AdAgencyOnline.Net

AdAgencyOnline.Net is an automotive advertising resource/networking portal for automotive advertising agencies.  The site hosts a blog talk radio station — WAAOL, All Automotive Advertising News All The Time.  Philip Zelinger, the President of Ad Agency Online, L.L.C. and host of WAAOL announced on today’s blog talk radio show — Lunch With Ralph Paglia Discussing Automotive Advertising –  that he will be hosting a slightly altered show in the same Thursday 12 Noon EST time slot to be titled “Auto Industry Insiders.”  Philip was quick to explain that Ralph Paglia is an established  member of the “Network Of Networkers” that comprise the group known as Auto Industry Insiders featured on AdAgencyOnline.Net.  According to Philip, the contributing members of Auto Industry Insiders have been invited to co-host the show on a rotating basis and Ralph Paglia will still be a regular host on the show.

Philip explained the change in the popular Thursday blog talk radio show.  “The Lunch With Ralph Show has relied on a number of encore presentations recently to accommodate Ralph Paglia’s  hectic schedule.  To keep the shows current and relevant I decided to invite some other professional automotive advertising insiders to fill in when Ralph isn’t available.   The resources linked by the members of Auto Industry Insiders provide a wealth of knowledge that will include the wisdoms of Ralph Paglia and his automotive advertising resource / networking portal http://automotivedigitalmarketing.com  The only change will be that Ralph’s contributions will be  complimented by the other members of the group.  After all, what are friends — and Auto Industry Insiders — for!

Philip recently added the Auto Industry Insiders section to AdAgencyOnline.Net with direct links to other automotive advertising resource / networking sites.  The group of automotive advertising experts share their best practices with automotive advertising agencies and automotive advertising vendors that support AdAgencyOnline.Net to leverage their individual resources and relationships.  Read the rest of this entry »

Automotive advertising agencies don’t know what they don’t know and they are turning to social networking communities like http://AdAgencyOnline.Net to listen and learn about the increasing role of social media in automotive advertising.  Philip Zelinger, the President of Ad Agency Online, L.L.C. — a national network of independent automotive advertising agencies — hosts a blog talk radio station — WAAOL, All Automotive Advertising News All The Time — where he shares best practices with his affiliated automotive advertising agencies and automotive advertising decision makers that regularly follow his shows and contribute to their shared portal.

Social media is a new phenomenon that allows auto dealers to broadcast their own marketing messages to a targeted audience using established automotive advertising wisdoms, but in a more consumer centric manner and for a fraction of the cost of conventional media.  Technology has always dictated the most efficient means to advertise a product or service and the Internet has opened a new channel with unlimited potential for reach and frequency of message.  Previously, conventional media — such as newspaper, radio and T.V. — was controlled by big business primarily because of the amount of capital that was required to distribute their content.  Philip Zelinger explained his support of social media in a comment on his recent blog talk radio show; “The Internet Super Highway has been built with no tolls — for now at least — and automotive advertising agencies only need to learn the rules of the road in order to travel on it.”

Some of the blog talk radio shows hosted by Philip on WAAOL include Lunch With Phil Discussing Automotive Advertising - an open business forum with live call in questions from listeners, Lunch With Ralph Paglia Discussing Automotive Advertising - a special platform for Ralph Paglia, the National Director Of Digital marketing for ADP and the host of his own auto industry social networking community http://AutomotiveDigitalMarketing.Com (ADM), and Automotive Advertising Experts where Philip invites automotive advertising insiders to discuss their products, services or unique insights into the future of the automotive advertising industry.  Most recently, the guest on the Automotive Advertising Experts show was L.J. Marhefka, the Program Coordinator for the TARP Lending Program, (Together Automotive Retailing Prospers).  Philip and L.J discussed TARP and their participation in the 2010 NIADA Convention scheduled at Caesar’s Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas June 14th., 2010 through June 17th., 2010. Philip will join the originator of the TARP program, Keith Whann, in a panel on social media to be held on Wednesday morning for the general session at the convention. 

