With one single hashtag, Bentley stirred and steered social conversations about its new Flying Spur. In addition to being able to easily track these conversations from the brand perspective, the #NewFlyingSpur hashtag allowed others who are interested in the car to see what others are saying – creating an instant, mini-community around an interest graph and eliminating potential confusion. (Is it #FlyingSpur? #BentleyFlyingSpur? #FlyingSpurLA? Nope. It’s #NewFlyingSpur.) Establishing this up front further encourages people to share something they otherwise may not have considered doing, as it indicates there will be a community to join and something to talk about. That’s not only smart, it also makes Bentley look current to anyone who embraces social media for automotive luxury brands (and at last count, that’s quite a few folks).
Now, one might argue that the most affluent consumers may or may not be avid Tweeters (or Google+ users, Pinners, etc.). But some of them must be. And many of those aspirational individuals – the ones who determine that an out-of-reach object is one of desire – certainly are. Just like that, Bentley is reaching both strata without alienating a single customer. (After all, if you don’t know what the hashtag means, it still looks cool.)
Kudos to Bentley for putting #NewFlyingSpur on the lips and fingertips of the American buzz-building public.
~ @AdvertGirl (aka Denise Blasevick, CEO, The S3 Agency)
