I need brochures for car shows when people ask...

[Mike S]

ABOUT THE 500!!!

I'm tired of trying to remember standard equipment on the three models when asked on the street. I get stopped all the time.

I'm entering both of my 500's in a show at the end of next month and I think the 1964 could win the Euroclass (it's a British car show).

I want a simple color trifold glossy brochure with the information.

[fredfrey]

Dealers have boxes of them!  Talk to your dealer, perhaps he can stick his card one each one to make the deal sweeter for him.

[Mike S]

I want the generic Fiat dealer.

[PE#454]

Yeah, my local dealer has gobs of boxes of them. It's the same brochure that Chris has linked on the blog (which I have shortened the URL to http://tinyurl.com/4hg4uj2.)

I told my local dealer that he should insert his business card in them and that I would be willing to carry some in the 'trunk' to give to the curious.

They are generic.

[Mike S]

I have some of those but they say nothing.

I want a brochure that lists the standard equipment in each model.

[fredfrey]

Yes, Mike you are right about that.  Perhaps it's best to point them to www.fiatusa.com for now where they can build their own car.  Do you have a local FIAT club chapter of FLU? Some clubs have postcards printed with club info and manufactures website.

[Mike S]

I think we've done enough marketing and Fiat should start doing it's part. They should be thrilled we are taking an interest promoting the brand. They didn't even promote it to us! We didn't know what our cars would look like until someone took delivery and posted the pictures.

This is stuff that should already be in the dealers hands.

The clubs on this side of the state are gone. There was a Fiat club that was with FLU and an ALFA club but the Fiat club is gone and the ALFA club seems to exist only as an almost dead internet site.

I would join a local club but have no interest in starting another one, those days are behind me.

[Giallo Edizione]

I've said it before. Laura has failed miserably in the product roll out. Period. She should be fired before it gets worse for the brand and they need to aggressively hire a team that knows what they are doing. Pay what they have to and steal the MINI marketing team. Whatever it takes. A brand featuring a single car model is simply not going to get traction waiting around for Joe America (or Bob Canada)  to wander into the dealership. It needs aggressive and creative marketing.

There are 20 unsold FIATs on my dealers lot right now. Two weeks into selling MINI's, people were lining up to pay $2,000 premiums to buy any one they could get their hands on, irrespective of color or options. 8 months after introduction I was relieved to only have to pay $800 of blood money and a trip on a bus to Albany to get it ( paying the money wasn't the bad part...). The product was and is no better than the FIAT-it's all in the marketing and brand image.

By the end of 2003 I had a box full of literature and doo dads that either came with the car, I picked up at the dealer or were randomly sent to me by MINI from time to time. I sold the box of stuff online for $50 when I sold the MINI last November. They even created market demand for the marketing materials. Now that's a great product roll-out.

FIAT-Chrysler only have a couple of months to straighten this marketing mess out. Otherwise, FIAT will be no more special than its factory line predecessor, the PT Cruiser.  And we all pay in depreciation and the loss of community that MINI owners enjoy, and the dealers and ultimately FIAT-Chrysler will be losing profits in discounts.

I like my FIAT, I am sure Laura is a talented person in some respects. But she has to go. NOW.

[FiatDude]

Giallo Edizione,

I could not agree more.  In the 70s, my family had three Fiats at the same time, a 131 and two 128s.  The dealer was awful and treated the owners like dirt.  I was hoping things have changed.  I have owned Fiats and Alfas since my youth and I couldn't wait to get my new Fiat 500 (#210).

This experience waiting for the car, no information along the way, finding out that I have to pay $1500 for the privilege of being one of the loyal Fiat fans that waited for 27 years for Fiat to return, and then having non PE cars being delivered before mine can even be brought from a lot 50 miles away, has me questioning why I don't call and get my deposit back and buy something else.

I know this isn't easy to build a new dealer network and I am sure Laura is trying but it seems like simple things like having knowledgeable people answering the phone, returning phone calls, and actually caring about your customers is too difficult for them.

Good luck to everyone still waiting and to those that actually received your vehicles.  I am not sure if I will be in either camp...

