SEMA News—October 2014

EVENTS

Press Time

How to Plan and Execute a SEMA Show News Conference

By Chad Simon 

Every year, 3,000 journalists representing various news outlets and automotive segments descend upon Las Vegas for the SEMA Show, hoping to get a first glimpse at the latest custom vehicles, innovative products and groundbreaking trends offered up by the automotive specialty-equipment industry.

If you’re an exhibitor with a significant revelation and you want to let the cat out of the bag, holding a press conference is the best way to get in front of the media. Hours of planning, preparation and strategy are required to successfully pull it off, but the results can be well worth it. It’s best to ensure that you have the necessary staffing and resources at your disposal to optimize your chances of convincing the media to show up and connect with you, and getting the coverage you seek.

Press Conference Benefits

MagnaFlow is among the exhibitors who conduct at least one press conference at the SEMA Show every year to announce a new product line or application. To be successful, it’s critical for the company to have one direct message and be available afterward to answer media questions. The manufacturer of performance exhaust systems announced last year that it was venturing into the header and motorcycle markets.

“The major benefit of hosting a press conference is being able to get in front of all the media at once, and the SEMA Show is the ideal place to offer a clear, concise message in one group setting,” said Kathryn Reinhardt, MagnaFlow’s marketing communications manager.

	Royal Purple utilizes a SEMA Show press conference to maximize exposure for both the company’s build partner and the car being unveiled.

Royal Purple, a manufacturer of high-performance lubricants, frequently utilizes a press conference during the Show to unveil a car in its booth. For Royal Purple, this presents an opportunity to gain maximum exposure for not only the product or car the company is unveiling but also to promote its build partner.

The primary objective when holding a news conference should be to bring relevant, unusual and important news to people and not just talk about the latest iteration of a product, according to Tom Marx, president and CEO of The Marx Group, a marketing communications agency that specializes in the automotive and heavy-duty aftermarket. Relevant news includes a new product that is significantly different, a new app or new way of reaching an audience, a new project build, introducing a new spokesperson, a change in management, a joint venture or a new target market. The subject has to be interesting to the media and different from what they can find in a news release.

“If you can get 10 to 15 media people at a news conference, and they’re the right people, that’s a good turnout,” Marx said. “A lot of people think that you need to fill a room with 40 to 50 people, but unless you’re a large company, that’s just unusual to do. If you’ve got 10 to 15 people who are going to write about you and use that kind of brainpower to extend your brand, that’s a good number.”

It makes sense to have a press conference if you have a busy executive or celebrity who cannot accommodate such a large number of individual journalist interviews, according to Della Domingo, SEMA’s public relations director.

“One thing we tell exhibitors is that a press conference is not necessarily for everyone,” she said. “It takes a lot of time, energy and resources to hold a successful press conference. And you have to have a solid story to get the media to come. But if an exhibitor is willing to put in that time and effort, it’s possible to have great results.”

On the flip side, a press conference is not a guarantee of media coverage. Some exhibitors don’t get the results they were hoping for because their announcements aren’t sufficiently newsworthy to attract the media, or they don’t have the staffing or time.

Three generations of Ness family motorcycle builders, including (left to right) Arlen, Cory and Zach, were on hand to announce their collaboration with Magnaflow at the 2013 SEMA Show.

Strategy and Promotion

The first strategy should be to plan four to five months in advance, according to Marx. Decide on the location, whether in the SEMA pressroom or your booth, but look at the tactics involved. You should have at least a 20x20-ft. booth if you plan to host a news conference there. The advantage to holding a news conference in the SEMA pressroom is that it is already equipped with a podium, a sound system, a projector and seating for journalists.

“We’ll often cordon off part of the booth so that people come into the center of it,” Marx said. “Collect business cards so that you know who the attendees are and can ensure that these are the people you want in there. Try to keep others outside the booth area in order to contain it. Also, get a microphone and the right kind of sound system, because there’s a lot of extraneous sound at the Show.”

Once you have booked your press conference, notify the media as soon as possible to hold the date, Marx advised. As the event gets closer, call the media or send an e-blast and a physical letter to remind them about it. Promote it via social media. Ensure that people who have committed are still coming; if not, find out how to get information to them after the event.

Because of the media’s diversity in representing various automotive aftermarket segments, exhibitors must identify and target the media most applicable to their announcement. If an exhibitor is on the official press conference schedule, SEMA promotes the event in its publications, directly to the media through e-mails before the Show and provides handouts on-site at the media center showing what days and times the press conferences are taking place.

“We’ve seen a direct correlation in the amount of outreach an exhibitor will do to promote their press conferences to journalists and the success they have,” Domingo said. “Keep in mind that journalists are being pulled in many different directions, so give them a reason to attend your press conference on that date and time. The journalists have to be convinced that it’s a press conference they don’t want to miss.”

Be Prepared

It would be a mistake to show up in Vegas without having a media kit to hand out to journalists. It should include elements such as professional product photos, pricing and market research, the product’s features and benefits and when it will be released to the market. Many exhibitors, including MagnaFlow, utilize an interactive display in their booths so that viewers can visually see the product installed on a vehicle, its application and, in MagnaFlow’s case, hear the sound of the exhaust.

It’s also a good idea to rehearse the conference beforehand to identify the speakers, the order in which they speak and what they plan to talk about to eliminate repetition.

“My job is to ensure that everything runs smoothly, we’re on time, people are talking when they’re supposed to and that they can be heard,” said Marlena Solomon, Royal Purple’s marketing specialist. “We always have our automotive sales team on hand and, if we unveil a car, the builders to answer questions regarding specific products and give interviews. The SEMA Show is a busy event, so we want to organize our press conferences to where it makes sense for people to attend and get on to whatever they need to do. Execute a good news conference, stick to the plan and get everyone out.”

Executive Summary Determine whether your announcement is one that lends itself better to a press conference or to individualized meetings with members of the media. Plan four to five months ahead of time. Decide whether to hold the press conference in your booth or the SEMA pressroom. Notify the media once you’ve booked your press conference. Promote it via SEMA publications, social media, e-blasts, etc. Organize a media kit to hand out to journalists. Decide which company representatives will speak, and rehearse talking points. Determine whether you will use a celebrity spokesperson, a booth vehicle or a video presentation. Offer refreshments and ensure that you have a microphone, a sound system and any other supplies you may need. Provide time for questions and answers with the media after the press conference.

Marx suggested that exhibitors limit the conference to 30 minutes at the most and no more than two speakers, including the president or owner of the company and the product manager, marketing manager or spokesperson who goes into detail about the product. Ensure that your presentation materials are crisp, and keep the message short.

“Perhaps start off with a three- to four-minute, high-paced video that gets across the message you’re trying to send,” Marx said. “If you need to use a PowerPoint, provide handouts with one page of highlighted points. The rest you can put on a thumb drive that the media can reference later. They are overwhelmed with news conferences, so you don’t want them to go back to home base and start to write and wonder what happened at your conference.”

Provide refreshments, including coffee, water and soft drinks, depending on the time of day, Marx advised. When the event is finished, follow up with the media to ask whether they have any more questions, whether they want a one-on-one interview or if there is anything else you can send to them.

Celebrity Endorsers

MagnaFlow likes to attract a lot of attention to its booth, which is why the company routinely brings celebrities to the Show, such as Mario Andretti, Chip Foose, Vaughn Gittin Jr. and Robby Gordon. Last year, the company and Arlen Ness announced a new partnership to manufacture and sell a complete line of co-branded exhaust products designed for American V-Twin motorcycles.

“Celebrities are an effective way to get your message out, because they are our trusted brand ambassadors,” Reinhardt said. “They go to the market and tell consumers that this is a product they would use. Consumers look up to them, want to be like them and build cars just like theirs. The effect of having them sign posters in the booth and hand out marketing materials can last years after the Show, and that’s huge for us.”

In the Royal Purple booth last year, build partner Ringbrothers unveiled a rebuilt yellow ’71 Pantera De Tomaso called “ADRNLN.” Royal Purple hosted a media reception afterward, which provided an opportunity to thank the media for coming and gave journalists a chance to talk one on one with the car builders.

