Car Dealer Reputations

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Tuesday, March 29, 2011

2012 Honda Civic / Civic Hybrid Spy Photos - Future Cars

The ninth-gen Civic's arrival is imminent—here is further proof the aesthetic makeover will be subtle.

BY JUSTIN BERKOWITZ, PHOTOGRAPHY BY BRIAN WILLIAMS FOR BRENDA PRIDDY & CO. AND THE MANUFACTURER
February 2011

Pages: 1 Photos

When it comes to future product, Honda's product planners and PR reps are typically more tight-lipped than the old East German Stasi. But the Honda crew couldn't stop our spy photographers from snapping the hybrid version of the ninth-generation Honda Civic sedan, expected to go on sale at the end of next month.

As foretold by the Civic concepts on display at this year's Detroit show, the new Civic's design will be an evolutionary take on the outgoing car's. In fact, from the side it takes a trained eye to pick out most differences. The steeply raked windshield returns, as does the prominent shoulder line running the length of the car. The biggest change to the exterior is in the rear, where the last-gen sedan's awkward scalloped taillights are gone, replaced with bulbous units more like the rear lamps on the current Civic coupe. A number of pictures of ninth-gen Civics on a transporter in Japan have popped up on a Brazilian website, offering a fully unobstructed view of the taillights. We've embedded one of the photos here; check out Noticias Automotivas for the full set.

These spy shots also give a fresh look at the next Civic's dashboard, which will stick with the two-tiered layout. The wraparound design remains as well, although the stereo buttons have been rearranged, and the central knob so familiar from other Hondas makes an appearance. The knob may control a redesigned (or at least upgraded) nav system—let's hope so, since the one available in the outgoing car is pretty terrible, with clunky ergonomics and graphics perhaps best compared to that of old eight-bit Nintendo systems.

The hybrid version of the Civic seen in these photos will use a revised gas/electric setup with a lithium-ion battery pack swapped for the last gen's nickel-metal-hydride unit. This material change should take weight out of the Integrated Motor Assist hybrid system, and given that and Honda's claim that the new Civic will be lighter overall, we expect the new hybrid will better the outgoing model's EPA ratings of 40 mpg city/43 highway.

Mechanically speaking, the rest of the Civic's tale remains in the mystery section. You can bank mortgage money on the conventional engine lineup being exclusively four-cylinder, but exact displacements and power outputs are still up in the air. In addition to the standard models and the hybrid, a natural gas–powered version also will be available, as well as a Civic Si for those in search of, you know, fun. The latter will again be offered in sedan and coupe forms. (Recent rumors suggest that Honda's 2.4-liter four-cylinder from the Acura TSX would find its way into the Civic Si, bringing a tiny bump in horsepower and a larger gain in the torque department.) Five- and six-speed manual transmissions will reappear on the Civic's order sheet, and we anticipate the optional automatic gearbox will have six cogs, an improvement from today's five-speed auto.

From the spy photos taken in Japan, the most important revelation is the rear underside shot, which shows off the multilink rear suspension. Civics have featured this relatively sophisticated and somewhat expensive setup for years, but in light of cost-cutting campaigns in some competitors—Volkswagen's latest Jetta defected from a multilink rear suspension to a cheaper torsion-bar arrangement, for example—it's a relief to see the Civic hang on to this handling-friendly feature.

[Sent from Ralph Paglia's iPhone]

Ralph Paglia

Vice President

Tier 10 Marketing

cell: 505-301-6369

fax: 801-340-8918

In the Car Business? Really? Then you are a member: http://ADM.fm

Monday, March 28, 2011

Paglia Digital Dealer Conference Session

Blackhawks OC Chopper at Mercedes-Benz of St. Charles

The Chicago Blackhawks are raffling off a special,
custom-built bike signed by the entire team!

The Chicago Blackhawks Orange County Chopper will be on display
at our new

Mercedes-Benz of
St. Charles dealership

Monday, April 4th

from 6:00 to 8:00 PM!

Mercedes-Benz of St. Charles is located at 225 N. Randall Road in Saint Charles, IL.

