Archive for the ‘Industry News’ Category

Transformers: Women And The Automotive Industry

Maddy Dychtwald, 05.18.10, 05:00 PM EDT

Women buy 52% of all new cars and influence more than 85% of car sales. So why aren’t the car dealerships paying attention?

You don’t have to look far to find women who have had a bad car buying experience.

“One of my colleagues was buying a car recently, and she became more and more irritated because the car salesman was talking only to her husband,” says Mary Lou Quinlan of Just Ask a Woman, a marketing consultancy targeting women. “So she said, ‘You know, I feel like you’re not paying any attention to what I say.’” The car salesman, surprised, insisted he was paying attention to her. “Oh yeah?” she replied. “What’s my name?” The dealer–who had made a point of using her husband’s name repeatedly–was speechless.

It’s true. Women buy 52% of all new cars sold in the U.S., influence more than 85% of all car purchases and are the fastest growing segment of buyers for new and used cars. All told, women have full or partial say over a staggering $80 billion worth of spending on cars.

But car dealerships do a terrible job communicating with women. Seventy-four percent of women say they feel misunderstood by car marketers.

“The auto industry today is in trouble, and automakers are struggling so hard,” says Jody DeVere, president and CEO of Ask Patty, a site staffed by women car experts who advise other women on car purchases and service. “Yet they’re only doing lip service to women in terms of marketing and selling. When what they need to do is change, and create an environment where women don’t equate buying a car or getting it serviced with going to the dentist.”

It’s an industry that’s owned and operated by men. Some 95% of the country’s 20,000 auto dealers belonging to the National Automobile Dealers Association are male. And it shows.

“It’s a very male culture. They’re family businesses, and they’ve been owned by men for a long time, so that’s part of the culture,” says DeVere. As part of her job she travels around the country, training car salesmen to build better relationships with women. She’s used to the boys’ club vibe–she worked in the male-dominated technology industry for years before moving to the automotive industry in 2000. She became president of the Women’s Automotive Association International, and later launched AskPatty.com.

Still, she wasn’t prepared for the locker-room antics of car salesmen. During one training presentation to a large group of salesmen recently, she explained the importance of careful listening with women customers. “Men and women communicate differently and can misunderstand cues and singles,” she said. “Men need to learn how to listen, and why. It makes women trust you and creates a relationship.” Meanwhile, a group of salesmen in the back was whispering, shuffling papers and giggling.

“When the Q&A time came, they asked me inappropriate questions, which I’m used to. I used humor to deal with it.” At the end, she cleaned up the literature and found the men, all in their 40s, had drawn crude cartoons of her with labels like “Manhater.com.”

She was angry at first but then thought, “at least the management is smart enough to know they have a problem and they need me.” Two weeks later she received a surprise gift–a $275 Mercedes-Benz branded handbag she’d mentioned during the speech. The note read, “Dear Patty: Just wanted you to know that some of us were really listening.”

Isn’t it nice to know that the day is coming when the guys in the front of the room–the ones who sent her the handbag, the ones who sincerely want to listen to women with respect–will get their reward?

Car dealers don’t have to offer cookies and manicures to improve the buying experience. The most important thing they can do is change the way they listen, DeVere says. “Women like to tell stories. We don’t talk in bullet points. When I come in to get my car serviced, I want to tell you the whole history. But men tend to interrupt and cut to the chase, and that makes me feel bad, like they’re not respecting me. Men need to learn how to listen,” she says. Not because it’s polite, but because real listening will sell more cars.

Can small changes, like better listening, really help? Marti Barletta thinks so. “When you’re starting from zero, doing even a little bit to appeal to women in general can make a huge impact. That first 20% of your effort will get you 80% of your value. Most companies are not even in the beginning of the curve.”

From the book: Influence: How Women’s Economic Power Will Transform Our World For The Better by Maddy Dychtwald with Christine Larson. © 2010 Maddy Dychtwald. Published by arrangement with VOICE, an imprint of Hyperion Books.