“Part of the reason we do unveilings is that they create incredible traffic to our booth,” said Solomon. “When you have a car like this in your booth, the traffic is insane all the time throughout the course of the Show. Utilizing celebrity builders helps to put a face to your product or vehicle. We let their work speak for itself; everyone wants to see what they are going to do next to make a vehicle stand out.”

		Sources MagnaFlow 22961 Arroyo Vista Rancho Santa Margarita, CA 92688 800-824-8664 www.magnaflow.com The Marx Group 2175 Francisco Blvd. E., Ste. F San Rafael, CA 94901 415-453-0844 www.themarxgrp.com Royal Purple One Royal Purple Lane Porter, TX 77365 281-354-8600 www.royalpurple.com SEMA 1575 South Valley Vista Dr. Diamond Bar, CA 91765 909-610-2030 www.sema.org

But don’t pick someone to represent your company simply because he or she is famous. A spokesperson should be believable, stay on target, be brief and not ramble. If you use a celebrity spokesperson, ensure that he or she is articulate and understands your product. Keep the spokesperson focused on a few key messages and repeating the same points.

“Hosting a celebrity in your booth can be beneficial if the person is well known and respected,” Marx said. “At the end of the day, good news is news. Figure out first what you’re trying to create. If you’ve got a celebrity who’s really good, then go for it.”

Define Success

A successful news conference is defined by whether the product sells, because that’s why companies exhibit at the Show.

“For us, it means that we reached the media, the media reached the consumers and the consumers bought the product,” Reinhardt said.

According to Solomon, you know you’ve done your job when the crowd is engaged and talks about the product or vehicle that was unveiled. Despite a glitch last year, she believes the company still pulled it off.

“The only thing I would improve upon from last year is to ensure that we have an audio system this year,” Solomon said. “We had several people speaking and many in attendance, so unless you were standing right there, you couldn’t hear everything. Otherwise, the Pantera in our booth was an incredible success. There were numerous photographers who stopped by to take a look at the car. There was a lot of buzz that went on around it, which drove traffic to our booth.”

First-time exhibitors don’t typically hold press conferences because it’s such a huge commitment and not something many exhibitors will take on in their first year, according to Domingo. However, several years ago, one first-timer accepted the challenge and decided that the press conference would be a success as long as he got the company’s name out there. No media showed up, but he was satisfied when he saw the company’s name published in the SEMA Show Daily’s press conference schedule.

“Most exhibitors probably wouldn’t be satisfied with that,” Domingo admitted. “For me, success would be getting at least a half-dozen journalists there—a combination of new ones and ones you have established relationships with—and getting 50% of them to write about you. It’s a chance to strengthen relationships with media you already work with and introduce the ones you don’t know to your company and what you’ve got going on.”

Use the time after the event is over to reflect upon whether you were able to convey the intended message, how it was accepted and how you might improve for the next time.

“Engagement is the definition of having executed a successful press conference,” Marx said. “If the media is there and engaged, they’re asking questions and they’re showing interest, then you’ve done your job. If they’re just sitting there like bumps on a log, then it’s because you didn’t get across your point or weren’t exciting enough.

SEMA News—October 2014

EVENTS

Press Time

How to Plan and Execute a SEMA Show News Conference

By Chad Simon 

Every year, 3,000 journalists representing various news outlets and automotive segments descend upon Las Vegas for the SEMA Show, hoping to get a first glimpse at the latest custom vehicles, innovative products and groundbreaking trends offered up by the automotive specialty-equipment industry.

If you’re an exhibitor with a significant revelation and you want to let the cat out of the bag, holding a press conference is the best way to get in front of the media. Hours of planning, preparation and strategy are required to successfully pull it off, but the results can be well worth it. It’s best to ensure that you have the necessary staffing and resources at your disposal to optimize your chances of convincing the media to show up and connect with you, and getting the coverage you seek.

Press Conference Benefits

MagnaFlow is among the exhibitors who conduct at least one press conference at the SEMA Show every year to announce a new product line or application. To be successful, it’s critical for the company to have one direct message and be available afterward to answer media questions. The manufacturer of performance exhaust systems announced last year that it was venturing into the header and motorcycle markets.

“The major benefit of hosting a press conference is being able to get in front of all the media at once, and the SEMA Show is the ideal place to offer a clear, concise message in one group setting,” said Kathryn Reinhardt, MagnaFlow’s marketing communications manager.

	Royal Purple utilizes a SEMA Show press conference to maximize exposure for both the company’s build partner and the car being unveiled.

Royal Purple, a manufacturer of high-performance lubricants, frequently utilizes a press conference during the Show to unveil a car in its booth. For Royal Purple, this presents an opportunity to gain maximum exposure for not only the product or car the company is unveiling but also to promote its build partner.

The primary objective when holding a news conference should be to bring relevant, unusual and important news to people and not just talk about the latest iteration of a product, according to Tom Marx, president and CEO of The Marx Group, a marketing communications agency that specializes in the automotive and heavy-duty aftermarket. Relevant news includes a new product that is significantly different, a new app or new way of reaching an audience, a new project build, introducing a new spokesperson, a change in management, a joint venture or a new target market. The subject has to be interesting to the media and different from what they can find in a news release.

“If you can get 10 to 15 media people at a news conference, and they’re the right people, that’s a good turnout,” Marx said. “A lot of people think that you need to fill a room with 40 to 50 people, but unless you’re a large company, that’s just unusual to do. If you’ve got 10 to 15 people who are going to write about you and use that kind of brainpower to extend your brand, that’s a good number.”

It makes sense to have a press conference if you have a busy executive or celebrity who cannot accommodate such a large number of individual journalist interviews, according to Della Domingo, SEMA’s public relations director.

“One thing we tell exhibitors is that a press conference is not necessarily for everyone,” she said. “It takes a lot of time, energy and resources to hold a successful press conference. And you have to have a solid story to get the media to come. But if an exhibitor is willing to put in that time and effort, it’s possible to have great results.”

On the flip side, a press conference is not a guarantee of media coverage. Some exhibitors don’t get the results they were hoping for because their announcements aren’t sufficiently newsworthy to attract the media, or they don’t have the staffing or time.

Three generations of Ness family motorcycle builders, including (left to right) Arlen, Cory and Zach, were on hand to announce their collaboration with Magnaflow at the 2013 SEMA Show.

Strategy and Promotion

The first strategy should be to plan four to five months in advance, according to Marx. Decide on the location, whether in the SEMA pressroom or your booth, but look at the tactics involved. You should have at least a 20x20-ft. booth if you plan to host a news conference there. The advantage to holding a news conference in the SEMA pressroom is that it is already equipped with a podium, a sound system, a projector and seating for journalists.

“We’ll often cordon off part of the booth so that people come into the center of it,” Marx said. “Collect business cards so that you know who the attendees are and can ensure that these are the people you want in there. Try to keep others outside the booth area in order to contain it. Also, get a microphone and the right kind of sound system, because there’s a lot of extraneous sound at the Show.”

Once you have booked your press conference, notify the media as soon as possible to hold the date, Marx advised. As the event gets closer, call the media or send an e-blast and a physical letter to remind them about it. Promote it via social media. Ensure that people who have committed are still coming; if not, find out how to get information to them after the event.

Because of the media’s diversity in representing various automotive aftermarket segments, exhibitors must identify and target the media most applicable to their announcement. If an exhibitor is on the official press conference schedule, SEMA promotes the event in its publications, directly to the media through e-mails before the Show and provides handouts on-site at the media center showing what days and times the press conferences are taking place.

“We’ve seen a direct correlation in the amount of outreach an exhibitor will do to promote their press conferences to journalists and the success they have,” Domingo said. “Keep in mind that journalists are being pulled in many different directions, so give them a reason to attend your press conference on that date and time. The journalists have to be convinced that it’s a press conference they don’t want to miss.”