The official drawing will be held on April 12th, so this will be one of the last chances to see the bike in person and purchase a raffle ticket! Blackhawks Charity will accept a check or credit card and it's fully tax deductible. Raffle Tickets are $100 each. Proceeds from the raffle will benefit the Chicago Blackhawk Charities, the Orange County Choppers Foundation and the Special Kids Network. For complete details, click here.

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Ralph Paglia

Vice President

Tier 10 Marketing
cell: 505-301-6369
email: rpaglia@gmail.com

www.RalphPaglia.com

http://Twitter.com/RalphPaglia
http://Facebook.com/RPaglia
http://YouTube.com/RalphPaglia

www.ADMPC.com

Wednesday, March 23, 2011

Captain Mathew Berger - World War II Hero

A Story Heard While Leaving the Automotive Leadership Roundtable Event in Miami Beach; Captain Mathew Berger - World War II Hero, and an Inspiration!

Sean Wolfington, Greg Noonan and Ralph Paglia all converged during a chance encounter in the lobby of the Loews Hotel in Miami Beach. As we exchanged greetings, and I asked Greg about his new plane, an older gentleman approached us... He asked Greg if he was a pilot, which he is.

During the conversation that ensued, we each learned that the gentleman's name is Matt Berger and he is a World War II Veteran who flew B24 bombers out of England on missions over Nazi Germany.

With some prompting on our parts, we were able to get Matt Berger to share some WWII stories with us... Turns out his last mission flying a B24 Liberator bomber over Nazi targets in Germany resulted in his plane losing 1 of 4 engines to Nazi antiaircraft flak. Although the Liberator flew well with 3 of its 4 engines, it could not fly as fast...

This was a MAJOR problem as Matt knew that if he fell out of formation with his bomber group, he and his crew would surely be picked off and killed by Nazi Fokker fighters that preyed upon any allied aircraft that became stragglers by falling out from the group, and the protection provided by the tight formation the Allied bombers flew in to provide cover for each other...

After dropping their load of bombs onto Nazi Military targets, Matt turned his B24 Liberator around to head back towards England with the rest of his bomber group... As he pushed the remaining 3 engines of his Liberator to protect the lives of his crew, as well as his own, by keeping up with the group, the engines starting to over-heat.

Knowing that if he could reach the safety of Allied held Belgium, he could crash land his Liberator where he and his crew would likely escape capture by Nazi forces, Matt coaxed the engines along at RPM's that exceeded their red line... Being only 19 years old and the pilot of a wounded B24 Liberator, the youngest member of an 8 man crew, Matt had the lives of all on board in his young hands, relying upon his skills as a pilot to get all of them to safety behind Allied lines...

Matt sacrificed a second engine to keep up with his formation long enough to reach Belgium... Being the savvy leader that he is, he chose the engine in the same position on the opposite side of the Liberator as the engine taken out by Nazi flak. By doing this, Matt knew he could bring the big limping bomber down in a level manner, increasing the survivability of a crash landing.

As his Liberator fell out of formation over Belgium, Matt spotted a dream come true... A freshly plowed and furroughed Belgian farm field that was long enough to land the big bomber without hitting trees or buildings. As he approached his crash landing field, he set the plane up for a belly landing without landing gear down, as he knew the gear would only plunge into the freshly plowed field, acting like an anchor and slamming his Crew violently, Matt brought the Liberator into the wind...

1,000 feet to 800 to 600 to 400 to 200 as he brought the airspeed down from 190 MPH to under 100 MpH... Just before the Liberator touched down on the smooth and soft Belgium soil, one of Matt's crew grabbs the landing gear lever and pulls the landing gear into position without Matt's permission!

Just as Matt had feared, the landing jammed into the ground creating enough G Force of braking to knock out several crew members. Despite his tight flight harness, Matt's skinny 19 year old frame was twisted and slammed into the steering yoke. All his ribs were broken and the steering handle had penetrated his chest cavity.