About Pynergy Petroleum Company

Pynergy Petroleum Company was founded in August 1999 when it acquired three Conoco Branded retail locations in the Denver, CO area.  Since then, Pynergy has been devoted to providing high quality fuels, lubricants, diesel exhaust fluid, equipment and service to the automotive, heavy duty and industrial markets.  Please visit us at www.pynergypetroleum.com

Susan McGinnis anchors this afternoon’s Clean Skies News Energy Report from Washington, DC.
On the program:- After months of delay, Sen.’s John Kerry and Joe Lieberman reveal their Senate climate bill. Clean Skies news talks with Sen. Kerry. Click here for the entire interview.- Congressman Henry Waxman says that his energy committee’s investigation into the Gulf oil spill reveals that a key safety device, the blowout preventer, had a leak in a crucial hydraulic system that probably made it inoperable.- EU climate commissioner Connie Hedegaard says she will present a document within weeks showing how Europe can move to a 30% cut in greenhouse gas emissions by 2020.- Google buys a nearly $40 million stake in two North Dakota wind farms.

About Pynergy Petroleum Company

Pynergy Petroleum Company was founded in August 1999 when it acquired three Conoco Branded retail locations in the Denver, CO area.  Since then, Pynergy has been devoted to providing high quality fuels, lubricants, diesel exhaust fluid, equipment and service to the automotive, heavy duty and industrial markets.  Please visit us at www.pynergypetroleum.com

Interesting article by John R. Quain regarding a Roadside Assistance application created by Mazda.  The application was created for iPhone users.  Thanks for sharing this John!

April 7, 2010, 7:30 am Roadside Assistance in an App, From Mazda

Take that, OnStar.

Mazda joins a growing number of automakers capitalizing on the popularity of the iPhone to offer apps that cover free navigation, remote unlocking and roadside assistance. Mercedes will let you lock or unlock your car from an iPhone. Smart will soon let you play Internet radio stations and receive turn-by-turn directions from an iPhone app. Now, Mazda is introducing an app for roadside assistance.

Mazda’s Roadside Assistance iPhone app.

The Mazda Roadside Assistance App is complimentary along with the free roadside assistance provided under the warranty period (36 months or 36,000 miles). Drivers enter basic information, like the car’s vehicle identification number. Should the unforeseen then occur, like a flat tire, dead battery or accident, the owner can contact the closest service provider (via Cross Country Automotive Services) by tapping on the application’s icon.

The software will prompt the driver to make sure he or she has pulled off to a safe area or to dial an emergency number if not. Owners can also enter information to specify the problem, and Mazda’s call center will dispatch assistance. While you’re waiting for the tow truck, the app will periodically give you an estimate as to when help will arrive (so you can go back to posting on Twitter).

The primary benefit of the Mazda application is that it will find your location automatically. In other words, a tow truck can find you without having to rely on vague instructions like, “I just passed Exit 15 on I-95.”

Unlike the 911 service in Ford’s Sync or GM’s OnStar, calls are not made automatically when, say, a car’s air bags are deployed. The Mazda app cannot be operated via voice commands, either, should you be in real trouble. And the application lacks other features of, say, Smart’s coming application. There’s no turn-by-turn navigation, for example, or Bluetooth Internet radio function. Blackberry owners and Android phone users are also out of luck: the Mazda application works with only the iPhone 3G and 3GS models.

Still, Mazda’s app illustrates how smartphones are gaining a foothold in the car, becoming the new accessory to gain entry into services that previously required a monthly subscription and expensive built-in hardware.

About Pynergy Petroleum Company

Pynergy Petroleum Company was founded in August 1999 when it acquired three Conoco Branded retail locations in the Denver, CO area.  Since then, Pynergy has been devoted to providing high quality fuels, lubricants, diesel exhaust fluid, equipment and service to the automotive, heavy duty and industrial markets.  Please visit us at www.pynergypetroleum.com

Chrysler VP of Manufacturing Scott Garberding on the improvements in the automaker’s new v6 engine.

About Pynergy Petroleum Company

Pynergy Petroleum Company was founded in August 1999 when it acquired three Conoco Branded retail locations in the Denver, CO area.  Since then, Pynergy has been devoted to providing high quality fuels, lubricants, diesel exhaust fluid, equipment and service to the automotive, heavy duty and industrial markets.  Please visit us at www.pynergypetroleum.com

This video was created by Toyota in regards to the sticking accelerator pedal recall. This video addresses what to do in the event that you have a sticking accelerator while driving on the road.

About Pynergy Petroleum Company

Pynergy Petroleum Company was founded in August 1999 when it acquired three Conoco Branded retail locations in the Denver, CO area.  Since then, Pynergy has been devoted to providing high quality fuels, lubricants, diesel exhaust fluid, equipment and service to the automotive, heavy duty and industrial markets.  Please visit us at www.pynergypetroleum.com