Be Prepared

It would be a mistake to show up in Vegas without having a media kit to hand out to journalists. It should include elements such as professional product photos, pricing and market research, the product’s features and benefits and when it will be released to the market. Many exhibitors, including MagnaFlow, utilize an interactive display in their booths so that viewers can visually see the product installed on a vehicle, its application and, in MagnaFlow’s case, hear the sound of the exhaust.

It’s also a good idea to rehearse the conference beforehand to identify the speakers, the order in which they speak and what they plan to talk about to eliminate repetition.

“My job is to ensure that everything runs smoothly, we’re on time, people are talking when they’re supposed to and that they can be heard,” said Marlena Solomon, Royal Purple’s marketing specialist. “We always have our automotive sales team on hand and, if we unveil a car, the builders to answer questions regarding specific products and give interviews. The SEMA Show is a busy event, so we want to organize our press conferences to where it makes sense for people to attend and get on to whatever they need to do. Execute a good news conference, stick to the plan and get everyone out.”

Executive Summary Determine whether your announcement is one that lends itself better to a press conference or to individualized meetings with members of the media. Plan four to five months ahead of time. Decide whether to hold the press conference in your booth or the SEMA pressroom. Notify the media once you’ve booked your press conference. Promote it via SEMA publications, social media, e-blasts, etc. Organize a media kit to hand out to journalists. Decide which company representatives will speak, and rehearse talking points. Determine whether you will use a celebrity spokesperson, a booth vehicle or a video presentation. Offer refreshments and ensure that you have a microphone, a sound system and any other supplies you may need. Provide time for questions and answers with the media after the press conference.

Marx suggested that exhibitors limit the conference to 30 minutes at the most and no more than two speakers, including the president or owner of the company and the product manager, marketing manager or spokesperson who goes into detail about the product. Ensure that your presentation materials are crisp, and keep the message short.

“Perhaps start off with a three- to four-minute, high-paced video that gets across the message you’re trying to send,” Marx said. “If you need to use a PowerPoint, provide handouts with one page of highlighted points. The rest you can put on a thumb drive that the media can reference later. They are overwhelmed with news conferences, so you don’t want them to go back to home base and start to write and wonder what happened at your conference.”

Provide refreshments, including coffee, water and soft drinks, depending on the time of day, Marx advised. When the event is finished, follow up with the media to ask whether they have any more questions, whether they want a one-on-one interview or if there is anything else you can send to them.

Celebrity Endorsers

MagnaFlow likes to attract a lot of attention to its booth, which is why the company routinely brings celebrities to the Show, such as Mario Andretti, Chip Foose, Vaughn Gittin Jr. and Robby Gordon. Last year, the company and Arlen Ness announced a new partnership to manufacture and sell a complete line of co-branded exhaust products designed for American V-Twin motorcycles.

“Celebrities are an effective way to get your message out, because they are our trusted brand ambassadors,” Reinhardt said. “They go to the market and tell consumers that this is a product they would use. Consumers look up to them, want to be like them and build cars just like theirs. The effect of having them sign posters in the booth and hand out marketing materials can last years after the Show, and that’s huge for us.”

In the Royal Purple booth last year, build partner Ringbrothers unveiled a rebuilt yellow ’71 Pantera De Tomaso called “ADRNLN.” Royal Purple hosted a media reception afterward, which provided an opportunity to thank the media for coming and gave journalists a chance to talk one on one with the car builders.

“Part of the reason we do unveilings is that they create incredible traffic to our booth,” said Solomon. “When you have a car like this in your booth, the traffic is insane all the time throughout the course of the Show. Utilizing celebrity builders helps to put a face to your product or vehicle. We let their work speak for itself; everyone wants to see what they are going to do next to make a vehicle stand out.”

		Sources MagnaFlow 22961 Arroyo Vista Rancho Santa Margarita, CA 92688 800-824-8664 www.magnaflow.com The Marx Group 2175 Francisco Blvd. E., Ste. F San Rafael, CA 94901 415-453-0844 www.themarxgrp.com Royal Purple One Royal Purple Lane Porter, TX 77365 281-354-8600 www.royalpurple.com SEMA 1575 South Valley Vista Dr. Diamond Bar, CA 91765 909-610-2030 www.sema.org

But don’t pick someone to represent your company simply because he or she is famous. A spokesperson should be believable, stay on target, be brief and not ramble. If you use a celebrity spokesperson, ensure that he or she is articulate and understands your product. Keep the spokesperson focused on a few key messages and repeating the same points.

“Hosting a celebrity in your booth can be beneficial if the person is well known and respected,” Marx said. “At the end of the day, good news is news. Figure out first what you’re trying to create. If you’ve got a celebrity who’s really good, then go for it.”

Define Success

A successful news conference is defined by whether the product sells, because that’s why companies exhibit at the Show.

“For us, it means that we reached the media, the media reached the consumers and the consumers bought the product,” Reinhardt said.

According to Solomon, you know you’ve done your job when the crowd is engaged and talks about the product or vehicle that was unveiled. Despite a glitch last year, she believes the company still pulled it off.

“The only thing I would improve upon from last year is to ensure that we have an audio system this year,” Solomon said. “We had several people speaking and many in attendance, so unless you were standing right there, you couldn’t hear everything. Otherwise, the Pantera in our booth was an incredible success. There were numerous photographers who stopped by to take a look at the car. There was a lot of buzz that went on around it, which drove traffic to our booth.”

First-time exhibitors don’t typically hold press conferences because it’s such a huge commitment and not something many exhibitors will take on in their first year, according to Domingo. However, several years ago, one first-timer accepted the challenge and decided that the press conference would be a success as long as he got the company’s name out there. No media showed up, but he was satisfied when he saw the company’s name published in the SEMA Show Daily’s press conference schedule.

“Most exhibitors probably wouldn’t be satisfied with that,” Domingo admitted. “For me, success would be getting at least a half-dozen journalists there—a combination of new ones and ones you have established relationships with—and getting 50% of them to write about you. It’s a chance to strengthen relationships with media you already work with and introduce the ones you don’t know to your company and what you’ve got going on.”

Use the time after the event is over to reflect upon whether you were able to convey the intended message, how it was accepted and how you might improve for the next time.

“Engagement is the definition of having executed a successful press conference,” Marx said. “If the media is there and engaged, they’re asking questions and they’re showing interest, then you’ve done your job. If they’re just sitting there like bumps on a log, then it’s because you didn’t get across your point or weren’t exciting enough.

SEMA News—October 2014

EVENTS

Press Time

How to Plan and Execute a SEMA Show News Conference

By Chad Simon 

Every year, 3,000 journalists representing various news outlets and automotive segments descend upon Las Vegas for the SEMA Show, hoping to get a first glimpse at the latest custom vehicles, innovative products and groundbreaking trends offered up by the automotive specialty-equipment industry.

If you’re an exhibitor with a significant revelation and you want to let the cat out of the bag, holding a press conference is the best way to get in front of the media. Hours of planning, preparation and strategy are required to successfully pull it off, but the results can be well worth it. It’s best to ensure that you have the necessary staffing and resources at your disposal to optimize your chances of convincing the media to show up and connect with you, and getting the coverage you seek.

Press Conference Benefits

MagnaFlow is among the exhibitors who conduct at least one press conference at the SEMA Show every year to announce a new product line or application. To be successful, it’s critical for the company to have one direct message and be available afterward to answer media questions. The manufacturer of performance exhaust systems announced last year that it was venturing into the header and motorcycle markets.

“The major benefit of hosting a press conference is being able to get in front of all the media at once, and the SEMA Show is the ideal place to offer a clear, concise message in one group setting,” said Kathryn Reinhardt, MagnaFlow’s marketing communications manager.

	Royal Purple utilizes a SEMA Show press conference to maximize exposure for both the company’s build partner and the car being unveiled.

Royal Purple, a manufacturer of high-performance lubricants, frequently utilizes a press conference during the Show to unveil a car in its booth. For Royal Purple, this presents an opportunity to gain maximum exposure for not only the product or car the company is unveiling but also to promote its build partner.

