TRANSFORMING DIGITAL MEDIA INTO BUSINESS OUTCOMES FOR FORD

The automotive sector continues to change at a rate not seen since the earliest days of mass-production. Global headwinds suggest flat or reduced marketing investment for many manufacturers, whilst emerging technology continues to influence the way customers research and make decisions when buying a car. Accountability of marketing spend and outcomes that reflect true business goals are becoming ever-more important for clients in the automotive industry. But to achieve this challenge, brands need a clear view of where spend should be directed to boost the likelihood of desired actions, such as orders or dealership visits, and this granular insight isn’t easy to obtain. 

In Norway and the Netherlands, Ford’s WPP agency partners: GTB, Xaxis and Mindshare, drove a significant increase in the number of test drives from Ford’s digital media spend, and did it for less. Using AI to inform programmatic buying for standard media outcomes is not new. But using AI to optimise programmatic buying for a tangible result that was more aligned to Ford’s business was. Leveraging a tailor-made AI strategy designed specifically for Ford’s unique business goal, the auto giant achieved a 65% decrease in the Cost Per Acquisition (CPA) on test drives across both markets. The Netherlands also saw an overall increase in conversion rates by 145%, with Norway’s conversion rates up 49% vs the existing benchmark.