Next
Issue Due Out 5/31/02 - Deadline For Materials 5/24/02
SEAMO Update
Well, it's been another whirlwind month for SEAMO's growth,
sometimes it's difficult to keep up, but as I put the wraps
on another issue of SEAMO news, I find it
amazing how far we've come from the "idea" stage
just one short year ago.
The
SEAMO 2002 Concept Vehicle of the Year Award program held
at the Atlanta International Auto Show was a tremendous
success, helping build recognition for SEAMO, drawing additional
press to the show, and helping to start putting the Atlanta
show on the automotive map.
The
Pontiac Solstice took the Concept Car award, while the Dodge
M80 collected the honors in the Truck & SUV category.
Taking honors in both the Specialty Concept and Most Significant
Concept of the Year categories was the General Motors AUTOnomy.
Representatives from each of the winning manufacturers were
on hand to accept the trophies.
To
recognize the SEAMO members who participated on the jury,
we had a small version of the concept trophy engraved with
each juror's name and publication. For complete details
on the program, visit the page in the section of our website.
Our
membership continues to grow at a steady pace, with Nissan
being the latest OEM addition to our group. Although press
interest continues to be quite high, many writers that I've
spoken with still have our information sitting on their
desks, so consider this a gentle nudge to fill out that
form and send it in today! We'll be starting work shortly
on a printed directory, so don't hesitate to
if you want to be listed in and get a copy of this valuable
resource. Spearheading this and other membership-related
projects will be SEAMO co-founder John
Harper of Performance Logistics, who has taken on the
duties of Membership Director to help with expanding our
organization.
While
working on the Concept Award program, our jurors also served
as beta-testers for the new SEAMO Discussion Boards connected
to our website. to check 'em out. Although you can view most topic
areas without registering, you do need to register for a
login and password if you want to post to the boards, but
it's free and it's internal to our site so you don't need
to worry about your info being sold to some lovely marketer
of ink-jet supplies. A fairly complete FAQ section can be
accessed to cover most questions about joining or using
the boards.
Finally,
I'd like to put out a request for volunteers to head-up
and help organize a driving event sometime this fall. Mid-October
or late-November are two potential dates. If we're going
to do this event this year, we must get started now! Several
OEMs have expressed an interest in participating in this
type of event, which would give members the ability to access
several different cars and trucks, back-to-back, as part
of a ride and drive event. Other media groups conduct this
sort of event as a track-day, road-rally or truck-rodeo.
I can help out with contacts and administration, but frankly
I could use a lot of help on the idea and creative side.
After all, I've got to save a little of that part of me
for my day job. If you'd like to volunteer in any capacity,
send me an e-mail.
SEAMO Joins
SEMA
To strengthen our recognition within the automotive community
and increase the benefits available to our members, SEAMO
members now have official access to the in-depth resources
of SEMA, the Specialty Equipment Market Association.
As
a result of SEAMO's membership in SEMA, our members can
access SEMA's member-only data about the market, receive
all SEMA member publications, and use SEMA member services
such as the FedEx and common carrier shipping discount program
through Siriani & Associates, 800/554-0005, .
SEAMO
members who wish access to information behind the SEMA-member
firewall should contact Shirley Presecan, shirleyp@sema.org,
909/396-0289, ext. 118 to obtain a password. SEAMO members
who wish to submit items for publication in the weekly SEMA
e-newsletter or SEMA's bi-weekly hard-copy Fast Facts newsletter
should contact editor Della Domingo, dellad@sema.org,
909/396-0289, ext. 130, or Jason Catullo, ext. 114. For
more information about SEMA, visit ,
or SEMA's consumer Website, .
Mobil1 Media
Tour A Success
SEAMO member Freda Counceller of Publicity Plus reports
that the Mobil 1 Media Tour that kicked-off during SEAMO's
Reading, Writing & Racing event was a huge success.
Mobil1 parent-company ExxonMobil conducted a nationwide
media tour this spring to talk with automotive editors about
the new Mobil 1 with SuperSyn.
