Seems Like Automakers Prefer Youtubers Over Journalists

"Wobbles the Mind" (wobblesthemind)
10/26/2017 at 06:17 • Filed to: Youtube

Invited to Hyundai Proving Grounds to checkout the four SEMA projects, hangout with Bisi from BisiMoto, see the 30-day Vaccar Hyundai Tucson Sport build before it goes public, score a week long courtesy vehicle, AND got compensated for taking the time off from their work schedule and fart around with Hyundai and friends. Freakin’ cool!!

* Video is just a vlog, NOT a review or first look. Around 9:27 is a neat exhaust though.

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Here’s a short rant that is NOT due to the video, but I rather post related thoughts into one post than spread them out over many posts.

Youtubers are getting much better deals than the journalists. I didn’t actively notice the difference in manufacturer launching between the Tubers and Journos until the launch of the McLaren 720s (where the Journos scrambled to create videos with extremely limited amounts of time with the car while Tubers just spent the day with their own 720S to go about their errands). It seems as if people like the original British Carspotter Clique and their offshoots are receiving crazy manufacturer attention to live with the cars (30-day test cars are the future) rather than present the cars.

Meanwhile, the Journos still get herded off to a hotel in order to drive a couple cars around the block or on a leash at a track. Gotta be a big mag with insurance in order to unleash the car on track. There’s of course food and powerpoint presentations to fill the day while everyone panics to turn 20-minutues of drive time into a video so that they can pay the light bill on time next week. After the event, all Journos wait to receive the same 1 of 4 nationwide press cars while the Tubers get invited to special invite-only events and are granted extensive time with the new hotness including one-on-ones with someone that knows everything about the product, plus a courtesy new car for a week just as a thank you from the manufacturer for allowing the car to appear in their everyday lives.

The future is sending cars out to Vloggers and the Independent Non-Press Automotive Talents of the world and having them do their daily routines with the car present rather than trying to get all the media together to do a gigantic press launch of the new car.

In honesty, I can’t blame automakers because selling a lifestyle makes more sense/cents than selling a product. That’s why electric cars are a great business. But if I were an automaker Id prefer dedicated Social Mediocres over Lukewarm Journos too! Especially when one group will say, “Wow guys, I got this wicked new Civic for the week!!” Compared to, “The interior is nice but has too many hard plastics for a car that costs money. The transmission is nice but I wish they’d offer a manual. The ride is nice but could be more aggressive. Im impressed by how nice and quiet the cabin is but I’d like more exhaust noise from this 4-cylinder engine which is known for its incredible exhaust note.”

Im glad there are a lot of nice cars with nice things that perform nicely on the market. That’s all nice to know! Meanwhile, you have people like !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! and !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! who plan what they have to say about a car! I’m genuinely worried that this style of prepared and informative reviewing may be on the way out for 20 minute videos of needless information and 28 minute videos of no information at all.

We need enthusiastic automotive reviews geared towards people that are NOT enthusiasts.

Well Im going to go ahead and watch some person sit in a new 911 GT2 RS for 15 minutes and tell me about what they are about to eat at Jerry’s House of Fajitas. Oh! Dont forget to buy the hats they made that say an inside joke from that one video from last week. Remember that video? They talked about the Koenigsegg they order to match the Lamborghini they just got and the Ford GT that’s on the way? They said, “Imma Gonna Go Fasta!” So hilarious, it had valleys!

DISCUSSION (18)

SilentButNotReallyDeadly...killed by G/O Media > Wobbles the Mind
10/26/2017 at 06:25

What?

The problem with social influencers on YT is that most of them are clearly stupid. Their videos reflect this. So why would I respect their opinion anymore than some random auto journalist whose opinion on a car is also of minimal relevance to me?

random001 > Wobbles the Mind
10/26/2017 at 06:37

My opinion is that Wobbles needs to start a youtube channel, send all his Oppo reports to Hyundai/Kia/Genesis, and get mad seat time with new cars, and give up Oppo exclusives.

Also, come take me out in a new car.

Tapas > Wobbles the Mind
10/26/2017 at 06:58

That’s because vlogging/blogging/instagramming is outsourced advertisement.

It is rarely fact-driven or objective.

For the “influencer”, it’s more about who pays me or gives me access to exclusive cars that I can wax about in 25 jump cuts for more than 10 minutes.

For the manufacturer, it’s about reaching younger people through their favorite internet celebrities, sneaking in their advert under the guise of biased opinions of what’s cool.

No where in this charade does anyone critique anything.

I’m sure that you can literally get people online to market a turd for you through social media.

Montalvo > Wobbles the Mind
10/26/2017 at 07:10

It’s actually quite smart of the manufacturers really. They can reach a much larger audience and create a larger positive buzz. A YouTuber is much more likely to be awed by features on a car than an experienced journalist who sees them nearly every day on almost every car. A journalist needs to be able to pick a car apart and be critical. The YouTubers for the most part would gloss over some of the negatives about a car because they either don’t care or notice. The point isn’t to spread information but the exact opposite. They are looking for attention without criticism.

