The Auto Show Report - Volume Three, Issue Eight

Contents:
Industry News

ASNA ‘delivers the big picture’ says McNabb’s Clemons

Jeep takes to the air in its marketing efforts

ASNA Sponsor Profile:

Access TCA provides 'full service' in unique ways
Profile:

Toyota's Donna Walter sees benefit of auto shows
Show Profiles

Rochester delivers well-rounded show
Louisville’s selling show sees boost with name change

Albany show delivers a 'family-friendly' event
Show Directory

Alphabetical listing of ASNA shows and dates for 2005-2006

Auto Shows of North America (ASNA) is a committee of Automotive Trade Association Executives. The Mission of ASNA is to be the industry resource for auto show information and education, and to provide a network for communication between show executives, manufacturers, other industry affiliates and media.

ASNA ‘delivers the big picture’ says McNabb’s Clemons

Scott Clemons recalls when he was a kid and someone would make a comment after an annual event: "The planning for next year's show begins tomorrow at 8 a.m."

"I used to think that was ridiculous," says Clemons, senior vice president and chief marketing officer of D.E. McNabb Co., a major supplier of floor coverings to the auto show market.

"It’s not."

Indeed, with an annual show schedule that sees suppliers like McNabb fielding quotes almost moments after the last shows are completed, Clemons says there's no longer such a thing as "down time."

"It’s just a time when you’re not doing shows."

What Clemons and others are doing is staying in touch, maintaining contact with their clients and others involved in auto shows.

Scott Clemons

"There’s a lot of nuts and bolts planning going on, with people meeting and strategizing, going over the details that will keep things running smoothly throughout the next season," says Clemons.

Those meetings, he says, are highlighted by gatherings hosted by auto shows in Detroit, Miami and New York, which this year moved its planning event to California, a benefit to manufacturers like Toyota, Honda and Nissan.

Then there's the ASNA Summer Meeting.

Clemons says the July 12-13 event (this year at Mohegan Sun & Resort in Uncasville, Conn.) is a perfect time to meet.

"You’ve had a break by this point," says Clemons. "By July you’re ready to see everyone again. The ASNA Summer Meeting keeps the blood churning."

What's especially beneficial to people like Scott Clemons is the fact that the ASNA Summer Meeting includes more than the people he'd normally meet with, such as exhibits and show managers.

“Everyone in the room is going to be a partner, competitor, client or potential client,” says Clemons. “It’s a great way to stay connected and to network. That’s the way you have to approach these things.”

Clemons says the extended value of the ASNA Summer Meeting is invaluable at a number of levels.

“There’s simply not enough common ground in our industry,” he says. “ASNA gives us the chance to share information among one another. Too many times we’re just focused on a single approach. Our involvement with ASNA gives us the ability to see the big picture.”

Note: New ASNA Summer Meeting sponsors should contact Joe Rohatynski for more information at 313.378.6570 or Joe@JoePR.com

Jeep takes to the air in its marketing efforts

It seems the Jeep brand keeps finding new and even more innovative ways of getting its distinctive identity in front of an enthusiastic public, even aside from its ongoing support of auto shows.

One of the latest examples is Jeep’s link to the aircraft used to portray the historic B-17 bomber Memphis Belle in the 1990 Hollywood film of the same name.

The aircraft used in the movie version of the Memphis Belle story is featured in a Jeep tour of air bases.

The brand’s “Hollywood Belle Tour” is heading across the country, already having made its debut at Andrews Air Force Base in May. June’s appearance at McGuire Air Force Base Air Show in Trenton, New Jersey, will be followed by air shows in Portland, Maine, (Sept. 10-11), Little Rock, Ark., (Oct. 8-9) and Raleigh, N.C. (Nov. 5-6).

The Hollywood Belle will make an additional appearance at Jeep’s annual owner loyalty event - Camp Jeep. Held this year in Pennsylvania’s Pocono Mountains (August 12-14), the event will feature an opportunity to test drive the 2006 Jeep Commander, among other vehicles.

Along with the showing of the Hollywood Belle, Camp Jeep attendees will be treated to a private air show featuring a P-51 Mustang, P-38 Lightning, F-4U Corsair and two P-47 Thunderbolts.

The Hollywood Belle Tour helps cement Jeep’s ongoing support of the military, says Jeff Bell, vice president, Jeep.

