We easily remember that we have entered a new era, when you notice that an instastory counts as news material or a fan video from the track can be used as “unseen footage” giving a different perspective of an episode. Mostly futile and light-hearted content shared by drivers on social media can spark a debate or start a trend, as -just to point out the most reliable and suitable example- Norris and Sainz’s car videos soon became a viral challenge.
Social media have become an extension of the drivers’ careers and lives, as training, funny content and proper news are being shared on a regular basis. But Formula 1 teams have also become aware of the market value that social media brings.
A few years ago, Formula 1 became the fastest-growing sports brand on social media, outstripping the likes of Premier League football and the NBA. It was an extraordinary result for a sport with little official social media presence in 2016. 2020 proved incredibly beneficial to the sports’ growth in the online realm. F1 became the second fastest-growing major sport last year on the four major social media platforms (Twitter, YouTube, Instagram, Facebook).
In recent years, Ferrari has also become more actively involved in growing their social media presence, listening and responding to the online community, encouraging fans to engage with the team, which has amplified the Ferrari product marketing strategy in the digital world.
The most recent example comes from the Italian side’s Instagram account: the ‘Operation: Smooth’ post depicts a Google ReCaptcha check, resembling the image selection that makes it such a powerful tool against spambots, but edited to display an image of new Scuderia Ferrari driver Carlos Sainz:
Great to see Ferrari upping their social media game!
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