The
tour included a visit with SEAMO members at the Chateau
Elan in Braselton, GA, as well as visits with the Midwest
Automotive Press Association in Chicago, the International
Motor Press Association in New York, the Automotive Press
Association in Detroit, and the Motor Press Guild in Los
Angeles. ExxonMobil's technical experts also met individually
with several auto enthusiast publications, as well as many
"under the hood" trade journals.
ExxonMobil
was applauded by editors during the media tour for providing
a better understanding of the many benefits consumers can
gain from Mobil 1 fully synthetic motor oil and for helping
consumers choose the oil viscosity that's right for them
based on their driving habits and type of automobile.
(Ed.
Note - Unlike many new-product presentations that just cover
the product itself, the Mobil 1 presentation went the extra
mile to better acquaint the editors with some of the background
behind engine oil. Though we're all quite familiar with
most of the nuts and bolts in a car, for many of us, oil
is just "there." Not only was I personally surprised
to find just how educational this background material was
to many of my colleagues, but the Mobil 1 team drew kudos
from editors around the country for providing the education
along with their product announcement. If you weren't able
to make it to one of the presentations, contact Freda Counceller
at Publicity Plus via e-mail at: prplus@fea.net
or telephone at: (949)369-8600 for more information)
OEM Welcome
Nissan is the latest addition to our growing list of OEM
members. Fred
Standish oversees this half of the country from Detroit
for both the Nissan and Infiniti brands, and a bit closer
to home, effective June 1, John
Schilling will head up a regional office in Washington
DC. The company's press website is located at ,
providing direct access to press releases and digital photos.
Advance registration is not required to access the site,
however, users may sign up for the optional e-mail alert
feature.
Member Profile - Ron Beasley -
Miami Community Newspapers
Ron Beasley has toiled in the trenches of journalism for
almost 40 years. He began his career as a copy boy with
the Miami Herald, became a junior sports writer, then went
to work with Larry Birger on the business desk of the Miami
News, where he really learned the basics of journalism.
Beasley soon switched to television news, going to work
for the legendary anchor Ralph Renick at Miami's then-CBS
affiliate, WTVJ, as a cameraman-reporter. He went on to
become executive producer at the station before departing
to form a public relations firm that represented, among
other clients, Bertram Yacht Corp.
Beasley subsequently
returned to the television news field, working as a producer
for KGO-ABC television news in San Francisco and the Cable
Health Network in Los Angeles. He also worked as a coordinating
producer for Telepictures in Los Angeles and helped launch
one of the early "soft news" programs, Newscope.
Today, Beasley
is back where he began in the field of newspaper journalism,
working for Miami's Community Newspapers where he edits
three publications -- the Pinecrest Tribune, Biscayne Bay
Tribune and Doral Tribune -- and writes a weekly new car
review column, Let's Talk Cars, that appears in all 12 of
the company's publications. He also pens a monthly editor's
column, the Village Voice, appearing in the Biscayne Bay
Tribune and writes news stories and opinion pieces.
Member Profile - Susan Childress
- Scottie Media
Award-winning, creative producer with over 17 years of experience
in the broadcast and Public Relations industry, Susan Childress
brings to the screen passion for video production, drive
to the do the very best and expertise to get the job done.
From 1985 to
2000, Childress has covered the spectrum in all aspects
of video production, including researching, writing, producing,
directing and editing feature segments for the Emmy Award-winning
internationally syndicated PBS series, MotorWeek. She has
written and produced several award-winning feature segments
as well as served as Executive Producer for two award-winning
half hour TV specials for MotorWeek.
As their "producer of choice," Ferrari North America
chose Childress to produce several videos to highlight their
premier racing series, the Ferrari Challenge. In 1990, Susan
wrote, produced and directed a series of Public Service
Announcements for the Arthritis Foundation that helped to
win her the honor of "Volunteer of the Year".
Between 2000
and 2002, Childress expanded her expertise to the exciting
field of Public Relations where she worked in the PR department
of Porsche Cars North America. There she worked with a team
of PR professionals to plan and execute media events and
auto shows as well as writing press releases, coordinating
the production of press kits, managing a national press
fleet of vehicles and developing the media website.