“Jeep is very excited to be a part of this partnership that complements the spirit of patriotism and American perseverance that the country’s military air shows are famous for embodying. We’re proud to help elevate awareness and interest in our country’s rich tradition of air shows and the breathtaking military bases that hold them.”

ASNA Sponsor Profile:
Access TCA provides 'full service' in unique ways

Some 20 years ago, Michael Yag was busy doing his job as a marketing director at Polaroid Corporation.

And observing.

What he saw and experienced in working with exhibit and display companies was a lack of marketing vision and an inability to integrate his marketing plan into his trade show program.

Unlike what some other clients might have done, Yag did more than complain. He started his own company.

Today, Access TCA prides itself on being a full-service provider of exhibit, design and production and complete account management services, notably but not exclusively for automotive clients such as Jaguar, Land Rover, Aston Martin and Isuzu as well as supplier XM Satellite Radio.

Ramie Friedman, who heads up the company’s automotive group, says Yag’s early experience in dealing with exhibit services have made a lasting mark on how Access TCA delivers its services.

“We really cannot be compared to anyone else in the way we work with clients,” says Friedman, based at the company’s suburban Boston headquarters (in Whitinsville, Mass.). “We give our clients a team approach to doing business that is really part of the competitive advantage we bring to the marketplace.”

Ramie Friedman

Translated to client benefits, Friedman says there’s no such thing as having a pivotal person on the team unavailable on short notice.

“It means we offer a consistency in depth of knowledge,” says Friedman. “Each team has a variety of people who are familiar with the operation details of the account. They know the clients and are empowered to act decisively in response to their needs.”

Access TCA’s depth of client interaction carries on to the integration it offers with the established marketing plan.

“We really research their business,” says Friedman. “That means we’re intimately involved in the execution of the marketing plan from start to finish.”

As a company, Access TCA prides itself on conducting its affairs in an upfront and business-like manner.

Its mission is “to integrate new thinking, technologies and methodologies into all phases of client service; all while delivering high quality, in-budget products.”

And the business of auto shows, Friedman says, is a serious matter.

“Auto shows are a critical element of any automotive manufacturer’s marketing program,” she notes. “Clearly these events are among the best ways to introduce a product to an audience within a limited time frame.”

Access TCA’s marketing presence includes the delivery of services provided by a sister company, M2 Creative (“M-squared”).

Based in Access TCA’s Atlanta office, M2 Creative brings a wide variety of meeting management and related services, notably concept and theme, production staging, speaker support, corporate theater, program materials and collateral, special events and entertainment, including work done in the auto show environment.

Friedman says the universal challenges associated with accurately measuring the effectiveness of any auto show marketing makes it even more important to engage the services of Access.

“Our clients can maximize their auto show investment through the creative approach of Access’ design team.”

That approach, she says, is part of what differentiates Access TCA.

“It’s one of the benefits our auto clients appreciate,” says Friedman. “Because we have such a diverse client base, our designers are able to bring many of the trends they see and experience in other sectors to their work on auto shows. That results in fresh new ideas and distinctive productions.”

Access TCA’s decision to become a sponsor of Auto Shows of North America was an easy one that was based on relationships.

“One of the keys to a smooth event is having a positive partnership with show management and other suppliers on the show floor,” says Friedman. “With five clients participating in shows throughout North America, and the strength in numbers that comes from addressing issues with show management, being involved with ASNA offers all of us an excellent forum in which to build on those relationships.”

Profile:
Toyota's Donna Walter sees benefit of auto shows

“Bring your concepts to town. People will love them.”

As Toyota’s manager of auto shows and dealer meetings, Donna Walter has likely fielded the request more times than she can remember. And still, she’ll have to decline.

The main reason? The numbers just don’t add up.

Donna Walter

“Concept vehicles cost a lot of money to create,” says Walter. “And manufacturers are conservative on how they spend that money.”

It follows, then, that the source of what virtually every auto show in North America would like to see is limited.

“We don’t have a lot of concepts to share with the shows,” says Walter, a 17-year Toyota veteran, who is based in Torrance, Calif. “As a result, we have to make the impact at the larger shows.”

Walter says smaller shows - the ones she ultimately has to say no to — shouldn’t be taking the decision personally.

Nor, she argues, should they be using it against manufacturers like Toyota in determining space allocation.

“Sometimes the smaller shows may feel like they’re second rate if we don’t bring a concept,” says Walter.

The reality is that Toyota’s management (as are other manufacturers) is increasingly seeing the value of auto shows as a marketing tool.

