- A 2011 Acura TSX Sport Wagon is the top prize in a new contest which launched Monday on Acura's Facebook page.
- Contestants need to describe their favorite sport and say why they should win the $35,470 car.
- It's yet another example of how automakers are mining social media to promote vehicles.
TORRANCE, California — Acura is tapping into social media to promote its 2011 TSX Sport Wagon with the launch Monday of a new contest on the automaker's Facebook page.
The jock-oriented "Compete Like a Pro" contest asks participants to select from one of several sports, including cycling, climbing and snowboarding. They must describe how they will use the TSX Sport Wagon. The top prize is a $35,470 TSX Sport Wagon, according to the official contest rules.
As of Monday night, a few submissions had been posted on the Acura Facebook page, including one from a Texas man who wrote "I love wagons. I even started a wagon Web site just because of my love of all things wagon."
Acura's contest description says "all you have to do is work your social network as hard as your quads to earn the most votes." Voting on the submissions begins on March 13 and ends on April 3. The top vote-getter wins the car. The contest is clearly designed to build traffic on Acura's Facebook page. Mining social media has become the Holy Grail for many automotive marketers.
In an interesting kind of indentured-servant footnote, the official rules also note that the "winner is also required to blog about his/her experiences with the vehicle for the first year of ownership, all details to be directed by sponsor in its sole discretion."
Inside Line says: You'd better like writing in addition to wagons, judging by the rules of this contest. — Anita Lienert, Correspondent
Add A Comment »
dgmail says:
09:26 AM, 01/19/2011
You think you hate it now, wait till you drive it.
The Lienerts will love it because it doesnt have a domestic nameplate.
tdiluv says:
06:32 AM, 01/19/2011
The BEAK GRILLE is a very bad design and for some reason on this wagon design it seems worse than ever!
fortstring says:
06:53 PM, 01/18/2011
Anyway, with the whole beak fiasco, wouldn't one say that Acura seems to be suffering an identity crisis?
What happens when you do away with the beak? It'd require a whole lot of soul searching and maybe a fifth of vodka to find a new corporate face. I guess that's the dilemma. Poor bastard be that Acura.....
I guess Acura can go sob buckets on Honda's shoulder in such uncertain times :'[
fortstring says:
06:47 PM, 01/18/2011
I'm not exactly in love with the front fascia, but the TSX Wagon's side profile actually seems sort of elegant, almost Audi A4 Avant-like. If they made this thing AWD and increased the engine's output and efficiency, then I would actually consider buying one.
deathtollwrx says:
04:31 PM, 01/18/2011
Acura was such a respected car company. I know they are probably still reliable and drive well but I can't get beyond the beak grill thing.
I've owned 2 Acura Integras as well as a TSX.
I like the idea of a TSX wagon but this thing is hideous!
dagmar3 says:
11:42 AM, 01/18/2011
Social Media can be a dangerous thing. How else can Acura get the attention of non car enthusiasts and show them just how fugly they have made the Acura Line-up? In just a few days time, millions people with no passion for cars at all will know that Acura = fugly.
Acura might want to hold off on the social media until their corporate grill-o-tine has been redesigned.
northsparrow says:
11:12 AM, 01/18/2011
How's this for a contest entry,
My favorite sport involves pressing the clutch pedal with my left foot and shifting gears with my right hand
so I guess I won't be doing it in an autobox only TSX Wagon.