The following is an article by Kontera’s Executive Vice President of Marketing, Ammiel Kamon that was originally published on the iMedia Connection blog.

The online shopping process isn’t just limited to your computer anymore.

Participating in the recent JD Power Automotive Internet Roundtable in Las Vegas, the biggest trends to emerge involved the potential of mobile and tablet, along with the importance of having a strong social media plan. There’s overwhelming data that speaks not only to the growth, but to the effectiveness of these emerging platforms for automotive marketers.

In the automotive vertical, mobile advertising has risen 239% in the last year and that appears to just be the tip of the iceberg.  Here are some quick facts I came across at the conference:

• Nielsen projects that by Christmas, one in two adults will have a smart phone.
• 50% of all new cars are expected to be purchased by either iPhone or Android owners.
• According to a JD Power study presented at the conference, almost ½ of in-market shoppers use their smart phones at some point during the process of choosing a car.
• 75% of in-market car shoppers engaged with social media on their phone.

With more and more affluent, in-market shoppers utilizing mobile devices during their decision making process, there’s no question that the automotive industry need to follow, a fact just as true regarding tablets.

However, it’s important to approach tablets with a unique strategy from smartphones, as shoppers use them for different purposes. For instance, Cars.com found their mobile site utilized for inventory search and car value lookups, while more new car related activity occurs on tablets. The key difference being with larger screens and better battery time, tablets lend themselves more to in depth research.

When properly optimized, tablets are a powerful way to reach interested consumers. Eric Miltsch of Auction Direct USA, reported how visitors accessing their used car website through a tablet are already converting 25-30% better than visitors from any other platform.

Even more than mobile and tablets, perhaps the hottest topic of conversation at the conference was about social media and how to harness it. Here are some fascinating statistics relating to social media:

• During 2011, 4 out of 5 new vehicle buyers are using the Internet in their buying process; looking at on average 3.7 models online.
• According to an Autoguide.com study, when purchase intent is expressed through social media 45% of the time it’s on forums, 21% on social networks, and 14% of the time on blogs.
• 2.4 million in-market shoppers used Facebook in some way to make a vehicle purchase decision.
• 58% of consumers are likely to mention their new car and/or buying experience via social media.
• 82% of mentions about car purchases on social media are positive.

As evident in these numbers, a tremendous amount of the consideration process occurs online and on social media channels like forums and social networks specifically. According to Robert Brown, the head of online marketing at Nissan, the majority of decisions made on social media platforms concern dealer reputation and vehicle reviews. This occurs on social media, as opposed to company websites because third party advocates carry more authority with prospective buyers.

These third party advocates represent a great untapped resource.  Scott Kelly, who manages the Ford brand online, wisely observed that the Automotive industry abandons the customer right at the height of their emotional excitement –right after the purchase. By extending the period of engagement, the number of positive testimonials will substantially increase, thus influencing the next cycle of in-market shoppers.

Additionally, the sphere of influence is very top heavy; by reaching out specifically to the hyper influencers that are the most active in forums, you can also significantly raise your social media profile.

In all, the general message at the roundtable was the status quo is not enough. The convergence of mobile, tablets, and social media are significantly changing the experience of shopping for a new car. In order to reach a qualified in-market audience, the way Automotive is marketed needs to evolve as well.

I, and the Kontera team were honored to be invited to the event, and pleased to share our viewpoints on the relevance and benefits of tight Editorial Alignment within the mobile, tablet and social domains. We highly recommend next year’s JD Powers Automotive Digital Marketing Roundtable to any marketers, publishers and technology vendors who are interested in the future on-line direction of the automotive media landscape.

Why wait for users to find your Social Media channels, when you can bring the conversation directly to them?

Kontera Social Boost is a new Family of Social amplification ad products that connects advertiser’s Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, or deal syndication messaging directly to qualified users.  Placed within highly relevant editorial content across the over 15,000 quality sites using Kontera, Social Boost is a great way to amplify word of mouth social sharing, increase the visibility of your brand’s social assets, and grow the number of fans and followers you have.  With Social Boost, brand advertisers are able to effectively combine their earned media marketing tactics with their paid media advertising tactics.

Here are the four types of Social Boost solutions that Kontera offers:

• YouTube Video Boost – Amplifies sharing and word-of-mouth buzz for an advertiser’s YouTube video content and their video channels. The syndicated YouTube videos are featured to interested consumers, within highly relevant editorial content across the web.
• Facebook Editorial Boost – Extends a brand’s social reach beyond the news feed to the broader web, through placement within highly relevant editorial content across thousands of sites. Brands are able to bring relevant and dynamic information from their Facebook wall, as relevant related information to the right editorial content.
• Twitter Editorial Boost – Syndicates the brand’s Twitter feed within relevant editorial content across 15,000 publishers. A brand’s “conversational” Twitter voice, when delivered alongside engaging branded creative, extends a brand’s social reach beyond the brand’s existing followers.
• Deal Syndication Boost – Accelerates online retailers’ and brands’ social commerce promotions by syndicating specific commerce offers within highly relevant content. Offers can range from time-limited deals to coupons and mini circulars.