In the week prior to his interview with L.J., Philip interviewed Brian Pasch, the President of PCG Digital Marketing and the host of http://InternetSalesManager.Org.  The pair of automotive advertising experts discussed a new automotive advertising platform introduced by Brian and Sean Wolfington — http://AutomotiveAdvertisingNetwork.Com ,(AAN), that provides leveraged online exposure and resources to develop leads for auto dealers that pay a flat monthly fee to list their inventory. The subjects discussed and the guests that appear on WAAOL are chosen from a diverse group of friends and professional associates of Philip Zelinger who share his philosophy that a rising tide floats all boats. Read the rest of this entry »

AdAgencyOnline.Net is one of many online automotive advertising resource / networking portals that have formed to share best practices for automotive advertising agencies using social media.  Philip Zelinger, the President of Ad Agency Online, L.L.C. and the host of the blog talk radio station — WAAOL, All Automotive Advertising News All The Time – featured on AdAgencyOnline.Net, took his philosophy that a rising tide floats all boats to the next level when he invited a number of automotive advertising social networking communities to join him to leverage their members and their resources in a network of networkers appropriately named — Auto Industry Insiders.

Auto Industry Insiders is featured on a dedicated section of AdAgencyOnline.Net with RSS feeds from each of the contributing members that links their social networking sites and posts as well as a dedicated page for each Insider that includes their personal bio and company profile.  Philip explained that the first group of Insiders were selected based on his personal relationships with their hosts and the confidence that he has in their individual social networking communities.  “I have a personal slogan that says it all, “What are friends for!”  My philosophy in both my personal and my business life is to value people over product and price and social media relies on that same principal. I have found that each automotive advertising facing social networking community covers specific areas defined by the rules that govern each community and that reflect the personality and priorities of the host.  I started Auto Industry Insiders by selecting portals that provide relevant material that is not duplicated so that we could all extend our value to our individual members.  After all, what are friends — and Auto Industry Insiders — for.”

According to Philip, the  first Insider invitation was sent to Ralph Paglia, the National Director For Digital Marketing for ADP and host of The Automotive Digital Marketing Network, (ADM). This open form for the auto and automotive advertising industry shares best practices across multiple verticals and areas of expertise and interest.  Their members include key decision makers from O.E.M.s, auto dealership General Managers, Internet Sales Managers, automotive advertising vendors and automotive advertising experts surfing the web who contribute different perspectives on common problems with a variety of diverse solutions.  Philip confided that he often turns to ADM to research automotive advertising applications that have not yet been discovered by the mainstream media.  He then selects the best of the best to review on WAAOL for consideration by the affiliated automotive advertising agencies of AAOL.

The rest of the Insiders filled in quickly as Jared Hamilton joined the group with his social networking site focused on vendor evaluations for auto dealers and their automotive advertising agencies — DrivingSales.Com.  This resource/networking portal evaluates vendors in a unique forum limited to feedback from actual dealer clients.  Additional industry news is provided by posts that cover industry issues allowing auto dealerships to share best practices. 

Brian Pasch, the President of PCG Digital marketing and host of InternetSalesManager.Org, (ISM), is another respected Insider.  Brian is a recognized expert in search engine optimization, (S.E.O.), and search engine marketing, (S.E.M.).  ISM is known by automotive advertising agencies as the — Car Dealer Social Network.  More uniquely, ISM practices what Brian preaches in that they have extensive reciprocal links to other sites that leverage a variety of automotive advertising resources for their online community; much like Auto Industry Insiders!

Another valued contributor to Auto Industry Insiders is Chris Saraceno, V.P. and Partner in the Kelly Automotive Group, who hosts an auto dealer focused site —  DealerElite.Net.  This site describes themselves as a social networking community for automotive dealers, vendors, trainers, manufacturers, car enthusiasts and customers. It is a place to share ideas, discuss industry best practices, and connect with other automotive professionals. It is where the best and the brightest in the automotive industry collaborate.

Jody Devere and her AskPatty.Com was invited to be an Auto Industry Insider to share her unique perspective on marketing to women.  Jody is a nationally respected speaker on women’s issues and her site has attracted a number of professional women who contribute content to the AskPatty.Com as well as serving as panel members for forums hosted on the site.  Jody contributes her time and expertise to her online community as well as in real world venues in the auto industry.  Jody will be joining Philip Zelinger and Keith Whann on a panel discussing social media at the 2010 NIADA Convention being held at Caesar’s Hotel and Casino June 14th, 2010 through June 17th, 2010.

