O'Neal & Its Social Media Influencers

mxtech1
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mxtech1 11/19/2020 8:48pm
11/19/2020 8:48pm
It all comes down to advertising and marketing.

Wilson’s “Grandpa Earl” video has 15M views. That single YouTube video generated more views than the COMBINED TV viewership of all SX races last year. Let that sink in for a moment.
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tuttle425
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tuttle425 11/19/2020 9:04pm
11/19/2020 9:04pm
Jeremy Macbeth wrote:
I seriously doubt O'Neal has any sort of coordinated social media strategy. Most of the guys you mentioned aren't exactly top tier riders. They all individually...
I seriously doubt O'Neal has any sort of coordinated social media strategy. Most of the guys you mentioned aren't exactly top tier riders. They all individually put effort into their social media presence, which O'Neal can piggy-back off of.

If anything, their strategy appears to be not putting a lot of money behind any one particular rider or riders.
You're crazy if you think O'Neal doesn't have a social strategy. There isnt a B2C company on earth that doesn't have a social strategy. The riders' skills on a bike are meaningless. They have eyes on them.
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hanzhongluboy
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hanzhongluboy 11/19/2020 9:16pm
11/19/2020 9:16pm
No one has posted the fact that the Hardwear line is some of the most durable gear available on the market today. Most durable stuff since made in USA (or Finland) gear was a thing, IMO.
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Bearuno
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Bearuno 11/19/2020 9:27pm
11/19/2020 9:27pm Edited Date/Time 11/19/2020 9:56pm
mxtech1 wrote:
It all comes down to advertising and marketing. Wilson’s “Grandpa Earl” video has 15M views. That single YouTube video generated more views than the COMBINED TV...
It all comes down to advertising and marketing.

Wilson’s “Grandpa Earl” video has 15M views. That single YouTube video generated more views than the COMBINED TV viewership of all SX races last year. Let that sink in for a moment.
Is this really , really true?


If so, the importance of Supercross within Motorcycling would be pretty bloody low, no matter what some people think.

I personally don't think it's the pre-eminent series in Dirt Biking, others will think the opposite, differences in opinion are always there, always valid for each person, but hell, it surely must get better 'eyes on' than just 15million views?

Influencers? With things I know about, the concept of 'Influencers' seems / is laughable - I'm into my 7th decade on this Earth.

But, as a few posters previous to me have pointed out, with things I don't know that much about in my personal experience, that I want to find information about, I can see how 'influencers' (for me: fellow engineers / fabricators / manufacturers specs and info - Not 'cool bros') can be a part of decisions, though I do a lot of research into any important purchasing decision . But, it's sure as hell does Not in any way apply to things like fashion, for me, as most ( not all, of course ) Moto clothing is.

As for Deano - his video efforts are very well done. He's got a mix of personality, promotion and Riding / Racing skills that are a great mix. They all have kept him out there in our sport, even with his never ending injuries, the poor blighter.

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mattyhamz2 11/19/2020 9:32pm
11/19/2020 9:32pm
Flatliner wrote:
Some form of internet magic had this buttery fellow pop up on my YouTube browsing. Looks like a party guy who likes dirt bikes and would...
Some form of internet magic had this buttery fellow pop up on my YouTube browsing.

Looks like a party guy who likes dirt bikes and would be irrelevant if social media wasn’t a thing.
Lol! All of these influencers would be irrelevant if social media wasn’t a thing. Most of these “cool” influencers are famous for the most stupid stuff. But why wouldn’t O’Neal want to get behind people like Buttery? He reached a ton of people and all they have to do is send him 10 sets of gear a year? That’s a lot cheaper than paying for ads trying to reach the same amount of people.

I don’t like this “social media influencer” thing at all, but if you have a product and want to get the word out about it, going through these “influencers” is a damn good way to do it. I could go on and on about this topic since I can’t stand some of these zero talent influencers getting all kinds of product thrown at them for free while privateers struggle to afford to buy the things they need. That’s a discussion for a different day though.
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burn1986
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burn1986 11/19/2020 9:53pm
11/19/2020 9:53pm
I kind of miss the O’Neal Model Search. But as soon as Dianna Dahlgren showed up, almost all Model searches were over.
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burn1986
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burn1986 11/19/2020 9:56pm
11/19/2020 9:56pm Edited Date/Time 11/19/2020 9:56pm
mxtech1 wrote:
It all comes down to advertising and marketing. Wilson’s “Grandpa Earl” video has 15M views. That single YouTube video generated more views than the COMBINED TV...
It all comes down to advertising and marketing.