The primary objective when holding a news conference should be to bring relevant, unusual and important news to people and not just talk about the latest iteration of a product, according to Tom Marx, president and CEO of The Marx Group, a marketing communications agency that specializes in the automotive and heavy-duty aftermarket. Relevant news includes a new product that is significantly different, a new app or new way of reaching an audience, a new project build, introducing a new spokesperson, a change in management, a joint venture or a new target market. The subject has to be interesting to the media and different from what they can find in a news release.

“If you can get 10 to 15 media people at a news conference, and they’re the right people, that’s a good turnout,” Marx said. “A lot of people think that you need to fill a room with 40 to 50 people, but unless you’re a large company, that’s just unusual to do. If you’ve got 10 to 15 people who are going to write about you and use that kind of brainpower to extend your brand, that’s a good number.”

It makes sense to have a press conference if you have a busy executive or celebrity who cannot accommodate such a large number of individual journalist interviews, according to Della Domingo, SEMA’s public relations director.

“One thing we tell exhibitors is that a press conference is not necessarily for everyone,” she said. “It takes a lot of time, energy and resources to hold a successful press conference. And you have to have a solid story to get the media to come. But if an exhibitor is willing to put in that time and effort, it’s possible to have great results.”

On the flip side, a press conference is not a guarantee of media coverage. Some exhibitors don’t get the results they were hoping for because their announcements aren’t sufficiently newsworthy to attract the media, or they don’t have the staffing or time.

Three generations of Ness family motorcycle builders, including (left to right) Arlen, Cory and Zach, were on hand to announce their collaboration with Magnaflow at the 2013 SEMA Show.

Strategy and Promotion

The first strategy should be to plan four to five months in advance, according to Marx. Decide on the location, whether in the SEMA pressroom or your booth, but look at the tactics involved. You should have at least a 20x20-ft. booth if you plan to host a news conference there. The advantage to holding a news conference in the SEMA pressroom is that it is already equipped with a podium, a sound system, a projector and seating for journalists.

“We’ll often cordon off part of the booth so that people come into the center of it,” Marx said. “Collect business cards so that you know who the attendees are and can ensure that these are the people you want in there. Try to keep others outside the booth area in order to contain it. Also, get a microphone and the right kind of sound system, because there’s a lot of extraneous sound at the Show.”

Once you have booked your press conference, notify the media as soon as possible to hold the date, Marx advised. As the event gets closer, call the media or send an e-blast and a physical letter to remind them about it. Promote it via social media. Ensure that people who have committed are still coming; if not, find out how to get information to them after the event.

Because of the media’s diversity in representing various automotive aftermarket segments, exhibitors must identify and target the media most applicable to their announcement. If an exhibitor is on the official press conference schedule, SEMA promotes the event in its publications, directly to the media through e-mails before the Show and provides handouts on-site at the media center showing what days and times the press conferences are taking place.

“We’ve seen a direct correlation in the amount of outreach an exhibitor will do to promote their press conferences to journalists and the success they have,” Domingo said. “Keep in mind that journalists are being pulled in many different directions, so give them a reason to attend your press conference on that date and time. The journalists have to be convinced that it’s a press conference they don’t want to miss.”

Be Prepared

It would be a mistake to show up in Vegas without having a media kit to hand out to journalists. It should include elements such as professional product photos, pricing and market research, the product’s features and benefits and when it will be released to the market. Many exhibitors, including MagnaFlow, utilize an interactive display in their booths so that viewers can visually see the product installed on a vehicle, its application and, in MagnaFlow’s case, hear the sound of the exhaust.

It’s also a good idea to rehearse the conference beforehand to identify the speakers, the order in which they speak and what they plan to talk about to eliminate repetition.

“My job is to ensure that everything runs smoothly, we’re on time, people are talking when they’re supposed to and that they can be heard,” said Marlena Solomon, Royal Purple’s marketing specialist. “We always have our automotive sales team on hand and, if we unveil a car, the builders to answer questions regarding specific products and give interviews. The SEMA Show is a busy event, so we want to organize our press conferences to where it makes sense for people to attend and get on to whatever they need to do. Execute a good news conference, stick to the plan and get everyone out.”

Executive Summary Determine whether your announcement is one that lends itself better to a press conference or to individualized meetings with members of the media. Plan four to five months ahead of time. Decide whether to hold the press conference in your booth or the SEMA pressroom. Notify the media once you’ve booked your press conference. Promote it via SEMA publications, social media, e-blasts, etc. Organize a media kit to hand out to journalists. Decide which company representatives will speak, and rehearse talking points. Determine whether you will use a celebrity spokesperson, a booth vehicle or a video presentation. Offer refreshments and ensure that you have a microphone, a sound system and any other supplies you may need. Provide time for questions and answers with the media after the press conference.

Marx suggested that exhibitors limit the conference to 30 minutes at the most and no more than two speakers, including the president or owner of the company and the product manager, marketing manager or spokesperson who goes into detail about the product. Ensure that your presentation materials are crisp, and keep the message short.

“Perhaps start off with a three- to four-minute, high-paced video that gets across the message you’re trying to send,” Marx said. “If you need to use a PowerPoint, provide handouts with one page of highlighted points. The rest you can put on a thumb drive that the media can reference later. They are overwhelmed with news conferences, so you don’t want them to go back to home base and start to write and wonder what happened at your conference.”

Provide refreshments, including coffee, water and soft drinks, depending on the time of day, Marx advised. When the event is finished, follow up with the media to ask whether they have any more questions, whether they want a one-on-one interview or if there is anything else you can send to them.

Celebrity Endorsers

MagnaFlow likes to attract a lot of attention to its booth, which is why the company routinely brings celebrities to the Show, such as Mario Andretti, Chip Foose, Vaughn Gittin Jr. and Robby Gordon. Last year, the company and Arlen Ness announced a new partnership to manufacture and sell a complete line of co-branded exhaust products designed for American V-Twin motorcycles.

“Celebrities are an effective way to get your message out, because they are our trusted brand ambassadors,” Reinhardt said. “They go to the market and tell consumers that this is a product they would use. Consumers look up to them, want to be like them and build cars just like theirs. The effect of having them sign posters in the booth and hand out marketing materials can last years after the Show, and that’s huge for us.”

In the Royal Purple booth last year, build partner Ringbrothers unveiled a rebuilt yellow ’71 Pantera De Tomaso called “ADRNLN.” Royal Purple hosted a media reception afterward, which provided an opportunity to thank the media for coming and gave journalists a chance to talk one on one with the car builders.

“Part of the reason we do unveilings is that they create incredible traffic to our booth,” said Solomon. “When you have a car like this in your booth, the traffic is insane all the time throughout the course of the Show. Utilizing celebrity builders helps to put a face to your product or vehicle. We let their work speak for itself; everyone wants to see what they are going to do next to make a vehicle stand out.”

		Sources MagnaFlow 22961 Arroyo Vista Rancho Santa Margarita, CA 92688 800-824-8664 www.magnaflow.com The Marx Group 2175 Francisco Blvd. E., Ste. F San Rafael, CA 94901 415-453-0844 www.themarxgrp.com Royal Purple One Royal Purple Lane Porter, TX 77365 281-354-8600 www.royalpurple.com SEMA 1575 South Valley Vista Dr. Diamond Bar, CA 91765 909-610-2030 www.sema.org

But don’t pick someone to represent your company simply because he or she is famous. A spokesperson should be believable, stay on target, be brief and not ramble. If you use a celebrity spokesperson, ensure that he or she is articulate and understands your product. Keep the spokesperson focused on a few key messages and repeating the same points.

“Hosting a celebrity in your booth can be beneficial if the person is well known and respected,” Marx said. “At the end of the day, good news is news. Figure out first what you’re trying to create. If you’ve got a celebrity who’s really good, then go for it.”

Define Success

A successful news conference is defined by whether the product sells, because that’s why companies exhibit at the Show.

“For us, it means that we reached the media, the media reached the consumers and the consumers bought the product,” Reinhardt said.

According to Solomon, you know you’ve done your job when the crowd is engaged and talks about the product or vehicle that was unveiled. Despite a glitch last year, she believes the company still pulled it off.