Scott Monty, the head of social media for Ford Motor Company, is another respected contributor to Auto Industry Insiders.  Scott hosts a personal blogging site — ScottMonty.Com — that provides insights into social media not only from his perspective as a representative of an O.E.M. in the auto industry but as a true believer in the value of social networking.  Articles posted by Scott address universal issues that deal in human nature as much as it does on the impact of social media on the auto industry.  

Perhaps the most noteworthy member of Auto Industry Insiders is a new forum hosted by Keith Whann — Auttr.Com. Keith Whann, is the founder of the law firm Whann & Associates LLC, located in Dublin, Ohio. Over a career that has spanned 25 years from a beginning as an Assistant Ohio            Attorney General in the Consumer Protection Division thru today, as General Counsel of the National Independent Automobile Dealers Association, a co-owner, CEO and General Counsel of the Columbus Fair Auto Auction and The Car Counselor to the motor vehicle industry, Keith has become a leading national authority on motor vehicle and consumer protection issues.

Auttr.Com features video content provided by Keith Whann to share best practices on Auttr TV.  Site visitors can view auto industry related videos at the click of a mouse.  The Car Counselor answers questions for dealers and consumers from across the country on a wide variety of topics related to motor vehicle dealerships and the car buying process.   You can also watch live presentations on Auttr TV.

Philip Zelinger integrates a similar philosophy to Keith Whann through his use of blog talk radio shows on his automotive advertising resource/networking portal — AdAgencyOnline.Net — that is the host of Auto Industry Insiders.  In addition to sharing best practices, Philip reviews automotive advertising vendors and new technologies on several blog talk radio shows featured on the site’s blog talk radio station — WAAOL, All Automotive Advertising News All The Time.  The shows include — Lunch With Phil Discussing Automotive Advertising,  Lunch With Ralph Paglia Discussing Automotive Advertising and Automotive Advertising Experts.  Site visitors include automotive advertising agencies, auto dealers, auto industry vendors and O.E.M. representatives who tune into WAAOL to find cutting edge vendors, comprehensive applications and technologies represented by AAOL or featured as preferred automotive advertising vendors on AdAgencyOnline.Net.

ronsmap is vendor client discovered by AAOL that offers a game changing marketing platform that provides consumers with a more efficient and comprehensive way to shop online for a new or pre-owned vehicle while providing auto dealers with consumer and market intelligence with their integrated application, SellersVantage. In addition to the proprietary inventory posting mechanism utilized by ronsmap, known as ontology semantic extraction, the site relies on direct data links from auto dealers and channel partners that have accounted for over two million six hundred thousand vehicles currently listed on their site.  When coupled with their social networking tool, vBack, and their unique Google Map like user interface, ronsmap allows consumers to find and compare all makes and models in their geo targeted market on one page and to solicit the opinions of online friends and family through linked social networks like Face Book.  Automotive advertising agencies have been searching for a cost effective, scalable method to monetize social networking and ronsmap promises to deliver it.

Another vendor client of AAOL reviewed in an interview on WAAOL is DealerMouth, a unique web site hosting service that allows auto dealers to manage and monitor the social networking activities of their staff.  According to Philip Zelinger, “Automotive advertising agencies have been challenged by their auto dealer clients to quantify the R.O.I. from social media.  The ability for auto dealers to offer their individual sales people and service writers their own websites to network with their spheres of influence in both the real and the virtual world allows auto dealers to leverage their  limited resources. Auto dealers have been forced to cut advertising budgets and staff to compensate for reduced sales volume and profit margins in a shrinking economy and DealerMouth could not have been developed at a better time.  Of course the challenge is to manage and monitor their staff’s online activities to prevent abuse of company time and/or to limit the contingent liabilities if an employee posts improper content or conducts illegal online activities from the auto dealer’s facilities.  DealerMouth allows the auto dealer and/or their automotive advertising agency to monitor online activities on their provided websites while offering the sales staff an online — why buy here book — to promote the salesperson or service writer to their friends, family and personal customer base.  This method of monetizing social networking fits perfectly into the new business model that Ad Agency Online recommends for our auto dealer clients.”

