Lincoln's Social Media Is A Disaster

"JR1" (type35bugatti)
09/09/2015 at 11:52 • Filed to: Lincoln, Social media, mercedes

Lincoln Motor Company. A world renowned brand that has given the world cars such as the 1961 Lincoln Continental, 1955 Lincoln Continental MKII, Lincoln Model K, and countless other greats.

Lincoln was the last American car company to mass produce a V12 engine and sell it. Lincoln was the car company that countless US presidents sat in for decades through events that changed history. Lincoln was one of the car companies that produced engines during WWI to help save the free world.

Now this is what Lincoln does.

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I know you are confused so was I. But do not worry it gets worse.

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These three posts have all been made on Lincoln’s social media page within the last week. I invite you to look at the comments and see what people are saying about these obscure posts. Why would a car company that has so much history and prestige be posting such mundane crap? And it is not just weird videos that Lincoln posts. Over the past year the followers of the lincolnmotorcompany Instagram page have been greeted to posts like this:

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Obviously I am an idiot. Because when I think of Lincoln the first thing that pops into my head is not a hipster old man, crappy interior decorations, or weird looking food. But the guru behind Lincoln’s social media page seems to believe that these posts best represent the ideals, character, and culture of Lincoln automobiles. And if that is true it is quite clear Lincoln’s future is grim. A car company is only as good as their advertising and this social media account is full of very poor advertising.

Yes occasionally they post something interesting like this:

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Yes friends it is indeed a car. That is what a car company should be posting anyway though right? Mercedes seems to have the right idea. A post that is both cute and funny while also advertising how outstanding their product lineup is.

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Therefore it is this bloggers humble opinion that Lincoln should needs to make a drastic change with their social media platform. The company rarely posts about the cars that once defined Lincoln. The company never posts Lincolns at car shows nor does the company post Lincoln car culture. Occasionally they post picture of their new products and that is all fine and well but why does it seem like the company puts so much effort in posting pictures that have nothing to do with cars?

Lincoln needs to harken back to their history and post cars that matter. They need to tug on the heartstrings of owners with shots of President Eisenhower stepping out of his Lincoln Continental. Show the prestige of Lincoln not just the fancy hipster shots of mundane junk that adds nothing to the brand or the brand experience. I want to see more Continental and less interior decorating. That shouldn’t be a big ask from a car company.

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Enjoy your day everyone.

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DISCUSSION (48)

SidewaysOnDirt still misses Bowie > JR1
09/09/2015 at 11:56

Lincoln customers don’t know what social media is.

JR1 > SidewaysOnDirt still misses Bowie
09/09/2015 at 11:58

They won’t be getting any new ones if they continue to post these images

MontegoMan562 is a Capri RS Owner > JR1
09/09/2015 at 12:00

Fuck man.

If it helps, I had nothing to do with these.

Send your complaint to the Lincoln ad agency Hudson Rouge.

They suck at social media if you ask me.

Ash78, voting early and often > JR1
09/09/2015 at 12:01

HonestAbe: @douglas you are so full of shit!! #debate #lincoln4prez #preserveunion #housedivided

HammerheadFistpunch > JR1
09/09/2015 at 12:01

Still better than Toyota’s Social media team . For Lincoln right now, its not about impressing the Jalops, its about getting the attention of money and this kind of crap is...oddly...effective at it.

crowmolly > JR1
09/09/2015 at 12:01

I think Lincoln has a brand identity problem more than anything else.

Where do they really fit in?

I get that old Zephyrs are awesome, old Continentals are all kinds of cool, and that Lincoln once scored 4 touchdowns in one game for Polk High.

But these days “Lincoln” is most associated with “town car” or “car service” and everybody looks elsewhere for luxury.

A strong social media campaign would make sense if they had a clear idea of what Lincoln should be and I just don’t really see what that is.

KusabiSensei - Captain of the Toronto Maple Leafs > JR1
09/09/2015 at 12:02

What they should do is just build a V12 Continental and get over it.

But they won’t. They’d rather try to hold on to selling the EcoBoost Navigator.

JR1 > MontegoMan562 is a Capri RS Owner
09/09/2015 at 12:02

I was really hoping you I wouldn’t insult you by posting this.