“It’s a great way to get the message out to the consumer,” says Walter, who’s been responsible for auto shows for the last eight years. “It puts bodies in the cars and that’s very important.”

As is the case with other manufacturers who are experiencing sales increases in markets where others are seeing declines, Walter believes auto shows should use actual sales to determine exhibit space allocation.

“Give us the same consideration and preference,” she urges. And more to the point: “don’t use concept vehicles as the criteria.”

But deciding which auto shows it will bring its few available concept cars to isn’t the same as participating as an exhibitor.

Indeed, Toyota will be involved in some 72 events throughout the season, a testament to its commitment to auto shows as well as a recognition of Walter’s workload. Even so, Walter is quick to credit business partners like George P. Johnson Company and Productions Plus in making her job manageable. And thankfully, the success of auto shows as a viable marketing tool is quickly borne out in vehicle sales.

“While measuring success can be very difficult, simply because there’s no way to measure how many people attending a show end up in Toyota’s space, we do know that in cities that have auto shows, sales at dealerships spike dramatically in the following days,” says Walter.

Walter, a business administration graduate of the University of Redlands, initially raised a family (while moving with her husband around the country), then returned to her native California to work in Toyota’s marketing department.

Before taking over responsibility for auto shows, Walter worked in a variety of positions at Toyota, including promotions, advertising, incentives and special events.

“This is the best job,” says Walter. “It’s the creative aspects of auto shows and the excitement that comes every year. We’re always looking to do something new, to focus on whatever the new products are to feature in our displays.”

And because the business of auto shows is ultimately a people business, Walter sees that as key to what she loves about her role at Toyota.

“We all share the passion of auto shows,” says Walter, which is one more reason she’d like to see her employer with even more opportunity to showcase its offerings.

“We have an 18-model line-up,” says Walter. “But typically we don’t have room to bring in even one of each model.”

Rochester delivers well-rounded show

Most years, John Lyboldt has a quick answer to the inevitable question of how to define the Rochester International Auto Show he hosts.

But not this year.

Lots of cars to grab the attention of the public, but show could use even more space.

“I couldn’t get my arms around it,” says Lyboldt, president of the Rochester Automobile Dealers’ Association. “We had a great cross section of vehicles in every category, from just about every manufacturer. The list just kept going.”

What hasn’t changed in Rochester is the need for more space.

“We could double the size of the show if the city were to improve the convention center,” says Lyboldt. “Certainly we could easily use another 75,000 square feet.”

The five-day show, just having completed its 20th year, featured more than 25 new or totally redesigned models plus a healthy preview of 2006 models.

All manner of vehicles, including the latest in trucks, were featured at the Rochester International Auto Show.

Concepts included the 2006 Concept Charger from Dodge, the Chrysler Chronos, the Willy’s II Jeep and GM’s Hy-wire hydrogen vehicle. Sneak previews included the Lincoln Mark LT truck, Infiniti M35X, Ford Fusion, Subaru B9 Tribeca, Buick Lucerne and Pontiac Solstice.

Richard Sherman, who has managed the show on behalf of the dealer organization from its very first year, says a good selection of vehicles on display was highlighted by the return of Jaguar after a four-year absence.

Other highlights included an accessory row as well as the display of the northeast champion modified NASCAR racecar.

Visitors also took in a classic 1986 Lamborghini Countach 5000 quattro valve along with numerous new vehicles from virtually every manufacturer of note.

Wide open view: Manufacturers take the opportunity of showcasing the functionality of their vehicles.

“We’re very proud of this show,” says Lyboldt.

But Lyboldt is even happier about what he heard as visitors left the floor.

“I make it a point to ask people what they thought of the event,” he says. “I fully expect to hear someone who’s unhappy about something, even if it’s minor. This year I heard nothing but praise for the event.”

Profile: Greater Rochester Auto Show
Date:
March 2-6, 2005
Next year:
March 1-6, 2006
Place:
Rochester Riverside Convention Center
Exhibit Space:
72,000 square feet
Tickets:
Adults, $7.50; Seniors, $5; Children (8-12), $2.50; Five and under, free
Show Hours:
Wed., 5 pm-10 pm; Thurs.-Fri., noon-10 pm; Sat., 11 am-10 pm; Sun., 11 am-7 pm
Show Contact:
John Lyboldt, ATAE
President, Rochester Automobile Dealers' Association, Inc.
jlyboldt@rochesterautodealers.com, 585.272.7232
Show Website:
www.rochesterautodealers.com

Louisville’s selling show sees boost with name change

As one of fewer than a handful of true “selling” shows in North America, the Louisville Auto Show and Sale is simply out to do what its name suggests: move vehicles.

