Tesla — Whether The New Social Media Platform Can Replace The Old Forum
Tesla launched a new social media platform on its website called “Tesla Engagement Hub”, on March 5th, to replace the function of Tesla’s forum section. The Verge reported on Friday about this social media platform and commented on the replacement of Tesla Forum.
The new social media platform on Tesla’s website means to gather owners and fans of this brand with the idea of “Take actions on behalf of Tesla and the movement for cleaner energy”. In its own word from the introduction of “Tesla Engagement Hub”, The Tesla engagement platform is “a new platform for both Tesla’s public policy team and Tesla Owner’s Clubs” and its purpose is to “create a digital home base for all of our work, and make it easier for Tesla community members to learn what’s top of mind for us, take meaningful action, and stay in the loop.”
As an “engagement platform”, users who have Tesla official accounts can post their message, comment on others’ posts and “like” others’ posts. They can also follow other users to obtain more information posted by others. Moreover, at the website of Tesla engagement platform, it can not only help individuals apply for membership to local owners’ clubs, but also lists some events and campaigns for Tesla owners and fans to follow. For example, the platform introduced a campaign called Disaster Relief to support local communities affected by Texas winter storms.
This new platform is considered as a replacement of Tesla’s forum section at its official website. The traditional forum section is used as a message board of Tesla, which provides a place for owners and potential buyers to exchange information and discuss Tesla’s products. However, this forum constantly struggled with problems with spam and trolls. With the launch of the new social media platform, Tesla Forums will be set as read only, beginning from March 15th.
There are some controversies about the replacement of the old forum within the new commenting system. Most comments suggest that Tesla should keep the function of the previous forum or add a similar function as a message board at the new site, rather than replace the whole function of the forum.
It is hard to determine the correctness of Tesla’s replacement from the old forum to new social media platform because the result depends on the experience of website users. Nonetheless, it is normal that users can not adapt unfamiliar functions when they face a new platform. As long as the new social platform can cover the function that old forum system has and provide a more convenient user experience, users will be attracted by the fascinated experience of engaging events and discussions at the new site, meanwhile brand can use this social media platform to built its digital customer base, complete distribution channel and enhance brand awareness.