Matt's co-pilot was able to radio Allied ground forces and a search and rescue recovery team was dispatched to the Belgian farm... Every crew member sieves and despite the deformed ribs that still protrude from Matt Bergers back, which he showed us in the lobby of the Loews Miami Beach hotel, Matt was promoted to full Captain's rank and went back out on more missions over Germany several months later.

After the war, Matt Berger became a successful TWA pilot and years later retired with full military and civilian pilot's honor. Sean, Greg and I were moved by matt Berger's take and we want to thank him for sharing his story with us...

When I think about what Matt Berger did , enlisting in the Army Air Force at the age of 17... Flying many dozens of missions over Nazi Germany without fighter plane protection... Crash landing his plane in Belgium, then going back out on more missions, all before his 20th birthday... Well... I am simply humbled beyond description.

Thank you Captian Mathew Berger! Thank you for saving the world from a Nazi scourge that makes Al Quaida look like a bunch of street punks... Thank you for setting the stage that becomes the 50+ year post-WWII economic boon which has allowed MY generation of Baby Boomers to enjoy the greatest quality of life ever experienced in human history... Thank you Captain Mathew Berger for sacrificing your youth to free Europe and give me and my generation a life of Liberty and the Freedom to pursue Happiness!

We could never repay the debt we owe Matt Berger and his generation.
>

Ford Teams With AT&T to Wirelessly Connect New Ford Focus Electric

Ford Electric Vehicle Owners Will Have Ability to Remotely Monitor, Engage and Control Vehicle Settings via Information Collected over the AT&T Wireless Network

Ford Motor Company to use AT&T wireless network to connect new Ford Focus Electric
Wireless connection enables vehicle owners to control vehicle settings when away from the car – all part of a strategic approach to make Ford electric car ownership simple, easy and engaging
MyFord Mobile, Ford's exclusive app powered by MapQuest data, will be accessible through a smartphone or secure website
Embedded wireless connection and dedicated app includes the ability for the owner to monitor and control vehicle charge settings, plan single- or multiple-stop journeys, locate charging stations, pre-heat or cool the car

DALLAS and DEARBORN, Mich., March 23, 2011 — Ford Motor Company and AT&T* today announced an agreement to wirelessly connect the Ford Focus Electric, Ford's first all-electric passenger car. Announced in January at the 2011 International CES, the new Focus Electric enters production at the Michigan Assembly Plant in late 2011.

Through the new MyFord Mobile smartphone app, using the embedded AT&T wireless connection, Ford Focus Electric vehicle owners will have the ability to send and receive data about their car providing command and control of vehicle settings while away from it.

"Ford has been at the forefront of developing market leading telematics and infotainment services for its vehicles and we're thrilled to be a part of this exciting and significant next step with the upcoming Focus Electric," said Glenn Lurie, president of emerging devices, resale and partnerships, AT&T. "Connecting consumers directly to their electric vehicles in this new and innovative way is going to drive innovative and exciting levels of interaction."

MyFord Mobile technology provides Focus Electric owners in North America with a powerful tool to stay connected, monitor and control their vehicle. Through a smartphone app or secure website, MyFord Mobile invites Focus Electric owners to plan trips, monitor the vehicle's state of charge, receive various alerts for vehicle charging, as well as provides several other features designed to simplify the electric vehicle ownership experience.

"With a wireless connection, we're putting battery charge and vehicle range information, along with an interactive, data-driven trip planning app, directly at the fingertips of our customers," said Ed Pleet, product and business manager for Ford Connected Services. "This technology will keep drivers connected to vital information, enhancing their electric car ownership experience. The AT&T network is an important part of this equation and we're pleased to have AT&T on board."