“The only thing I would improve upon from last year is to ensure that we have an audio system this year,” Solomon said. “We had several people speaking and many in attendance, so unless you were standing right there, you couldn’t hear everything. Otherwise, the Pantera in our booth was an incredible success. There were numerous photographers who stopped by to take a look at the car. There was a lot of buzz that went on around it, which drove traffic to our booth.”

First-time exhibitors don’t typically hold press conferences because it’s such a huge commitment and not something many exhibitors will take on in their first year, according to Domingo. However, several years ago, one first-timer accepted the challenge and decided that the press conference would be a success as long as he got the company’s name out there. No media showed up, but he was satisfied when he saw the company’s name published in the SEMA Show Daily’s press conference schedule.

“Most exhibitors probably wouldn’t be satisfied with that,” Domingo admitted. “For me, success would be getting at least a half-dozen journalists there—a combination of new ones and ones you have established relationships with—and getting 50% of them to write about you. It’s a chance to strengthen relationships with media you already work with and introduce the ones you don’t know to your company and what you’ve got going on.”

Use the time after the event is over to reflect upon whether you were able to convey the intended message, how it was accepted and how you might improve for the next time.

“Engagement is the definition of having executed a successful press conference,” Marx said. “If the media is there and engaged, they’re asking questions and they’re showing interest, then you’ve done your job. If they’re just sitting there like bumps on a log, then it’s because you didn’t get across your point or weren’t exciting enough.

SEMA News—October 2014

BUSINESS TECHNOLOGY

Clearing the Air on Product Data Management

Questions From Your Industry Peers

By Jon Wyly

Back in July, the SEMA Data Co-op (SDC) team had the opportunity to meet with the SEMA council leadership at its annual Council Summit in Pomona. The team was invited to join the meeting to talk about the SDC and get feedback from this diverse gathering.

Back in July, my team and I had the opportunity to meet with the SEMA council leadership at its annual Council Summit in Pomona. We were invited to join the meeting to talk about the SEMA Data Co-op (SDC) and get feedback from this diverse gathering. What was particularly fascinating was that this group—made up of smart folks who do a great job of running their businesses—had widely varying understandings (and thus opinions) about product data management. After an hour of very productive discussion, the entire room merged onto the same page, and we came away with a group that was better able to relate product data management to their individual businesses while helping us at the SDC to realize that a lot of hand-to-hand education still needs to happen.

To give you a taste of that experience, SEMA News will be publishing some of the questions that came up in the meeting from this group of your peers over the next few issues. I hope that the answers help you better understand the SDC and why effective product data management is so critical to business growth today.

Question: Why is product data so important when I am shipping more paper catalogs than ever?

Answer: This valid question came from someone in the hot-rod/restoration market. The answer is simply that, even though you may be experiencing growth today, you are missing out on reaching customers who rely on the Internet for their research. Studies show that more than 60% of specialty parts buyers research on the Internet before making a decision on what to purchase. Without quality product data that powers not only e-Commerce sites but also helps you to appear in search engines, blogs, forums and more, you are invisible to this rapidly growing segment of consumers.

Question: Who does the data work if I join the SDC?

Answer: The SDC is designed to be a “do-it-yourself with lots of help” model, meaning that our Help Desk staff will provide hands-on guidance and assistance in getting your data loaded (or “on-boarded”), but our goal is to have the supplier own the process of managing its data in our system using our online tools. Help Desk assistance is available whenever needed, but the actual work of gathering the data and putting it into the system using our tools is the supplier’s responsibility. In cases where a supplier simply does not have the resources to complete the on-boarding, the SDC has do-it-for-me services available at a modest charge to get the initial data set gathered, validated and loaded into the system.

Question: Who owns the data once it is in the SDC system?

Answer: In all cases, the supplier of the data is 100% the data owner, and each supplier has complete control over who can receive its data feeds. The SDC does not claim ownership of any data, and we do not restrict availability in any way except under the instruction of the data owner. We are even happy to provide data feeds back to the supplier for its own use.

More in the December issue of SEMA News....

To learn more about how you can take control of your product data and manage it at the lowest possible cost, contact SDC Director of Membership Jim Graven at jimg@semadatacoop.org or 888-958-6698 x4.

 

 

SEMA News—October 2014

BUSINESS TECHNOLOGY

Clearing the Air on Product Data Management

Questions From Your Industry Peers

By Jon Wyly

Back in July, the SEMA Data Co-op (SDC) team had the opportunity to meet with the SEMA council leadership at its annual Council Summit in Pomona. The team was invited to join the meeting to talk about the SDC and get feedback from this diverse gathering.

Back in July, my team and I had the opportunity to meet with the SEMA council leadership at its annual Council Summit in Pomona. We were invited to join the meeting to talk about the SEMA Data Co-op (SDC) and get feedback from this diverse gathering. What was particularly fascinating was that this group—made up of smart folks who do a great job of running their businesses—had widely varying understandings (and thus opinions) about product data management. After an hour of very productive discussion, the entire room merged onto the same page, and we came away with a group that was better able to relate product data management to their individual businesses while helping us at the SDC to realize that a lot of hand-to-hand education still needs to happen.

To give you a taste of that experience, SEMA News will be publishing some of the questions that came up in the meeting from this group of your peers over the next few issues. I hope that the answers help you better understand the SDC and why effective product data management is so critical to business growth today.

Question: Why is product data so important when I am shipping more paper catalogs than ever?

Answer: This valid question came from someone in the hot-rod/restoration market. The answer is simply that, even though you may be experiencing growth today, you are missing out on reaching customers who rely on the Internet for their research. Studies show that more than 60% of specialty parts buyers research on the Internet before making a decision on what to purchase. Without quality product data that powers not only e-Commerce sites but also helps you to appear in search engines, blogs, forums and more, you are invisible to this rapidly growing segment of consumers.

Question: Who does the data work if I join the SDC?

Answer: The SDC is designed to be a “do-it-yourself with lots of help” model, meaning that our Help Desk staff will provide hands-on guidance and assistance in getting your data loaded (or “on-boarded”), but our goal is to have the supplier own the process of managing its data in our system using our online tools. Help Desk assistance is available whenever needed, but the actual work of gathering the data and putting it into the system using our tools is the supplier’s responsibility. In cases where a supplier simply does not have the resources to complete the on-boarding, the SDC has do-it-for-me services available at a modest charge to get the initial data set gathered, validated and loaded into the system.

Question: Who owns the data once it is in the SDC system?

Answer: In all cases, the supplier of the data is 100% the data owner, and each supplier has complete control over who can receive its data feeds. The SDC does not claim ownership of any data, and we do not restrict availability in any way except under the instruction of the data owner. We are even happy to provide data feeds back to the supplier for its own use.

More in the December issue of SEMA News....

To learn more about how you can take control of your product data and manage it at the lowest possible cost, contact SDC Director of Membership Jim Graven at jimg@semadatacoop.org or 888-958-6698 x4.

 

 

SEMA News—October 2014

BUSINESS TECHNOLOGY

Clearing the Air on Product Data Management

Questions From Your Industry Peers

By Jon Wyly

Back in July, the SEMA Data Co-op (SDC) team had the opportunity to meet with the SEMA council leadership at its annual Council Summit in Pomona. The team was invited to join the meeting to talk about the SDC and get feedback from this diverse gathering.

Back in July, my team and I had the opportunity to meet with the SEMA council leadership at its annual Council Summit in Pomona. We were invited to join the meeting to talk about the SEMA Data Co-op (SDC) and get feedback from this diverse gathering. What was particularly fascinating was that this group—made up of smart folks who do a great job of running their businesses—had widely varying understandings (and thus opinions) about product data management. After an hour of very productive discussion, the entire room merged onto the same page, and we came away with a group that was better able to relate product data management to their individual businesses while helping us at the SDC to realize that a lot of hand-to-hand education still needs to happen.

To give you a taste of that experience, SEMA News will be publishing some of the questions that came up in the meeting from this group of your peers over the next few issues. I hope that the answers help you better understand the SDC and why effective product data management is so critical to business growth today.

Question: Why is product data so important when I am shipping more paper catalogs than ever?

