On Demand Webinar - Why You Can't Ignore Social Marketing: Lessons Learned from the Auto Industry

Featuring Scott Monty, Sylvia Marino, and Christopher Barger

These are tumultuous times for the auto industry - dealers and suppliers are closing up shop, vehicle production is being cut, entire product lines are being eliminated, and public scrutiny is at an all time high. With consumer demand rapidly falling, automakers are facing their worst sales figures in decades and cuts in ad spend are projected to decline by 15% this year. Rather than throw up their hands in hopelessness, innovators like Ford and GM are tapping into the power of "social" to deepen conversations with their customers, increase loyalty, and improve overall customer retention.

Listen in as Scott Monty of Ford, Sylvia Marino of Edmunds.com, and Christopher Barger of GM on Monday discuss the impact social marketing has had on their respective companies and share lessons learned that you can apply to your business.

About our Panelists:

Scott Monty, Global Digital & Multimedia Communications Manager - Ford Motor Company
Scott is a marketing and communications professional focused on the digital industry – specifically on social media. His career spans a number of industries such as healthcare, pharma, biotech, travel, automotive, tech, and communications, and includes a wide range of clients, from start-ups to Fortune 500 companies. Scott is currently the head of social media for Ford Motor Company, where he is a strategic advisor on all social media activities across the company. Scott is an active blogger and podcaster and writes about issues relevant to the intersection of advertising, marketing, and PR at The Social Media Marketing Blog.

Sylvia Marino, Executive Director of Community Operations & Social Media - Edmunds.com Inc.
Sylvia oversees all aspects of community strategy and operations including tools and implementation; member management and business operations with respect to ser-generated content efforts around the Edmunds.com brand. She has been active in building online communities and systems for businesses since 1996.

Christopher Barger, Director, Global Communications Technology - General Motors
Christopher leads all social media communications efforts for General Motors and is responsible for getting the communications strategy in the social media that make up "Web 2.0" (blogs, microblogging, podcasting, user-generated content, social networks, and others). His team coordinates and counsels authors for GM's corporate blogs, builds and manages GM's relationships with influential voices from across the social media landscape, and develops new social media resources for GM content and information.