SEMA News—September 2015

HERITAGE
By Drew Hardin
Photo Courtesy Petersen Archive

Go-Cart Cavalcade

Some 10 years after its founding, Hot Rod was branching out, looking for new trends to appeal to its speed-hungry readers. Late ’50s and early ’60s issues continued to cover the traditional hot-rodding venues—Bonneville, Indianapolis, Pikes Peak and NHRA-sanctioned dragstrips across the country—but other forms of motorsport were appearing regularly, too.

During these years, a lot of editorial space was devoted to go-carts, “autodom’s newest, cheapest, funnest sport,” wrote Managing Editor Bob Greene in “Go-Cart Cavalcade,” a lengthy roundup of carts and cart parts in the August 1959 issue.

“Now, through an evolution of miniature powerplants graduating from the early washing machine engine, a whole new world of carting has exploded,” he wrote, “a creditable industry mushrooming overnight to supply the sudden demand for simple tube frames, engines, wheels and sprockets.” A “century note” could get you into a cart kit, “and some of the five-cubic-inch two-stroke mills sell individually for about a third of that.”

At the time of Greene’s roundup, there were about 40 cart makes on the market, some from hot-rodding veterans such as Chuck Potvin and Frank Kurtis. Halibrand made mag wheels for carts, and Dean Moon turned out scaled-down versions of his famous disc wheel covers.

“Four for $5.95,” said Greene.

Moon and his father, in fact, created a 1/5-mile dirt cart track in Santa Fe Springs, California, on a plot of unused land next to Moon’s speed shop and his father’s restaurant. They named the track Moonza and held a 100-lap race there on Memorial Day in 1959. That’s when Petersen photographer Eric Rickman snapped this starting-line photo that day as Moon gave pre-race instructions to a motley assortment of competitors.

SEMA News—September 2015

HERITAGE
By Drew Hardin
Photo Courtesy Petersen Archive

Go-Cart Cavalcade

Some 10 years after its founding, Hot Rod was branching out, looking for new trends to appeal to its speed-hungry readers. Late ’50s and early ’60s issues continued to cover the traditional hot-rodding venues—Bonneville, Indianapolis, Pikes Peak and NHRA-sanctioned dragstrips across the country—but other forms of motorsport were appearing regularly, too.

During these years, a lot of editorial space was devoted to go-carts, “autodom’s newest, cheapest, funnest sport,” wrote Managing Editor Bob Greene in “Go-Cart Cavalcade,” a lengthy roundup of carts and cart parts in the August 1959 issue.

“Now, through an evolution of miniature powerplants graduating from the early washing machine engine, a whole new world of carting has exploded,” he wrote, “a creditable industry mushrooming overnight to supply the sudden demand for simple tube frames, engines, wheels and sprockets.” A “century note” could get you into a cart kit, “and some of the five-cubic-inch two-stroke mills sell individually for about a third of that.”

At the time of Greene’s roundup, there were about 40 cart makes on the market, some from hot-rodding veterans such as Chuck Potvin and Frank Kurtis. Halibrand made mag wheels for carts, and Dean Moon turned out scaled-down versions of his famous disc wheel covers.

“Four for $5.95,” said Greene.

Moon and his father, in fact, created a 1/5-mile dirt cart track in Santa Fe Springs, California, on a plot of unused land next to Moon’s speed shop and his father’s restaurant. They named the track Moonza and held a 100-lap race there on Memorial Day in 1959. That’s when Petersen photographer Eric Rickman snapped this starting-line photo that day as Moon gave pre-race instructions to a motley assortment of competitors.

First-Time Exhibitor Case Study

By Marilyn Haigh

How Luma III Found Opportunity and Success at the SEMA Show

	The Luma III team headed by Kirk Lucas (second from left) took home two awards after entering the Aurora in the New Product Showcase.

Every year, hundreds of first-time exhibitors venture to the SEMA Show and, for those who work the Show properly, the payoff can be huge. Luma III founder Kirk Lucas and his team put it all on the line to attend last year’s Show and walked away with two Best New Products Showcase awards, a stronger brand identity and new deals in the works.

Luma III, a company based in Wichita, Kansas, manufactures the Aurora, a unique LED spray-gun attachment that provides superior lighting without the $20,000 price tag of an auto shop spray-paint booth. Luma III sells to the aerospace, industrial and boating markets, but with Lucas’ background in the garage, he knew that he wanted to target the auto industry and found that the SEMA Show was the most effective way to do so.

After a successful 2014 Show, Luma III learned how to capitalize on what SEMA has to offer. SEMA News asked Lucas what he did right in 2014 and what advice he may have for first-timers at the 2015 Show. Lucas recommended that new exhibitors enter the New Products Showcase, consider doing a contest or giveaway to draw attention to their product, and focus on finding the right customers.

SEMA News: Your company won two runner-up awards in the New Products Showcase. How has that benefited your product and
its marketing?

