Honda offers pinners a $500 pintermission from Pinterest

Social media in all forms is very important to automotive manufacturers. New product releases, concept car photos, and other important news is often released via Facebook, or Twitter. Honda is now trying to reach women by targeting Pinterest users. The really interesting spin on how Honda is launching its new partnership is this; Honda is asking "pinners" to stop using Pinterest for a day and offering them $500 to do so.

Pintermission
Called a “Pintermission” the idea is that people should stop using the site and go out and enjoy the real world. Pinterest is an on-line bulletin board onto which users can post photos with comments. The site seems to have a young, hip, urban, cool-chic angle. That describes much of the Honda vehicle line-up too, so the marriage is perfect. Staring with the Honda CR-V, the manufacturer is looking to target the female demographic already enjoying the site. Honda’s Assistant Manager of Social Media, Lauren Ebner, told Advertising Age magazine "The car is definitely targeted toward females...From our research, it seems women are looking for a smaller SUV that drives like a car and has the utility and space they need. ... But it's not a huge truck that a woman like myself doesn't feel comfortable driving." (If you are a male driver of a CR-V, and a pinner, please do not throw your soy chai at your MacBook. Lauren is only kidding. The CR-V is just practical, that’s all)

Cool Chics
Honda is treading into new territory here targeting a specific demographic. Will this site featuring strappy shoes, clever recipes, athletic looking women doing one-arm push-ups, and cute animal photos help to link the brand to women in the market for a new city car? The answer seems to be a resounding “Yes!”

Honda has found a clever new way to leverage social media by asking users to take a break from it and enjoy the real world.