Automotive News - July 14, 2008 - (Page 16)

16 • JULY 14, 2008 ADVERTISING STAFF Bird Dog Club creator hunts dealer poachers Arlena Sawyers asawyers@crain.com Circulation 313-446-0450 Advertising 313-446-6050 Classified Advertising 313-446-6065, 800-388-1800 Web site www.autonews.com ADVERTISING AND SALES DETROIT 1155 Gratiot Ave., Detroit, MI 48207-2997 313-446-6790 Fax: 313-446-8030 Linam’s bird dogs The Bird Dog Club program created by dealer Gary Linam is based on word-of-mouth customer referrals. Here are key features. ■ It pays customers bonuses to recruit other buyers. ■ It is licensed to about 230 dealerships. ■ It is copyrighted; trademark registration is pending. DAVID DIETER Gary Linam says some dealers use his club materials without paying for them. Dealer Gary Linam doesn’t claim to have invented the longtime practice of paying “bird dog” rewards to customers who recruit other buyers. But Linam, a top-selling U.S. Suzuki dealer, has copyrighted a Bird Dog Club program that includes specific online elements. More than 230 dealers pay $299 a month, after a one-time charge of $995 for installation and training, to use the program to enlist bird dogs and run their own clubs. Linam says he has found about 20 dealerships — 15 in the past two months — using his club materials on their Web sites without paying the licensing fees. He is threatening to sue unless they desist or become registered users and pay up. “I’ll stand up and fight before I’ll roll over and play dead,” Linam told Automotive News. in 1999. He estimates that he has spent nearly $400,000, not including employee salaries, to develop the program. Rick Greer Director of Sales and Marketing rgreer@crain.com 313-446-6050 Kathleen C. Lightbody, klightbody@crain.com, 313-446-6037 Russ Procassini, rprocassini@crain.com 313-446-0350 Karen Rentschler, krentschler@crain.com 313-446-6058 Jerry Salame, jsalame@crain.com 313-446-0481 Regional Sales Managers Colleen Robar Director of Marketing Communications crobar@crain.com, 313-446-0331 Ellen Dennehy Director of Relationship Marketing edennehy@crain.com, 313-446-6039 Cheryl Rothe, Marketing Manager crothe@crain.com, 313-446-6767 Lance Graves, Promotion Art Director lgraves@crain.com, 313-446-0469 Brandi Johnson, Marketing Coordinator bnjohnson@crain.com, 313-446-0326 Classified Advertising Sales Dolores Lanivich, 313-446-1642 Denise Hendricks, 313-446-6066 LOS ANGELES Justus Breese jbreese@crain.com, 323-370-2446 Pacific Region Sales Manager Todd Landau, tlandau@crain.com 323-370-2466 Regional Sales Manager 6500 Wilshire Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90048-4947 Fax: 323-655-8157 NEW YORK Scott Ghedine sghedine@crain.com, 212-210-0126 Henry Woodhouse hwoodhouse@crain.com, 212-210-0125 Regional Sales Managers 711 Third Ave., New York, NY 10017-4036 Fax: 212-210-0489 CHICAGO Jim Farnan, Regional Sales Manager jfarnan@crain.com, 312-649-5257 360 N. Michigan Ave., Chicago, IL 60601-3806 Fax: 312-649-5265 Copyright protection In 2005, Linam copyrighted software that enables dealers to communicate with club members. Linam also copyrighted the layout, text and artwork of Bird Dog Club Web pages. He says he is seeking trademark registration for the club’s name and cartoon logo. Linam’s dealership group in Huntsville, Ala., owns six franchised stores that sell Suzuki, Toyota, Ford and Hyundai vehicles. Linam also operates two used-vehicle dealerships. Those dealerships have about 10,000 Bird Dog Club members. Last year, Linam’s dealerships sold about 4,030 new and 2,170 used vehicles. He says nearly one-fourth of those sales resulted from bird-dog referrals. Linam pays his Bird Dog Club members as much as $250 for a customer referral that leads to a sale. Dealerships that license club materials determine their own bird-dog payments, Linam says. Mistakes easy to make Bob Valenti Automall in Mystic, Conn., is negotiating a settlement with Linam. Stephen McNamara, a lawyer for the dealership, says his client mistakenly posted Bird Dog Club materials on its Web site but removed them promptly after Linam’s lawyer complained. McNamara says so much information is available on the Internet that it is easy to use copyrighted material by mistake. But the presence of such material online “doesn’t mean that no one owns it,” he says. Linam created the Bird Dog Club CONFERENCES Libby Irwin, Conference Director lirwin@crain.com, 313-446-0420 Shauna Vercher-Morrow Special Events Manager svercher-morrow@crain.com, 313-446-0485 WWW.AUTONEWS.COM John Fitzgerald, Director of Business Planning and Online Commerce jfitzgerald@crain.com, 313-446-1679 DEVELOPMENT J Ferron, Director of Strategic Development jferron@crain.com, 313-446-0434 CIRCULATION No excuse Brandon Browning, a lawyer for Linam, says he has settled with four or five dealerships that used Bird Dog Club materials improperly. He is negotiating settlements with about 15 other dealerships. Browning says he is skeptical of the presumption that online information is free. “Ten or 15 years ago, people could have claimed some kind of ignorance,” he says. “But it is tough to claim that today.” Cueter Chrysler-Jeep-Dodge, of suburban Detroit, has been a registered user of the Bird Dog Club program since early 2007, says Scott Allen, the dealership’s new-car sales manager. The dealership sells about 2,000 new and 500 used vehicles a year. Allen says its Bird Dog Club accounts for 10 percent of those sales. The dealership has painted the Bird Dog Club logo on its showroom window, Allen says. Overall, he adds, the dealership uses the program “in our culture and part of our sales presentation. It’s been great for us.”c subs@crain.com 888-446-1422 (U.S. & Canada) 313-446-1662 (all other locations) Fax: 313-446-6777 To subscribe via the Web www.autonews.com/subscribe.htm Patrick Sheposh, Circulation Director Lauren Cialella, Circulation Manager Jennifer Natone, Assistant Circulation Manager Subscriptions U.S. 1 year, $155; 2 years, $266. Canada $239 (U.S.); other countries, $395. Single copy sales, $5 per issue plus shipping. Reprints Mike Shober, The YGS Group, 800-494-9051, Ext. 100 automotivenews@theygsgroup.com Microfilm ProQuest Information and Learning Co. 800-521-0600 PRODUCTION Terry Driscoll, Production Manager tdriscoll@crain.com, 313-446-6062 Larry Williams, Production Supervisor AUTOMOTIVE NEWS EUROPE www.autonewseurope.com Jason Stein, Publisher jstein@craincom.de/+49-8153-907522 Nina Sauer, Sales and Marketing Director nsauer@craincom.de/+49-6992-884646 AUTOMOBILWOCHE www.automobilwoche.de Helmut Kluger, Publisher hkluger@craincom.de/+49-8153-907402 Thomas Heringer Sales and Marketing Director theringer@craincom.de/+49-8153-907404 http://www.autonews.com http://www.autonews.com http://www.actionim.com http://WWW.AUTONEWS.COM http://www.autonews.com/subscribe.htm http://www.autonewseurope.com http://www.automobilwoche.de

