SEMA is employing highly targeted methods to attract tire and wheel buyers to this year’s SEMA Show. Over 11,000 tire, wheel and equipment buyers attended last year’s Show. The extensive, multi-channel marketing is targeting not only past attendees, but also fresh new prospects that have never attended the SEMA Show.

“The key to relevant messaging is to provide useful content that will help buyer’s businesses succeed during these challenging times,” says Dan Hobgood, SEMA Senior Director of Marketing. “For example, e-mail and direct mail to wheel and tire buyers includes specific wheel and tire market and industry information, hot new products, exhibitors that have already signed up and education sessions that key in on that buyer group’s interests.”

Full-page, color ads featuring the Wheel, Tire & Equipment section of the Show are already running in major industry trade publications including Tire Review, Modern Tire Dealer and Tire Business. Banner ads are also running on trade websites.

From more than 100,000 direct mailers, e-mails and voicemails, the message is clear: there is no better place than the SEMA Show to find everything you need to work smarter and increase sales. As the ad says, the SEMA Show truly is “Like a Pit Stop for Your Business."

Specific details on the entire 2009 SEMA Show attendee buyer marketing campaign.

Check next week’s eNews for how SEMA is targeting Racing & Performance buyers.

SEMA is employing highly targeted methods to attract tire and wheel buyers to this year’s SEMA Show. Over 11,000 tire, wheel and equipment buyers attended last year’s Show. The extensive, multi-channel marketing is targeting not only past attendees, but also fresh new prospects that have never attended the SEMA Show.

“The key to relevant messaging is to provide useful content that will help buyer’s businesses succeed during these challenging times,” says Dan Hobgood, SEMA Senior Director of Marketing. “For example, e-mail and direct mail to wheel and tire buyers includes specific wheel and tire market and industry information, hot new products, exhibitors that have already signed up and education sessions that key in on that buyer group’s interests.”

Full-page, color ads featuring the Wheel, Tire & Equipment section of the Show are already running in major industry trade publications including Tire Review, Modern Tire Dealer and Tire Business. Banner ads are also running on trade websites.

From more than 100,000 direct mailers, e-mails and voicemails, the message is clear: there is no better place than the SEMA Show to find everything you need to work smarter and increase sales. As the ad says, the SEMA Show truly is “Like a Pit Stop for Your Business."

Specific details on the entire 2009 SEMA Show attendee buyer marketing campaign.

Check next week’s eNews for how SEMA is targeting Racing & Performance buyers.

SEMA is employing highly targeted methods to attract tire and wheel buyers to this year’s SEMA Show. Over 11,000 tire, wheel and equipment buyers attended last year’s Show. The extensive, multi-channel marketing is targeting not only past attendees, but also fresh new prospects that have never attended the SEMA Show.

“The key to relevant messaging is to provide useful content that will help buyer’s businesses succeed during these challenging times,” says Dan Hobgood, SEMA Senior Director of Marketing. “For example, e-mail and direct mail to wheel and tire buyers includes specific wheel and tire market and industry information, hot new products, exhibitors that have already signed up and education sessions that key in on that buyer group’s interests.”

Full-page, color ads featuring the Wheel, Tire & Equipment section of the Show are already running in major industry trade publications including Tire Review, Modern Tire Dealer and Tire Business. Banner ads are also running on trade websites.

From more than 100,000 direct mailers, e-mails and voicemails, the message is clear: there is no better place than the SEMA Show to find everything you need to work smarter and increase sales. As the ad says, the SEMA Show truly is “Like a Pit Stop for Your Business."

Specific details on the entire 2009 SEMA Show attendee buyer marketing campaign.

Check next week’s eNews for how SEMA is targeting Racing & Performance buyers.

SEMA is employing highly targeted methods to attract tire and wheel buyers to this year’s SEMA Show. Over 11,000 tire, wheel and equipment buyers attended last year’s Show. The extensive, multi-channel marketing is targeting not only past attendees, but also fresh new prospects that have never attended the SEMA Show.

“The key to relevant messaging is to provide useful content that will help buyer’s businesses succeed during these challenging times,” says Dan Hobgood, SEMA Senior Director of Marketing. “For example, e-mail and direct mail to wheel and tire buyers includes specific wheel and tire market and industry information, hot new products, exhibitors that have already signed up and education sessions that key in on that buyer group’s interests.”

Full-page, color ads featuring the Wheel, Tire & Equipment section of the Show are already running in major industry trade publications including Tire Review, Modern Tire Dealer and Tire Business. Banner ads are also running on trade websites.