One of the first vendor clients of AAOL that has already matured as a major provider in the auto industry is SiSTeR Technologies .  SiSTeR Technologies offers an automated video production platform — Video CarLot — that converts pictures on an auto dealer’s website into an indexed interactive video with human voice.  In addition to posting the videos on the auto dealer’s website to enhance their conversion rates and S.E.O. they push the videos through their dedicated API with You Tube identified by their individual URLs linked back to the sourcing dealers site as well as posting them on all third party marketing platforms used by the auto dealer.  More uniquely, they leverage social media by applying their vShock platform — a micro-site that hosts and displays similar vehicles from the auto dealer’s inventory to the one selected by the consumer — on a tab posted on the auto dealer’s Face Book page.  This easily accessed link to the auto dealer’s inventory from within Face Book allows the dealer to introduce their vehicles to the online community without having to post them on the wall in an obtrusive manner that is often shunned by consumers in social media.

TeleTextSolutions is a recently discovered vendor client of AAOL that provides the automotive industries first full solutions Opt In Text messaging system. While this application was not initially designed as a social media tool, their unique mobile application allows automotive advertising agencies to embed their short codes into social media messages to track the R.O.I. for their auto dealer clients to easily source the results from their social networking efforts.  There are two main components of TeleTextSolutions.  The first encompasses using short codes and keywords in all forms of advertising — including social media.  This provides leads to the dealership and the ability to communicate via a web based text messaging system that can integrate with the dealer’s CRM.  The second is an Opt In Text communications for the Service Dept.  The main benefit revolves around dramatically reducing the time it takes to link up with a customer after they have dropped their vehicle off and then a new problem is found.  Phone tag is a major problem for Service departments that text helps to reduce thus increasing work throughput.

About Ad Agency Online, L.L.C.

Ad Agency Online, L.L.C., (AAOL),  is a national network of independent affiliated automotive advertising agencies linked by an online communication / distribution system developed by Philip Zelinger.  The proprietary operating system that powers AAOL was designed to reduce fixed and semi-variable expenses for full service automotive advertising agencies.  The developing technologies that enhanced the performance of the independent automotive advertising agencies linked by AAOL has served as the role model for the solutions suggested on AdAgencyOnline.Net and represented by AAOL to their affiliated automotive advertising agencies when serving their auto dealer clients.

Ad Agency Online L.L.C is focused on discovering and representing new automotive advertising vendors not yet recognized by the mainstream automotive advertising industry. Some of the automotive advertising vendors represented by AAOL include ronsmap, SiSTeR Technologies Video CarLot, TeleTextSolutions, DealerMouth, GetAutoAppraise.com, Argistics – AutoTransaXion, DealMaker.Com, CityTwist.Com, Bulldog Marketing Technologies, Kihon Media, CarFolks.Com, Ai Dealer and Laser Stream Video; with more being added weekly.

About Philip Zelinger

Philip Zelinger is the President of Ad Agency Online, L.L.C. and the founder of  AdAgencyOnline.Net.  He invested 25 years as a General Manager and Dealer Principal followed by his last ten years in the automotive advertising industry learning from the teams that he built so he can now presume to teach on forums like AdAgencyOnline.Net.  His role as a “Dealer Coach” is enhanced by his hosting a nationally recognized auto industry social networking portal and blog talk radio station – WAAOL, All Automotive Advertising News All The Time.  As the author of two books on the auto industry, including “How To Sell A Car – a Career Guide to The Automobile Industry,” he is a recognized authority on market trends and developing technologies with the responsibility of selecting key vendors and applications for his dealer clients as well as forming strategic partnerships for his vendor clients to leverage their shared resources to help them bring their products and services to market.

Other social networking communities that provide resources for automotive advertising agencies willing to listen and learn include Dealer Advisor Nation — http://danation.ning.com/  – Auto Dealer People — http://www.autodealerpeople.com/ — and too many more to list.  Other portals offer information rich content such as Just Auto — http://just-auto.com/ — and the ever popular Automotive News with their new online publication — http://www.autonews.com/.A number of the vendors clients of AAOL provide automotive advertising agencies with ways to monetize social media for their auto dealer clients.  These solutions represent just a few of the many technologies and tools that can be discovered on the social networking communities recommended by AdAgencyOnline.Net that are supported by Philip Zelinger and AAOL.