In March of 2002,
she served in the role of Executive Producer to produce
a high intensity welcome video for new employees to Porsche.
For two years in a row, Porsche has also turned to Childress
to produce their product b-roll reels.
In April of 2002,
Childress formed a Limited Liability Corporation called,
Scottie Media. Scottie Media is a full service video production
company taking projects from script to screen. Scottie Media
specializes in automotive videos.
Childress is
a graduate of Cedarville University with a Bachelor of Arts
Degree in Communications. She lives in Atlanta, Georgia
with her husband and daughter.
Media Tech
Think your media website has everything it needs? Check
it against this list:
Dedicate top navigation links to media contacts and news
releases.
List
your company product divisions alphabetically -- along
with the appropriate media contacts for each area.
Highlight
the benefits of e-mail news alerts. That'll help reporters
see immediate value and not grouse about following registration
instructions. Note: Make sure your instructions are crystal-clear.
Place
your search function in a highly visible area on your
home page. Most reporters that come to your site are there
to find a particular piece of information -- and they
rely on the search function to find it. Tip: Most users
look to the upper right hand corner of the home pages
when they visit sites.
Standardize
speech document titles. For example, you could use "Remarks
by…" as one way to make it easier for reporters
to separate speeches from press releases when they're
faced with a list of search results.
Don't
clutter your media site home page. Avoid using pop-ups
or animated graphics.
Offer
relevant, customized news in one click. A good design
allows users to customize news they view. Users who register
and share their preferences will find news they want listed
in the upper-right-hand corner of the site -- just one
click away. Reporters applauded the feature.
Include
your mailing address on the home page. Doing so is not
only recommended by journalists, but it also may boost
traffic. That's because directories like Yahoo! are more
likely to index a site that carries an address.
Include
release and revision dates on all public policy documents.
Visitors never know if a public policy document is two
months old -- or two years.
Post
a time stamp on releases. Some reporters consider day-old
announcements breaking news while others consider it stale.
This checklist
courtesy of .
On The Lighter Side
A few puns from
a friend:
Energizer
Bunny arrested - charged with battery.
A man's home is his castle, in a manor of speaking.
A pessimist's blood type is always b-negative.
My wife really likes to make pottery, but to me it's just
kiln time.
Dijon vu - the same mustard as before.
Practice safe eating - always use condiments.
I fired my masseuse today. She just rubbed me the wrong
way.
A Freudian slip is when you say one thing but mean your
mother.
Shotgun wedding - A case of wife or death.
I used to work in a blanket factory, but it folded.
I used to be a lumberjack, but I just couldn't hack it,
so they gave me the axe.
A man needs a mistress just to break the monogamy.
Marriage is the mourning after the knot before.
A hangover is the wrath of grapes.
Corduroy pillows are making headlines.
Is a book on voyeurism a peeping tome?
Dancing cheek-to-cheek is really a form of floor play.
Sea captains don't like crew cuts.
Does the name Pavlov ring a bell?
A successful diet is the triumph of mind over platter.
Time flies like an arrow. Fruit flies like a banana.
A gossip is someone with a great sense of rumor.
Without geometry, life is pointless.
When you dream in color, it's a pigment of your imagination.
Reading whilst sunbathing makes you well-red.
When two egotists meet, it's an I for an I.
If electricity comes from electrons... does that mean
that morality comes from morons?
Contact Info & Links
Here's how to join SEAMO, be added to or removed from the
mailing list, submit news items or photos for upcoming newsletters,
or just make your opinion known.
Next
Issue Due Out 5/31/02 - Deadline For Materials 5/24/02
Send
your comments, complaints, newsletter submissions or mailing
list updates to:
South
East Automotive Media Organization
4429 Back Creek Church Road
Charlotte, NC 28213-5251
The
SEAMO 2002 Concept Vehicle of the Year Award program held
at the Atlanta International Auto Show was a tremendous
success, helping build recognition for SEAMO, drawing additional
press to the show, and helping to start putting the Atlanta
show on the automotive map.