An excellent example of Kontera Social Boost is Ritz’s Glee campaign, which was recently featured in articles by the New York Times and MediaPost.  As Ritz Crackers and the TV show Glee and are both brands associated with fun, Ritz built a promotion around the popular musical, giving away trips to meet the cast on set in Los Angeles. To enter the promotion, fans would have to “Like” Ritz’s Facebook page.  Kontera’s role was to create awareness of this Facebook promotion within editorial that was relevant to Ritz or Glee, and to expose the dynamic community to readers interested in these topics.

Here’s Sheeba Philip, the marketing director for Ritz explaining in The New York Times, the advantages of using Kontera for their campaign:

“A program like Kontera’s is really effective for reaching consumers with common and shared passion points,” Ms. Philip said. “It really was a push to drive people to Facebook to learn more about the brand.”

Kontera used a content sponsorship strategy across its many publishers, featuring a Related Social Content unit that dynamically filtered wall content for relevance to Ritz and Glee.  The brand’s relevant visually compelling information was placed within highly relevant editorial.

Kontera’s ability to identify qualified users based on their immediate interests unlocked a new audience for the brand’s social initiative.

To learn more please visit our Social Boost page.

As Kontera’s month long Win an iPad contest officially comes to a close, we couldn’t be more impressed with the results. In composing their official Kontera Reviews, our Publishers really outdid themselves in finding original and creative ways to share their positive experiences as part of the Kontera network.

Some particularly noteworthy entries include James Johnson, who wrote perhaps the most in-depth Kontera review ever, Narendra Sakibanda who included an original YouTube video as part of his entry, and Carla Chadwick, whose great use of visuals accounted for what was easily the most attractive post.

However, there can only be one winner of the big prize, so without any further ado:

• The First Prize of 16GB iPad goes to Isabel Isidro!
• The Second Prize of $100 Amazon Gift Card goes to Suranjith De Silva

With every Kontera employee getting an equal vote, the judges found Isabel’s review to be really balanced and relatable.  Drawing from her personal experiences, Isabel explained how Kontera has exceeded her expectations; both in terms of revenue and customer service.  You can read her winning review here.

Congratulations to both of the winners!

Additionally, we’d sincerely like to thank everyone else who entered. We realize the incredible amount of hard work you put in, and there were at least 8-9 entries that legitimately deserved to win. At that level of effort, there’s no doubt that there’s still a big win in your future

On that note, please stay tuned as we’ll have a new Publisher contest starting very soon and it’s easily our biggest one yet!

Want to win an iPad just for sharing your views about Kontera?

For the latest, special month-long round of Kontera Show & Tell-Showoff-Showdown, we’re giving away an Apple iPad to the publisher who writes the best review of Kontera. Additionally, we’re also giving away a $100 Amazon.com gift card!

Your interest sufficiently peculated? Here’s what you can do to win:

1. Write an honest review of Kontera summarizing your positive experience using our In-Text Ads on your site.
   • The specific qualities we’re looking for in the review is depth of knowledge, understanding of our core technology, and that special touch that communicates everything that’s great about Kontera in your own unique voice.
   • Be sure to include a link directing your readers to Kontera.
2. Post your review on your website.
3. Next, post the URL of your review, as a comment in the contest’s Facebook thread – so that we all can take a look at your creation!
4. We’ll read and reread each entry and after much deliberation announce the winner of the new iPad on December 1^st.

Enter Your Review Now!

The best review chosen by Kontera will award its author with a brand new 16GB iPad!

But that’s not all – you guys also get a vote! After you post a link to your review as a comment on Facebook, your friends and fellow publishers will be able to vote for your entry by “Liking” it. The publisher whose link generates the most Facebook “Likes” by the end of the month will be awarded a $100 Amazon gift card.

Two great prizes, two different ways to win…

Don’t miss out on earning yourself an early Christmas present!

Submit Your Winning Review Today!

• While we appreciate all past mentions, only Kontera reviews dated between October 27^th – November 30th are eligible to win the 16GB iPad or the gift card.
• It’s at Kontera’s sole discretion what constitutes a positive review and which review is chosen as the best.
• Only “likes’ from real Facebook accounts will count towards winning the $100 gift card.

While Halloween is still a couple of days away, a few lucky publishers will be filling up their trick or treat bags early. We’ve just wrapped up the Halloween edition of the Kontera Show & Tell-Showoff-Showdown contest on Facebook – and it was a howling success! A big thanks to everyone who provided site traffic tips and to everyone who shared their favorite Halloween costumes, especially those who sent in pictures! Here are the winners whose entries “scared” up the most votes:

1. First Prize of $75 Amazon Gift Card goes to CJ Esus
2. Second Prizes of $50 Amazon Gift Cards go to Fateh Ali & Jack John
3. Third Prizes of $25 Amazon Gift Cards go to Albert Grace Kumar & Omair Nabeel

As for the brand new Show & Tell competition, don’t miss out  on our biggest and most exciting round yet…

Interested in learning more?

Enter Now To Win an iPad!