Project Arise

Archive for November, 2010

With the technology of the world wide web, ordering any Ford Ranger part is easier, faster and more convenient. There is no need to wait in long lines, spend time trying to locate the part or deal with parts that are out of stock. You can get every Ford Ranger part you need easily and delivered straight to your door. Here are three things to make sure of before ordering your part online.

Check Shipping Policies

When you need to order one Ford Ranger part, make sure there is nothing else you need. Often times, you can get free shipping on orders over a certain amount. If you need something else, order it at the same time and check your online store’s shipping policy to see if you qualify for free or discounted shipping. This is a great way to save money and still get the Ford Ranger part you need – as well as parts that will need to be replaced soon. Shop around if your online auto parts store doesn’t offer free shipping because you could be missing out on a lot of money saved!

Check for Safe Shopping

Another important thing you want to do before ordering your Ford Ranger part is check for safe shopping. Most of the time, sites encrypt the information you share when you place an order. This is so no one can get your personal information and you don’t have to worry about having your card numbers or personal information stolen. Before ordering your vehicle part, make sure you see the ‘safe shopping’ logo or that the website states that your information will be safe. By doing this, you will be sure that your information is safe and can still get the convenience of online shopping.

Perform a Final Check of Your Ford Ranger

If you’ve found a company which will provide free or discounted shopping, go over your vehicle to make sure there is not another Ford Ranger part you need, or something you may need in the future. Because vehicles need regular maintenance, purchasing the parts you need now is a great idea and can help save you money with the free shipping offers. Perform a thorough check of your vehicle and order any other parts that you could use now or in the near future.

By making sure you’ve covered these three things before ordering your Ford Ranger part, you will save money and time – then you can get your vehicle running in perfect shape as soon as possible.

The influence of the Big Three is not only shrinking in the domestic market, but also declining as a force in the global economic landscape. The decline in sales and productivity may seem like a result of the US automotive industry lagging behind as businesses, but the problem has many complex factors. The industry itself is of course partly to blame, but there are many influences that have led to the current status of American car companies in comparison with foreign car companies.

First, the difference in car designs demonstrates the intricacy of the problems facing American car companies. In years past when the economy was thriving, design matched the needs of the consumer in the present, and sometimes the past. National trends in preferences were equally near-sighted, and car companies had no need to promote any other kind of car besides one Americans would spend more to buy. Foreign markets, however, created a more progressive demand, and the most noticeable force was, and still is, the consumption of gasoline. In European and Asian markets where gas is more expensive due to higher taxes, saving money began not at the car dealership but at the gas station. So, when deconstructed, the simple problem of design differences becomes a multi-faceted issue where car companies, consumers, and government are all responsible. The balance and influence of all three on one another in this country is especially important when the car companies were once large, dominant players in the domestic and global economies. So, the other factors that have led to the collapse of the Big Three are actually all part of the same problem. But, the progress of the Asian auto industry highlight the major problems slowing the progress of the American auto industry.

From a business standpoint, the difference in production between Asian and American companies demonstrates one area where the US industry lags behind. First, labor costs are one major issue that Japanese car companies have been able to control through union relations. American auto workers’ unions have held influence over company executives, and as a result, union demands reduce profit margins starting right on the factory floor.

Car companies are also plagued by their corporate structure. Ford initially solved a problem of miscommunication and uncoordinated suppliers, but they created more problems down the road. Toyota avoided problems of inefficiency and bureaucracy by creating small, efficient entities for supply and manufacturing. The inflexibility of American car companies started from the suppliers upward, and higher costs were felt at every step in the manufacturing process. The philosophy of centralized control not only drove up costs but drove down innovation, leading to designs and ideas that were too slow to react to market changes.

Finally, government policies have slowed American innovation. Asian governments have used taxes and incentives to encourage their citizens, and the lack of these kinds of programs has led to a stagnant auto industry. In China, taxes on small, fuel-efficient cars have been cut in half, creating increased demand for small cars. As a result, manufacturers have been able to charge more for their product at a time when American car companies are slashing prices to encourage sales.

The American auto industry is lagging in the world market, and it is a product of its complicated past. However, since the blame is not only with the companies themselves, returning the US automotive industry to its global prominence will require an understanding of all of its influences, and a concerted effort by the industry, consumers, and the government alike.

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Automotive advertising agencies have been forced to take on additional responsibilities in today’s troubled economy. As the President of national network of independent affiliated automotive advertising agencies and the host of an auto industry social networking resource portal I recently promoted the 2010 NADA Convention on my blog talk radio show as a real world venue similar to the online resources that I rely on to listen and learn and contribute to so I can presume to teach.

I consider the NADA convention as a must attend event for automotive advertising agencies, auto dealers, auto industry vendors and decision makers that regularly tune in to listen and learn from the auto industry experts regularly featured on various online resources. The NADA Convention is the real world version of online social networking communities focused on sharing best practices for the auto industry and a perfect platform to make new friends and connect with old ones in both the real and the virtual world.

The NADA Convention is a means to stay ahead of the competition by learning about the new Internet technologies and applications being introduced by the vendors and speakers that will be featured at the convention. The 2010 NADA Convention is being held in Orlando, Florida this February 12th. through February 15th., 2010 at the Orlando Convention Center. Additional information on the convention is available at their site — NADA.Org — and their online pre-registration savings of $50 -$75 has been extended to January 27th., 2010. I strongly advise anyone seeking to survive in today’s consolidating auto industry to register before the deadline to take advantage of the discount with the confidence that your investment of your time and money will provide a R.O.I. that can’t be duplicated by any online auto industry-centric venue; including my own.