Ash78, voting early and often > SidewaysOnDirt still misses Bowie
09/09/2015 at 12:02

Sure, it’s a Cricket Wireless prepaid phone that you use for calling Lincoln roadside assistance and then bitch about how you had to spend $3.18 on hold.

RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht > JR1
09/09/2015 at 12:03

There’s probably pretension required. This, however... might be too much. By, say, a lot. I don’t think that people of the kind who go to artistic “events” that “interrogate perceptions” and “subvert oppressive discourses” by having people doing goofy things with fruit and in the nude are actually in the position to buy many Lincolns. Sure, those people move in social circles with people that do, but “Your Arty Friend” is not likely to be the deciding factor on what car you buy, if you’re rich. More than likely it’ll be something you like...

MontegoMan562 is a Capri RS Owner > JR1
09/09/2015 at 12:03

it’s not us! I’ll message you...

cazzyodo > JR1
09/09/2015 at 12:03

Lincoln could hire my gf...or anyone who actually knows social media.

JR1 > HammerheadFistpunch
09/09/2015 at 12:04

I am not sure I agree. Compared to their other posts these food, art, and old people posts are getting the least amount of likes and the least amount of comments.

Dean Beyer > JR1
09/09/2015 at 12:04

Meanwhile Matthew McConaughey is still trying to get that booger off his finger.

RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht > SidewaysOnDirt still misses Bowie
09/09/2015 at 12:05

The arty uppercrust types that Lincoln may hope to reach Lincoln customers through *do* know what social media is, but I’m not sure they’re the ones Lincoln should be trying to reach. Particularly given the tendencies of that type to get squirrely around “commercialism”.

JR1 > crowmolly
09/09/2015 at 12:05

Shouldn’t the social media page and advertising be crafting the brand image? I get cars are important but persuading the buyer requires advertising and brand image. These kinds of posts hurt the image in a big way if you ask me.

JR1 > KusabiSensei - Captain of the Toronto Maple Leafs
09/09/2015 at 12:06

V12 in the new Continental would be awesome. But it will never happen. Too bad they can’t steal one from Aston Martin

HammerheadFistpunch > JR1
09/09/2015 at 12:07

least numbers, but the right audience.

JR1 > RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht
09/09/2015 at 12:09

Exactly. I understand being pretentious is part of selling a luxury car. But to me this Lincoln page is becoming more of a artsy page than a car company page. They are losing their audience with this kind of stuff. I honestly think they need to post presidents with Lincolns. That would be cool. That would show prestige. And prestige is something Lincoln needs.

M54B30 > JR1
09/09/2015 at 12:09

Lincoln in general is a joke and I’m betting there’ss more than a few FoMoCo executives who realized it wasn’t worth trying to save

JR1 > cazzyodo
09/09/2015 at 12:09

Or someone who knows something about cars. I assume whoever is posting these images knows nothing and drives a Camry.

JR1 > Dean Beyer
09/09/2015 at 12:10

At least he gets people to talk about Lincoln.

JR1 > HammerheadFistpunch
09/09/2015 at 12:11

Just looked at Toyotas and man that was rough.

HammerheadFistpunch > JR1
09/09/2015 at 12:12

right?! How is that company still paid?

JR1 > M54B30
09/09/2015 at 12:12

If it wasn’t worth trying to save why would they be building a new and awesome looking Continental? Also they recently got 2.5 billion. I think Ford knows it is worth saving.

MontegoMan562 is a Capri RS Owner > JR1
09/09/2015 at 12:15

Yes, they should be.

And an ad agency conglomerate is taking advantage of the Lincoln company’s money. They built a brand new office in NYC instead of continuing to operate out of a perfectly fine office in Metro Detroit (which still houses almost HALF OF THEIR STAFF). It’s a ridiculous waste of money, and they aren’t doing anything better out in NYC.

nermal > JR1
09/09/2015 at 12:16

I’m assuming that your age is < 50. Did you try showing this to your dad to see what he thinks of it? How about grandpa?

It’s targeted marketing.

M54B30 > JR1
09/09/2015 at 12:16

Wait until the continental actually arrives before you get too excited. And they’re onlyonly building a continental because the buying public wasn’t as dumb as they thought and didn’t buy gussied up fords

JR1 > MontegoMan562 is a Capri RS Owner
09/09/2015 at 12:18

Excellant. Glad to hear they are squandering Lincolns money and likely won’t have any results. Hopefully the Continental speaks for the brand more than the advertising.