Kirk Lucas: We were able to co-brand with SEMA and put it on our website, and we had a handful of articles written about the product itself in magazines such as Fender Bender and Autobody News. It’s all great publicity, and I think that one of the toughest things for a startup company is getting in front of people who have no idea who they are. SEMA has gone above and beyond in helping us at doing that. I would definitely more than recommend that anybody who can qualify for the New Products Showcase try to get a product in.

SN: How did you make sure that you attracted the right kind of customer at the SEMA Show?

KL: It was very tough for us. One of the techniques we used is that we stood at the front of our booth and held a spray gun in our hands with the light on it. Every once in a while, we would turn the light on and off and shine it at people’s feet. Somebody who painted would see the spray gun, which would catch their attention, and then they would see the new light on it that provided some mystery, and that would draw them over to the booth.

SN: Why is it important to have a well-planned booth and an efficient team working the space?

KL: There are so many different people who go out to the Show, and if you’re in a niche market, your potential market is maybe only 10% of the people who attend the SEMA Show. You want to make sure that those people are the only ones who show up to your booth. You don’t necessarily want to sell to everybody; you don’t want to be wasting your time talking to someone who has nothing to do with your industry.

SN: Is there anything you would change about your booth? What improvements are you making this year?

KL: We’re trying to focus our campaign this year more around the distribution companies and maybe even international distribution companies. Our booth is being built more for them than for the average painter, like it was last year. We’re getting a bigger booth, we’re creating more room, and we’ll have a section that shows how our product works. We also have to be able to communicate that information to a distribution company that doesn’t have as much of an idea of the paint industry as an actual painter would. They might sell paint products, but that doesn’t mean that they paint.

SN: How did you follow up with potential buyers?

Luma III manufactures the Aurora, an LED light spray-gun attachment that helps painters produce a better product with strong lighting and a color-matching feature.

KL: One of the really nice things about the SEMA Show was the CompuSystems technology that you could scan the badges on. We had a big list of both distributors and customers that we were able to scan and put small notes next to. We will be purchasing the TrafficMax option this year. I would definitely recommend it to anyone going to SEMA for the first time. If you want to bring that right person into your booth, you want to know who they are before they show up to the Show and how you’re going to grab their attention.

SN: How are you using social media to raise awareness of your brand?

KL: This year, two of my business partners are putting together a really neat campaign for the SEMA Show. It’s a contest. We’ll actually be giving away products at SEMA if you send in a picture with your best paint job with our light on your spray gun.

We’re learning a lot about how powerful social media can be. It’s a huge step in the right direction for any startup company trying to bring up its brand awareness. Last year was a little faint just because we didn’t realize the power of what SEMA could do. Now that we’re really co-branding with the SEMA name, [social media] has more of an impact than what we originally thought.

SN: Which events should first-time exhibitors attend at the SEMA Show?

KL: We’re going to be attending the International Happy Hour this year that we’re really going to dive into. We’ve got a handful of distribution companies we’ve already talked to and have meetings lined up at that event. If I were a first-time exhibitor, I would definitely look into attending this mixer on Wednesday evening because you’re reaching further than where you can get by yourself. When you get a face-to-face meeting with someone overseas, that’s more than a lot of business owners can get in the first couple years
of business.

SN: What was the biggest challenge you faced at the 2014 SEMA Show, and how did you overcome it?

KL: We had to figure out how to get our booth to the SEMA Show. Shipping was very expensive, and funds were very tight. When it came down to it, we had the booth completely finished the last months before the Show, and we realized that even then we may not be able to make it out. So we came together and we made some sacrifices. I sold my car, and we made some very big last-minute sales that allowed us to rent a U-Haul trailer and a truck and trailer the thing out there and set it up ourselves.

SN: It sounds like you made a lot of sacrifices to come to the Show. Did it all pay off?

KL: Yes, it did. More than you know.

First-Time Exhibitor Case Study

By Marilyn Haigh

How Luma III Found Opportunity and Success at the SEMA Show

	The Luma III team headed by Kirk Lucas (second from left) took home two awards after entering the Aurora in the New Product Showcase.

Every year, hundreds of first-time exhibitors venture to the SEMA Show and, for those who work the Show properly, the payoff can be huge. Luma III founder Kirk Lucas and his team put it all on the line to attend last year’s Show and walked away with two Best New Products Showcase awards, a stronger brand identity and new deals in the works.

Luma III, a company based in Wichita, Kansas, manufactures the Aurora, a unique LED spray-gun attachment that provides superior lighting without the $20,000 price tag of an auto shop spray-paint booth. Luma III sells to the aerospace, industrial and boating markets, but with Lucas’ background in the garage, he knew that he wanted to target the auto industry and found that the SEMA Show was the most effective way to do so.

After a successful 2014 Show, Luma III learned how to capitalize on what SEMA has to offer. SEMA News asked Lucas what he did right in 2014 and what advice he may have for first-timers at the 2015 Show. Lucas recommended that new exhibitors enter the New Products Showcase, consider doing a contest or giveaway to draw attention to their product, and focus on finding the right customers.

SEMA News: Your company won two runner-up awards in the New Products Showcase. How has that benefited your product and
its marketing?

