US Automaker Active On WeChat, Weibo#
Apparently putting to rest the mystery surrounding his fleeting first post on Sina Weibo, which appeared earlier this week on the actor's official Weibo page then quickly disappeared, Brad Pitt has reportedly signed a deal with Cadillac to appear in the automaker's print and television ads in China. According to E! Online, Pitt will earn US$3 million for his promotional work, for which he'll shoot spots next week in Los Angeles. Though Cadillac and Pitt's representatives have yet to comment, if this campaign does indeed come together it would just be the latest in Cadillac's recent overtures to China's younger auto consumer.
Combined, Pitt's popularity among younger Chinese Hollywood-obsessed film buffs (despite reportedly being banned from the country since 1997) and Cadillac's savvy use of social media platforms like WeChat and Weibo could go a long way, as the automaker looks to break from its reputation as a brand for middle-aged drivers. As Jing Daily recently noted,
[Cadillac's social media efforts], including experimenting with the emerging and wildly popular WeChat on its “Discover Route 66″ campaign, may open doors to post-80s well-to-dos. The company’s digital marketing efforts have been largely successful over the past year, with its Weibo fans increasing 132 percent year-on-year to over 850,000, according to the latest L2 Digital IQ Index.
Heavily used by China’s plugged-in 20- and 30-something white-collar demographics, platforms like Weibo and WeChat are able to connect Cadillac with buyers who aren’t necessarily looking for the designs preferred by middle-aged consumers, but rather a more aggressive and active aesthetic.