Social media

With the aim of effectively presenting relevant imageImage
The publicly perceived image of a company, brand, product or service. Determined primarily by ...-defining and brand-specific content and strategically increasing the awareness of Daimler Buses with intelligent further links, social media platforms play an important role as part of the company’s digital communication. The group-wide set of rules for the use of social media platforms are set out in the current version of the social media guidelines.

Introduction

The following rules are intended to help implement an efficient and stylish appearance and are regarded as agile recommendations for action, which are continuously updated. In addition to the profile pictures with the Daimler Buses logotype, current photos and video material are used to customize the social media channels. Suitable photo motifs and other images for use in social media are available in the M@RS media database.

Content with the sender of a product or service brand is generally published in the respective Brand Design and is therefore subject to the specifications from the corresponding regulations. This applies both to the thematic selection of images, the image style and the Basic ElementsBasic Elements
This term is used within Corporate Design to refer to the key basic design elements: corporate ... used, such as brand marks, exclusive fonts, colors, etc.

Page name
In order to achieve a name-related and uniform corporate appearance as well as to make it easier to quickly find the social media presence, the page name should consist of “Daimler Buses” and the name of the respective country in its national language, e.g. Daimler Buses France, Daimler Buses Italia, etc.

Username
The username consists of “@daimlerbuses” and the name of the respective country. The username can be entered with or without an underscore, and abbreviations are also permitted, e.g. @daimlerbusesfrance, @daimlerbusesitalia, etc.

URL (web address)
The automatically generated URL belonging to the profile uses the username and supplements it after the slash, e.g. (...)/daimlerbusesfrance, (...)/daimlerbusesitalia, etc.

Profile pictures
The profile picture with centered Daimler Buses logotype serves as a key visualKey Visual
A formative visual element of communication. of the social media presence and is displayed as a round passepartout. Atmospheric cover pictures make the channel look brand specific and unmistakable. In addition to the corporate logotypeCorporate Logotype
It can be a picture, a word or a combination of words and pictures. Colloquially, it is often ..., no additions from the corporate typeface Daimler CSDaimler CS
The “Corporate ASE” typeface trilogy was developed and digitally designed by Prof. Kurt Weidemann ... should be added to a profile picture (e.g. country name, pseudonym, etc.). Examples of profile pictures can be found in the following sections.

Dimensioning of the profile picture (1:1) with the Daimler Buses logotype

Imagery
In principle, the special requirements and graphic guidelines of the respective social media network should be observed when designing, editing and publishing posts. Photo motifs should be comprehensible at first glance and convey a clear message that attracts attention. A uniform selection of images also ensures that the content statement is strictly comprehensible for all followers. Informative captions and other meta tags also emphasize the topic of the posts.

Most photo formats are rectangular and in the aspect ratios 1:1, 2:1 and 16:9, and when publishing posts on social media networks, it is important to ensure uniform aspect ratios and image sizes within a channel.

Aspect ratios for pictures in shared posts for social media

The contextually relevant element should provide sufficient space around the optical center of the motif so that all required scales and formats from the image content can be automatically covered. Narrow cutouts in portrait format are used, especially for mobile devices, which allow the screen to be filled completely in the aspect ratioAspect Ratio
The aspect ratio indicates the relationship between the width of a rectangle and its height. The ... 9:16, for example.

When scaling image content, small details or patterns can become unclear and should therefore be avoided or retouched in advance. Photo motifs with a clear focus are better suited to provide community members with barrier-free access to the image theme. In addition to the correct visual presentation, photos should take up as little storage space as possible. This is achieved by avoiding unnecessary amounts of data due to both excessive image sizes and excessive resolutionResolution
The resolution of an image or a display device describes the number of pixels per unit of length. .... This is achieved by optimizing the file size in relation to resolution in accordance with the technical requirements for the corresponding social media network.

Social media channels

The social media channels draw the community’s attention to products, services, and activities in the areas of brand managementBrand Management
The strategic development, management and execution of brands, products and services of a company. and customer acquisition or customer loyalty. Each social media platform has specific features and provides editors and followers with add-on functions that enable publishing, sharing and following posts and tweets.

Facebook

Facebook profile picture

The Facebook network is focusing on the trend of mobile use of social content. The platform is particularly suitable as an editorial environment if specific target groups are to be addressed directly with personalized content.

Cover photo on Facebook

Posts on Facebook with shared picture and link

The personal address of the posts on Facebook enables an effective tonality for the dialog with followers, which makes Daimler Buses GmbH and its brands and services accessible and emotionally tangible for all followers. To achieve the greatest possible visual effect in this context, attention should be paid to the optimal resolution and size of the images used. Each post should contain a deep link that takes followers to the Daimler Buses brand world.

¹) Aspect ratio 4:5, minimum 1080 x 1080, aspect ratios from 16:9 to 9:16 are also supported.

YouTube

Profile picture on YouTube

YouTube puts the sharing of video content at the heart of the attention of the interested community, turning interested visitors into active viewers. Daimler Buses and its subsidiaries use YouTube as a central medium for the playback of moving images and the live broadcasting of audience-relevant and attention-grabbing events. As YouTube is also one of the search engines with the widest reach, a dedicated video channel is essential for sustainable findability. Responsibility for this lies with the central marketing department at Daimler Buses.