For more information on Philip Zelinger, Ad Agency Online, L.L.C., Auto Industry Insiders, the vendors on AdAgencyOnline.Net or any of the automotive advertising social networking communities referenced in this article and supported by Philip Zelinger contact Philip directly at http://AdAgencyOnline.Net.  Automotive advertising vendors, automotive advertising agencies and auto dealers that would like to be considered as a “preferred automotive advertising vendor” on AdAgencyOnline.Net and/or to hire/join Ad Agency Online, L.L.C. to represent them can contact Philip Zelinger at pzads@bellsouth.net, or call him at 888-796-2228.  To quote Philip Zelinger, “Help is only a click away!  After all, what are friends for!”  ###

Philip Zelinger, the President of Ad Agency Online, L.L.C.,(AAOL), and host of the blog talk radio station WAAOL, All Automotive Advertising News All The Time featured on the automotive advertising resource / networking portal http://AdAgencyOnline.Net , announced on his Lunch With Phil Discussing Automotive Advertising show that he will be integrating a special section on AdAgencyOnline.Net called “Auto Industry Insiders.”  Automotive advertising agencies are following their auto dealer clients onto the Internet Super Highway for the same reasons that auto dealers are following their customers there — to sell more vehicles and service.  The Internet is the media of choice to find information on anything automotive related.  Automotive advertising agencies need to keep up with new technologies to help them sell more vehicles and service with reduced staff and budgets so they are turning to social networking communities to find and share best practices to solve common problems.

Philip explained why he is adding the Auto Industry Insiders section to AdAgencyOnline.Net with direct links to what some might consider competing automotive advertising resource / networking sites. “Sharing best practices with the affiliated automotive advertising agencies supported by Ad Agency Online allows us all to leverage our individual resources and relationships.  I formed AdAgencyOnline.Net to enhance our online communication platform with the blog talk radio shows functioning as open business meetings where we could review present and pending automotive advertising vendor solutions.  Our success in discovering bleeding edge automotive advertising applications on WAAOL proved out our shared philosophy that a rising tide floats all boats and by opening our platform to the World Wide Web we expanded our network of friends exponentially.  I consider the growing number of auto industry and automotive advertising social networking websites as an extension of our own online community and resources.  Our Auto Industry Insiders section is my way of recognizing their contributions by hosting it as a Network Of Networkers made up of recognized auto industry insiders who have resources and best practices to share.  After all, what are friends for!”

The new Auto Industry Insiders section is expected to be live on AdAgencyOnline.Net on or before May 31st, 2010.  Presently, the following auto industry insiders and their associated networking sites have been invited to be featured in this communal information resource section:

Ralph Paglia, National Director of Digital marketing for ADP and host of ADM — http://AutomotiveDigitalMarketing.Com

Brian Pasch, CEO of PCG Digital marketing and host of http://www.InternetSalesmanager.Org

Jared Hamilton, a third generation Ford Dealer and host of http://DrivingSales.Com

Keith Whann, Attorney At Law – Founder of the law firm Whann & Associates LLC, located in Dublin, Ohio – and host of http://Auttr.Com

Jody Devere, President of Ask Patty and host of http://AskPatty.Com

Scott Monty, Head Of Social Media for Ford Motors and host of The Social Media marketing Blog — http://ScottMonty.Com

Chris Saraceno, Vice President/Partner Kelly Automotive Group and host of http://DealerElite.Net

All of the selected contributors to Auto Industry Insiders have established reputations in the auto and automotive advertising industry.  Their respective online networking communities have differing personalities and rules that govern their content and memberships, however they share their common goal to improve the auto industry that defines them as much as they define it.

Philip anticipates that there will be many more Auto Industry Insiders added to the site and he has designed the section to be easily expandable as these valued contributors surface.  “Frankly, I have a list of friends and other sites that I personally support and contribute to, however, these first honored participants represent a diversity of experience, resources and site regulations that govern their content which is complimentary and representative of a variety of specialized verticals within the auto industry and the automotive advertising industry that supports it.  My personal branding line of — What are friends for — reflects the opportunity that Auto Industry Insiders should bring to us all since the reciprocal links to our respective sites should enhance our individual S.E.O. as well as providing added value content for our communities.  Besides, combining business with pleasure is always a good thing; this is going to be fun!”

