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'Big Company' Marketing Savvy Can be Great for Tire Dealers
February 09, 2010
In very basic terms, marketers consider two primary groups: Leaders and Followers. Because most consumer goods and services evolve over time, Leaders can become Followers and vice versa. So these targets are regularly sifted, sought and catered to. Leaders seek out the latest technology or design or performance, constantly seeking an edge in their lives. Some are out front, most are invisible. Leaders... read more
 
The New Frugality: Consumer Withdrawal Runs Deep, May Last the Decade
January 13, 2010
The last tumultuous decade was the 1980s, which open­ed with hyper-inflation, high unemployment and astronomical interest rates, and closed as the “Me Decade” when dollars flowed easy and greed was good. The decade we just laid to rest – The Aughts – by contrast, will likely be remembered as the “Decade of Benign Neglect.” Coming out of the Comfortable... read more
 
Reality Check: How Was the Show? Some Straight Talk About SEMA 2009
November 23, 2009
So, how was the show? In the past, that conversational query required minimal response. Kinda like, “So, how was vacation?” or “So, how was the movie?” the inquirer assumed the best and really wasn’t asking for any other reason than to be, well, politely interested. Today, post SEMA 2009, “So, how was the show?” is a serious question, one deserving... read more
 
Fixing a Hole: Total Tariff Fallout Still TBD, But Wrong Parties Were Wronged
October 13, 2009
The dust still isn’t settled on the president’s ill-advis­ed smackdown of China-made consumer tires. There have been plenty of claims, counterclaims, predictions, wringing of hands and well-moistened crying towels, but few tangibles to date. Despite all of the Chicken Little-ing, the sky has yet to fall and we are no closer to having a handle on the real impact the new three-year... read more
 
50 State Solution? Add It All Up and the Writing is On the Wall
August 15, 2009
Three years ago, the RMA was busy crafting and politicking a federal bill on tire fuel efficiency that eventually became part of the 2007 Energy Bill. Back in 2005, you’ll recall, gas prices were going through the roof. $2.20, then $2.45, then $2.60. Tires, as always, became the focal point, with consumers looking for ways to save money with “better” rubber. A number... read more
 
Twitiots & Me: When Old School Editor Goes New School, Bad Things Happen
July 15, 2009
Twitter I just don’t get. Fact is, the entire “social media” thing escapes me. It’s not media – there is no “news” involved – it’s just a bunch of people socializing...if you can even call it that. I’m an old-school guy. I still read newspapers – what few there are – and have a landline phone. Sure, I can see how the Internet... read more
 
With Both Feet: Dealers Show Business Success Means Doing Things Differently
June 15, 2009
Rare is the spring weekend in northeast Ohio with wall-to-wall pleasant temperatures and no rain. So rare that local brides grit their teeth and light votive candles by the score, hoping their dream day doesn’t become a deluge disaster. Indeed, holding a full weekend event in these parts involves more prayer than planning. Little wonder that Cleveland dealer Jim Enger let out a huge sigh... read more
 
Killer Instinct: Lessons Dealers Must Learn From an 800-Pound Gorilla
May 14, 2009
Bill Ihnken thinks the TBC Retail Group can be a “category killer” in the tire and service trade. The 800-pound gorilla that no one can ignore in every town it has a store. To reach that lofty goal, that pinnacle of retailing, the head of TBC Retail Group’s company-owned stores – Tire Kingdom, NTB and Merchant’s – is pushing the simplest tool in the toolbox... read more
 
Daydream Believer: Bruised Brain? Burn Out? What Did I Really Miss?
April 14, 2009
When the spot came up I really wasn’t paying much attention. I usually tune out when commercials come on, preferring to save my gray matter for more important pursuits. But then, out of the corner of my eye, I saw a tire roll up. It wasn’t a commercial for any of the tire companies ‘cause there weren’t any blimp pilots yapping or cartoon characters running around or ch... read more
 
Walk the Talk: It's a Golden Opportunity, If We Could Only Get Together
March 13, 2009
The 2007 Energy Bill is coming home to roost soon. Well, at least the part that has to do with testing and grading tires for rolling resistance, and then teaching consumers about the new UTQG-like scheme and helping them better care for their tires. NHTSA says it intends to meet its year-end deadline and deliver a rolling resistance criteria and program proposal. Before NHTSA gets too much further... read more
 
