Things have been quiet on the BMW M car front for me lately. That’s a very good thing to be able to say, but it hasn’t left me much to write about on the Wheels front. Last week a small issue surfaced that reminded me some DIY fixes can be very simple. The driver side […]
To be an effective marketing consultant today, you have to embrace continual learning. That’s something that is easy to say, but hard to do. It’s hard to follow through on for two main reasons — human nature and time. We all say we will pursue continual learning, but human nature prefers to focus time and […]
2014 was another successful year for chrisparente.com. I’d like to say thank you to all of my visitors, and I wish you all the best in 2015. 2014 was a year of transition for me. Early in the year I launched my own content marketing firm, StoryTech Consulting LLC. I’m very happy to say the […]
Last week Gabriele and I enjoyed a special wine dinner event. Merry Edwards, one of the most respected and recognized producers of California Pinot Noir, was in town and attending a dinner featuring her wines. The event was held at La Bergerie in Old Town Alexandria. Merry Edwards was a pioneer in producing high quality […]
BMW November sales numbers for North America have just been released. Month to month sales were down 2.3 percent, though year to year BMW sales are still up 9.7 percent. It’s been a good year for BMW but sales have definitely cooled since I looked at the March and May sales numbers. Looking behind the […]
Last week I registered for a webinar featuring Ann Handley, Chief Content Officer at MarketingProfs and best-selling author. The presentation was a distillation of her new book Everybody Writes. An unexpected client issue prevented me from attending the webinar, but thankfully Ann (and Marketo) sent the presentation to us no-shows. I’ve known Ann a long time. […]
The rubber window trim around the front and rear windshields of BMWs can cause owners heartburn. Sometimes called molding or gaskets, the rubber can dry up and deteriorate quickly, seemingly faster than on other cars. Here’s a long and passionate thread via Bimmerfest that stretches back to 2006 on the topic. The window trim doesn’t […]
Having grown up in Connecticut, I’ve always loved fall. One fall tradition I really enjoy here in the greater Washington, DC region is the Calvert Woodley fall wine sale. When the weather turns cooler, I know their impressive catalogue will soon be arriving at my door. More than just a listing of sale items, it’s […]
Earlier this month I wrote about selling my 1999 M3, after almost 11 years of ownership. Here’s the car that made that happen — my “new” 2006 Interlagos Competition Package E46 M3. The purchase happened quickly, and involved a lot of serendipity. I wasn’t in the market for an E46 M3, which is the BMW […]
Content marketing and social media promotion — it’s hard to imagine one without the other. Once a company embraces a publisher mentality, it’s natural to use social media channels to engage your audience, build relationships with vertical influencers and provide a valuable feedback loop. Companies also use social media channels to promote their content to […]
A personal era closed out this past weekend. After almost 11 years of ownership, I sold my 1999 BMW E36 M3. It only has 62,500 miles, and is in pristine condition. Not only was it in great shape with loads of preventative maintenance, but over the years I made incremental improvements — performance software, exhaust, […]
This past weekend I attended a car show at River Farm, located off the George Washington Parkway in Alexandria. It’s a beautiful property on the banks of the Potomac river, and is the headquarters of the American Horticultural Society. The focus this morning however was cars, and there were some beauties. All makes were welcome. […]