Dec 142013
 
The New BMW M3/M4

Nothing is official yet for the North American market, but a lot of information has been released about the new BMW M3/M4. In case you haven’t been keeping up with BMW nomenclature, the venerable BMW 3-Series now refers only to sedans, while the two-door coupes are now considered 4-Series. So for the first time there […]

Dec 102013
 
LinkedIn Advertising Options

Yesterday I received a briefing on LinkedIn advertising opportunities. Placing ad buys isn’t one of my main roles, but I always stay current on issues my clients might need, and all of them use LinkedIn in some way. There have been some changes lately in the LinkedIn experience. Last month LinkedIn replaced its LinkedIn Today […]

Dec 082013
 
Unlocking the BMW Hidden Menu Options of the E36 M3

The onboard computers in modern BMWs contain a wealth of information. Much of this information can be accessed by the owner, yet BMW doesn’t include such information in owner’s manuals or any other documentation. The story I wrote about the BMW hidden menu options in my 2002 E39 M5 has become one of the most […]

Dec 032013
 
Holiday Wine Ideas

Last week in my WashingtonExec column I talked about good bets for Thanksgiving wine. I thought I’d expand the focus here to the holiday season, sharing some suggestions from wine bloggers I read regularly. Robert Dwyer at Wellesley Wine Press just published a long form piece in his local magazine about wine and holidays. He […]

Nov 262013
 
Thanksgiving Wines for Your Table

My latest wine column published yesterday in WashingtonExec. It talks about a number of suggested Thanksgiving wines that will please family and friends. I focus on Bordeaux, Ripasso, Pinot Noir and Zinfandel wines. All are first hand recommendations — if you don’t like any of them, you can leave a nasty comment! Whatever wine you […]

Nov 212013
 
VISA Goes All In-House

Gini Dietrich’s Spin Sucks site has been in my industry news RSS feed for a long time. This week she wrote a good piece looking at how VISA has brought all their marketing and communications work in-house. The company is ending relationships with current agencies FleishmanHillard, Edelman and Brunswick. In her story Dietrich connects this […]

Nov 172013
 
BMW Shortens Maintenance Intervals on New Cars

Starting soon new BMW owners will start to receive more frequent oil and filter changes as part of the new car “free maintenance” program. According to the Service Information Bulletin 00 01 13, BMW now approves oil changes every 10K miles or 12 months, rather than the previous 15K miles or 24 months on cars […]

Nov 122013
 
Should You Outsource Your Cold Calling?

Integrating content into the sales process is always a vital part of the client engagements I run. For that reason, my agency is always on the look out for companies offering services that could potentially support improved sales integration. Yesterday we got an interesting presentation from beep Directed Voicemail. Founder Patrick Cahill explained their value […]

Nov 102013
 
Millennials and Cars -- What's the Real Story?

For a few years now many commentators have forwarded a theory about millennials and cars. Supposedly the American romance between young people and cars just wasn’t there anymore. Young people were in no hurry to buy cars, just as they were also pushing off marriage and home ownership. But what if that’s not it at […]

Nov 062013
 
Rules for Effective Content Marketing

Earlier this week I read an excellent article from iMediaConnection. Author Antoine Boulin identified three sure ways to fail at so-called native advertising, messages that look more like editorial content than traditional advertising. Many hope this can become a much needed revenue stream for publishers. I’ve written about native advertising, also called sponsored content. It’s […]

Nov 022013
 
Front Sway Bar Link Replacement on the E36 M3

This weekend I replaced the front sway bar links on my 1999 BMW M3. Recently I had new OEM Sachs front struts installed, so it was time to refresh the end links as well. My car has low miles, but 14+ years still take a toll. Replacing front sway bar links is a perfect DIY […]