Jon

[Fiat500USA]

Giallo Edizione wrote

I've said it before. Laura has failed miserably in the product roll out. Period. She should be fired before it gets worse for the brand and they need to aggressively hire a team that knows what they are doing. Pay what they have to and steal the MINI marketing team. Whatever it takes. A brand featuring a single car model is simply not going to get traction waiting around for Joe America (or Bob Canada)  to wander into the dealership. It needs aggressive and creative marketing.

There are 20 unsold FIATs on my dealers lot right now. Two weeks into selling MINI's, people were lining up to pay $2,000 premiums to buy any one they could get their hands on, irrespective of color or options. 8 months after introduction I was relieved to only have to pay $800 of blood money and a trip on a bus to Albany to get it ( paying the money wasn't the bad part...). The product was and is no better than the FIAT-it's all in the marketing and brand image.

By the end of 2003 I had a box full of literature and doo dads that either came with the car, I picked up at the dealer or were randomly sent to me by MINI from time to time. I sold the box of stuff online for $50 when I sold the MINI last November. They even created market demand for the marketing materials. Now that's a great product roll-out.

FIAT-Chrysler only have a couple of months to straighten this marketing mess out. Otherwise, FIAT will be no more special than its factory line predecessor, the PT Cruiser.  And we all pay in depreciation and the loss of community that MINI owners enjoy, and the dealers and ultimately FIAT-Chrysler will be losing profits in discounts.

I like my FIAT, I am sure Laura is a talented person in some respects. But she has to go. NOW.

 
It would be nice to have more info, that's for sure, and we know there have been some definite bumps (craters) in the road.

But what most people don't know is the initial plan (dated from Dec) was always to have the real marketing begin in March/April (the official website is scheduled to be up in April, the one we see is only a temporary one). This timeline was also figured with more dealers being open.

As of now, there are not many dealers open, and as someone complained, some don't even have oil filters.

I don't know how much promoting one can do if people can't go to a place and buy the product. It is only logical that this delay will impact marketing.

Some might say it is Laura's fault the dealers aren't open, but nobody here wanted to buy a car from a Chrysler dealer, so she needed to create a new dealer network. It's a time consuming, painful, but necessary, operation. I think it is the biggest problem, but it is getting done.

Next month looks like the critical month when the website hits, the 500C starts production (possibly March 28) and the marketing gets going. We'll see how this all plays out...

[Fiat500USA]

Mike S wrote

ABOUT THE 500!!!

I'm tired of trying to remember standard equipment on the three models when asked on the street. I get stopped all the time.

I'm entering both of my 500's in a show at the end of next month and I think the 1964 could win the Euroclass (it's a British car show).

I want a simple color trifold glossy brochure with the information.

I know the feeling, it is impossible to remember everything. The 500 comes with so much!

I love that you're putting the car in a British car show.

[Mike S]

There is only one class for non British cars but they do make an attempt to accommodate euro marques with one class.

Last year I entered the old 500 in a German car show that just allowed other marques to be there but would not be judged. The local paper had more pictures of the Fiat in it than German cars and the event was not open to others this year.

People like the old 500's, it makes them smile. I think the new one has some of that too. We'll see.

[Giallo Edizione]

Fiat500USA wrote

Next month looks like the critical month when the website hits, the 500C starts production (possibly March 28) and the marketing gets going. We'll see how this all plays out...

Well I sure hope so. I was at my dealer yesterday. They now have over 50 cars on the lot. Only 2 customers had come into the showroom by 3PM accoring to the salesguy.....I saw a steady trickle of curiosity seekers driving through the lot but no one came in while I was in the showroom for about 30 minutes. There are a number of rejected PE's for sale there now. This dealership is on an "automile" kind of location. I'm not trying to be negative, these are just the facts. They aren't moving cars.

[Smithlife]

Pls share more info like this.




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[xiaomianmian]

I know this isn't easy to build a new dealer network and I am sure Laura is trying but it seems like simple things like having knowledgeable people Swtor Gold answering the phone, returning phone calls, and actually caring about your customers is too difficult for them.

[bestfriend]

I was able to pair my phone to the Bluetooth easily. However, my phone will not transfer numbers to the system, I have to say the number each time. That's inconvenient, but all right with me. The problem is that each time I start the car, after a few seconds the Bluetooth starts playing instructions on how to load phone numbers. My phone can't do it and I want to stop that annoying message. Any suggestions?