Kirk Lucas: We were able to co-brand with SEMA and put it on our website, and we had a handful of articles written about the product itself in magazines such as Fender Bender and Autobody News. It’s all great publicity, and I think that one of the toughest things for a startup company is getting in front of people who have no idea who they are. SEMA has gone above and beyond in helping us at doing that. I would definitely more than recommend that anybody who can qualify for the New Products Showcase try to get a product in.

SN: How did you make sure that you attracted the right kind of customer at the SEMA Show?

KL: It was very tough for us. One of the techniques we used is that we stood at the front of our booth and held a spray gun in our hands with the light on it. Every once in a while, we would turn the light on and off and shine it at people’s feet. Somebody who painted would see the spray gun, which would catch their attention, and then they would see the new light on it that provided some mystery, and that would draw them over to the booth.

SN: Why is it important to have a well-planned booth and an efficient team working the space?

KL: There are so many different people who go out to the Show, and if you’re in a niche market, your potential market is maybe only 10% of the people who attend the SEMA Show. You want to make sure that those people are the only ones who show up to your booth. You don’t necessarily want to sell to everybody; you don’t want to be wasting your time talking to someone who has nothing to do with your industry.

SN: Is there anything you would change about your booth? What improvements are you making this year?

KL: We’re trying to focus our campaign this year more around the distribution companies and maybe even international distribution companies. Our booth is being built more for them than for the average painter, like it was last year. We’re getting a bigger booth, we’re creating more room, and we’ll have a section that shows how our product works. We also have to be able to communicate that information to a distribution company that doesn’t have as much of an idea of the paint industry as an actual painter would. They might sell paint products, but that doesn’t mean that they paint.

SN: How did you follow up with potential buyers?

Luma III manufactures the Aurora, an LED light spray-gun attachment that helps painters produce a better product with strong lighting and a color-matching feature.

KL: One of the really nice things about the SEMA Show was the CompuSystems technology that you could scan the badges on. We had a big list of both distributors and customers that we were able to scan and put small notes next to. We will be purchasing the TrafficMax option this year. I would definitely recommend it to anyone going to SEMA for the first time. If you want to bring that right person into your booth, you want to know who they are before they show up to the Show and how you’re going to grab their attention.

SN: How are you using social media to raise awareness of your brand?

KL: This year, two of my business partners are putting together a really neat campaign for the SEMA Show. It’s a contest. We’ll actually be giving away products at SEMA if you send in a picture with your best paint job with our light on your spray gun.

We’re learning a lot about how powerful social media can be. It’s a huge step in the right direction for any startup company trying to bring up its brand awareness. Last year was a little faint just because we didn’t realize the power of what SEMA could do. Now that we’re really co-branding with the SEMA name, [social media] has more of an impact than what we originally thought.

SN: Which events should first-time exhibitors attend at the SEMA Show?

KL: We’re going to be attending the International Happy Hour this year that we’re really going to dive into. We’ve got a handful of distribution companies we’ve already talked to and have meetings lined up at that event. If I were a first-time exhibitor, I would definitely look into attending this mixer on Wednesday evening because you’re reaching further than where you can get by yourself. When you get a face-to-face meeting with someone overseas, that’s more than a lot of business owners can get in the first couple years
of business.

SN: What was the biggest challenge you faced at the 2014 SEMA Show, and how did you overcome it?

KL: We had to figure out how to get our booth to the SEMA Show. Shipping was very expensive, and funds were very tight. When it came down to it, we had the booth completely finished the last months before the Show, and we realized that even then we may not be able to make it out. So we came together and we made some sacrifices. I sold my car, and we made some very big last-minute sales that allowed us to rent a U-Haul trailer and a truck and trailer the thing out there and set it up ourselves.

SN: It sounds like you made a lot of sacrifices to come to the Show. Did it all pay off?

KL: Yes, it did. More than you know.

First-Time Exhibitor Case Study

By Marilyn Haigh

How Luma III Found Opportunity and Success at the SEMA Show

	The Luma III team headed by Kirk Lucas (second from left) took home two awards after entering the Aurora in the New Product Showcase.

Every year, hundreds of first-time exhibitors venture to the SEMA Show and, for those who work the Show properly, the payoff can be huge. Luma III founder Kirk Lucas and his team put it all on the line to attend last year’s Show and walked away with two Best New Products Showcase awards, a stronger brand identity and new deals in the works.

Luma III, a company based in Wichita, Kansas, manufactures the Aurora, a unique LED spray-gun attachment that provides superior lighting without the $20,000 price tag of an auto shop spray-paint booth. Luma III sells to the aerospace, industrial and boating markets, but with Lucas’ background in the garage, he knew that he wanted to target the auto industry and found that the SEMA Show was the most effective way to do so.

After a successful 2014 Show, Luma III learned how to capitalize on what SEMA has to offer. SEMA News asked Lucas what he did right in 2014 and what advice he may have for first-timers at the 2015 Show. Lucas recommended that new exhibitors enter the New Products Showcase, consider doing a contest or giveaway to draw attention to their product, and focus on finding the right customers.