Cover picture (“stage image”) on YouTube

The video content achieves a good external impact if it is created considering the technical and content requirements typical for the social media channel. For a successful brand presence on YouTube, it is necessary to pay attention to the resolution and length of the video content as well as the correct size of the profile image and thumbnail for identification in the channel.

Aspect ratios for video content in YouTube responsive web design

When moving images are played in responsive design, the aspect ratios 1:1, 4:5, 9:16 are used and the visible video section or safe area varies depending on the end device and screen format. Therefore, in the production of video material, in particular sequences that present the core message of the film must be aligned depending on the aspect ratio in such a way that the visual content can be displayed as completely as possible during automatic scaling.

¹) Profile picture is displayed in square format 98 x 98 pixels; permitted file formats (maximum file size 2 MB): JPG, GIFGIF
This file format was developed specially for use online. It offers excellent, non-destructive ..., BMP or PNGPNG
Abbreviation for Portable Network Graphics. A graphics format for raster graphics that allows ...
²) Safe area for mobile and desktop (without cutting text and logotype or brand markBrand Mark
The visual depiction of a brand in the form of a logo and/or mark designation.) 1546 x 423 pixels; permissible file formats (maximum file size 6 MB): JPG, GIF, BMP or PNG 
³) The optimal aspect ratio for thumbnails on YouTube is 16:9. The minimum width is 640 pixels. File formats (maximum file size 2 MB): JPG, GIF, BMP or PNG

Video thumbnails

Video content from Daimler Buses and the product and service brands is marked with a 16:9 thumbnail, which, in addition to a flag (200 x 195 pixels) with the Daimler Buses corporate logotype or a brand mark, also shows text boxes with the film title and/or other corresponding subtitles. This ensures that the brand is clearly recognizable and the structure of the playlist also retains its consistent sequence.

The headline system for film titles and subtitles provides for color accentuation of the text boxes depending on the length of the text to attract the attention of followers and to support quick visibility and better readability of the taglines.

Individual thumbnails of video posts with corporate logotype or brand and service marks as well as multi-line titles/subtitles within the main channel of Daimler Buses on YouTube

Flag (200 x 195 pixels) with corporate logotype/brand marks as visual identifier in video posts on YouTube

Channel overview with video posts on YouTube

All templates with corresponding default settings for video thumbnails of video content from Daimler Buses and the product and service brands are available for download.

X (formerly Twitter)

Profile picture on X

Short and distinctive headlines are no longer enough to be noticed on X. Tweets with pictures are significantly more effective at attracting audiences and attention and are proven to be shared more frequently on the social media channel than average.

Header photo on Twitter

In-stream post with shared image and link

For retweeting, brand-specific images and images that are characteristic of Daimler Buses and its subsidiaries play a role that should not be underestimated. The interest of the user community can also be increased by infographics and illustrative typography.

Username and channel title
The social network X sets name restrictions and only allows up to 20 characters for usernames and a maximum of 15 characters for the title of the X channel, e.g. Daimler Buses France or Daimler Buses FR, Daimler Buses Italia or Daimler Buses IT, etc. Almost no special characters are allowed. While the username may contain hyphens, only underscores are allowed for the X channel name, e.g. daimlerbuses_fr, daimlerbuses_it.

Instagram

Profile picture on Instagram

Instagram is a photo-sharing app for mobile devices, with which photos can be taken and visually altered in their effect using various filters, to then share them online with fans and followers of Daimler Buses and its subsidiaries. Instagram Stories offer the right tool for visual creativity in posts and can serve as an exposed stage for pictures and films faded into a certain sequence.

Photos and videos of stories and reels on Instagram wall

For this social media network, the balance of the three available image views – square, landscape, portrait – should be taken into account when creating images and selecting photo motifs. The interplay between the visual orientation and the size of the respective photo motif can successfully increase the visibility and meaningfulness of the Instagram posts.

Profile name and username
In addition to the profile name (e.g. Daimler Buses France or Daimler Buses Italia), the app also requires a username for communication (e.g. DaimlerBuses_France, DaimlerBuses_Italy). This is always displayed when users interact with the app, including when uploading images, likes or comments and can be accessed as follows: (...)/daimlerbusesfrance, (...)/daimlerbusesitalia.

LinkedIn

Profile picture on LinkedIn

On LinkedIn, Daimler Buses and its subsidiaries bring central messages of corporate and brand communication to the world. Followers, customers and multipliers appreciate this digital business card for brands and products as a source of up-to-date information and impressive inspiration.

Background photo on LinkedIn

Posts with photo or video on LinkedIn

Competence and clarity in tonality are to be complemented on LinkedIn by successful design with images and graphics. Photo motifs with distinctive esthetic attractiveness as well as maximum optical resolution highlight the LinkedIn profile and strikingly visualize the variety of topics at Daimler Buses and its subsidiaries.

Profile name and username
On LinkedIn, the profile name and username are defined from the segment name (Daimler Buses) and the designation of the respective country, e.g. Daimler Buses France or Daimler Buses Italia.