Our Better Angels: In These Tough Days, Dealer Greatness Needed More Than Ever
February 12, 2009
It’s not hard, as one watches the warm ocean wash over a white beach (in the middle of February), to come to the conclusion that one has a pretty good job. A great one, I guess. And I do have the opportunity, now and again, to enjoy a few days of fresh, warm beach air while my colleagues are back home frantically tossing another log on the fire in an effort to stave off sub-freezing temperatures... read more
 
What is 'Green'?: We May Be Seeing Red Without a Clear Enviro-Definition
January 13, 2009
For the tire industry, its products and services, and its face to the eco-consuming public, exactly what is “green”? This is a very valid question for the enviro-age. Is it oil-free tires or those substituting citrus oil? Tires made from recycled crumb rubber? Dandelions or cornstarch? What about retreading or making better use of existing products? Lower rolling resistance for greater... read more
 
(Between the Lines): Intercepted Holiday Letter From a Tire Dealer’s Wife
December 15, 2008
We all get them. The Holiday Update Letter from friends or relatives. They are usually over-the-top cheery, even for the holiday season, and provide interesting tidbits about how life is treating those closest to you, especially helpful if they live far away. Sometimes, though, a more honest assessment comes from reading between the lines, such as with this letter we intercepted: What a difference... read more
 
Smelling the Roses: Top Shop Marks the Best, But There Are Plenty of Great Dealers Out There
October 09, 2008
I guess the most annoying thing about being sick is that it is just so damn annoying. Especially when you don’t feel all that sick. A recent 12-rounder with pneumonia – won on the judge’s card, by the way – had me sequestered in the local hospital for seven days. Felt more like a lifetime, what with the prescribed bed rest (impossible with the regular poking and prodding... read more
 
Safety Dance: Tiremaker Comes at Tread Depth Debate from Odd Angle
August 08, 2008
Michelin broke the tiremaker cone-of-silence in the debate over changing – or not changing, in this case – our scatter-shot tread depth limit regs. At a media briefing earlier this year, Michelin said change is not necessary, there’s no need for a national mandate, and, even then, lack of enforcement would render such regs moot. Backed by stats and test results, Michelin took a reasoned... read more
 
Show Me 'Value': Affinia Shift on Trade Shows May Herald Broader Search for Real Returns
July 14, 2008
Curious if the economy, ever-rising fuel costs and tough business conditions will impact the upcoming Automotive Aftermarket Industry Week – the combined SEMA and AAPEX shows in Las Vegas? The answer is ‘Yes.’ Sort of. While ‘official’ figures are hard to come by, there was plenty of physical evidence that attendance at last year’s AAIW was off. With business... read more
 
Last Wake-Up Call: Blistered by Another ‘Problem,’ It’s Time the Industry Takes Action
June 17, 2008
Anger. Disappointment. Frustration. Resignation. I hurtled through a range of negative emotions after watching ABC’s “20/20” assault on the tire industry. After turning the whole thing over in my mind countless times, I finally came to the conclusion that it didn’t really matter. They were right. 100% right. ABC’s 10-minute primetime pasting of tire retailers and... read more
 
Misc. Folder: NTSW, Checkoffs, Greening, Spending, Shops & a Really Odd EU Scheme
May 22, 2008
You don’t necessarily see all of this, but I find it quite interesting to watch so many tiremakers, car dealers and non-tire dealer retailers jump aboard the National Tire Safety Week boat. Come April, we get flooded with news about free inflation pressure checks, tire gauges, educational events, press conferences, spokespeople…the list goes on and on. Don’t get me wrong... read more
 
Reality Check: Truthiness, Pizza, Ambition and the American Way
April 28, 2008
As this marks my 100th column as editor of Tire Review – and it is April! – I thought I’d offer this little but pertinent business parable. There once was a man with ambition and a plan. Slaving away as the assistant manager of a local pizza joint, he felt there had to be a better way, yet he lacked the backing to strike out on his own. So he got creative. Scratching... read more
 
Fuzzy 'Fix': Ill-Placed Countervailing Duties Counter to Free Market Economy
March 26, 2008
Been thinking about this whole Chinese tire-International Trade Commission/Commerce Department matter. And it is a difficult one, to be sure. I am not necessarily a fan, for instance, of good manufacturing jobs leaving these shores. But I do understand – and agree with – the concept of a Free Market Economy. You know, the one where winning and losing is determined by market forces... read more
 
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