SEMA News: Your company won two runner-up awards in the New Products Showcase. How has that benefited your product and
its marketing?

Kirk Lucas: We were able to co-brand with SEMA and put it on our website, and we had a handful of articles written about the product itself in magazines such as Fender Bender and Autobody News. It’s all great publicity, and I think that one of the toughest things for a startup company is getting in front of people who have no idea who they are. SEMA has gone above and beyond in helping us at doing that. I would definitely more than recommend that anybody who can qualify for the New Products Showcase try to get a product in.

SN: How did you make sure that you attracted the right kind of customer at the SEMA Show?

KL: It was very tough for us. One of the techniques we used is that we stood at the front of our booth and held a spray gun in our hands with the light on it. Every once in a while, we would turn the light on and off and shine it at people’s feet. Somebody who painted would see the spray gun, which would catch their attention, and then they would see the new light on it that provided some mystery, and that would draw them over to the booth.

SN: Why is it important to have a well-planned booth and an efficient team working the space?

KL: There are so many different people who go out to the Show, and if you’re in a niche market, your potential market is maybe only 10% of the people who attend the SEMA Show. You want to make sure that those people are the only ones who show up to your booth. You don’t necessarily want to sell to everybody; you don’t want to be wasting your time talking to someone who has nothing to do with your industry.

SN: Is there anything you would change about your booth? What improvements are you making this year?

KL: We’re trying to focus our campaign this year more around the distribution companies and maybe even international distribution companies. Our booth is being built more for them than for the average painter, like it was last year. We’re getting a bigger booth, we’re creating more room, and we’ll have a section that shows how our product works. We also have to be able to communicate that information to a distribution company that doesn’t have as much of an idea of the paint industry as an actual painter would. They might sell paint products, but that doesn’t mean that they paint.

SN: How did you follow up with potential buyers?

Luma III manufactures the Aurora, an LED light spray-gun attachment that helps painters produce a better product with strong lighting and a color-matching feature.

KL: One of the really nice things about the SEMA Show was the CompuSystems technology that you could scan the badges on. We had a big list of both distributors and customers that we were able to scan and put small notes next to. We will be purchasing the TrafficMax option this year. I would definitely recommend it to anyone going to SEMA for the first time. If you want to bring that right person into your booth, you want to know who they are before they show up to the Show and how you’re going to grab their attention.

SN: How are you using social media to raise awareness of your brand?

KL: This year, two of my business partners are putting together a really neat campaign for the SEMA Show. It’s a contest. We’ll actually be giving away products at SEMA if you send in a picture with your best paint job with our light on your spray gun.

We’re learning a lot about how powerful social media can be. It’s a huge step in the right direction for any startup company trying to bring up its brand awareness. Last year was a little faint just because we didn’t realize the power of what SEMA could do. Now that we’re really co-branding with the SEMA name, [social media] has more of an impact than what we originally thought.

SN: Which events should first-time exhibitors attend at the SEMA Show?

KL: We’re going to be attending the International Happy Hour this year that we’re really going to dive into. We’ve got a handful of distribution companies we’ve already talked to and have meetings lined up at that event. If I were a first-time exhibitor, I would definitely look into attending this mixer on Wednesday evening because you’re reaching further than where you can get by yourself. When you get a face-to-face meeting with someone overseas, that’s more than a lot of business owners can get in the first couple years
of business.

SN: What was the biggest challenge you faced at the 2014 SEMA Show, and how did you overcome it?

KL: We had to figure out how to get our booth to the SEMA Show. Shipping was very expensive, and funds were very tight. When it came down to it, we had the booth completely finished the last months before the Show, and we realized that even then we may not be able to make it out. So we came together and we made some sacrifices. I sold my car, and we made some very big last-minute sales that allowed us to rent a U-Haul trailer and a truck and trailer the thing out there and set it up ourselves.

SN: It sounds like you made a lot of sacrifices to come to the Show. Did it all pay off?

KL: Yes, it did. More than you know.

First-Time Exhibitor Case Study

By Marilyn Haigh

How Luma III Found Opportunity and Success at the SEMA Show

	The Luma III team headed by Kirk Lucas (second from left) took home two awards after entering the Aurora in the New Product Showcase.

Every year, hundreds of first-time exhibitors venture to the SEMA Show and, for those who work the Show properly, the payoff can be huge. Luma III founder Kirk Lucas and his team put it all on the line to attend last year’s Show and walked away with two Best New Products Showcase awards, a stronger brand identity and new deals in the works.

Luma III, a company based in Wichita, Kansas, manufactures the Aurora, a unique LED spray-gun attachment that provides superior lighting without the $20,000 price tag of an auto shop spray-paint booth. Luma III sells to the aerospace, industrial and boating markets, but with Lucas’ background in the garage, he knew that he wanted to target the auto industry and found that the SEMA Show was the most effective way to do so.