From more than 100,000 direct mailers, e-mails and voicemails, the message is clear: there is no better place than the SEMA Show to find everything you need to work smarter and increase sales. As the ad says, the SEMA Show truly is “Like a Pit Stop for Your Business."

Specific details on the entire 2009 SEMA Show attendee buyer marketing campaign.

Check next week’s eNews for how SEMA is targeting Racing & Performance buyers.

SEMA is employing highly targeted methods to attract tire and wheel buyers to this year’s SEMA Show. Over 11,000 tire, wheel and equipment buyers attended last year’s Show. The extensive, multi-channel marketing is targeting not only past attendees, but also fresh new prospects that have never attended the SEMA Show.

“The key to relevant messaging is to provide useful content that will help buyer’s businesses succeed during these challenging times,” says Dan Hobgood, SEMA Senior Director of Marketing. “For example, e-mail and direct mail to wheel and tire buyers includes specific wheel and tire market and industry information, hot new products, exhibitors that have already signed up and education sessions that key in on that buyer group’s interests.”

Full-page, color ads featuring the Wheel, Tire & Equipment section of the Show are already running in major industry trade publications including Tire Review, Modern Tire Dealer and Tire Business. Banner ads are also running on trade websites.

From more than 100,000 direct mailers, e-mails and voicemails, the message is clear: there is no better place than the SEMA Show to find everything you need to work smarter and increase sales. As the ad says, the SEMA Show truly is “Like a Pit Stop for Your Business."

Specific details on the entire 2009 SEMA Show attendee buyer marketing campaign.

Check next week’s eNews for how SEMA is targeting Racing & Performance buyers.

	California, Texas and Florida lead with the highest gross total of eight-cylinder engines.
	Wyoming, North Dakota and Alaska have the highest proportion of eight-cylinder engines in the United States. Hawaii, Rhode Island and Connecticut have the lowest.

For companies keen on focusing their marketing and distribution towards specific products, it pays to know where your customers are located. If you cater to the V8 crowds, are you targeting the right markets?

According to data received from Experian Automotive, nearly 1 out of 4 registered vehicles has an eight-cylinder engine. The data is archived from 1967 to the most current registrations and can be broken down by vehicle make, model and general features. While Volkswagen has a few W8 engines in their Passat and other inline- and flat-8 engines do exist, the majority are in the standard V configuration.

In total, nearly 55 million eight-cylinder engines are currently registered in the United States. These do not necessarily include the totals for crate engines, remanufactured blocks, off-road and racing engines or those used in engine conversions to modernize older vehicles. To obtain those figures would be extremely difficult.

Nevertheless, the information supplied here is based on the reported files from registration agencies and do represent the overall market from a bird's eye perspective.

Does engine size and configuration correlate to vehicle population on a state-by-state basis? The short answer is no. Some states have higher proportions of larger engines while others have similarly disproportionate numbers of diesels, compact cars, light trucks and a host of other characteristics.

Since the V8 is a staple among high-performance enthusiasts, off-roaders and practically every specialty-equipment segment (with few exceptions), it may be beneficial to refocus attention on areas of the country with higher amounts of engine density.

In other words, if you manufacture or supply parts for large displacement powerplants, exploring these markets could be fruitful.

Additionally, as vehicle manufacturers continue aggressively addressing fuel economy and vehicle-emissions standards they will more than likely downsize their engine portfolios. In some cases, manufacturers are already beginning to consider turbocharged six-cylinder engines that will supplant eight-cylinder ones. The areas with the highest V8 concentrations may face the most dramatic cultural shifts as they adopt these newer engines.

Currently, Wyoming, North Dakota and Alaska have the highest proportion of eight-cylinder engines in the United States. Perhaps their rural nature lends itself to needing pulling power for towing and crossing rugged terrain. Conversely, Hawaii, Rhode Island and Connecticut have the lowest proportion of large displacement engines.

Along the same lines, California, New York, Massachusetts and the District of Columbia all share large urban areas as geographical influences. Their metropolitan nature prescribes some amount of efficiency for vehicle choices, either in size, emissions or fuel economy. —SEMA Research & Information Center

	California, Texas and Florida lead with the highest gross total of eight-cylinder engines.
	Wyoming, North Dakota and Alaska have the highest proportion of eight-cylinder engines in the United States. Hawaii, Rhode Island and Connecticut have the lowest.

For companies keen on focusing their marketing and distribution towards specific products, it pays to know where your customers are located. If you cater to the V8 crowds, are you targeting the right markets?