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Automotive News - July 14, 2008

Small-car boom misses Chrysler Ford's large rwd car plan is iffy Suppliers: Inflation is looming Hummer H3T price: $31,495 VW may build next Passat in U.S. plant Glut of trucks pulls Prius to U.S. Ford sues U.S. over taxes Restyled Ridgeline Volvo will tighten U.S. dealer network As BMW's chief in N.A., Purves got biggest thrill out of Mini Despite pricey fuel, Jetta diesel in demand Everybody's a critic: How dealers cope with online reviews Hyundai goes big on Genesis lease The shift to automatic: A transmission transition Jaguar-Land Rover dealer: Stand-alone would bankrupt me Chevy christens compact Cruze Fiat, BMW will team up on platforms, parts Revision: Bosch still tops Auto News supplier list GM to build Volts in U.S. for Europe GM ads will push mpg for 90 days A missed opportunity 2008 sales forecast? 14,652,757 Suzuki cuts U.S. work force 8% CAFE standards: Stop whining and get to work Uncertainty is the name of the game Honda dealer rubs salt in a wound Careless driver was to blame for crash Unsafe driving wasn't Ford's fault For doomsayers, business is booming again Best ad slogans have staying power Bird Dog Club creator hunts dealer poachers Dealers How to design a Lamborghini? Passion for speed certainly helps Dressed to kill Check for children Delinquency rate on indirect loans skyrockets Group promotes payment assurance Ford has big plans for small vehicles in North America Mulally pushes Ford toward fuel efficiency Ford brand will draw on European lineup With no new vehicles planned, Mercury's future is bleak Engines promise power plus fuel economy Horbury: We'll keep our vehicle designs fresh Ford aims to move Lincoln upscale Toyota's Lentz: Don't panic over collapse; market will stabilize Personnel Chrysler's car sales sag in June — even more than trucks PG sells majority of auto glass business to private-equity firm Chrysler's Campi makes nice Suit against Ford is reinstated BMW reassesses Mini demand JCI plant cuts shift, work force CAW board endorses local president Purves: Thumbs-up for BMW innovations Current trend in Europe: Electric cars Solid reviews for Ford's new Flex Philosopher has insight for ailing U.S. auto industry The 'B' word brings media deathwatch at GM Chrysler to dealers: Don't panic

Automotive News - July 14, 2008

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