strategies Archives

Filed under: Car Buying, GM

General Motors CEO dan akerson

We know he’s not a “car guy” but some think General Motors CEO Dan Akerson might not be a guy fit for a car company period. Akerson comes from the telecommunications world, and it seems some analysts believe it’s that background that’s driving him to cut costs and drive sales by means of heavy incentives and rebates.

GM has seen strong sales to start 2011, but other automakers are quick to point out these gains come courtesy of instant gratification tactics. By initially devaluing its product, GM also diminishes its future resale value. Additionally, customers shopping for a General Motors product will expect an incentive or rebate when they show up at their local dealership.

We haven’t seen March sales figures yet, but as it was the month GM ended its current run of incentives and rebates, it will be interesting to see if sales take a dip as a result. Early estimates say that’s the case, but we’ll have to wait for the monthly By the Numbers to be sure.

[Source: MSNBC]

Report: Akerson’s leadership, pricing strategies at GM drawing more fire originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 25 Mar 2011 18:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: Etc., Chrysler

On March 9, 2011, a now-former employee of New Media Strategies – the company responsible for managing Chrysler’s Twitter account – thought they were using their personal account to push out a message related to the less-than-stellar driving abilities of Detroit’s residents. It contained the F-word and, unfortunately, was accidentally sent out on Chrysler’s Twitter account. Whoops.

As a result, New Media Strategies was forced to terminate that employee, but now it seems that the company lost even more than one foul-mouthed worker. In a statement released today, Chrysler has announced that it will not renew its contract with NMS and that it will work with the social media company while a new agency is sought. There is no mention of exactly why Chrysler is choosing to sever the relationship but, in the wake of the F-bomb tweet, we’re pretty sure we have a good idea.

Is one errant tweet enough to torpedo an entire relationship? It seems to be the case for Chrysler. Click past the jump for the Pentastar’s brief statement.

*Update: Chrysler has posted a follow-up message on its corporate blog, where it is explained that Chrysler did not fire the employee who made the mistake. Further, Chrysler explains why it reacted the way it did in letting go of NMS. Check it out here.

[Source: Chrysler]

Continue reading New Media Strategies loses Chrysler contract after F-bomb tweet *Update

New Media Strategies loses Chrysler contract after F-bomb tweet *Update originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 10 Mar 2011 16:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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