JR1 > nermal
09/09/2015 at 12:19

Shouldn’t millennials be a target market? If so I find this to be idiotic and I am positive my family would feel the same

JR1 > M54B30
09/09/2015 at 12:21

Regardless of if the Continental is a guessed up Ford (I doubt it). I think the company is headed in the right direction. The styling hopefully won’t be too far off from the final product.

MontegoMan562 is a Capri RS Owner > JR1
09/09/2015 at 12:25

I can only hope.

M54B30 > JR1
09/09/2015 at 12:28

I doubt the Conti will, but everything else basically had been for the last... 5-10 years at least

JR1 > M54B30
09/09/2015 at 12:30

They have been but I think at least with the cross overs they are making desirable products.

M54B30 > JR1
09/09/2015 at 12:34

Fun fact: the mkt is beyond hideous but looks so comfortable inside I’m tempted to ship one to my local carmax and check it out

JR1 > M54B30
09/09/2015 at 12:38

Haha have you considered the Ford Flex since it is essentially the same thing and looks better?

nermal > JR1
09/09/2015 at 12:51

Lincoln has the oldest buyers of any brand. Source: Linky

In the big picture, Ford is the target brand for younger buyers. After you’re done slave working your way to middle management and firing out kids and whatever, you retire and reward yourself with a Lincoln. The cars aren’t transportation, they’re something you do for yourself as a sign of success. Very much old money.

The CLA / A3 / 320i is the entry-luxury YOLO-mobile targeting late 20s / early 30s professionals with their first “real” job. Very much new money.

Both the ads and the vehicles they represent reflect that. Nobody under 50 is setting foot in a Lincoln dealership to shop for a new car for any reason, and that’s unlikely to change any time soon.

for Michigan > JR1
09/09/2015 at 13:52

These feel like desperate attempts at viral marketing. Problem is they're interesting enough to watch, but they have no holding power. Just kind of, “That was different”, and I move on with my day.

As for your suggestion, I like old Lincolns as much as the next guy, but if you get on Facebook those are the only Lincolns you’ll see. Other car makers share stuff about their current models—or maybe how their current models relate to older ones. Not Lincoln.

JR1 > for Michigan
09/09/2015 at 14:04

Their Facebook page has current models on it too. It is actually a little bit better than the Instagram page but not great by any stretch of the imagination.

M54B30 > JR1
09/09/2015 at 14:31

Yeah. I live in a really open part of the country -350 miles from me to the next city - so my replacement for my bmw is going to be the comfiest car i can find. On carmax, a 2012 MKT with the bells and whistles (heated/cooled F+R seats, nav, Xenon, refrigerator, etc) is nearly the same price as a comparable Flex. Go big or go home right? Plus, i can’t see the outside from inside lol. My search for cars is fairly limited - max budget arohnd 35k, has to be wagon/van/suv since we have to bring a kid and dogs with us

for Michigan > JR1
09/09/2015 at 15:03

Hmm... Maybe Facebook’s awful algorithms think I only want to see old Lincolns...

JR1 > M54B30
09/09/2015 at 15:32

Well you will be part of a rare club only a few thousand people own an MKT!

JR1 > for Michigan
09/09/2015 at 15:32

Nothing wrong with that!

crowmolly > JR1
09/09/2015 at 16:35

Yes, but if they are trying to be consistent with branding, messaging, and so forth across all of their advertising campaigns they need to have a common theme. You need to have something in mind that you are “crafting” towards. Otherwise you get a disjointed mess with consumers that don’t “get” your product.

JR1 > crowmolly
09/09/2015 at 18:35

I guess I don’t understand what these images craft Lincoln towards though. You know what I mean?

ranwhenparked > crowmolly
09/09/2015 at 19:46

Well, clearly Lincoln is supposed to be a kind of upscale Ford, with nicer trim and fancier sheet metal, in order to give customers someplace to go when it’s time to trade up from their fuly-loaded Taurus or Expedition. That keeps them in-house instead of running over to Chrysler or Buick.

samssun > JR1
09/09/2015 at 20:57

No. Lincoln’s mustache-wing grille is a disaster. Their social media is irrelevant.

JR1 > samssun
09/09/2015 at 22:41

Looks are subjective. But I agree the social media needs work.