After a successful 2014 Show, Luma III learned how to capitalize on what SEMA has to offer. SEMA News asked Lucas what he did right in 2014 and what advice he may have for first-timers at the 2015 Show. Lucas recommended that new exhibitors enter the New Products Showcase, consider doing a contest or giveaway to draw attention to their product, and focus on finding the right customers.

SEMA News: Your company won two runner-up awards in the New Products Showcase. How has that benefited your product and
its marketing?

Kirk Lucas: We were able to co-brand with SEMA and put it on our website, and we had a handful of articles written about the product itself in magazines such as Fender Bender and Autobody News. It’s all great publicity, and I think that one of the toughest things for a startup company is getting in front of people who have no idea who they are. SEMA has gone above and beyond in helping us at doing that. I would definitely more than recommend that anybody who can qualify for the New Products Showcase try to get a product in.

SN: How did you make sure that you attracted the right kind of customer at the SEMA Show?

KL: It was very tough for us. One of the techniques we used is that we stood at the front of our booth and held a spray gun in our hands with the light on it. Every once in a while, we would turn the light on and off and shine it at people’s feet. Somebody who painted would see the spray gun, which would catch their attention, and then they would see the new light on it that provided some mystery, and that would draw them over to the booth.

SN: Why is it important to have a well-planned booth and an efficient team working the space?

KL: There are so many different people who go out to the Show, and if you’re in a niche market, your potential market is maybe only 10% of the people who attend the SEMA Show. You want to make sure that those people are the only ones who show up to your booth. You don’t necessarily want to sell to everybody; you don’t want to be wasting your time talking to someone who has nothing to do with your industry.

SN: Is there anything you would change about your booth? What improvements are you making this year?

KL: We’re trying to focus our campaign this year more around the distribution companies and maybe even international distribution companies. Our booth is being built more for them than for the average painter, like it was last year. We’re getting a bigger booth, we’re creating more room, and we’ll have a section that shows how our product works. We also have to be able to communicate that information to a distribution company that doesn’t have as much of an idea of the paint industry as an actual painter would. They might sell paint products, but that doesn’t mean that they paint.

SN: How did you follow up with potential buyers?

Luma III manufactures the Aurora, an LED light spray-gun attachment that helps painters produce a better product with strong lighting and a color-matching feature.

KL: One of the really nice things about the SEMA Show was the CompuSystems technology that you could scan the badges on. We had a big list of both distributors and customers that we were able to scan and put small notes next to. We will be purchasing the TrafficMax option this year. I would definitely recommend it to anyone going to SEMA for the first time. If you want to bring that right person into your booth, you want to know who they are before they show up to the Show and how you’re going to grab their attention.

SN: How are you using social media to raise awareness of your brand?

KL: This year, two of my business partners are putting together a really neat campaign for the SEMA Show. It’s a contest. We’ll actually be giving away products at SEMA if you send in a picture with your best paint job with our light on your spray gun.

We’re learning a lot about how powerful social media can be. It’s a huge step in the right direction for any startup company trying to bring up its brand awareness. Last year was a little faint just because we didn’t realize the power of what SEMA could do. Now that we’re really co-branding with the SEMA name, [social media] has more of an impact than what we originally thought.

SN: Which events should first-time exhibitors attend at the SEMA Show?

KL: We’re going to be attending the International Happy Hour this year that we’re really going to dive into. We’ve got a handful of distribution companies we’ve already talked to and have meetings lined up at that event. If I were a first-time exhibitor, I would definitely look into attending this mixer on Wednesday evening because you’re reaching further than where you can get by yourself. When you get a face-to-face meeting with someone overseas, that’s more than a lot of business owners can get in the first couple years
of business.

SN: What was the biggest challenge you faced at the 2014 SEMA Show, and how did you overcome it?

KL: We had to figure out how to get our booth to the SEMA Show. Shipping was very expensive, and funds were very tight. When it came down to it, we had the booth completely finished the last months before the Show, and we realized that even then we may not be able to make it out. So we came together and we made some sacrifices. I sold my car, and we made some very big last-minute sales that allowed us to rent a U-Haul trailer and a truck and trailer the thing out there and set it up ourselves.

SN: It sounds like you made a lot of sacrifices to come to the Show. Did it all pay off?

KL: Yes, it did. More than you know.

First-Time Exhibitor Case Study

By Marilyn Haigh

How Luma III Found Opportunity and Success at the SEMA Show

	The Luma III team headed by Kirk Lucas (second from left) took home two awards after entering the Aurora in the New Product Showcase.

Every year, hundreds of first-time exhibitors venture to the SEMA Show and, for those who work the Show properly, the payoff can be huge. Luma III founder Kirk Lucas and his team put it all on the line to attend last year’s Show and walked away with two Best New Products Showcase awards, a stronger brand identity and new deals in the works.

Luma III, a company based in Wichita, Kansas, manufactures the Aurora, a unique LED spray-gun attachment that provides superior lighting without the $20,000 price tag of an auto shop spray-paint booth. Luma III sells to the aerospace, industrial and boating markets, but with Lucas’ background in the garage, he knew that he wanted to target the auto industry and found that the SEMA Show was the most effective way to do so.

