Nissan Debuts Instagram Channel
The Japanese carmaker launched its Instagram channel at the 2013 New York Auto Show - one year after it launched its Pinterest page at the 2012 show.
Japanese automaker Nissan launched its first official Instagram channel at the New York International Auto Show last week.
And, as of Monday, Nissan has 279 followers on the network.
Photos from the Auto Show were tagged with #NissanNYIAS. Nissan says it will continue to use Instagram to engage fans and provide access to products and events.
Erich Marx, director of interactive and social media marketing for Nissan North America, says that since Instagram is a photo-based space, it will be used to introduce new vehicles and build brand awareness, including sneak peeks and perhaps even a few concept cars.
“We’re a car brand. People follow us because people love to see our cars – particularly our cars and performance-based content,” Marx says.
And because Nissan knows its audience loves sports cars in particular, Marx says to expect images of the GT-R, 370Z, and the original 240Z that came out in the 1970s.
“When we post that content, engagement spikes in a big way,” Marx says. “You have to give people what they want and they want cool cars and sports cars.”
Nissan launched its Pinterest page one year ago at the 2012 Auto Show. That page has a definite female focus and includes more design- than performance-based content, Marx says. That includes artistic shots and images that focus on the “cool styling” of Nissan cars.
“We know through research that what women like in a vehicle is different from what men like,” Marx says. “Women don’t focus on performance as much as design and utility. They’re a bit more rational in terms of what they’re looking for, so we focus our Pinterest content more along the lines of style, design, and rational content and in Instagram on more performance-based content.”
Nissan has about 1,300 followers on Pinterest.
On March 22, Nissan also announced a collaboration with YouTube to create a channel known as Nismo.TV that will focus on Nissan Motorsports.
Nismo.TV will target more of a global audience and include performance and race footage, as well as features and behind-the-scenes content, such as getting to know drivers and seeing what happens in the pit, Marx says.
“It’s access to information you might not get in mainstream media – that’s where there’s an opportunity to engage and attract an audience,” Marx says.
Nissan North America has a separate YouTube channel with 12,000 subscribers.
In addition, Nissan has 5.7 million Facebook fans and @NissanUSA has 101,000 followers.
