Honda Wins the 2015 Word of Mouth Marketing Association (WOMMA) Driving Engagement Award For Its Viral Fit Kit Campaign
The Chicago Auto Show and Word of Mouth Marketing Association (WOMMA) presented Honda with the third annual “Driving Engagement” award for most innovative social media campaign of 2014 during the 2015 Chicago Auto Show Social Media Preview.
Honda’s social media campaign titled “April Fools’ Fit Kit” aimed to poke fun at the maker community surrounding April Fools’ Day by creating the Fit Kit, the first DIY vehicle you can build at home.
“We're proud of our fun and effective #FitKit effort and ecstatic that it received WOMMA's 2015 ‘Driving Engagement’ award for best social media campaign of the year,” said Alicia Jones, manager of Honda & Acura social marketing American Honda Motor Co., Inc. “While everyone was embracing the maker community, we thought we’d poke fun at them on April Fools’ Day and at the same time generate awareness and interest in the all-new 2015 Fit.”
“So, we created Fit Kit, the first DIY vehicle you can build at home. I think what really made it work – and shareable – was that we told the story with just enough believability to make it seem real; we even created a #FitKit home for it on our website for added authenticity,” said Jones.
This event is the culmination of a month-long review and judging process where a select panel of WOMMA judges sifted through each automaker’s submission to determine which brands executed the most innovative social media campaign of 2014.
“Kudos to Honda for having so much fun with their core fans,” said Suzanne Fanning, president of Word of Mouth Marketing Association. “Only the closest relationships can withstand this type of teasing. The result was super shareable.”
WOMMA selected three automotive manufacturers as finalists for the Driving Engagement awards: Nissan and Chevrolet were the runners-up. Nissan submitted its “Nissan Purchases '96 Maxima from Craigslist Ad” campaign. Aimed to respond to a hilarious Craigslist ad for a well-worn 1996 Maxima through social listening, Nissan made an offer to the owner, and then fully restored the vehicle based on fan voting on MotorAuthority.com. Chevrolet entered its “#TechnologyAndStuff” campaign to turn the social media conversations in its favor when a Chevrolet representative froze on-air after the World Series. The company fought embracing the hashtag #TechnologyAndStuff with a top-down program.
“Social is about understanding your fans and knowing who they are, where they are and why they’re your fans,” said Fanning. “It’s about building a relationship and getting fans to share information for you.”
For more information about the Chicago Auto Show, please visit www.chicagoautoshow.com.
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