Jan
08

Audi announces new luxury at CES 2014

By | LOL

From snowy mountain passes through urban streets to summer excursions to the beach at some point we all need to stop and do Number 2. But do you want to step out of your plush, sanitary luxury sedan and into a filthy roadside restroom full of graffiti and glory holes?

That is why today Audi announced plans to offer a never-before-seen luxury vehicle option to their full line of vehicles – the Self-Cleaning Bottom (Selbstreinigung Hintern).

“Today, buyers in the luxury automobile market have the highest expectations. The driverless car has helped Audi to better understand demands of our buyers” says Jahn VonBondorsnechtinchise, Professor of Customer Needs at Audi’s American headquarters.

“More and more of our customers are opting for services that limit or remove their need [Read more...]

Aug
14

Can Ford’s iPad app make car buying easier? Maybe.

By | Industry

Yesterday Ford unveiled a new iPad app they claim will make car buying easier and less stressful. I think the app has potential, just not exactly in the way that Ford thinks it does.

Ford has been an industry leader in technology, both in and out of the vehicle. From Facebook to their EcoBoost engines Ford has proven their technological prowess.  But has this emphasis on the technology become a blinder to actual consumer problems? In other words has the stupefaction of being an ‘industry first’ resulted in technological solutions that fail to fix problems and in some cases produce added evils?

Buying a Car Is Never Fun. Never. Ever.

At times we want to imagine that the costlier our purchase the more pleasing the experience is. If that were the case buying a car would consist of a signing your name, followed by a full body massage, foie gras and an aged adult beverage. Sadly, that isn’t the case.

Ford’s new iPad app looks to improve the process, as much as it can.  While I haven’t had a [Read more...]

May
17

Marketing with Siri

By | Advermarketing

First and foremost: THIS POST IS HYPOTHETICAL. At no point do I anticipate Apple will turn Siri into a marketing platform, but if they did…imagine the possibilities!  That’s what this post is. 

A hypothecially look at Marketing with Siri.

You are probably familiar with Siri. If you are not, please Google it. I’ll wait………OK. Moving right along.

While Siri allows iPhone users to do a multitude of things hands-free, much of the focus, both in application and marketing,  has been discovery. Siri in many ways has become its own search tool. You generate a Q and she provides an A. The difference between Google search and Siri is Siri’s A’s can be chained to other actions on the phone such as navigation, notes, call, etc.

While Siri may be a tool of discovery and accesibility, she can also be entertaining. The folks at Apple have programmed Siri with preset responses that make her more human, most notably giving her a sense of humor. If asked the right questions that is. This proves that Siri can be programmed to provide specific outputs based on inputs. Meaning Apple can tell Siri what to say when she is asked a certain question.

Example 1.

Placing preprogrammed Qs & As within Siri to support a national marketing campaign.

For this example we’ll use the new 2013 SRT Viper. [Read more...]

Jan
30

MyKey Technology: Simple, Smart & Safe.

By | Industry

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During the Washington Auto Show I had the chance to talk with Susan (Sue) Cischke, Ford’s Group Vice President, Sustainability, Environment and Safety Engineering. We briefly touched on Ford’s sustainability goals for 2012, but quickly transitioned to safety, specifically distracted driving and technology.

Sue highlighted recent announcements regarding Ford’s MyKey technology, which acts as a technological nanny for your car and is specifically targeted at young or new drivers. It works by [Read more...]