Answer: This valid question came from someone in the hot-rod/restoration market. The answer is simply that, even though you may be experiencing growth today, you are missing out on reaching customers who rely on the Internet for their research. Studies show that more than 60% of specialty parts buyers research on the Internet before making a decision on what to purchase. Without quality product data that powers not only e-Commerce sites but also helps you to appear in search engines, blogs, forums and more, you are invisible to this rapidly growing segment of consumers.

Question: Who does the data work if I join the SDC?

Answer: The SDC is designed to be a “do-it-yourself with lots of help” model, meaning that our Help Desk staff will provide hands-on guidance and assistance in getting your data loaded (or “on-boarded”), but our goal is to have the supplier own the process of managing its data in our system using our online tools. Help Desk assistance is available whenever needed, but the actual work of gathering the data and putting it into the system using our tools is the supplier’s responsibility. In cases where a supplier simply does not have the resources to complete the on-boarding, the SDC has do-it-for-me services available at a modest charge to get the initial data set gathered, validated and loaded into the system.

Question: Who owns the data once it is in the SDC system?

Answer: In all cases, the supplier of the data is 100% the data owner, and each supplier has complete control over who can receive its data feeds. The SDC does not claim ownership of any data, and we do not restrict availability in any way except under the instruction of the data owner. We are even happy to provide data feeds back to the supplier for its own use.

More in the December issue of SEMA News....

To learn more about how you can take control of your product data and manage it at the lowest possible cost, contact SDC Director of Membership Jim Graven at jimg@semadatacoop.org or 888-958-6698 x4.

 

 

SEMA News—October 2014

BUSINESS TECHNOLOGY

Clearing the Air on Product Data Management

Questions From Your Industry Peers

By Jon Wyly

Back in July, the SEMA Data Co-op (SDC) team had the opportunity to meet with the SEMA council leadership at its annual Council Summit in Pomona. The team was invited to join the meeting to talk about the SDC and get feedback from this diverse gathering.

Back in July, my team and I had the opportunity to meet with the SEMA council leadership at its annual Council Summit in Pomona. We were invited to join the meeting to talk about the SEMA Data Co-op (SDC) and get feedback from this diverse gathering. What was particularly fascinating was that this group—made up of smart folks who do a great job of running their businesses—had widely varying understandings (and thus opinions) about product data management. After an hour of very productive discussion, the entire room merged onto the same page, and we came away with a group that was better able to relate product data management to their individual businesses while helping us at the SDC to realize that a lot of hand-to-hand education still needs to happen.

To give you a taste of that experience, SEMA News will be publishing some of the questions that came up in the meeting from this group of your peers over the next few issues. I hope that the answers help you better understand the SDC and why effective product data management is so critical to business growth today.

Question: Why is product data so important when I am shipping more paper catalogs than ever?

Answer: This valid question came from someone in the hot-rod/restoration market. The answer is simply that, even though you may be experiencing growth today, you are missing out on reaching customers who rely on the Internet for their research. Studies show that more than 60% of specialty parts buyers research on the Internet before making a decision on what to purchase. Without quality product data that powers not only e-Commerce sites but also helps you to appear in search engines, blogs, forums and more, you are invisible to this rapidly growing segment of consumers.

Question: Who does the data work if I join the SDC?

Answer: The SDC is designed to be a “do-it-yourself with lots of help” model, meaning that our Help Desk staff will provide hands-on guidance and assistance in getting your data loaded (or “on-boarded”), but our goal is to have the supplier own the process of managing its data in our system using our online tools. Help Desk assistance is available whenever needed, but the actual work of gathering the data and putting it into the system using our tools is the supplier’s responsibility. In cases where a supplier simply does not have the resources to complete the on-boarding, the SDC has do-it-for-me services available at a modest charge to get the initial data set gathered, validated and loaded into the system.

Question: Who owns the data once it is in the SDC system?

Answer: In all cases, the supplier of the data is 100% the data owner, and each supplier has complete control over who can receive its data feeds. The SDC does not claim ownership of any data, and we do not restrict availability in any way except under the instruction of the data owner. We are even happy to provide data feeds back to the supplier for its own use.

More in the December issue of SEMA News....

To learn more about how you can take control of your product data and manage it at the lowest possible cost, contact SDC Director of Membership Jim Graven at jimg@semadatacoop.org or 888-958-6698 x4.

 

 

SEMA News—October 2014

BUSINESS TECHNOLOGY

Clearing the Air on Product Data Management

Questions From Your Industry Peers

By Jon Wyly

Back in July, the SEMA Data Co-op (SDC) team had the opportunity to meet with the SEMA council leadership at its annual Council Summit in Pomona. The team was invited to join the meeting to talk about the SDC and get feedback from this diverse gathering.

Back in July, my team and I had the opportunity to meet with the SEMA council leadership at its annual Council Summit in Pomona. We were invited to join the meeting to talk about the SEMA Data Co-op (SDC) and get feedback from this diverse gathering. What was particularly fascinating was that this group—made up of smart folks who do a great job of running their businesses—had widely varying understandings (and thus opinions) about product data management. After an hour of very productive discussion, the entire room merged onto the same page, and we came away with a group that was better able to relate product data management to their individual businesses while helping us at the SDC to realize that a lot of hand-to-hand education still needs to happen.

To give you a taste of that experience, SEMA News will be publishing some of the questions that came up in the meeting from this group of your peers over the next few issues. I hope that the answers help you better understand the SDC and why effective product data management is so critical to business growth today.

Question: Why is product data so important when I am shipping more paper catalogs than ever?

Answer: This valid question came from someone in the hot-rod/restoration market. The answer is simply that, even though you may be experiencing growth today, you are missing out on reaching customers who rely on the Internet for their research. Studies show that more than 60% of specialty parts buyers research on the Internet before making a decision on what to purchase. Without quality product data that powers not only e-Commerce sites but also helps you to appear in search engines, blogs, forums and more, you are invisible to this rapidly growing segment of consumers.

Question: Who does the data work if I join the SDC?

Answer: The SDC is designed to be a “do-it-yourself with lots of help” model, meaning that our Help Desk staff will provide hands-on guidance and assistance in getting your data loaded (or “on-boarded”), but our goal is to have the supplier own the process of managing its data in our system using our online tools. Help Desk assistance is available whenever needed, but the actual work of gathering the data and putting it into the system using our tools is the supplier’s responsibility. In cases where a supplier simply does not have the resources to complete the on-boarding, the SDC has do-it-for-me services available at a modest charge to get the initial data set gathered, validated and loaded into the system.

Question: Who owns the data once it is in the SDC system?

Answer: In all cases, the supplier of the data is 100% the data owner, and each supplier has complete control over who can receive its data feeds. The SDC does not claim ownership of any data, and we do not restrict availability in any way except under the instruction of the data owner. We are even happy to provide data feeds back to the supplier for its own use.

More in the December issue of SEMA News....

To learn more about how you can take control of your product data and manage it at the lowest possible cost, contact SDC Director of Membership Jim Graven at jimg@semadatacoop.org or 888-958-6698 x4.

 

 

SEMA News—October 2014

EVENTS

It’s Official!

The SEMA Garage Opens to Industry Wows

By Mike Imlay

		Since its official open house in July, the new SEMA Garage—Industry Innovations Center has garnered high marks from the SEMA’s membership. In fact, its summer-evening debut attracted more than 700 industry professionals for a firsthand tour of the comprehensive facility designed to help members bring fresh specialty-equipment products to market, from concept to complete photographed state.

As the saying goes, you never get a second chance to make a good first impression. In recent months, the new SEMA Garage—Industry Innovations Center has officially thrown its doors wide open to SEMA members, welcoming them to let their creativity flow within the new facility. In return, the initial industry response has been incredible. Clearly, SEMA membership is intrigued with the possibilities.

Perhaps nothing illustrates this more than the enthusiasm surrounding the Garage’s recent open house, a hugely successful event in which more than 700 professionals representing every segment of the automotive specialty-equipment industry gathered July 17 at SEMA headquarters in Diamond Bar, California, for a first-hand glimpse at the facility.