MyFord Mobile will connect through the AT&T network, allowing the car to communicate off-board through standard wireless technology. From an internet connected mobile phone or computer, owners can:

Find current and projected state of charge information including estimated range and the amount of charge time necessary for additional distances
Program vehicle charging with utility input, allowing the car to start charging immediately or when electricity prices are lowest with the value charging feature, powered by Microsoft
Features powered by MapQuest available on the MyFord smartphone app:
- Locate charging stations and get the destination sent to the vehicle
- Know if the vehicle can reach a specific charge station from its current location with the current charge level
- Create a journey with multiple stops, and determine the likelihood that the car has adequate charge for the full journey
- Find the car by creating a route from a mobile phone to the vehicle
Receive alerts if the vehicle isn't charging when it's scheduled to, or if charging stops unexpectedly due to a power outage, plug removal or other event
Receive alerts during recharge when the vehicle has reached a particular preset charge level or has the ability to reach a particular destination
Engage remote vehicle preconditioning, using grid power to heat or cool the vehicle interior
Remotely lock/unlock doors
Use the built-in GPS system to locate the car
Download performance and system data
Fun ways of understanding your driver behavior, with ratings from 'Zen' to 'Zippy'
Receive information personalized to the driver, depending on which key the driver used

How the system works
At launch, the MyFord Mobile app will be available for most major smartphones, along with a mobile web application for compatibility with any phone supporting HTML-5 browser-based access, or feature phones with WAP 2.0-supported browsers. The feature also is accessible via a secure Ford website.

Owners will use the smartphone to communicate with a cloud-based highly secure server, which stores information provided by the embedded wireless module in Focus Electric. Using a cloud-based architecture ensures users will have up-to-the-minute access to information through the AT&T wireless network.

[Sent from Ralph Paglia's iPhone]

Ralph Paglia

Vice President

Tier 10 Marketing

cell: 505-301-6369

fax: 801-340-8918

In the Car Business? Really? Then you are a member: http://ADM.fm

Tuesday, March 22, 2011

Sean Wolfington at Automotive Leadership Roundtable

Industry Thought Leader, Ralph Paglia Explains Integrated Social Media Marketing for Dealers

Industry Thought Leader Explains Integrated Social Media Marketing for Dealers

2011-03-18

By Digital Dealer Conference

Vice President of Digital at Tier 10 Marketing, Ralph Paglia, is sharing his insights with automotive dealers on how to create successful viral marketing campaigns

For_Immediate_Release:

NEWS RELEASE
FOR RELEASE: IMMEDIATELY
CONTACT: Susan Tyson
Dealer Communications
312-558-1799
styson@dealer-communications.com

Industry Thought Leader Explains Integrated Social Media Marketing for Dealers

CHICAGO, IL – March 18, 2011 – Vice President of Digital at Tier 10 Marketing, Ralph Paglia, is sharing his insights with automotive dealers on how to create successful viral marketing campaigns using contests and a system of sharing entries among friends and co-workers to spread the word.

Paglia notes that there seems to be no limit to what social media can do, but can it help drive a profitable business into today's dealership? According to Paglia, there are several case studies from dealerships of social media marketing initiatives that have produced measurable and successful results for the dealers that executed them. Each case study shows coordination with both off-line and online communication channels driven by an integrated marketing strategy.
How can a dealership create a viral marketing impact using contests and a system that rewards consumers for spreading the word about the dealership? Do they work? There are dealers who have done what many consider to be the future of marketing…today. Paglia offers advice to dealers on:

• Create a Facebook advertising campaign that drives dramatic increases in a dealership's Facebook fan base.
• How to create successful viral marketing campaigns using contests.
• Use the little known Facebook page "updates" application as a free marketing tool to send messages and links to all of the dealership's Facebook fans without spam filter interference.
• Design and build an online contest that uses prizes and awards to drive automotive consumers towards submitting contest entries that create an active and dynamic marketing database for the dealership.
• Connect the dealership's blogs, social media accounts and profiles with Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and other sites so that dealers can post once and have their messaging, photos and videos appear in many places across the social web.
• How to use Google Analytics, content syndication, article marketing, Facebook pages, Twitter link campaigns and a dealership's Facebook Fan base as a marketing database.

Ralph Paglia has 20+ years of leadership in information technology enabled automotive marketing strategy and tactical implementation. Widely known as the outspoken Director of Digital Marketing at ADP Dealer Services, Ralph is now the Vice President of Digital at Tier 10 Marketing. Ralph is also the founder and editor-in-chief of America's leading social network for automotive marketing and sales professionals. The Automotive Digital Marketing (ADM) Professional Community provides an online exchange for strategies, tactics, best practices, files, images, videos and professional networking amongst marketing professionals working in the car business. Ralph has presented critically acclaimed workshops at each of the 9 previous Digital Dealer® Conferences& Expositions.