According to data received from Experian Automotive, nearly 1 out of 4 registered vehicles has an eight-cylinder engine. The data is archived from 1967 to the most current registrations and can be broken down by vehicle make, model and general features. While Volkswagen has a few W8 engines in their Passat and other inline- and flat-8 engines do exist, the majority are in the standard V configuration.

In total, nearly 55 million eight-cylinder engines are currently registered in the United States. These do not necessarily include the totals for crate engines, remanufactured blocks, off-road and racing engines or those used in engine conversions to modernize older vehicles. To obtain those figures would be extremely difficult.

Nevertheless, the information supplied here is based on the reported files from registration agencies and do represent the overall market from a bird's eye perspective.

Does engine size and configuration correlate to vehicle population on a state-by-state basis? The short answer is no. Some states have higher proportions of larger engines while others have similarly disproportionate numbers of diesels, compact cars, light trucks and a host of other characteristics.

Since the V8 is a staple among high-performance enthusiasts, off-roaders and practically every specialty-equipment segment (with few exceptions), it may be beneficial to refocus attention on areas of the country with higher amounts of engine density.

In other words, if you manufacture or supply parts for large displacement powerplants, exploring these markets could be fruitful.

Additionally, as vehicle manufacturers continue aggressively addressing fuel economy and vehicle-emissions standards they will more than likely downsize their engine portfolios. In some cases, manufacturers are already beginning to consider turbocharged six-cylinder engines that will supplant eight-cylinder ones. The areas with the highest V8 concentrations may face the most dramatic cultural shifts as they adopt these newer engines.

Currently, Wyoming, North Dakota and Alaska have the highest proportion of eight-cylinder engines in the United States. Perhaps their rural nature lends itself to needing pulling power for towing and crossing rugged terrain. Conversely, Hawaii, Rhode Island and Connecticut have the lowest proportion of large displacement engines.

Along the same lines, California, New York, Massachusetts and the District of Columbia all share large urban areas as geographical influences. Their metropolitan nature prescribes some amount of efficiency for vehicle choices, either in size, emissions or fuel economy. —SEMA Research & Information Center

	California, Texas and Florida lead with the highest gross total of eight-cylinder engines.
	Wyoming, North Dakota and Alaska have the highest proportion of eight-cylinder engines in the United States. Hawaii, Rhode Island and Connecticut have the lowest.

For companies keen on focusing their marketing and distribution towards specific products, it pays to know where your customers are located. If you cater to the V8 crowds, are you targeting the right markets?

According to data received from Experian Automotive, nearly 1 out of 4 registered vehicles has an eight-cylinder engine. The data is archived from 1967 to the most current registrations and can be broken down by vehicle make, model and general features. While Volkswagen has a few W8 engines in their Passat and other inline- and flat-8 engines do exist, the majority are in the standard V configuration.

In total, nearly 55 million eight-cylinder engines are currently registered in the United States. These do not necessarily include the totals for crate engines, remanufactured blocks, off-road and racing engines or those used in engine conversions to modernize older vehicles. To obtain those figures would be extremely difficult.

Nevertheless, the information supplied here is based on the reported files from registration agencies and do represent the overall market from a bird's eye perspective.

Does engine size and configuration correlate to vehicle population on a state-by-state basis? The short answer is no. Some states have higher proportions of larger engines while others have similarly disproportionate numbers of diesels, compact cars, light trucks and a host of other characteristics.

Since the V8 is a staple among high-performance enthusiasts, off-roaders and practically every specialty-equipment segment (with few exceptions), it may be beneficial to refocus attention on areas of the country with higher amounts of engine density.

In other words, if you manufacture or supply parts for large displacement powerplants, exploring these markets could be fruitful.

Additionally, as vehicle manufacturers continue aggressively addressing fuel economy and vehicle-emissions standards they will more than likely downsize their engine portfolios. In some cases, manufacturers are already beginning to consider turbocharged six-cylinder engines that will supplant eight-cylinder ones. The areas with the highest V8 concentrations may face the most dramatic cultural shifts as they adopt these newer engines.

Currently, Wyoming, North Dakota and Alaska have the highest proportion of eight-cylinder engines in the United States. Perhaps their rural nature lends itself to needing pulling power for towing and crossing rugged terrain. Conversely, Hawaii, Rhode Island and Connecticut have the lowest proportion of large displacement engines.

Along the same lines, California, New York, Massachusetts and the District of Columbia all share large urban areas as geographical influences. Their metropolitan nature prescribes some amount of efficiency for vehicle choices, either in size, emissions or fuel economy. —SEMA Research & Information Center

	California, Texas and Florida lead with the highest gross total of eight-cylinder engines.
	Wyoming, North Dakota and Alaska have the highest proportion of eight-cylinder engines in the United States. Hawaii, Rhode Island and Connecticut have the lowest.

