Auto-motivation

Posing a question distributors could ask end buyers, Gary Haley, senior vice president of sales for Beacon Promotions, New Ulm, Minn., asked, “‘Where are your customers when they make a buying decision?’ The answer is going to be one of three places—either the office, the home or the car. That’s where consumers make buying decisions most of the time.” A good point, especially for those considering automotive promotions, since it calls attention to how much time some of us spend in the car, placing the items in view as often as the more popular home and office products. Like the aforementioned items, automotive promotions can cover a diverse range of end-user activity, so perhaps a useful second question a distributor could ask a client would be, “If they’re in the car, what exactly are they doing?”

ROAD WARRIORS
The most obvious answer to the above question would be “commuting to work.” The length of time spent traveling to and from the office will of course vary among end-users, but in general there are a great number of products useful when a consumer is going to be spending time staring at the back of someone else’s car.

As an example, Haley cited Beacon Promotions’ trailer hitch cover. He related an instance where Beacon Promotions had been talking with a local radio station about the best way to reach listeners. Going back to his question of “Where are your customers when they make a buying decision?” Haley recommended the company’s trailer hitch cover, which would be branded with the station’s logo and serve as an effective promotion in high-traffic or commuting situations.

Michael Stoeck, director of sales and marketing for New Century, Kansas-based Stouse, pointed out that some of Stouse’s most popular products are well-suited for road visibility. He mentioned the ubiquitous white vinyl window decals, which commonly adorn back windshields everywhere, depicting everything from soccer balls to high schools to favorite vacation locals. Popular as they are, Stoeck devoted a great deal of attention to another of Stouse’s best sellers: the custom license plate.