Ralph Paglia will be speaking to dealers about integrated social media marketing at the 10th Digital Dealer® Conference & Exposition, April 19-21, at the Rosen Shingle Creek Resort, Orlando, FL. For more information about Ralph Paglia and other speakers, visit: www.digitaldealerconference.com

ABOUT THE DIGITAL DEALER® CONFERENCE & EXPOSITION
The 10th Digital Dealer® Conference & Exposition is the ideal learning and networking venue for dealer principals, GMs, general sales managers, internet sales managers, e-commerce directors, BDC managers, CRM managers, pre-owned managers, F&I managers and fixed operations managers. The conference is owned and operated by Dealer Communications, the leading multi-media information source for the automotive retail industry. Connecting with franchised automotive dealers and managers over ten million times per year, Dealer Communications publishes the monthly print and online editions of Dealer magazine and Digital Dealer® magazine. Online weekly newsletters include Dealer; Digital Dealer®; Dealer Fixed Operations, Dealer Pre-Owned; Dealer F&I, and Dealer Sales and Marketing. To see all that Dealer Communications offers, visit www.dealer-communications.com.

[Sent from Ralph Paglia's iPhone]

Ralph Paglia

Vice President

Tier 10 Marketing

cell: 505-301-6369

fax: 801-340-8918

In the Car Business? Really? Then you are a member: http://ADM.fm

Monday, March 21, 2011

Ralph Paglia, Industry Thought Leader, Explains Integrated Social Media Marketing for Dealers

Industry Thought Leader Explains Integrated Social Media Marketing for Dealers

Vice President of Digital at Tier 10 Marketing, Ralph Paglia, is sharing his insights with automotive dealers on how to create successful viral marketing campaigns.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Chicago, Illinois, United States of America (Free-Press-Release.com) March 18, 2011 --
NEWS RELEASE
FOR RELEASE: IMMEDIATELY
CONTACT: Susan Tyson
Dealer Communications
312-558-1799
styson@dealer-communications.com

Industry Thought Leader Explains Integrated Social Media Marketing for Dealers

CHICAGO, IL – March 18, 2011 – Vice President of Digital at Tier 10 Marketing, Ralph Paglia, is sharing his insights with automotive dealers on how to create successful viral marketing campaigns using contests and a system of sharing entries among friends and co-workers to spread the word.

Paglia notes that there seems to be no limit to what social media can do, but can it help drive a profitable business into today's dealership? According to Paglia, there are several case studies from dealerships of social media marketing initiatives that have produced measurable and successful results for the dealers that executed them. Each case study shows coordination with both off-line and online communication channels driven by an integrated marketing strategy.
How can a dealership create a viral marketing impact using contests and a system that rewards consumers for spreading the word about the dealership? Do they work? There are dealers who have done what many consider to be the future of marketing…today. Paglia offers advice to dealers on:

• Create a Facebook advertising campaign that drives dramatic increases in a dealership's Facebook fan base.
• How to create successful viral marketing campaigns using contests.

• Use the little known Facebook page "updates" application as a free marketing tool to send messages and links to all of the dealership's Facebook fans without spam filter interference.
• Design and build an online contest that uses prizes and awards to drive automotive consumers towards submitting contest entries that create an active and dynamic marketing database for the dealership.
• Connect the dealership's blogs, social media accounts and profiles with Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and other sites so that dealers can post once and have their messaging, photos and videos appear in many places across the social web.

• How to use Google Analytics, content syndication, article marketing, Facebook pages, Twitter link campaigns and a dealership's Facebook Fan base as a marketing database.