Wilson’s “Grandpa Earl” video has 15M views. That single YouTube video generated more views than the COMBINED TV viewership of all SX races last year. Let that sink in for a moment.
I wish Deano would do more, but Weigandt’s stiff criticism kind of stifled him.
FWYT
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FWYT 11/19/2020 11:18pm
11/19/2020 11:18pm
"Influencers" . . . . ugh. When I hear someone say they are an influencer, I say if you have to tell me, then you're not.

But of course, we are all for sure influenced by certain people. Always have been, it's just a different medium these days. But I like to think I'm influenced more by Deano or Billy Bolt than I am Shmuttery.
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rongi#401
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rongi#401 11/20/2020 12:09am
11/20/2020 12:09am
I’ve been wearing oneal since 92, I don’t like buttery and really hope they’re not paying him, but if he gets kids to buy more gear, that’s good for oneal
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RaceFan
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RaceFan 11/20/2020 12:37am
11/20/2020 12:37am
Seems like a fairly logical approach to me. If you have enough influential people wearing your gear your product will reach more people than any corporate identity will be able to reach on it's own. We don't relate to corporates, we relate to people.
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Zeke27G
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Zeke27G 11/20/2020 6:14am
11/20/2020 6:14am Edited Date/Time 11/20/2020 6:15am
When you talk O'Neal influencers, you've gotta talk about the OG playboy, Jim "Hollywood" Holley!



Image source: "tblazier"
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JBrockman856 11/20/2020 6:47am
11/20/2020 6:47am
mxtech1 wrote:
It all comes down to advertising and marketing. Wilson’s “Grandpa Earl” video has 15M views. That single YouTube video generated more views than the COMBINED TV...
It all comes down to advertising and marketing.

Wilson’s “Grandpa Earl” video has 15M views. That single YouTube video generated more views than the COMBINED TV viewership of all SX races last year. Let that sink in for a moment.
Bearuno wrote:
Is this [i]really [/i], [b]really [/b] true? If so, the importance of Supercross within Motorcycling would be pretty bloody low, no matter what some people think...
Is this really , really true?


If so, the importance of Supercross within Motorcycling would be pretty bloody low, no matter what some people think.

I personally don't think it's the pre-eminent series in Dirt Biking, others will think the opposite, differences in opinion are always there, always valid for each person, but hell, it surely must get better 'eyes on' than just 15million views?

Influencers? With things I know about, the concept of 'Influencers' seems / is laughable - I'm into my 7th decade on this Earth.

But, as a few posters previous to me have pointed out, with things I don't know that much about in my personal experience, that I want to find information about, I can see how 'influencers' (for me: fellow engineers / fabricators / manufacturers specs and info - Not 'cool bros') can be a part of decisions, though I do a lot of research into any important purchasing decision . But, it's sure as hell does Not in any way apply to things like fashion, for me, as most ( not all, of course ) Moto clothing is.

As for Deano - his video efforts are very well done. He's got a mix of personality, promotion and Riding / Racing skills that are a great mix. They all have kept him out there in our sport, even with his never ending injuries, the poor blighter.

"Just" 15 million views... in comparison to...




mxtech1
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mxtech1 11/20/2020 8:23am
11/20/2020 8:23am
JBrockman856 wrote:
"Just" 15 million views... in comparison to... [img]https://p.vitalmx.com/photos/forums/2020/11/20/460422/s1200_Screen_Shot_2020_11_20_at_9.43.00_AM.jpg[/img]
"Just" 15 million views... in comparison to...




Exactly. I saw those figures and used them for my rough math.

Even if you give some extra "padding" to the TV viewership numbers and say average was 500k per event, that's only 8.5M views for all 17 SX races in 2020 or roughly 57% of views compared to Wilson's Grandpa Earl video.

Keep in mind that was only 1 video from 1 influencer. Wilson has several other videos with +1M views and a TON of videos in the 300k+ range. If you start scaling that up to include the other influencers that can achieve similiar results, the results become staggering.

People are watching moto in different ways these days. Youtube has been absolutely HUGE for our sport in terms of reaching a wider variety of audience. Times have changed, it is no longer all about racing and the standard "cable package" we see on TV.

