WD-40: Not so rusty when it comes to community building
18Feb2010 Filed under: Marketing, Social Media Author: Jason HarperIf you thought old brands couldn’t learn new tricks, then WD-40 has something to show you.
The highly multi-purpose product was originally developed by aerospace scientists during the Cold War as a means of protecting missiles from corrosion. The name stands for “Water Displacement, formula 40.” Since then, it’s become the epitome of the household brand.
You probably know where your trusty can of WD right now (ours is under the sink), but did you know that the company’s website has some pretty cool social features that keep customers engaged with the brand even when they’re not spraying rusty joints? Head over to WD40.com.
As I learned from a recent episode of The Brand Show podcast, with WD-40’s assistant brand manager Shannon Edwards, the 60-year-old company does quite a bit to cultivate its online community.
Though not as strong as Kashi.com, which we looked at last week, WD-40’s site provides lots of interactive and social site content for users.
The 2,000 uses campaign invites fans to submit their own tips for using the product. The current 10-page list of uses is mindblowing (download as PDF). There’s everything from the practical (”removes glue from carpet”) to the bizarre (”Use the No-Mess Pen to removing finger prints and smudges from your Martial Arts Sword”).
On the podcast, Edwards talked about how the company solicits user feedback, spinning it into crowdsourced products, such as the Smart Straw, which was developed because customers complained about losing the little red straw that comes with every bottle.
The site’s Fan Club looks like it has some cool features, too, such as a “Camaro Build,” but you need a login/password to even see what’s going on. (Minus 5 points for that.)
Looks like WD has souped up its Facebook presence nicely as well, and they’re taking their first steps on Twitter.
In any case, this shows the value of social media even for already well-established brands. In fact, you could draw a pretty strong analogy between WD-40 and social media’s use as an all-purpose brand-building tool.
Hmmm…
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joecox
February 21st, 2010 at 4:55 pm
Glad you're checking out the Brand Show. It was a good interview and I was kind of surprised that I hadn't thought about their brand working so well in this medium before.
Although they are doing a fair job of keeping on top of listening to their consumers, I'm hesitant to give them all of the credit.
I think that this is one of those brands that had the train chugging the right way before we hit the tipping point. So much content was coming in from their fans already without them looking for it, that it put them a healthy head start. Not sure I would say that they've taken full advantage of it, but look forward to seeing what is to come. (Total -5 for the sign in only fan club)
I immediately thought of Duct Tape and found that the Duck brand is doing an ok job out there too. So much more they could be doing, but I guess it all comes down to budgets huh?
Locker Partner Peeps
February 21st, 2010 at 10:44 pm
Good points, Joe. It's fun to watch all these classic, old-school American brands create online spaces for their communities, which, as you point out, have been active for years already, talking about stuff & sharing stories.