Ralph Paglia has 20+ years of leadership in information technology enabled automotive marketing strategy and tactical implementation. Widely known as the outspoken Director of Digital Marketing at ADP Dealer Services, Ralph is now the Vice President of Digital at Tier 10 Marketing. Ralph is also the founder and editor-in-chief of America's leading social network for automotive marketing and sales professionals. The Automotive Digital Marketing (ADM) Professional Community provides an online exchange for strategies, tactics, best practices, files, images, videos and professional networking amongst marketing professionals working in the car business. Ralph has presented critically acclaimed workshops at each of the 9 previous Digital Dealer® Conferences& Expositions.

Ralph Paglia will be speaking to dealers about integrated social media marketing at the 10th Digital Dealer® Conference & Exposition, April 19-21, at the Rosen Shingle Creek Resort, Orlando, FL. For more information about Ralph Paglia and other speakers, visit: www.digitaldealerconference.com

ABOUT THE DIGITAL DEALER® CONFERENCE & EXPOSITION

The 10th Digital Dealer® Conference & Exposition is the ideal learning and networking venue for dealer principals, GMs, general sales managers, internet sales managers, e-commerce directors, BDC managers, CRM managers, pre-owned managers, F&I managers and fixed operations managers. The conference is owned and operated by Dealer Communications, the leading multi-media information source for the automotive retail industry. Connecting with franchised automotive dealers and managers over ten million times per year, Dealer Communications publishes the monthly print and online editions of Dealer magazine and Digital Dealer® magazine. Online weekly newsletters include Dealer; Digital Dealer®; Dealer Fixed Operations, Dealer Pre-Owned; Dealer F&I, and Dealer Sales and Marketing.

[Sent from Ralph Paglia's iPhone]

Ralph Paglia

Vice President

Tier 10 Marketing

cell: 505-301-6369

fax: 801-340-8918

In the Car Business? Really? Then you are a member: http://ADM.fm

Sunday, March 20, 2011

Ralph Paglia - Chris Saraceno; Take The Car Sales Simulator!

Monday, March 14, 2011

SlideShare Engineering Blog

Announcing...the SlideShare Engineering Blog
Have you ever wanted to know more about the technologies that power SlideShare? Our engineering team just started a new blog, and you can now learn how we automate our operations through Puppet, our next Javascript API, or how we made our pages load faster. As we post more, you will get to hear more about the technologies, tools and techniques we use at SlideShare. You can subscribe to the new technology blog. Our main blog will continue to focus on SlideShare content and community as before.

Corporate Social Media Strategists on SlideShare What do Vanina Delobelle of Sears, Sandra Brill of Cisco and Justin Kestelyn of Oracle all have in common? They have each created the highest viewed presentations about social media on SlideShare. For the past two years, Altimeter Group co-founder Jeremiah Owyang has compiled a list of corporate social media strategists. Read Ross's blog post for a summary and best practices. If you are a corporate social media strategist, send us an email - we want to know how you are using SlideShare!

Did you hear about our new WordPress plugin?
Last week we told you about better SlideShare embeds. This week, we are glad to announce that you can easily customize your embeds on Wordpress using this new plugin. You can

Start an embedded presentation on the slide of your choosing,
Choose size of your embedded presentation
Turn off displaying more content by the presentation's creator

We're doing our best to make the plugin as easy to use as possible, but there are some geeky details which you will find on our engineering blog.

Presentation Spotlight...Tips for UNICEF
It's always a pleasure to share presentations that are particularly compelling. This week we spotted this new SlideShare presentation from Jonathan Kopp of Ketchum Digital "Becoming a (More) Socialized Organization: 10 Tips for UNICEF to Tap the Social Web," which he presented at the UNICEF Global Communications Conference in Athens, Greece. Rich in content, this presentation offers useful infographics and practical steps that UNICEF can take to get more out of the social web. Congratulations, Jonathan, on creating a top-notch presentation.

Keeping your eye on South by Southwest?

Be sure to check out the SXSW presentation channel for the latest presos as they are uploaded. If you're presenter, tag your slidedeck SXSW11 to make sure it displays in our search results.

--
Ralph Paglia

Vice President

Tier 10 Marketing
cell: 505-301-6369
email: rpaglia@gmail.com

www.RalphPaglia.com