Flavien Vidal > Wobbles the Mind
10/26/2017 at 07:18

Quick transcript from the video you posted...

“Because the proving grounds aren’t something that’s opened to the public and I’m not sure this is something I’ll ever have the opportunity to... see again. (Camera changes).

So I was like..... Yes please!! Hihi! And they were like..... (attempts serious face) Would you like us to provide you with a car for the drive and maybe for the following week to have fun with... And I was like..... Double Yeah!!!! Hihi!!

Soooooo.... (Video continues)“

Fuck me, I want to die.

404 - User No Longer Available > SilentButNotReallyDeadly...killed by G/O Media
10/26/2017 at 07:20

I think that’s the core issue: the average person these days simply cannot form their opinions. So they listen to the next idiot to yells louder, a.k.a. “influencers”. That’s the problem with Web 2.0. All social networks care about is population.

Sadly this shit is the future.

jimz > Wobbles the Mind
10/26/2017 at 07:39

all I know is I’m glad I don’t have any kids to send into a world where “YouTuber” is a common response to “what do you want to be when you grow up?”

StndIbnz, Drives a MSRT8 > Wobbles the Mind
10/26/2017 at 07:55

Oh god, that Perrier shot.......make sure the labels showing!

random001 > Flavien Vidal
10/26/2017 at 08:01

I shall now work to incorporate “Double yeah!” and “Hihi!” into my daily usage at work, just to see how long it takes to annoy that one guy I don’t like so much...

random001 > Wobbles the Mind
10/26/2017 at 08:01

I’m serious, Wobbles. Get on your youtubering!

Jayhawk Jake > Wobbles the Mind
10/26/2017 at 08:35

I’ll be honest, I’m kinda glad to see the shift. Traditional auto journalism is a bit stale, and it’s always suffered from being impractical. As much as I love seeing Randy Pobst hot-foot around Laguna Seca, that information is hardly relevant to me as a car buyer. It also leads us to argue which car is better based on track times and performance numbers rather than reality.

I’d like to see more attention to the cars by the youtubers, and I’d also like them to be more critical than they often are, but it’s nice to see someone just use a car like a car. What’s it like to live with every day, how much joy does it bring in traffic, how does it handle at 5/10ths on a winding road? These are all questions often unanswered by a standard car review.

Jayhawk Jake > Wobbles the Mind
10/26/2017 at 08:35

jimz > Jayhawk Jake
10/26/2017 at 09:33

but that’s the problem, they’re not going to be critical. traditional auto-journos are bad enough about this, but these pretty-boy “influencers” are in this solely so they can drive free cars and get attention. they’re not going to say anything critical which might get them taken off of any lists. YouTube fame is ephemeral, and it’s much easier for a company to drop you in a heartbeat if you don’t “play ball.”

HammerheadFistpunch > Wobbles the Mind
10/26/2017 at 10:11

The hot thing to be right now: Social Media Influencer. You get treated like royalty by companies. I don’t think that will last, or at least it will last for some but the field is getting crowded so it will start to become a smaller and smaller pool of people getting a bigger and bigger part of the pie.

HammerheadFistpunch > jimz
10/26/2017 at 10:14

This. its really easy to be moved from a social media influencer to a journalist by not towing the line. “oh what a great review from this influencer, we are happy to promote you and pay you for your influence.”

“ah, just another amateur journalist with an opinion, pay them no mind.”

Discerning > Wobbles the Mind
10/26/2017 at 11:57

I think journalistic Integrity plays A Part as well. A journalist as part of a magazine or major company is going to be far less inclined to be swayed by exterior things like thebhotel room or other niceties outside of the car itself as opposed to a blogger/youtuber who may not be held to the same standards.

You even mentioned how this person was compensated to some degree. That can easily lead to the article or video being heavily influenced by that incentive

My bird IS the word > Wobbles the Mind
10/26/2017 at 12:06

From a marketing perspective, cars are getting harder to market due to better design across the board. Build quality is another thing, but that’s not something you can really tell from a new car. Most new cars are virtually identical except for seat shape and price point. Car manufacturers have been unwilling to set their cars apart for the most part. Key differences would be fiat Chrysler who need differentiation to make up for their very poorly made cars.

Hence influences, which are the easiest (read laziest) way to diversify your product. If you watch the video, does it matter if the car is a Honda or whatever? No, you could change to a crv and nobody would notice, because the cars are similar enough to be irrelevant.

Textured Soy Protein > Wobbles the Mind
10/26/2017 at 12:08

I mean, this seems kinda obvious to me.

Both journalists and youtubers are giving attention to the car, but the journalists are reviewing it and pointing out its flaws, while youtubers are basically just advertising it.

If you were a company with a product to promote, would you rather have people advertising it for you on your behalf, or scrutinizing it and sharing potential flaws of it with the public?