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Judging Books by Covers

JSmith — Mon, 28 Apr 2008 19:52:00 GMT

I will freely admit that I'm not the bull riding kind of guy. So when Cooper invited me to join them in Chicago this past weekend for the Cooper Tire Invitational, a stop on the 30-plus city Professional Bull Riders series, I contemplated my options. Like mowing the lawn, painting our barn, maybe painting my neighbor's barn, getting my teenager to do his homework. Off the the still-wintery Wndy City I went.

I will also freely admit when I am wrong. No, I am still not a mega-fan of bull riding (though I take my hat off to those guys, many of whom I met during the event, and none I would want to be when they hit age 65), but I discovered a few things that perhaps you might think about.

More than one person was left scratching their heads when Cooper announced in January that it was becoming a sponsor partner of PBR. Watching guys get tossed around like rags while trying to stay on top of 2,000-pounds of muscle and four ounces of brain does not appeal to a broad base. You might think.

Over two nights, PBR attracted more than 20,000 Chicagoans to the Rosemont Horizon – 20,000 people who wanted to be there and braved rather unspring-like weather to do so. Inside the arena was a full evening of family-oriented entertainment (including outdoor country concerts supported by Cooper), fan-friendly (and very polite) competitors, family-friendly booths by the tour's key sponsors (like Cooper) and a captivating, lively sponsor-friendly "show." No one could walk out of that building and say they had a bad time. Not even me.

Cooper has been taking dealers out to these PBR events in advance of their arrival in those dealers' markets, giving them a first-hand look at how they can leverage this sponsorship to attract customers and build awareness. It's a low pressure "Hey, we just want you to see" approach. Cooper knows its PBR sponsorship is not for everyone, but dealers should take a good hard look before pushing it off.

Like anything in marketing, you get out what you put in. What do you do when your tire suppliers bring you well-supported tie-in opportunities? Especially for something as consumer-friendly and engaging as pro bull riding? Top, successful dealers jump on these opportunities to make some hay (sorry for the pun).

Top Shops Really Active

JSmith — Tue, 01 Apr 2008 14:10:00 GMT

One of the great aspects of the Top Shop Awards is seeing all of the ways our 2007 winner, the finalists and many of the semi-finalists have promoted their Top Shop honors. Absolutely fabulous! Just got a call from the Tidewater News in Virginia...it is picking up our January 2008 Top Shop Profile story on semi-finalist Bobby's Muffler. Bobby and Diana Cutchins are just wonderful folks and they have an outstanding business. On the Top Shop Web site you can find the series of TV and radio spots Gatto's Tire & Service, our 2007 winner, did to promote their Top Shop honor. Suggest you take a look. Hope you take the time to read the Top Shop Profiles in each issue. We had so many outstanding entries last year that we felt their stories were well worth sharing with all of our readers, and could perhaps help you improve your businesses. Jim

Entries Open Second Annual Tire Review Top Shop Awards

nlock — Fri, 15 Feb 2008 20:25:00 GMT

Entries are now being accepted for the 2008 Tire Review Top Shop Awards presented by Ammco/Coats, which seeks to honor the “best of the best” independent tire dealers in the U.S. and Canada.

Now in its second year, the contest is now officially open, and entries will be accepted until July 11, 2008. Entry forms and information will be available in each issue of Tire Review magazine through July, and via Tire Review’s Web site and Hennessy’s Web site.

“Top Shop Awards is focused on spotlighting independent tire dealers – small or large – who epitomize the attributes and values we stress in every issue of Tire Review: exemplary customer service and retention, training and education, merchandising and promotion, professional standards and conduct, appearance, solid business management, community involvement, growth and achievement,” said Jim Smith editor of Tire Review.

The perfect example of those attributes came in the form of Gatto’s Tires & Auto Service, headquartered in Melbourne, Fla., the winner of the 2007 Top Shop Awards, and the three finalists: Chapel Hill Tire Car Care Center, based in Chapel Hill, N.C.; Community Tire and Automotive Service Specialists, located in Phoenix, Ariz.; and Redwood General Tire, an independent tire dealer located in Redwood City, Calif.

“We are extremely excited about the 2008 Top Shop Awards and continuing as presenting sponsor,” said Kevin Keefe, vice president of marketing for presenting sponsor Ammco/Coats. “The Top Shop Awards emphasizes several key drivers of success for just about any business, and it’s an award we believe brings much deserved recognition to the many successful business people in our industry.”

Dealers can nominate their own businesses, or others can nominate tire dealer businesses. The entry process is simple: Those making the nomination need to provide basic information about the dealership being nominated and write a short (300-word maximum) essay explaining why that dealership should be considered.

From there, all entrants will be reviewed and a group of semi-finalists selected. Those semi-finalists will be asked to provide additional information for judging. A panel of judges, including industry professionals and a member of the Tire Review staff, will select the four finalists and, ultimately, the 2008 Top Shop Award winner.

The awards are as outstanding as the dealers selected:

The Grand Prize Winner will receive a Coats APX90 tire changer, $1,500 in cash, airfare and hotel for two (2 nights/3 days) to the 2008 SEMA Show, a feature story in the October issue of Tire Review, and a Top Shop trophy to display in their dealership.
Three Finalists will each receive a Coats 1250-3DV tire/wheel balancer (featuring on-board training), $500 in cash, a feature story in the October issue and a specially designed finalist trophy.

Click here to enter your store.

About Tire Review

Serving the tire industry for 108 years, Tire Review is North America’s most respected and largest circulation publication. It is also the flagship magazine of Akron-based Babcox Publications LLC. Tire Review, focused on assisting independent tire dealers improve their businesses, delivers a broad ranges of vital market intelligence to its more than 32,400 monthly readers. Click here for the magazine website.