Who will sell Fiat cars?

Chrysler this week hosted about 400 Chrysler Group dealers to outline the requirements to become a Fiat dealer in the United States. The dealers met with the Chrysler Group team responsible for establishing a Fiat retail network by the end of this year. The company wants Fiat dealerships in about 165 locations, in metropolitan areas chosen for their high concentration of small-car registrations. There are seven dealers likely to apply for two dealerships in the Orlando market. Mike Maroone likes it, so you know AutoNati0n will be in the mix. No specific word yet on South Florida…

We successfully marketed the Daewoo brand in South Florida, ultimately creating the number 1 and number 2 dealers in the Daewoo organization. South Florida should be perfect for the Fiat 500.

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Florida TV market rankings released

  • Orlando: #19
  • Miami/Ft. Lauderdale: #16
  • Tampa/St. Pete: #14

Nielsen’s new 2010/2011 market rankings seem to indicate that Florida’s population outflow has stopped, if TV market size is any indication.

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Social media advertising ramps up

Last year, advertisers spent something like $2.5 billion dollars on social media advertising worldwide. It looks like we’ll push that figure to about $3.5 billion this year and more than $4 billion next year. Facebook will take nearly half of the US ad spend in this sector, nearly $1 billion.

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Twitter accepting ads

My daughter tweets, I’ve integrated twitter stream to a couple of websites for clients and I actually Tweet certain news items now and then… So I’m a bit familiar. Last week I saw “sponsored tweets” for the first time. Now Twitter has formalized a paid Tweet program. Advertising Age has the rundown.

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AP reviews earnings reports

AP has reviewed earnings reports from a number of publicly-traded media and advertising firms. Google, Yahoo, AOL and IAC all report improved results in the second quarter. Media firms like Gannett, NYT, Comcast, News Corp and CBS also report improved results. Finally, Interpublic and Omnicom both report improved revenues and net. Both Washington Post and McClatchey report continuing declines in print ad revenue, but the lowest level of decline in years. Looks like light at the end of the tunnel.

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Facebook friends only coupons

How do you reward Facebook friends or followers when they “Like” your page? Build a Facebook friends-only coupon…

Over the past week, we’ve been able to code language that displays one image to “friends” and a different image to not-yet-friends on a Facebook page. So those who ‘like” you can get a coupon or special offer while others see an image that urges them to “Like” your page for access to special deals.

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Times Square on the Bay

Miami City Commissioners have approved the construction of two digital billboards reaching almost 500 feet tall, next to the Arscht Center in downtown Miami. The developer of the project claims that he will be able to sell tens of millions of dollars in advertising annually.

My initial thought is “not anytime soon.” After all, we have LED screens that probably cost in the area of $2 million each. And as I recall, they’re pretty darn close to the flight path into MIA. And then there is the issue of lightning strikes. Florida is the lightning capital, and I don’t know how LED screens hold up to a few hundred million volts of electricity. Of course, a direct hit by even a category 1 hurricane will probably turn those LED signs into confetti… that’s not to mention the damage a Cat 2 or Cat 3 could deliver. And finally, we have Miami’s general level of chaos to consider. How long before someone takes a .22 and shoots out your sign?

Finally, you’ve got the neighbors to contend with. d = \sqrt{1.50h} is the formula for approximating the distance you can see an object, based on it’s height. At 500 feet, these towers are visible up to 27 miles out to sea… If they get built, I can’t see them making it through the first year unscathed.

An object 500 feet tall is visible approx 27 miles out to sea

An object 500 feet tall is visible approx 27 miles out to sea

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Mission accomplished

Crook & Crook Fishing, Electronics and Marine Supplies catalog

Crook & Crook Fishing, Electronics and Marine Supplies catalog

200 full-color pages all done from scratch. Kelly now knows more about fishing and boating than she ever thought possible.

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Nominate a South Florida small business

Business Leader Media is taking your nominations for Top 100 small business awards. You’ll need to know contact information and revenues for past three years. Or just make up some impressive figures. www.BusinessLeader.com/SouthFlorida-Top100

The LeBron James South Florida stimulus package

WINZ rates are now up to “where they should be” according to an anonymous Clear Channel source. You can bet that Miami Heat sponsorship packages are priced at what the market will bear, and will sell out. Anecdotal evidence suggests that local hotels and restaurants are seeing an uptick in interest.

The radio and TV rights contracts for this season will not change. Radio rights will cost more for the following season, while Sun Sports has a few more years left on their TV contract. Expect lots more opportunity from CC and SS. Remember, CC has 9 hours of programming on WINZ/WBGG around Miami Dolphins games, expect the same for the Miami Heat games. And no, I cannot get you Miami Heat Tickets, but thanks for asking.

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