Headbanging Over the Internet
I don’t particularly care for Metallica. But I’ve always been impressed with the band’s co-founder and drummer Lars Ulrich. It’s hard to picture a devout headbanger as being bright, but Lars has proven himself as one of the most intelligent and erudite people in music today. Metallica has been a loud opponent of Napster, a
More Than a Rain Tire: Goodyear’s New Aquatred 3 Stretches the Limit of the Name
Goodyear’s New Aquatred 3 Stretches the Limit of the Name
All This and More – for $300
What if someone came into your shop today and told you they would do all your marketing and promotion, would represent you and your products at numerous trade shows across the continent, would produce dozens of print and video news releases supporting your business, would monitor media coverage of your business in virtually every newspaper
Programs Offer Options
Profit Handbook Programs Offer Options There’s a quiet confidence about Dave Crawford. He can get animated, mind you, especially when it comes to discussing "the program." When you ask him why a tire dealer wouldn’t want to join American Car Care Centers (ACCC), the group’s marketing director answers bluntly, "I don’t think they understand the
Customers Getting Tagged
Profit Handbook Customers Getting Tagged There are problems, and there are opportunities. And for most people, the two are totally separate. But for Griffin Brothers Tire Sales in Charlotte, N.C., persistent computer problems opened the door to vast new opportunities to attract and keep retail customers. The five-store independent leveraged computer problems, a borrowed idea
Turn Scrap Into Gold
Turn Scrap Into Gold For today’s tire dealer, take-offs and scrap tires can be a unique profit center – and produce bottom line money on multiple levels.And one national company is working to help dealers not only make more money, but make a positive environmental statement, as well.If the two sound divergent, they aren’t. In
Basketball? No…It’s Tire Retailing
Around the middle of the second half, I realized what I was watching. Sure, on the face of it Michigan State was systematically dismantling Florida in the NCAA finals. But what we were really watching was a perfect metaphor for the state of tire retailing.Fresh-faced, flashy underclassmen versus patient, methodical upperclassmen. Youth vs. experience. Slick
A Quiet End to a Distinguished Career
The last time I had the opportunity to speak with Pat Rooney was during the International Tire Expo last November. It was at a cocktail party in a room teeming with people, loud with animated conversation coming from every direction. He was standing alone. No entourage. No underlings. No posse. To me, that situation was
Bringing You the Best – Brick by Brick
I learned a long time ago that when you ask an honest question you should expect an honest answer. Especially if it’s about something the person you’re speaking with truly values.The whirlwind of dealer and industry meetings over the past few months has given me the opportunity to renew old friendships and meet a lot
Bright Future Ahead?
Bright Future Ahead? It’s easy to forget sometimes that private branders even exist. They are rarely involved in controversy, are often not thought of as being on the cutting edge, and, for the most part, seem to remain in the background of a very public industry. But nothing could be further from the truth. Some
It Leaves You with Thesaurus
The New Year rang in rather quietly. No Y2K bug eating through our lives. No unfortunate acts of terrorism. No year-end Wall Street panic. But one issue slipped in the door Jan. 1 that could have a serious impact on your — and your commercial fleet customers’ – business.The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA)
Make Opportunity Knock: Commercial Light Truck Fleets Full of Untapped Potential
Make Opportunity Knock Commercial Light Truck Fleets Full of Untapped Potential Tire dealers are constantly looking for ways to increase business – especially long-term loyal business. But one of the easiest sales and profit avenues is right under most dealers’ noses. And not getting noticed. "My estimate is 75 percent of all commercial light truck