Throughout the evening extravaganza, SEMA members and VIPs received insider tours of the Garage, sizing up its full potential for product research and development, marketing, educational sessions and more. Along with the tours, attendees were also treated to music and complimentary food and beverages in an environment punctuated by automotive excitement. SEMA President and CEO Chris Kersting officially introduced the Garage to the huge crowd of member guests.

“Here at SEMA, the first thing we think about is our mission, and our mission is to help all SEMA-member companies succeed,” Kersting said. “I can’t think of a better example than this SEMA Garage. It’s very exciting for us. Think vehicle technology. This is the place you’re going to come.”

Kersting later said that the open house was “…an unprecedented gathering for us here at Diamond Bar. We’re extremely appreciative of the hundreds of attendees who came to see the Garage and show their enthusiasm for its debut. This is their facility, and they made the open house a true success. Since the Garage’s official opening, we have gone about the work of building on that enthusiasm and serving the ongoing research, development, testing, training and marketing needs of our association. This is a forward-looking Innovations Center that was a long time in the making, and we couldn’t be more pleased about the incredible services it is now providing our members.”

Mike Spagnola, SEMA vice president of OEM and product development programs, was equally impressed by both the number and variety of guests who attended the open house.

Early open house arrivals gathered outside the SEMA Garage entrance on the evening of July 17, ready for an insider’s glimpse of their new Industry Innovations Center. Personalized tours explained every facet of the facility to SEMA members. The Garage stands opposite SEMA headquarters in Diamond Bar, California, but offers programs and services to help members with their product innovations, wherever they may hail from.   Open house attendees were treated to music, food and beverages in an evening punctuated by automotive excitement. With so many industry professionals on hand, an atmosphere of friendly camaraderie and networking prevailed alongside the Garage tours. It was the largest event SEMA has ever hosted at its headquarters.

“Typically, such events might attract company CEOs, vice presidents or upper management who also enjoy the networking opportunities that the gatherings offer,” he said. “In this case, though, the open house attracted many association members who haven’t had much contact with SEMA previously. We had engineers, shop crews and numerous new members on-site, all of whom clearly enjoyed the evening and especially their chance to see how the Garage can help expedite their product development and marketing and save them money in the process.”

Unique Facility

The only facility of its kind, the SEMA Garage is intended to help aftermarket manufacturers develop products in as little as six weeks. Members are able to gain access to new-vehicle models from automakers and have final products available for sale before those vehicles are even available to the public. The Garage’s many tools include a portable FaroArm coordinate measuring machine, a 3D printer, digital race car scales, spring-rate checkers, a full range of hand tools, welders, a shop area with lift, a dyno and emissions lab, a training center and a photography studio.

“The SEMA Garage is the ultimate production facility,” explained Spagnola. “The building was purpose-built to include state-of-the-art equipment specific to auto parts manufacturers. We’ve further filled the SEMA Garage with tools and equipment so that members simply need to show up and do what they do best. The Garage was carefully designed to help any SEMA member develop new products for its buyers and speed them to market in a fraction of the time that they might otherwise take.”

The Garage was completed in several phases, starting with its installation facility, which was among the highlights of the open house tours. In addition to its main bay and 3D measuring and printing capabilities, the facility also houses SEMA’s Technology Transfer program, which contains CAD files covering major vehicle components from Ford Motor Company, General Motors, Chrysler, Jeep and Dodge, Fiat and Scion. These OEMs have voluntarily shared their files with SEMA-member manufacturers specifically for aftermarket product research and development.

The facility will also regularly host many of SEMA’s popular measuring sessions, where members will continue to have access to key vehicles, including several sold only in overseas markets. According to Spagnola, the Garage also opens the way for more “deep dive” measuring sessions in which OEMs loan vehicles to SEMA for longer terms, often anywhere from three weeks to four months, allowing members to actually try their products on the vehicles.

The Garage’s photo studio has been another big hit with the SEMA membership. It was graced for the open house by television’s original Batmobile, built by world-famous customizer George Barris, who was also on hand for the evening’s festivities. The iconic vehicle occupied the studio’s main photo cove, showcasing the facility’s full potential to illuminate and capture quality images of practically any automobile.

The studio boasts an additional smaller cove for shooting products, along with an abundance of professional lighting, strobe kits, umbrellas and related photography equipment, all of which rent to SEMA members at a significant savings over other similar venues. According to Spagnola, the space was specially designed to help product developers create professional-level marketing materials for virtually every imaginable project.

Also on the ground floor, the Garage’s dyno and emissions-testing lab now stands ready to not only assist with the dyno testing of manufacturers’ parts but also with final Executive Order certification. During the open house, guests learned how the Garage staff can help both demystify and simplify the often-daunting process of filling out and filing California Air Resources Board paperwork, let alone actually testing and obtaining final product certification. In conjunction with the Southern California Automobile Club Research Center, the lab’s comprehensive equipment, services and staff can also tell manufacturers exactly how and why their products either pass or fail such emissions testing, further advancing the R&D process.

Television’s iconic Batmobile by world-famous customizer George Barris (right) was a huge draw to the photo studio, where attendees were able to get their pictures taken alongside the classic vehicle. With Barris here is Mike Spagnola, SEMA vice president of OEM and product development programs, who oversaw the SEMA Garage’s development and debut to the industry.		A contingent of open house guests examined the SEMA Garage’s installation bay. The bay features a Titan four-post lift, five different welders and a plasma cutter for fabrication and welding projects in addition to a wide assortment of Craftsman tools and plenty of workbench space—the things SEMA members might need for a product installation or build.

The Garage’s upstairs training room features conference space that can accommodate up to 80 people, giving members a place where they can do sales presentations, staff and outside training, or even consumer meetings. Many open house attendees noted the value of such an area, especially for smaller businesses that may lack adequate space at their own places of business.

		Accessing the Garage All of the services available through the SEMA Garage—Industry Innovations Center are intended to help members bring their products to market faster and for a fraction of the cost of other production facilities. SEMA’s hope is that members will utilize the Garage to see their products come to fruition all the way from early concept to finished, photographed state. For more information, contact Rachael Salazar at rachaels@sema.org or 909-978-6744, or Mike Spagnola at mikes@sema.org.

Performance Thrills

Of course, the new SEMA Garage is ultimately about innovation, technology and performance. To underscore this point, the summer open house featured a number of display vehicles, ranging from classic street rods to modern sports cars. Then, as darkness fell and the event drew to a close, the crowd was wowed one last time by a fiery salute from classic front-engine dragsters, which shot flames into the night air from their roaring engines. Attendees burst into cheers and applause—a thrilling cap to an amazing official grand opening.

“We really want to thank everyone who has made our Garage opening a success, including all the July 17 open house attendees along with George Barris and the member companies who put on great vehicle displays throughout that night,” said Spagnola. “We especially appreciate the SEMA members who have already started using the Garage. In the end, we hope that the biggest takeaway is awareness. We sincerely want all of our members to get to know and utilize the many resources available at their new Industry Innovations Center. We’re here to do everything we can to help them grow their businesses by creating and speeding great new products to market.”

There was plenty to wow attendees at the open house, as wave after wave of guests toured the SEMA Garage’s installation areas, emissions lab, photo studio and conference space. The event was well attended by member-company leaders, VIPs, engineers, shop crews and numerous new members, many of whom have had little previous exposure to their association’s headquarters.		At the July grand opening, SEMA Garage guests were also treated to automotive thrills in the form of numerous show and project vehicles brought and displayed by member companies. Their presence underscored the passion and creativity at the core of both the industry and the new facility.

SEMA News—October 2014

EVENTS

It’s Official!

The SEMA Garage Opens to Industry Wows

By Mike Imlay

		Since its official open house in July, the new SEMA Garage—Industry Innovations Center has garnered high marks from the SEMA’s membership. In fact, its summer-evening debut attracted more than 700 industry professionals for a firsthand tour of the comprehensive facility designed to help members bring fresh specialty-equipment products to market, from concept to complete photographed state.