About Ad Agency Online, L.L.C.

Ad Agency Online, L.L.C., (AAOL),  is a national network of independent affiliated automotive advertising agencies linked by an online communication / distribution system developed by Philip Zelinger.  The proprietary operating system that powers AAOL was designed to reduce fixed and semi-variable expenses for full service automotive advertising agencies.  The developing technologies that enhanced the performance of the independent automotive advertising agencies linked by AAOL has served as the role model for the solutions suggested on AdAgencyOnline.Net and represented by AAOL to their affiliated automotive advertising agencies when serving their auto dealer clients.

Ad Agency Online L.L.C is focused on discovering and representing new automotive advertising vendors not yet recognized by the mainstream automotive advertising industry. Some of the automotive advertising vendors represented by AAOL include ronsmap, SiSTeR Technologies Video CarLot, TeleTextSolutions, DealerMouth, GetAutoAppraise.com, Argistics – AutoTransaXion, DealMaker.Com, CityTwist.Com, Bulldog Marketing Technologies, Kihon Media, CarFolks.Com, Ai Dealer and Laser Stream Video; with more being added weekly.

About Philip Zelinger

Philip Zelinger is the President of Ad Agency Online, L.L.C. and the founder of  AdAgencyOnline.Net.  He invested 25 years as a General Manager and Dealer Principal followed by his last ten years in the automotive advertising industry learning from the teams that he built so he can now presume to teach on forums like AdAgencyOnline.Net.  His role as a “Dealer Coach” is enhanced by his hosting a nationally recognized auto industry social networking portal and blog talk radio station – WAAOL, All Automotive Advertising News All The Time.  As the author of two books on the auto industry, including “How To Sell A Car – a Career Guide to The Automobile Industry,” he is a recognized authority on market trends and developing technologies with the responsibility of selecting key vendors and applications for his dealer clients as well as forming strategic partnerships for his vendor clients to leverage their shared resources to help them bring their products and services to market.

For more information on Philip Zelinger, Ad Agency Online, L.L.C., AdAgencyOnline.Net and their new Auto Industry Insiders section or any of the automotive advertising social networking communities supporting it contact Philip directly at http://AdAgencyOnline.Net.  Automotive advertising vendors, automotive advertising agencies and auto dealers that would like to be considered as a “preferred automotive advertising vendor” on AdAgencyOnline.Net and/or to hire/join Ad Agency Online, L.L.C. to represent them can contact Philip Zelinger at pzads@bellsouth.net, or call him at 888-796-2228.  To quote Philip Zelinger, “Help is only a click away!  After all, what are friends for!”  ###

The role of automotive advertising agencies is changing along with the auto industry that they serve.  Philip Zelinger, the President of Ad Agency Online, L.L.C. — a national network of independent affiliated automotive advertising agencies and the host an automotive advertising resource / networking portal, http://AdAgencyOnline.Net — has taken an active role to educate automotive advertising agencies and their auto dealer clients about their changing roles in a consolidating auto industry that is shifting onto the Internet Super Highway vs. local car rows.

Philip is a nationally respected automotive advertising expert and highly sought after speaker and supporter of real world venues in the auto industry such as The Digital Dealer Conferences, NADA Convention, JD Powers Conferences, OEM Dealer Meetings, Dealer 20 Groups and automotive advertising classes at Northwood University.  He is also a regular contributor to online social networking communities in addition to his own http://AdAgencyOnline.Net including http://AutomotiveDigitalMarketing.Com ,  http://DealerRefresh.Com,  http://DrivingSales.Com,  http://www.InternetSalesManager.Org, http://Auttr.Com,  http://DealerElite.Net, Dealer Advisor Nation — http://danation.ning.com/, http://www.autodealerpeople.com/,  http://Just-Auto.com/ and Automotive News with their online publication, http://www.autonews.com/; to name a few.

