REPOSITIONING IN A FAST MOVING MARKET: A COMAPARSION BETWEEN ALAN MULALLY AND ALBERT SLOAN

REPOSITIONING IN A FAST MOVING MARKET: A COMPARSION BETWEEN ALAN MULALLY AND ALFRED SLOAN

           

            Alan Mulally, the present C.E.O of Ford Motor Company and Alfred Sloan, who headed General Motors in 1923 compare to one another because both used social media to reposition their organization in the market place. The reason why contemporary social marketers should study both of these men is that each repositioned their companies in a fast moving market. Both men made significant bets when their company was faltering. Both used social media to become significant brands. If we study their story and understand how they compare we can better understand how to use social media to make an organization a significant brand.

            Modern business moves quickly. To create a pre-eminent brand a marketer must be able to communicate that their brand creates significant value for a customer.  This is why social media is such a significant tool for a modern marketer. Social media is a conversation among friends. When friends have a conversation, barriers are broken down.  This is critical in creating  significant brands. Markets evolve. What was very important today, may not be very important tomorrow. To serve their customers, a marketer must know exactly what their customer is looking for in their product. The product that best serves their customer will be the product that will become the pre-eminent brand.

            One-third of the world resides on Facebook. This is just one social media platform. Many social media platforms are integrated. This creates incredible scale. A marketer can now communicate to over 160 billion people all at one time. They can understand exactly, in real time, what their customers need from their products. A perfect example of this is Alfred Sloan, who was the CEO of General Motors in 1923.

            At this time, Mr. Sloan had what  looked like be an absolutely insurmountable task. In 1923, the Model T had 57% of the car market. It was also a significant social media brand. Henry Ford had done a masterful job in branding the Tin Lizzie. General Motors had only 12.7% of the market. It would seem that Mr. Sloan would not have any chance of branding his cars. Mr. Sloan had a plan.

            Mr. Sloan used the social media of the day. Today, an executive would use Facebook to communicate to the masses. Mr. Sloan talked to people all over the country in what they wanted in a car. He engaged the customer personally, just like you would do on a Facebook page.

            Mr. Sloan realized that price was no longer the deciding factor. Customers now wanted safety and ease of use. He realized the paradigm had changed. In 1913, GM had invented the self starter. People wouldn’t need to crank their cars any longer. Through the use of social media, Mr. Sloan realized it was time to start placing this technology in the car. Mr. Sloan repositioned the market around ease of use.

            When Mr.Mulally took over Ford in 2001, he faced a world much like Mr. Sloan did in 1923. He knew that he had repositioned the market in Ford’s favor. He did what Mr. Sloan did.  Through social media, Mr. Mulally engaged his customers to find out what they wanted. He   realized that his customers were had lives  that revolved around social media. He created cars that had software systems that would integrate with their personal technology systems of its. Mr. Mulally repositioned the car as a social media brand---not a car brand.

Dean Hambleton

dnhambleton@gmail.com