As the saying goes, you never get a second chance to make a good first impression. In recent months, the new SEMA Garage—Industry Innovations Center has officially thrown its doors wide open to SEMA members, welcoming them to let their creativity flow within the new facility. In return, the initial industry response has been incredible. Clearly, SEMA membership is intrigued with the possibilities.

Perhaps nothing illustrates this more than the enthusiasm surrounding the Garage’s recent open house, a hugely successful event in which more than 700 professionals representing every segment of the automotive specialty-equipment industry gathered July 17 at SEMA headquarters in Diamond Bar, California, for a first-hand glimpse at the facility.

Throughout the evening extravaganza, SEMA members and VIPs received insider tours of the Garage, sizing up its full potential for product research and development, marketing, educational sessions and more. Along with the tours, attendees were also treated to music and complimentary food and beverages in an environment punctuated by automotive excitement. SEMA President and CEO Chris Kersting officially introduced the Garage to the huge crowd of member guests.

“Here at SEMA, the first thing we think about is our mission, and our mission is to help all SEMA-member companies succeed,” Kersting said. “I can’t think of a better example than this SEMA Garage. It’s very exciting for us. Think vehicle technology. This is the place you’re going to come.”

Kersting later said that the open house was “…an unprecedented gathering for us here at Diamond Bar. We’re extremely appreciative of the hundreds of attendees who came to see the Garage and show their enthusiasm for its debut. This is their facility, and they made the open house a true success. Since the Garage’s official opening, we have gone about the work of building on that enthusiasm and serving the ongoing research, development, testing, training and marketing needs of our association. This is a forward-looking Innovations Center that was a long time in the making, and we couldn’t be more pleased about the incredible services it is now providing our members.”

Mike Spagnola, SEMA vice president of OEM and product development programs, was equally impressed by both the number and variety of guests who attended the open house.

Early open house arrivals gathered outside the SEMA Garage entrance on the evening of July 17, ready for an insider’s glimpse of their new Industry Innovations Center. Personalized tours explained every facet of the facility to SEMA members. The Garage stands opposite SEMA headquarters in Diamond Bar, California, but offers programs and services to help members with their product innovations, wherever they may hail from.   Open house attendees were treated to music, food and beverages in an evening punctuated by automotive excitement. With so many industry professionals on hand, an atmosphere of friendly camaraderie and networking prevailed alongside the Garage tours. It was the largest event SEMA has ever hosted at its headquarters.

“Typically, such events might attract company CEOs, vice presidents or upper management who also enjoy the networking opportunities that the gatherings offer,” he said. “In this case, though, the open house attracted many association members who haven’t had much contact with SEMA previously. We had engineers, shop crews and numerous new members on-site, all of whom clearly enjoyed the evening and especially their chance to see how the Garage can help expedite their product development and marketing and save them money in the process.”

Unique Facility

The only facility of its kind, the SEMA Garage is intended to help aftermarket manufacturers develop products in as little as six weeks. Members are able to gain access to new-vehicle models from automakers and have final products available for sale before those vehicles are even available to the public. The Garage’s many tools include a portable FaroArm coordinate measuring machine, a 3D printer, digital race car scales, spring-rate checkers, a full range of hand tools, welders, a shop area with lift, a dyno and emissions lab, a training center and a photography studio.

“The SEMA Garage is the ultimate production facility,” explained Spagnola. “The building was purpose-built to include state-of-the-art equipment specific to auto parts manufacturers. We’ve further filled the SEMA Garage with tools and equipment so that members simply need to show up and do what they do best. The Garage was carefully designed to help any SEMA member develop new products for its buyers and speed them to market in a fraction of the time that they might otherwise take.”

The Garage was completed in several phases, starting with its installation facility, which was among the highlights of the open house tours. In addition to its main bay and 3D measuring and printing capabilities, the facility also houses SEMA’s Technology Transfer program, which contains CAD files covering major vehicle components from Ford Motor Company, General Motors, Chrysler, Jeep and Dodge, Fiat and Scion. These OEMs have voluntarily shared their files with SEMA-member manufacturers specifically for aftermarket product research and development.

The facility will also regularly host many of SEMA’s popular measuring sessions, where members will continue to have access to key vehicles, including several sold only in overseas markets. According to Spagnola, the Garage also opens the way for more “deep dive” measuring sessions in which OEMs loan vehicles to SEMA for longer terms, often anywhere from three weeks to four months, allowing members to actually try their products on the vehicles.

The Garage’s photo studio has been another big hit with the SEMA membership. It was graced for the open house by television’s original Batmobile, built by world-famous customizer George Barris, who was also on hand for the evening’s festivities. The iconic vehicle occupied the studio’s main photo cove, showcasing the facility’s full potential to illuminate and capture quality images of practically any automobile.

The studio boasts an additional smaller cove for shooting products, along with an abundance of professional lighting, strobe kits, umbrellas and related photography equipment, all of which rent to SEMA members at a significant savings over other similar venues. According to Spagnola, the space was specially designed to help product developers create professional-level marketing materials for virtually every imaginable project.

Also on the ground floor, the Garage’s dyno and emissions-testing lab now stands ready to not only assist with the dyno testing of manufacturers’ parts but also with final Executive Order certification. During the open house, guests learned how the Garage staff can help both demystify and simplify the often-daunting process of filling out and filing California Air Resources Board paperwork, let alone actually testing and obtaining final product certification. In conjunction with the Southern California Automobile Club Research Center, the lab’s comprehensive equipment, services and staff can also tell manufacturers exactly how and why their products either pass or fail such emissions testing, further advancing the R&D process.

Television’s iconic Batmobile by world-famous customizer George Barris (right) was a huge draw to the photo studio, where attendees were able to get their pictures taken alongside the classic vehicle. With Barris here is Mike Spagnola, SEMA vice president of OEM and product development programs, who oversaw the SEMA Garage’s development and debut to the industry.		A contingent of open house guests examined the SEMA Garage’s installation bay. The bay features a Titan four-post lift, five different welders and a plasma cutter for fabrication and welding projects in addition to a wide assortment of Craftsman tools and plenty of workbench space—the things SEMA members might need for a product installation or build.

The Garage’s upstairs training room features conference space that can accommodate up to 80 people, giving members a place where they can do sales presentations, staff and outside training, or even consumer meetings. Many open house attendees noted the value of such an area, especially for smaller businesses that may lack adequate space at their own places of business.

		Accessing the Garage All of the services available through the SEMA Garage—Industry Innovations Center are intended to help members bring their products to market faster and for a fraction of the cost of other production facilities. SEMA’s hope is that members will utilize the Garage to see their products come to fruition all the way from early concept to finished, photographed state. For more information, contact Rachael Salazar at rachaels@sema.org or 909-978-6744, or Mike Spagnola at mikes@sema.org.

Performance Thrills

Of course, the new SEMA Garage is ultimately about innovation, technology and performance. To underscore this point, the summer open house featured a number of display vehicles, ranging from classic street rods to modern sports cars. Then, as darkness fell and the event drew to a close, the crowd was wowed one last time by a fiery salute from classic front-engine dragsters, which shot flames into the night air from their roaring engines. Attendees burst into cheers and applause—a thrilling cap to an amazing official grand opening.

“We really want to thank everyone who has made our Garage opening a success, including all the July 17 open house attendees along with George Barris and the member companies who put on great vehicle displays throughout that night,” said Spagnola. “We especially appreciate the SEMA members who have already started using the Garage. In the end, we hope that the biggest takeaway is awareness. We sincerely want all of our members to get to know and utilize the many resources available at their new Industry Innovations Center. We’re here to do everything we can to help them grow their businesses by creating and speeding great new products to market.”

There was plenty to wow attendees at the open house, as wave after wave of guests toured the SEMA Garage’s installation areas, emissions lab, photo studio and conference space. The event was well attended by member-company leaders, VIPs, engineers, shop crews and numerous new members, many of whom have had little previous exposure to their association’s headquarters.		At the July grand opening, SEMA Garage guests were also treated to automotive thrills in the form of numerous show and project vehicles brought and displayed by member companies. Their presence underscored the passion and creativity at the core of both the industry and the new facility.