After a successful 2014 Show, Luma III learned how to capitalize on what SEMA has to offer. SEMA News asked Lucas what he did right in 2014 and what advice he may have for first-timers at the 2015 Show. Lucas recommended that new exhibitors enter the New Products Showcase, consider doing a contest or giveaway to draw attention to their product, and focus on finding the right customers.

SEMA News: Your company won two runner-up awards in the New Products Showcase. How has that benefited your product and
its marketing?

Kirk Lucas: We were able to co-brand with SEMA and put it on our website, and we had a handful of articles written about the product itself in magazines such as Fender Bender and Autobody News. It’s all great publicity, and I think that one of the toughest things for a startup company is getting in front of people who have no idea who they are. SEMA has gone above and beyond in helping us at doing that. I would definitely more than recommend that anybody who can qualify for the New Products Showcase try to get a product in.

SN: How did you make sure that you attracted the right kind of customer at the SEMA Show?

KL: It was very tough for us. One of the techniques we used is that we stood at the front of our booth and held a spray gun in our hands with the light on it. Every once in a while, we would turn the light on and off and shine it at people’s feet. Somebody who painted would see the spray gun, which would catch their attention, and then they would see the new light on it that provided some mystery, and that would draw them over to the booth.

SN: Why is it important to have a well-planned booth and an efficient team working the space?

KL: There are so many different people who go out to the Show, and if you’re in a niche market, your potential market is maybe only 10% of the people who attend the SEMA Show. You want to make sure that those people are the only ones who show up to your booth. You don’t necessarily want to sell to everybody; you don’t want to be wasting your time talking to someone who has nothing to do with your industry.

SN: Is there anything you would change about your booth? What improvements are you making this year?

KL: We’re trying to focus our campaign this year more around the distribution companies and maybe even international distribution companies. Our booth is being built more for them than for the average painter, like it was last year. We’re getting a bigger booth, we’re creating more room, and we’ll have a section that shows how our product works. We also have to be able to communicate that information to a distribution company that doesn’t have as much of an idea of the paint industry as an actual painter would. They might sell paint products, but that doesn’t mean that they paint.

SN: How did you follow up with potential buyers?

Luma III manufactures the Aurora, an LED light spray-gun attachment that helps painters produce a better product with strong lighting and a color-matching feature.

KL: One of the really nice things about the SEMA Show was the CompuSystems technology that you could scan the badges on. We had a big list of both distributors and customers that we were able to scan and put small notes next to. We will be purchasing the TrafficMax option this year. I would definitely recommend it to anyone going to SEMA for the first time. If you want to bring that right person into your booth, you want to know who they are before they show up to the Show and how you’re going to grab their attention.

SN: How are you using social media to raise awareness of your brand?

KL: This year, two of my business partners are putting together a really neat campaign for the SEMA Show. It’s a contest. We’ll actually be giving away products at SEMA if you send in a picture with your best paint job with our light on your spray gun.

We’re learning a lot about how powerful social media can be. It’s a huge step in the right direction for any startup company trying to bring up its brand awareness. Last year was a little faint just because we didn’t realize the power of what SEMA could do. Now that we’re really co-branding with the SEMA name, [social media] has more of an impact than what we originally thought.

SN: Which events should first-time exhibitors attend at the SEMA Show?

KL: We’re going to be attending the International Happy Hour this year that we’re really going to dive into. We’ve got a handful of distribution companies we’ve already talked to and have meetings lined up at that event. If I were a first-time exhibitor, I would definitely look into attending this mixer on Wednesday evening because you’re reaching further than where you can get by yourself. When you get a face-to-face meeting with someone overseas, that’s more than a lot of business owners can get in the first couple years
of business.

SN: What was the biggest challenge you faced at the 2014 SEMA Show, and how did you overcome it?

KL: We had to figure out how to get our booth to the SEMA Show. Shipping was very expensive, and funds were very tight. When it came down to it, we had the booth completely finished the last months before the Show, and we realized that even then we may not be able to make it out. So we came together and we made some sacrifices. I sold my car, and we made some very big last-minute sales that allowed us to rent a U-Haul trailer and a truck and trailer the thing out there and set it up ourselves.

SN: It sounds like you made a lot of sacrifices to come to the Show. Did it all pay off?

KL: Yes, it did. More than you know.

First-Time Exhibitor Case Study

By Marilyn Haigh

How Luma III Found Opportunity and Success at the SEMA Show

	The Luma III team headed by Kirk Lucas (second from left) took home two awards after entering the Aurora in the New Product Showcase.

Every year, hundreds of first-time exhibitors venture to the SEMA Show and, for those who work the Show properly, the payoff can be huge. Luma III founder Kirk Lucas and his team put it all on the line to attend last year’s Show and walked away with two Best New Products Showcase awards, a stronger brand identity and new deals in the works.

Luma III, a company based in Wichita, Kansas, manufactures the Aurora, a unique LED spray-gun attachment that provides superior lighting without the $20,000 price tag of an auto shop spray-paint booth. Luma III sells to the aerospace, industrial and boating markets, but with Lucas’ background in the garage, he knew that he wanted to target the auto industry and found that the SEMA Show was the most effective way to do so.