For companies keen on focusing their marketing and distribution towards specific products, it pays to know where your customers are located. If you cater to the V8 crowds, are you targeting the right markets?

According to data received from Experian Automotive, nearly 1 out of 4 registered vehicles has an eight-cylinder engine. The data is archived from 1967 to the most current registrations and can be broken down by vehicle make, model and general features. While Volkswagen has a few W8 engines in their Passat and other inline- and flat-8 engines do exist, the majority are in the standard V configuration.

In total, nearly 55 million eight-cylinder engines are currently registered in the United States. These do not necessarily include the totals for crate engines, remanufactured blocks, off-road and racing engines or those used in engine conversions to modernize older vehicles. To obtain those figures would be extremely difficult.

Nevertheless, the information supplied here is based on the reported files from registration agencies and do represent the overall market from a bird's eye perspective.

Does engine size and configuration correlate to vehicle population on a state-by-state basis? The short answer is no. Some states have higher proportions of larger engines while others have similarly disproportionate numbers of diesels, compact cars, light trucks and a host of other characteristics.

Since the V8 is a staple among high-performance enthusiasts, off-roaders and practically every specialty-equipment segment (with few exceptions), it may be beneficial to refocus attention on areas of the country with higher amounts of engine density.

In other words, if you manufacture or supply parts for large displacement powerplants, exploring these markets could be fruitful.

Additionally, as vehicle manufacturers continue aggressively addressing fuel economy and vehicle-emissions standards they will more than likely downsize their engine portfolios. In some cases, manufacturers are already beginning to consider turbocharged six-cylinder engines that will supplant eight-cylinder ones. The areas with the highest V8 concentrations may face the most dramatic cultural shifts as they adopt these newer engines.

Currently, Wyoming, North Dakota and Alaska have the highest proportion of eight-cylinder engines in the United States. Perhaps their rural nature lends itself to needing pulling power for towing and crossing rugged terrain. Conversely, Hawaii, Rhode Island and Connecticut have the lowest proportion of large displacement engines.

Along the same lines, California, New York, Massachusetts and the District of Columbia all share large urban areas as geographical influences. Their metropolitan nature prescribes some amount of efficiency for vehicle choices, either in size, emissions or fuel economy. —SEMA Research & Information Center

	While not equal to last year's volume, the market has shifted from negative to positive.
	The after-effects of the unrelenting news stories of bankruptcies and uncertainty appear to be having an effect on market share.

May sales figures for light-duty vehicles have been announced and illustrate the effects of manufacturer bankruptcies and possibly a long term adjustment in brand market share.

J.D. Power and Associates have compiled the latest figures and report both month-over-month and year-over-year statistics. Not surprisingly, May 2009 fared far worse than the same period last year. This troubling drop was universal among all brands except Lincoln, the sole manufacturer that grew.

At 2.4% positive growth, Ford’s luxury brand defied the common belief that necessity spending is the only survivor in economic troughs. Most of the other brands performed poorly, with Saab, Scion and Mitsubishi among the hardest hit.

But is it all bad news? Absolutely not. Being that the recession has been alive for months, the economic perspective has been repositioned. We are now looking forward and, in many cases, up. The month-over-month comparisons appear much more benevolent.

May was a much more productive month than April with aggregate volume increasing by 12.8%. Nissan (44%), Lincoln (43%), Mercury (33%), Infiniti (32%) and MINI (26%) lead the charts with outstanding growth.

The chart at top right shows the best and worst performing brands on a monthly and yearly comparison. Yellow corresponds to the top five, while gray represents the bottom five. All other data was retained within the chart, but many of the other manufacturers were not included as they fell into the middle of the rankings and were less volatile.

In terms of manufacturers to watch, collecting market share could help illustrate which brands are creating or losing market presence. The companies engaged in bankruptcy filings are feeling the short-term effects. Chrysler and General Motors have struggled for the first half of 2009, with their brands losing out to other competitors. Chrysler filed earlier and has suffered the worst.

On the other end of the spectrum, Hyundai and Kia have been able to capture some of these slices of the pie by offering affordable vehicles, new market entrants and aggressively marketed incentive plans.

Subaru and Volkswagen, on the other hand, have been able to cater to their enthusiast bases to move up the ladder with exciting cars and new technology. The key ingredient between all four of these brands is their relatively low starting price for vehicles, not necessarily within each segment but relative to the entire market. —SEMA Research & Information Center