I would rather a company invest in influencers if it enables them to make more profit on higher product sales rather than continue to invest in traditional racing/TV only and get little to no return for their investment.
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OLDMOTO
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OLDMOTO 11/20/2020 9:17am
11/20/2020 9:17am
mxtech1 wrote:
It all comes down to advertising and marketing. Wilson’s “Grandpa Earl” video has 15M views. That single YouTube video generated more views than the COMBINED TV...
It all comes down to advertising and marketing.

Wilson’s “Grandpa Earl” video has 15M views. That single YouTube video generated more views than the COMBINED TV viewership of all SX races last year. Let that sink in for a moment.
Bearuno wrote:
Is this [i]really [/i], [b]really [/b] true? If so, the importance of Supercross within Motorcycling would be pretty bloody low, no matter what some people think...
Is this really , really true?


If so, the importance of Supercross within Motorcycling would be pretty bloody low, no matter what some people think.

I personally don't think it's the pre-eminent series in Dirt Biking, others will think the opposite, differences in opinion are always there, always valid for each person, but hell, it surely must get better 'eyes on' than just 15million views?

Influencers? With things I know about, the concept of 'Influencers' seems / is laughable - I'm into my 7th decade on this Earth.

But, as a few posters previous to me have pointed out, with things I don't know that much about in my personal experience, that I want to find information about, I can see how 'influencers' (for me: fellow engineers / fabricators / manufacturers specs and info - Not 'cool bros') can be a part of decisions, though I do a lot of research into any important purchasing decision . But, it's sure as hell does Not in any way apply to things like fashion, for me, as most ( not all, of course ) Moto clothing is.

As for Deano - his video efforts are very well done. He's got a mix of personality, promotion and Riding / Racing skills that are a great mix. They all have kept him out there in our sport, even with his never ending injuries, the poor blighter.

JBrockman856 wrote:
"Just" 15 million views... in comparison to... [img]https://p.vitalmx.com/photos/forums/2020/11/20/460422/s1200_Screen_Shot_2020_11_20_at_9.43.00_AM.jpg[/img]
"Just" 15 million views... in comparison to...




This is clearly indicative of what a tiny market SX is and how quickly it could go away.
Kennyfreemoney 11/20/2020 10:14am
11/20/2020 10:14am
I wouldn't say I buy gear because of a certain rider, but its easier to pick gear when you see it on a rider, riding, than just stock photos on websites.
3
roninho
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roninho 11/20/2020 10:50am
11/20/2020 10:50am
mxtech1 wrote:
It all comes down to advertising and marketing. Wilson’s “Grandpa Earl” video has 15M views. That single YouTube video generated more views than the COMBINED TV...
It all comes down to advertising and marketing.

Wilson’s “Grandpa Earl” video has 15M views. That single YouTube video generated more views than the COMBINED TV viewership of all SX races last year. Let that sink in for a moment.
You would think that Wilson would always have a well paid topride but that isnt always the case, so i wonder how much mx companies value those views.
2
mxtech1
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mxtech1 11/20/2020 12:39pm
11/20/2020 12:39pm
roninho wrote:
You would think that Wilson would always have a well paid topride but that isnt always the case, so i wonder how much mx companies value...
You would think that Wilson would always have a well paid topride but that isnt always the case, so i wonder how much mx companies value those views.
And instead of pissing and moaning and refusing to go racing without free equipment and a salary, he dug in and made himself MORE marketable by spending some of the time while he did not have a ride to build his social media platforms.

How many youths watch his mini-bike give always on social media and then decide that’s something they want to do and go beg their parents for a bike? Probably a lot. How does that translate into bike sales? Only the OEM marketing teams have that information, but at a minimum, the seed was planted so to speak.
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Tarz483
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Tarz483 11/20/2020 2:37pm
11/20/2020 2:37pm

