I recently sat through a series of meetings with a publisher attempting to figure out their three-year product plans. This was a multi-platform publisher who has successful distribution across traditional and digital media platforms — a publisher with a strong brand and a clear mission.
I spent three days in Las Vegas at the J.D. Power Automotive Internet Roundtable event listening to marketers, publishers and vendors talk shop and pontificate on best practices and various points of “the funnel.”
Recently, I came across a quote claiming that “car shoppers are 35-40 and probably don’t spend much time on the internet”, and that they still need and watch TV. To be honest, this quote made my jaw drop.
Actually, no, they aren’t. For someone like myself who has been so focused on what’s next in this social media revolution, it sounds funny to say. But it’s true.
In a recent Washington Post interview, Stefan Jacoby announced plans to move Volkswagen into the mainstream by building cars that would better suit American tastes–60 years after hitting American shores with the wildly different VW Beetle (Nee Victory Wagon).
Volkswagen recently announced that they will be launching the all new GTI using only an iPhone app. The application was unveiled in Manhattan last night and features a racing game being licensed from the Australian developer firm Firemint.
The recent Comscore and Starcom USA “Natural Born Clickers” follow-up study indicates that there’s been a 50 percent drop in the number of U.S. internet users who click on display ads since the same study conducted in 2007. So, people aren’t clicking on display ads … is this supposed to be new news?
Last weekend, my beach-bound reverie was interrupted by an email from a worried friend. His note was short and to the point. He was concerned that he was settling into a pattern of incrementalism that would doom his business to mediocrity.
As GM and Chrysler continue to emerge from bankruptcy, the question remains, how will they find competitive strengths in the current marketplace?
The silver lining is hopefully easier to see: vehicles consumers really want, greater efficiencies from auto companies, and most importantly, transparent conversations between brands and consumers. Sounds like the 2009 news isn’t all bad.
Chief Executive Officer
As Chief Executive Officer, Steve Wilhite is responsible for all sales, marketing, and product development activities and also serves on the company board of directors.