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JAMIE LaREAU

For happier customers, sales and F&I need to talk

12:01 am U.S. ET | May 22, 2013
Good communication between sales and finance staff cannot be overstated. That’s my takeaway from reading a recent chat on a Facebook page shared by finance managers.... Read More »

 

Dealer swaps shoe leather for Facebook

12:01 am U.S. ET | May 20, 2013
When Chris Morrison started out as a car salesman 30 years ago in the placid southern Mississippi city of McComb, he spent every Tuesday at local employers handing out business cards and shaking hands. Today he uses Facebook instead of shoe leather and business cards to help him sell cars and service.... Read More »

 

Chevy courts 'girls' on social media

12:01 am U.S. ET | May 6, 2013
Some Chevy local marketing associations are finding prospective customers with Facebook pages tailored to women in specific metro areas, melding marketing messages with local goings-on.... Read More »

 

FINAL ASSEMBLY

GM likes Facebook again -- but just a little

12:01 am U.S. ET | April 15, 2013
Last week's news that General Motors will resume paid advertising on Facebook generated plenty of headlines, but the spending will be just a drop in GM's big advertising bucket -- less than what the company spends on billboards.... Read More »

 

DOUGLAS A. BOLDUC

LaFerrari and Golf were Geneva Web winners

12:01 am U.S. ET | March 11, 2013
Ferrari's new supercar and Volkswagen's award-winning top seller were the big Web winners from this year's Geneva auto show, according to a study. The VW Golf was the media champion of the show because of the debut of the GTI version of the compact as well as the car's victory in the 2013 European Car of the Year contest.... Read More »

 

GM in talks with Facebook about return to paid ads

11:31 am U.S. ET | Jan. 16, 2013
General Motors and Facebook are discussing the return of the automaker as a paid advertiser about eight months after GM said it would stop running ads on the social networking website, a top GM executive said.... Read More »

 

SOCIAL MEDIA SURPRISE

Facebook photos of dunked Land Rover get salesman fired, but NLRB finds hot dog criticism is protected speech

12:01 am U.S. ET | Nov. 19, 2012
The issue for dealers: Many marketers view social media as a good way for salespeople to engage customers, establish a following and build sales. But salespeople need to behave within limits to protect dealerships' reputations.... Read More »

 

Dealers get in your Facebook

12:01 am U.S. ET | Oct. 29, 2012
Richard Bustillo, general manager of Rick Case Honda in Davie, Fla., believes Facebook has finally cracked the code to help dealerships sell vehicles and service. Technical improvements introduced in September allow dealerships to take their customer lists -- with just names and e-mail addresses -- and find those people on Facebook. The "custom audience" feature allows dealerships to push ads directly to Facebook users' news feeds.... Read More »

 

Countdown to launch

12:01 am U.S. ET | July 23, 2012
As Ford pushed further into social media marketing for the crucial 2013 Fusion launch, it found that new media offers exciting possibilities and unexpected problems.... Read More »

 

Social media marketing is new word-of-mouth

12:01 am U.S. ET | July 23, 2012
At its core, social media marketing is an amped-up version of the oldest and most powerful form of marketing: word-of-mouth.... Read More »

 

Hyundai gets social media boost from soccer sponsorship

July 20, 2012 14:45 CET
Hyundai said its sponsorship of the Euro 2012 soccer championship has been very successful in getting its brand name more widely known in the region, particularly in the social media spectrum. “We don't yet know how much traffic has been generated through showrooms, but it's reassuring to see stats such as the 43 percent increase in Facebook fans,” Hyundai Europe marketing head Mark Hall told Automotive News Europe.... Read More »

 

INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

The dealership that's most likely to be 'liked'

12:01 am U.S. ET | July 16, 2012
Bob Nouri wants people to like him. And his strategy seems to be working. Nouri owns Norman Chrysler-Jeep-Dodge in Norman, Okla., and the dealership has racked up more than 10,000 "likes" on its Facebook page since January.... Read More »

 

GM in talks about resuming advertising on Facebook

5:04 am U.S. ET | July 3, 2012
General Motors, which said it would stop advertising on Facebook on the eve of the social network's initial public offering in May, is talking with the site about resuming the ads, two people familiar with the talks said.... Read More »

 

FACE VALUE

Carmakers love the clicks and chatter that a Facebook presence generates -- but how many of those clickers are just tire kickers?

12:01 am U.S. ET | June 25, 2012
Automakers love marketing on Facebook. They share videos, photos and chatter with millions of fans of their brands. But converting Facebook fans into paying customers? Well, that's a work in progress.... Read More »

 

BMW, others gain from closer ties with bloggers

June 12, 2012 07:04 CET
BMW, Mercedes and other luxury brands are boosting efforts to court bloggers to target a growing audience of would-be buyers who can't be reached through TV and newspaper ads. BMW claimed an 88 million-euro ($110 million) revenue gain for its 1-series line by wooing customers with a Web-only campaign.... Read More »

 

Chevrolet signs on as Manchester United's auto sponsor

May 31, 2012 09:30 CET
General Motors has signed on as the automotive sponsor of the world's most popular soccer club, Manchester United, in an attempt to cement Chevrolet as a global brand. The brand will replace Audi as the team's automotive sponsor.... Read More »

 

GM plans Chevrolet marketing tie-up with Manchester United

May 30, 2012 11:19 CET
General Motors is preparing to make a marketing announcement between its Chevrolet brand and Manchester United soccer team. A sponsorship deal would allow GM to promote its Chevrolet brand through Manchester United, the record 19-times English soccer champions.... Read More »

 

EDITORIAL

Marketing advice: Have some fun at the online party

12:01 am U.S. ET | May 28, 2012
General Motors' decision to cancel paid advertising on Facebook highlights a crucial marketing dilemma facing the entire industry: how to connect with shoppers who have embraced Facebook, Twitter and other social media.... Read More »

 

FINAL ASSEMBLY

Jaguar likes Facebook -- and lots of other stuff

12:01 am U.S. ET | May 28, 2012
After General Motors said it wouldn't advertise on Facebook or during the 2013 Super Bowl, Jaguar North America posted the following about its 2013 U.S. advertising plans on its corporate Web site, blog.interactivejaguar.com.... Read More »