Catch up on last October’s Cycle World Trek dual sport ride over on the site. I tossed in a short video and a couple of slide shows highlighting three days in the Sierra Nevadas during the 34th annual event.
physician, heal thyself
Ad Age reports today that automotive site edmunds.com has embarked on a self-styled industry PSA to kick start the moribund car market.
The quasi-campaign, which dots the car buying site’s hundreds of thousands of pages with banners pushing consumers to buy now, right now, is internally valued at $10-mil plus.
Why? According to Edmunds own ceo, it’s time to “give back,” with car sales the worst since 1992 and predicted to slump even lower.
Could the same concept work for the powersports channel? Could powersports media run their own version of in-house creative designed to motivate consumers? Worth a try is all we’re saying.
bye, bye bud – sob
It’s a sign. A sign of the times. Bud’s new owner, brewing giant In-Bev, didn’t waste much time shutting down the free flow of suds at theme park watering holes around the country.
As of the end of the month, patrons – for Tampa’s Busch Gardens tiks start at $70 plus $11 for parking – will no longer be able to stand in line for a free plastic cup sampler full of the brewing art.
More’s the pity. As a youngster, my memories of the park before the themes and even before the Busch brand were of a garden gnome forest, a couple of bird acts, climbing the stairs that led into the brewery exhibit and the pavillion payoff of gratis Bud at the end of the tour. The only limit then? All you could drink, just one at a time. And admission was free.
mx to or at pri
You never know who you’ll see at PRI. Ex-MX Champ and current truck racer/event promoter Ricky Johnson, left, was at the Alpinestars booth talking strategy with team owner Steve Barlow, center. Steve owns 2 Red Bull/KMC/Bosch sponsored CORR trucks, drives Pro 4 while RJ handles the Pro 2 truck.
It’s no secret that marketing budgets have been slashed and with them the lifeblood of direct sponsored motor and powersports rides. Broadcast and print budgets have also been hung out to dry. What happens next is anyone’s guess: much will hinge on how quickly new from the ground up marketing models are created.
sales lost – here’s why
Consumer measurement firm J.D. Powers just released the first of a two-part survey on the state of bike sales in today’s dismal economic times. The major metrics focus on negative dealership issues and boil down to price, inventory shortage and experiential issues.
In reverse order, pollsters racked up a disappointment among potential buyers over the ability to test ride, lack of a comprehensive floor plan and the major catchall, pricing and negotiation.
We’ll go one further and list the in-store experience as a major contributor to the above specifics. When a multi-line, multi-location dealership like this local example fails to cover their model lineup – not one dual sport on the floor – while welcoming traffic with a Sam’s Club warehouse environment, what’s to like?
Parking a camo sXs in the grass as a marketing crutch doesn’t exactly cut it in this day and age of consumer first, last and always awareness. Look closely and you’ll see a polypropelene wreath tie-wrapped to the nose. More disguise – who wouldn’t get drawn in by this kind of invisible dimensional drive-by attraction?
green – the new gold standard
More obvious than omnipresent at the 2008 Performance Racing Industry’s show, the greening of the motorsports industry is definitely underway. The Go Green pitch was in the house and awareness of the implications was impossible to ignore.
A new series – Green Prix, no less – debuted. Battery powered laptimes? Not just for RC anymore. The two biggest influences both started with ‘E’ – economy and environment.
This is an easy call – public opinion negatives regarding fossil fuel along with financial realities affecting everyone are going to have an enormous impact on the future of every sanctioning body and every series’ support, starting right now.
pri ’08 – subdued, not somber
I visited the 2008 edition of Performance Racing Industry’s efficient and very well produced trade show this week, not knowing what to expect from the trio formerly known as the Big Three, or how all the rescue plans would or would not impact the show.
Fair to say the mood wasn’t jubilant. On the other hand it wasn’t funerial, either. Impact: aisles were easier to navigate than in previous years and overall the vibes were lukewarm positive.
Between Honda’s pullout from F1 and AMA Superbike, along with rumored large scale corporate cancellations in NASCAR the broader implications of marketing to a mass audience will shock more than a few. We’ll have a web feature up soon and more commenting on the blog.
vespa from oz
New Orleans alternative radio station WWOZ – one of my top five internet faves for the hippest in blues and jazz and the only consistent source for cajun, zydeco and swamp rock – is raffling off this icon of scooterdom, complete with autographs, to one lucky ticket buyer come May 9, 2009
Donated by The Transportation Revolution, New Orleans franchise dealer for Ducati, Triumph, Piaggio and Vespa, this kind of promotional tie-in is perfect for dealerships in need of a marketing shot in the arm. Go here to see how the station’s doing their part in making sure this Vespa is seen around town.
Signers (so far) include Terence Blanchard, Randy Newman, Irma Thomas, Marcia Ball and Dr. John, along with assorted Nevilles and a bevy of other notables.
save a spot for SPOT
I was four-fifths into Day One of the 2008 Cycle World Trek and headin’ for home when it dawned on me I might be – was – lost. Misplaced. Whatever. Cellphone, GPS, map and compass notwithstanding, I was having a little trouble with my bearings.
In the Sierras, lost is one thing. Lost and disabled is quite another. Just ask, well, just ask those guys they finally found a few years ago, freshly thawed after being frozen in a glacier for the last six decades. At least the bears didn’t eat ’em like Popsicle h’or douvres.
With a low fuel warning light on, the notion of sustaining a twisted ankle or worse nagged a little. EPRBs have long been a mainstay of sailors, but now comes a handy little device that’s affordable, dependable and with a variety of uses other than 911 come find me. SPOT.
SPOT might be just the gadget offroaders, solo tourers, or anyone who strays from civilization’s path long enough to escape traffic lights and homicidal drivers is looking for. Or should pack anyway.
This compact satellite messenger can transmit bread crumbs to your homies, summon the cavalry, check in with your honey or send a pick up location at ride’s end. And at just under $170, the device is very affordable, as are the service plan (required) options.
we want homer! now!
I’m sometimes asked, “What, exactly, is PR?” Much more than the latest product release, public relations at its core is called on to put a public face on corporate behavior.
The latest, and best, example to date of seat-of-the-pants we don’t need no stinkin’ pr came when The Not So Big Three ambled their way to DC for some help from the public.
Forget the ordinary workers and businesses across the country who were depending on them. Ford, GM and Chrysler ceos landed clueless, cozy and comfortable just in time to be ridiculed from the cheap seats for their chutzpah.
For comparison, imagine if the airline chief execs showed up begging for help in Bentleys and Rolls Royces. Jeez, a blind man on a galloping horse could’ve seen this coming.
But no, Detroit’s elite decided to ignore what we surely can imagine were impassioned pleas from corporate public relations folk begging them to brown bag it to Washington.
So what happened? No money, honey, and probably less than they would have gotten when they finally do get their paws in the public coffers.
Perception counts, in any industry.