Philip summarized his advice to his affiliated automotive advertising agencies to reinvent themselves and their offered products/services to their auto dealer clients on his recent blog talk radio show, Lunch With Phil Discussing Automotive Advertising, that is featured on the blog talk radio station hosted on AdAgencyOnline.Net — WAAOL, All Automotive Advertising News All The Time.  ”The only constant in the auto industry is change.  Of course human nature is also a universal constant, but since that is the fuel that powers most change in the auto industry it is already factored in and considered when I counsel my affiliated automotive advertising agencies to look to consumers for the answers.”

“Radio, T.V. and newspapers are no longer the media of choice for today’s Internet savvy consumers.   B2C messages online are filtered out in favor of C2C conversations in social networking communities that now dot the landscape on the World Wide Web.   Automotive advertising agencies must reinvent themselves as the resource that auto dealers rely on to navigate them onto the Internet Super Highway because that is where their customers are.  Keeping ahead of new technologies and applications that integrate selling processes between the real and the virtual world showrooms and inserting auto dealers into the conversations that make up the online marketplace must be job one for automotive advertising agencies who wish to serve their auto dealer clients in today’s challenging auto industry.  Radio, T.V. and print production has a shrinking role in an automotive advertising agency’s tool box and leveraged online production resources will eliminate them altogether in the near future.  Similarly, agency commissions earned from conventional media analysis and placement are being absorbed into the media providers as value added services for their auto dealer advertisers.  At the same time, automotive advertising budgets are being shifted to online digital marketing platforms with more verifiable sourced R.O.I. that is far superior to conventional media.  The writing is on the virtual wall and automotive advertising agencies must either read it, write it or accept their diminishing value in tomorrow’s auto industry.”

The Internet has empowered consumers to bypass auto dealers and even their most strategically placed marketing message in favor of online information resources that are not dependent on automotive advertising agencies or auto dealers for their content.  Initially, third party aggregators captured online auto shoppers attempting to avoid real and virtual world auto dealerships by collecting inventory from hundreds of auto dealers anxious to get their inventory in front of today buyers for new and pre-owned vehicles.  Consumers quickly realized the limitations of looking at vehicles in this kind of dealer-centric platform and the technology driven evolution of online marketing platforms soon provided more consumer-centric solutions.

A newly emerging online marketing platform that is quickly earning a reputation as a game changer is http://ronsmap that launched their Beta platform on March 01st, 2010.  The site has a unique user interface that mirrors a Google Map using a geo-targeted platform with pins representing every new and pre-owned vehicle for sale in a consumer controlled radius from their home or office.  ronsmap eliminates search engine fatigue by replacing pages of vertical lists of individual vehicles displayed as a result of a typical search on Google and other search engines — and/or on the now dated inventory marketing platforms like AutoTrader.Com — with a horizontal map that displays every vehicle in the same position at the same time. 

An even more unique advantage offered by ronsmap that favors consumer preferences is their ability to allow site visitors to select vehicles to drop into their short list for direct comparisons in price and product.  This new feature places all of the auto dealers and their vehicles on an even playing field with the customer in charge of the process of elimination to select a vehicle — and a dealer — that fits their needs without having to listen to a sales pitch from even a well meaning sales person. 

Finally, ronsmap allows auto dealers to monetize social media with their integrated Ask-A-Friend / Tell-A-Friend feature that invites car shoppers to share their vehicle selections with their online friends and family to assist them in their car shopping experience.   These C2C conversations pushed from ronsmap to Face Book and other social networking communities replace previous unsuccessful attempts by automotive advertising agencies to post B2C messages on the same social media platforms.

Automotive advertising agencies need to know about sites like ronsmap that offer a variety of free services including free vehicle listings and even basic leads with a guaranteed R.O.I. and a way to earn a seat at the social media table  More relevantly, they need to tell their auto dealer clients about them to justify their agency fees!  

Other technology driven applications automotive advertising agencies need to tell their auto dealer clients about that will allow them to sell more vehicles and service for less money and with less staff include DealerMouth.Com with their dealer hosted personal web sites for their staff, TeleTextSolutions with their dashboard tool that integrates telephone and SMS text messaging for more comprehensive and cost effective follow up, SiSTeR Technologies and their Video CarLot that provides an automated video production platform that converts the pictures on an auto dealer’s website into fully indexed and interactive videos using human voice pushed onto the search engines through their dedicated API with You Tube and a Face Book application that allows an auto dealer to display their entire inventory on non-offensive tab within the customers Face Book page, Argistics with their customer interaction platform that allows online shoppers to initiate a two way video conversation from within an auto dealer’s website that can accommodate a turnkey online transaction without having to drop the glass wall that empowers online shoppers to move forward in the negotiation process and GetAutoAppraise which provides site visitors with NADA sourced values for their trade-in while selecting suitable vehicles from the auto dealers online inventory to find a car to replace the one that they are selling.