After a successful 2014 Show, Luma III learned how to capitalize on what SEMA has to offer. SEMA News asked Lucas what he did right in 2014 and what advice he may have for first-timers at the 2015 Show. Lucas recommended that new exhibitors enter the New Products Showcase, consider doing a contest or giveaway to draw attention to their product, and focus on finding the right customers.

SEMA News: Your company won two runner-up awards in the New Products Showcase. How has that benefited your product and
its marketing?

Kirk Lucas: We were able to co-brand with SEMA and put it on our website, and we had a handful of articles written about the product itself in magazines such as Fender Bender and Autobody News. It’s all great publicity, and I think that one of the toughest things for a startup company is getting in front of people who have no idea who they are. SEMA has gone above and beyond in helping us at doing that. I would definitely more than recommend that anybody who can qualify for the New Products Showcase try to get a product in.

SN: How did you make sure that you attracted the right kind of customer at the SEMA Show?

KL: It was very tough for us. One of the techniques we used is that we stood at the front of our booth and held a spray gun in our hands with the light on it. Every once in a while, we would turn the light on and off and shine it at people’s feet. Somebody who painted would see the spray gun, which would catch their attention, and then they would see the new light on it that provided some mystery, and that would draw them over to the booth.

SN: Why is it important to have a well-planned booth and an efficient team working the space?

KL: There are so many different people who go out to the Show, and if you’re in a niche market, your potential market is maybe only 10% of the people who attend the SEMA Show. You want to make sure that those people are the only ones who show up to your booth. You don’t necessarily want to sell to everybody; you don’t want to be wasting your time talking to someone who has nothing to do with your industry.

SN: Is there anything you would change about your booth? What improvements are you making this year?

KL: We’re trying to focus our campaign this year more around the distribution companies and maybe even international distribution companies. Our booth is being built more for them than for the average painter, like it was last year. We’re getting a bigger booth, we’re creating more room, and we’ll have a section that shows how our product works. We also have to be able to communicate that information to a distribution company that doesn’t have as much of an idea of the paint industry as an actual painter would. They might sell paint products, but that doesn’t mean that they paint.

SN: How did you follow up with potential buyers?

Luma III manufactures the Aurora, an LED light spray-gun attachment that helps painters produce a better product with strong lighting and a color-matching feature.

KL: One of the really nice things about the SEMA Show was the CompuSystems technology that you could scan the badges on. We had a big list of both distributors and customers that we were able to scan and put small notes next to. We will be purchasing the TrafficMax option this year. I would definitely recommend it to anyone going to SEMA for the first time. If you want to bring that right person into your booth, you want to know who they are before they show up to the Show and how you’re going to grab their attention.

SN: How are you using social media to raise awareness of your brand?

KL: This year, two of my business partners are putting together a really neat campaign for the SEMA Show. It’s a contest. We’ll actually be giving away products at SEMA if you send in a picture with your best paint job with our light on your spray gun.

We’re learning a lot about how powerful social media can be. It’s a huge step in the right direction for any startup company trying to bring up its brand awareness. Last year was a little faint just because we didn’t realize the power of what SEMA could do. Now that we’re really co-branding with the SEMA name, [social media] has more of an impact than what we originally thought.

SN: Which events should first-time exhibitors attend at the SEMA Show?

KL: We’re going to be attending the International Happy Hour this year that we’re really going to dive into. We’ve got a handful of distribution companies we’ve already talked to and have meetings lined up at that event. If I were a first-time exhibitor, I would definitely look into attending this mixer on Wednesday evening because you’re reaching further than where you can get by yourself. When you get a face-to-face meeting with someone overseas, that’s more than a lot of business owners can get in the first couple years
of business.

SN: What was the biggest challenge you faced at the 2014 SEMA Show, and how did you overcome it?

KL: We had to figure out how to get our booth to the SEMA Show. Shipping was very expensive, and funds were very tight. When it came down to it, we had the booth completely finished the last months before the Show, and we realized that even then we may not be able to make it out. So we came together and we made some sacrifices. I sold my car, and we made some very big last-minute sales that allowed us to rent a U-Haul trailer and a truck and trailer the thing out there and set it up ourselves.

SN: It sounds like you made a lot of sacrifices to come to the Show. Did it all pay off?

KL: Yes, it did. More than you know.

SEMA News—September 2015

SEMA DATA CO-OP
By Jon Wyly

Is Your Product Data Up to Speed?

See for Yourself on SEMA Search!

	Sign up at www.SEMAsearch.com for access to the newly launched online electronic catalog powered by the SEMA Data Co-op.

It’s been about eight months since the SEMA Data Co-op (SDC) rolled out the Data Quality and Completeness Program, which is designed specifically to help suppliers increase their data quality level in an easy, step-by-step process. In that time, we have seen more than 250 “steps” made by participating suppliers as they have moved up through the quality ratings of Bronze, Silver, Gold and Platinum, making their data more valuable to their customer base and creating more sales.