My affiliated agencies are connected by a proprietary online communication/distribution system I developed in December of 2001. I designed the operating system that links this national network of independent businesses as a means to leverage the resources of the participating automotive advertising agencies, production partners and select vendors to allow them to compete with national automotive advertising agencies. The resulting savings in fixed and semi-variable expenses coupled with access to a wide variety of production and creative resources for the member agencies was made possible through their use of several online technologies that were developed to support the growing World Wide Web.

I reference this history as evidence that I have practiced what I now preach. These same technologies must be applied to the internal processes of auto dealerships to allow them to survive in a consolidating auto industry. The combination of the resulting efficiencies realized in technology enhanced selling systems in brick and mortar auto dealerships integrated with their online showrooms, and the newly developing applications being applied by automotive advertising agencies to promote their auto dealer clients on the Internet, is the key to profitability today and survival tomorrow.

The NADA Convention allows auto industry vendors to present new cutting edge applications to auto dealers and automotive advertising agencies who are anxious to gain an advantage over the competition. More importantly, in a consolidating auto industry auto dealers must sell more for less to satisfy budget conscious and better educated online car buyers and the technology being applied to sell vehicles on the Internet Super Highway is the way to do it in a scalable and cost effective manner!

The blog talk radio station featured on my portal is another example of how a new technology platform can enhance the reach and performance of an automotive advertising agency in today’s Internet driven marketplace. I use various blog talk radio shows as an online communication system for my network to share best practices and new vendor applications with site visitors surfing the web to get the inside story on the auto industry. In addition, my shows attract new vendors anxious to tell their story to the decision makers who follow me on the World Wide Web which allows me to review cutting edge automotive advertising applications before competing agencies know that they exist.

Several vendor clients of mine were discovered during their online reviews and most of them will be represented at the NADA Convention. Why? Because the NADA Convention is the perfect real world venue to launch new products and services and this year is no exception.

Automotive advertising agencies know that they must apply cutting edge automotive advertising technologies to their online marketing plans that integrate with proven selling processes in their auto dealer clients’ real and virtual world showrooms but they don’t know where to find them. Online automotive advertising focused social networking sites provide an excellent filter to find the newest and the best but the NADA Convention is the place to see them all in one place and one time in an environment where the decision makers from both the automotive advertising agency and the vendor can sit across the table and work out the best deal for both. After all, what are friends for!

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The production of Corgi’s first Aston Martin DB5 model in 1965, which was based on the car featured in Goldfinger complete with ejector seat, coincided with the beginning of the Bond phenomenon, but the success of the company’s James Bond model cars could hardly have been predicted.

Three years later Corgi had sold 3.9 million units of the DB5 making it an instant and – judging by the fact it is produced to this day – timeless classic. Much sought after as collector’s pieces, if you are lucky to own one in pristine condition from the early 1970s the value is something in the range of

The name change isn’t just for kicks. Outside the continent of Europe, four-door saloons are generally more popular over hatchbacks. In America where additional space of whatever form in an automobile is always welcomed, the Jetta (that’s Bora for the rest of the world) is the most popular European passenger car for many years running, accounting for 40 per cent of all Volkswagens sold there. In fact, the Jetta has the rare distinction of being launched first in North America before Europe, and it is only produced in Mexico.

Closer to home, the Bora has lived a relatively quiet existence, regarded by many as ‘boring’ next to its more illustrious hatchback sibling and the iconic Beetle. The new Jetta -based on the Mk5 Golf- is supposed to change all that. With the underpinnings all well and sorted, the styling would have to be the major factor. But instead of just grafting on a boot to the Golf, every panel aft of the B-pillars is distinct to the Jetta, and for inspiration, VW looked to big brother Passat.

The resemblance is plain to the eye; the V-shaped grille (the new face of VW cars from here on), raked side profile, and the high but truncated boot lid spells junior Passat rather than booted Golf, and perhaps recognising that the rest of the world have different preferences compared to Europe, VW has applied a generous amount of chrome on the radiator grille and copied the Passat’s ‘brilliant’ LED rear lamp design, both of which might just prove to be a big hit here. In fact, take away the branding and the Jetta can even pass of as a product of Japanese styling.

Apart from the retuning of the rear suspension, the Jetta is mechanically identical to the Golf, right down to the latter’s driving dynamics, which isn’t a bad thing to inherit at all. Impressions were registered mainly on a 150bhp 2.0- litre FSI with six-speed manual, and us you would expect, compromise between handling and comfort is well judged, perhaps a little on the firm side, but along with the accurate zero-slack steering, reassuring brakes, smooth gear shift and a torquey motor (that picks up revs cleanly even it allowed to lag in a ratio too tall), it’s hard not to appreciate the competence of the whole package.

The interior of the Jetta is where the straight copy of the Golf might not be the wisest choice; you won’t find anything wrong with the ergonomics nor its usability, but the design is efficient to a fault, lacking the flair of say a Fiat or a Renault. Of course, we are talking about VW, the car maker that often places efficiency and quality above all else, and there’s nothing in this made-in-Mexico Jetta to suggest otherwise. In fact, every bit you touch suggest “premium”, from cup holders, to the switchgear, to the plastics that line even the “unimportant” areas of the dash. Driving the Jetta makes you wonder if it’s worthwhile to pay premium prices asked of by luxury brands.

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