Any one of these new online conversion and marketing tools can develop a superior R.O.I. to even the best written and placed conventional automotive advertising messages and/or online digital marketing campaigns.  Philip Zelinger summed up the value of these technology driven solutions and their importance to automotive advertising agencies who need to justify their agency fees to their auto dealer clients in today’s consolidating auto industry.  “Investing twenty five years as a General Manager and Auto Dealer Principal followed by operating a national network of independent automotive advertising agencies taught me the importance of protecting the bottom line; first for my clients and then for myself.  Many automotive advertising agencies still operate under the assumption that if they bring enough bodies to the front door then they have earned their fees.  In today’s consolidating auto industry; not so much!”

“Reduced sales volume and profit margins coupled with increased expenses demand that automotive advertising agencies must increase their areas of responsibility to include internal selling processes using systems to increase efficiencies across all departments in an auto dealership in both their brick and mortar facilities and their newly developing virtual showrooms.  You have to be in it to win it and for the foreseeable future the game is being played on the World Wide Web.  The most active lanes on the Internet Super Highway are those that lead to social networking communities that share information between automotive advertising agencies and auto dealers as much as they do for their customers.  After all, what are friends for!”

About Ad Agency Online, L.L.C.

Ad Agency Online, L.L.C., (AAOL),  is a national network of independent affiliated automotive advertising agencies linked by an online communication / distribution system developed by Philip Zelinger.  The proprietary operating system that powers AAOL was designed to reduce fixed and semi-variable expenses for full service automotive advertising agencies.  The developing technologies that enhanced the performance of the independent automotive advertising agencies linked by AAOL has served as the role model for the solutions suggested on AdAgencyOnline.Net and represented by AAOL to their affiliated automotive advertising agencies when serving their auto dealer clients.

Ad Agency Online L.L.C is focused on discovering and representing new automotive advertising vendors not yet recognized by the mainstream automotive advertising industry. Some of the automotive advertising vendors represented by AAOL include ronsmap, SiSTeR Technologies Video CarLot, TeleTextSolutions, DealerMouth, GetAutoAppraise.com, Argistics – AutoTransaXion, DealMaker.Com, CityTwist.Com, Bulldog Marketing Technologies, Kihon Media, CarFolks.Com, Ai Dealer and Laser Stream Video; with more being added weekly.

About Philip Zelinger

Philip Zelinger is the President of Ad Agency Online, L.L.C. and the founder of  AdAgencyOnline.Net.  He invested 25 years as a General Manager and Dealer Principal followed by his last ten years in the automotive advertising industry learning from the teams that he built so he can now presume to teach on forums like AdAgencyOnline.Net.  His role as a “Dealer Coach” is enhanced by his hosting a nationally recognized auto industry social networking portal and blog talk radio station – WAAOL, All Automotive Advertising News All The Time.  As the author of two books on the auto industry, including “How To Sell A Car – a Career Guide to The Automobile Industry,” he is a recognized authority on market trends and developing technologies with the responsibility of selecting key vendors and applications for his dealer clients as well as forming strategic partnerships for his vendor clients to leverage their shared resources to help them bring their products and services to market.

For more information on Philip Zelinger, Ad Agency Online, L.L.C., the vendors on AdAgencyOnline.Net or any of the automotive advertising social networking communities referenced in this article and supported by Philip Zelinger contact Philip directly at http://AdAgencyOnline.Net.  Automotive advertising vendors, automotive advertising agencies and auto dealers that would like to be considered as a “preferred automotive advertising vendor” on AdAgencyOnline.Net and/or to hire/join Ad Agency Online, L.L.C. to represent them can contact Philip Zelinger at pzads@bellsouth.net, or call him at 888-796-2228.  To quote Philip Zelinger, “Help is only a click away!  After all, what are friends for!”  ###