I was totally influenced by Damon Bradshaw as kid I wanted everything he wore. But also genuinely though it looked good. But I would say the influence is working. The example a few people have made about finding products they aren't that familiar with is spot on and when I'm looking to buy something these days YouTube is the first place I go to try to learn more about it.
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Falcon
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Falcon 11/20/2020 3:03pm
11/20/2020 3:03pm
I wasn't aware that O'Neal had social media influencers. Then again, maybe I'm not their target market. I don't even have Insta.
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dl117
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dl117 11/20/2020 3:09pm
11/20/2020 3:09pm
Even back before social media , I was influenced by a rider by the name of Ricky and HAD to have his signature gear in 85, I had the red set of this, looked good with my 85 yz80......so sick
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731chopper
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731chopper 11/20/2020 3:16pm
11/20/2020 3:16pm
tuttle425 wrote:
Social media influences more the ignorant. I don't say that in a bad way. More so, people just getting into an activity with zero preconceived notions...
Social media influences more the ignorant. I don't say that in a bad way. More so, people just getting into an activity with zero preconceived notions. I started woodworking a few years ago and watched countless YouTube videos and was following all kinds of woodworkers on Instagram. I know for a fact that a lot of the stuff I bought was based on what those guys were using and there are companies that flood the social media scene with product and I happen to now own said product.

I think it's going to be hard for a company like O'Neal to get a lot of customers to switch from Fox, Fly, etc but the new guys and gals entering the sport and learning about it through social media, that's their target and they'll be successful to an extent.
That’s a great point.
Jarid332
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Jarid332 11/20/2020 3:19pm
11/20/2020 3:19pm
TeamGreen wrote:
I wear Troy Lee Designs. It's a self-influenced choice.
I hear ya Brother!
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davis224 11/20/2020 3:29pm
11/20/2020 3:29pm
tuttle425 wrote:
Social media influences more the ignorant. I don't say that in a bad way. More so, people just getting into an activity with zero preconceived notions...
Social media influences more the ignorant. I don't say that in a bad way. More so, people just getting into an activity with zero preconceived notions. I started woodworking a few years ago and watched countless YouTube videos and was following all kinds of woodworkers on Instagram. I know for a fact that a lot of the stuff I bought was based on what those guys were using and there are companies that flood the social media scene with product and I happen to now own said product.

I think it's going to be hard for a company like O'Neal to get a lot of customers to switch from Fox, Fly, etc but the new guys and gals entering the sport and learning about it through social media, that's their target and they'll be successful to an extent.
smashingpumpkins167 wrote:
You are so right. I was getting into guitar painting and staining. So I looked up some videos. And I bought the stuff that they told...
You are so right. I was getting into guitar painting and staining. So I looked up some videos. And I bought the stuff that they told me to buy. of course I got too busy and haven't even messed with it at all
I started buying supplies to re finish my strat and do a transparent stain, got busy and left it and want to start again now. I went the StewMac route, how about you?
devotid
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devotid 11/21/2020 4:32am
11/21/2020 4:32am
I bought a 1999 YZ 250 off the showroom floor when I was 18 (That I could NOT afford)..... Because The King said so. (I lost soooo much money on that one.)

This social media "theme" is not for grown folk..... Its for young impressionable kids.

Adults just buy what they want/need.
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Spooner
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Spooner 11/21/2020 7:01am
11/21/2020 7:01am
I would think they are using influencers more than pro riders because it's way cheaper.
PabloEscobar 11/21/2020 7:27am
11/21/2020 7:27am
Lol some of you are seriously showing your age and lack of any modern day business acumen. Obviously boomers aren't the target of brands marketing through influencers.
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MelonFan123
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MelonFan123 11/21/2020 1:27pm
11/21/2020 1:27pm
Some interesting takes here.
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RalphS
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RalphS 11/21/2020 1:31pm
11/21/2020 1:31pm
Tarz483 wrote:
[img]https://p.vitalmx.com/photos/forums/2020/11/20/460517/s1200_2febd1cfc3e0083d14c96fc1ad55cc6f.jpg[/img] I was totally influenced by Damon Bradshaw as kid I wanted everything he wore. But also genuinely though it looked good. But I would say...

I was totally influenced by Damon Bradshaw as kid I wanted everything he wore. But also genuinely though it looked good. But I would say the influence is working. The example a few people have made about finding products they aren't that familiar with is spot on and when I'm looking to buy something these days YouTube is the first place I go to try to learn more about it.
I had that one as a kid too (:
xrmark
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xrmark 11/21/2020 5:08pm
11/21/2020 5:08pm
PabloEscobar wrote:
Lol some of you are seriously showing your age and lack of any modern day business acumen. Obviously boomers aren't the target of brands marketing through...
Lol some of you are seriously showing your age and lack of any modern day business acumen. Obviously boomers aren't the target of brands marketing through influencers.
Boomers are the ones buying it though
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