campaign in 2009 was both groundbreaking and critically acclaimed. The campaign provided Fiesta vehicles to selected consumers, and paid for gas, insurance and other necessities for 100 agents in social-media blogs and other mediums to create original first-person content that Ford used in advertising. The videos, articles and other content were used during sporting events, on TV, at music festivals, as well as on media sites themselves.

Ford went back to that strategy for the 2014 Fiesta, producing the first ever completely user-created advertising campaign – a night-and-day difference from standard automotive advertising strategies.

“Consumers — Millennials in particular — like being a part of the brands they feel represent them,” said Keith Koeppen, Ford advertising and media manager. “… This demographic is accustomed to creating content about their lives, so it just makes sense to give their creativity a bigger platform with greater scale.”

According to Polk retail data, Ford Motor Company (NYSE:F) has grown its retail share of the millennial market faster than any other automotive brand since 2009. Ford’s 80% growth from the first half of 2009 to the first half of this year blows away the 35% industry average. That pace would soon make Ford the No. 1 choice for younger buyers.

What makes this even more powerful for Ford is that it currently ranks No. 1 in auto brand loyalty, meaning these new and younger customers could be lifelong buyers for the Dearborn automaker.

Graph by author. Information credit: R.L. Polk & Co.

Bottom line
Much like the difference between generations, the world is changing at an increasingly rapid pace. Companies like Ford that can adapt to trends their competitors overlook will continue to thrive. Ford’s management is proving very capable at attracting a generation that’s driving less often, while still focusing on growth in emerging markets. Both efforts should keep Ford a valuable investment for the long-term investor.

The article How Ford’s Attracting a Disappearing Consumer originally appeared on Fool.com and is written by Daniel Miller.

Fool contributor Daniel Miller owns shares of Ford and General Motors. The Motley Fool recommends Ford and General Motors. The Motley Fool owns shares of Ford.

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