High-tech of another type? More fun at the Lousville Auto Show and Sale.

A reemphasis on the sales part of what was already a successful show included a name change — notably the “and Sale” at the end — which dealer executive Scott Roth says contributed to a substantial increase in at-show deals.

“We sold more than 250 vehicles in the three day event,” says Roth, president of the Greater Louisville Automobile Dealers Association.

Taking up a full wing of the Kentucky Fair and Exposition Center, the successful show nonetheless continued to compete for attendance with a yearly phenomenon — basketball’s March Madness.

That, plus school children heading out of town on spring break has Roth and his board considering a move of dates to January next year.

While the decision has not yet been firmed up, Roth says the association will be considering a second event in the form of an October clearance of vehicles — likely in an outdoor tent.

Roth says responses from manufacturers for the calendar changes are encouraging. Date changes and updates will be made at www.asna-atae.com when they're firmed up.

Kentucky is, after all, a little basketball crazy, which made autograph hunters happy to find some of their favorite players at the auto show.

Beyond the actual selling of vehicles at the show, Roth says attractions at the show were somewhat limited, although there were athletes on hand to sign autographs and a contest involving the highest odometer reading (the owner of a vintage Lincoln in the high 300,000s won $1,000 toward a new car).

“Being a selling show, it’s a whole different animal,” says Roth. “The vehicles themselves are our biggest attraction: bring your vehicle in and trade it. That’s the pull.”

And with a 1,500 vehicle inventory on site, dealers participating in the show were ready to respond.

“Just getting those vehicles there, and securing the parking lot is a challenge,” says Roth. “But we’ve been doing this for 20 years or so. We know how to handle it.”

Profile: Louisville Auto Show and Sale
Date:
April 8-10, 2005
Next year:
Jan. 27-29, 2006 (tentative)
Place:
Kentucky Fair and Exposition Center
Exhibit Space:
215,000 square feet
Tickets:
Adults, $6; Seniors, $5; Children 12 and under, free when accompanied by adult
Show Hours:
Friday, 2pm-10 pm; Saturday, 10 am-10 pm; Sunday, noon-6 pm
Show Contact:
Scott Roth
President, Greater Louisville Auto Dealers Association
sroth@glada.com, 502.394.9920
Show Website:
www.lousvilleautoshow.com

Albany show delivers a 'family-friendly' event


	A wide array of vehicles in a limited amount of space gets lots of attention.

A healthy array of events designed to pull visitors into the Albany Auto Show did just what was intended, says event organizer Kim Quinn, of the Eastern New York Coalition of Automotive Retailers.

The draws for what is one of two events held every year in the Empire State’s capital city (a free event, the Empire State Plaza Auto Show is held in November) works well, says Quinn, highlights of which include those designed to bring families to the door.

In addition to features such as “Buffo, the World’s Strongest Clown” (who appeared daily), the show included the 6th Annual “Dan Murphy’s Race for Kids.”

The Children's Hospital at Albany Medical Center was the real winner in the "Dan Murphy's Race for Kids" event at the Albany Auto Show.

In the event, Channel 10 sports director Dan Murphy races members of the public using a 1/20th scale remote control race car, five at a time.

Funds raised in the event (at $3 per person per race) benefit the Children’s Hospital at Albany Medical Center, a 125-bed facility devoted exclusively to the medical needs of infants, children and adolescents. The 80-physician hospital serves more than 42,000 patients on an outpatient basis and admits more than 4,500 patients every year.

Additional children’s characters featured at the Albany show included “Rowdy” from Albany River Rats and Mr. Twisty.

The event also included complimentary caricature drawings by local artist Jeanne A. Benas.

Profile: Albany Auto Show
Date:
April 8-10, 2005
Next Year:
April 7-9, 2006
Place:
Pepsi Arena
Exhibit Space:
less than 50,000 square feet
Tickets:
Adults, $7; Children (under 12) free (accompanies by adult)
Show Hours:
Fri. 3-9 pm; Sat. 10 am-9 pm; Sun. 11 am-5 pm

Show Contact:
Deborah Dorman, ATAE
ddorman@enycar.org, 518.452.0584
Show Website:
www.enycar.org