Now, with nearly 300 brands at the Bronze level or better and another 100 in the process of getting there, the rollout of SEMA Search couldn’t be better timed. Designed to be a one-stop resource for detailed product information, application lookups and more, SEMA Search also serves to visually illustrate just how effective a product data set is in a typical e-commerce-type presentation.

So how do you leverage those two valuable tools?

The first step is to be aware of the current level of your data. Talk with the team that is handling your data or take a look at the “Directory of Data Innovators” published quarterly in SEMA News. There you will find a brief description of your company along with its data level at the time of publication. The most recently published list can be found in the July issue, and an updated one will be printed in the October issue. If you are currently at any level lower than Platinum, you are making progress, but there is work yet to do.

Next, sign up at www.SEMAsearch.com for access to our newly launched online electronic catalog powered by the SDC. It’s free to the trade, and inclusion of your brand is free as long as you are a member in good standing of the SDC and have a data quality rating of Bronze or better.

Jump in and do some searches to see what your results look like. Use our “compare” feature to see how your brand stacks up against competitors in the same category. Check out your marketing copy, features and benefits, product specs and more. Are you happy with the results, or could they use some work? It will become very obvious to you what a difference it makes to maintain a high-quality, up-to-date data set.

And speaking of up-to-date, don’t forget to search for your latest products and vehicle applications. If they are missing or are incomplete, it’s time to revisit your data team and get some updates loaded! Remember, the SDC provides powerful and effective data-management tools and technical guidance, but the responsibility for keeping your data current and complete is yours and yours alone.

Speed to market is critical for us all, and there is nothing worse than launching a brand-new product only to have it lay on the shelves waiting for distributors and retailers to get the info loaded into their systems and websites. Don’t let distractions or misplaced priorities keep you from putting the best possible data into the marketplace in a timely manner. It will make a difference in sales you can feel.

Not involved yet with the SDC?

Contact us right away if you have not yet joined the SDC, and we’ll guide you through a smooth on-boarding process to get your data organized, standardized and published into the SDC repository. From there, you have total control to manage, improve and expand your data all the way up to Platinum level with the help of our highly qualified team of data experts. 15649.png

SEMA News—September 2015

SEMA DATA CO-OP
By Jon Wyly

Is Your Product Data Up to Speed?

See for Yourself on SEMA Search!

	Sign up at www.SEMAsearch.com for access to the newly launched online electronic catalog powered by the SEMA Data Co-op.

It’s been about eight months since the SEMA Data Co-op (SDC) rolled out the Data Quality and Completeness Program, which is designed specifically to help suppliers increase their data quality level in an easy, step-by-step process. In that time, we have seen more than 250 “steps” made by participating suppliers as they have moved up through the quality ratings of Bronze, Silver, Gold and Platinum, making their data more valuable to their customer base and creating more sales.

Now, with nearly 300 brands at the Bronze level or better and another 100 in the process of getting there, the rollout of SEMA Search couldn’t be better timed. Designed to be a one-stop resource for detailed product information, application lookups and more, SEMA Search also serves to visually illustrate just how effective a product data set is in a typical e-commerce-type presentation.

So how do you leverage those two valuable tools?

The first step is to be aware of the current level of your data. Talk with the team that is handling your data or take a look at the “Directory of Data Innovators” published quarterly in SEMA News. There you will find a brief description of your company along with its data level at the time of publication. The most recently published list can be found in the July issue, and an updated one will be printed in the October issue. If you are currently at any level lower than Platinum, you are making progress, but there is work yet to do.

Next, sign up at www.SEMAsearch.com for access to our newly launched online electronic catalog powered by the SDC. It’s free to the trade, and inclusion of your brand is free as long as you are a member in good standing of the SDC and have a data quality rating of Bronze or better.

Jump in and do some searches to see what your results look like. Use our “compare” feature to see how your brand stacks up against competitors in the same category. Check out your marketing copy, features and benefits, product specs and more. Are you happy with the results, or could they use some work? It will become very obvious to you what a difference it makes to maintain a high-quality, up-to-date data set.

And speaking of up-to-date, don’t forget to search for your latest products and vehicle applications. If they are missing or are incomplete, it’s time to revisit your data team and get some updates loaded! Remember, the SDC provides powerful and effective data-management tools and technical guidance, but the responsibility for keeping your data current and complete is yours and yours alone.

Speed to market is critical for us all, and there is nothing worse than launching a brand-new product only to have it lay on the shelves waiting for distributors and retailers to get the info loaded into their systems and websites. Don’t let distractions or misplaced priorities keep you from putting the best possible data into the marketplace in a timely manner. It will make a difference in sales you can feel.

Not involved yet with the SDC?

Contact us right away if you have not yet joined the SDC, and we’ll guide you through a smooth on-boarding process to get your data organized, standardized and published into the SDC repository. From there, you have total control to manage, improve and expand your data all the way up to Platinum level with the help of our highly qualified team of data experts. 15649.png