GFK research on Mercedes Classe C reveal that internet is still a complementary media… (France)

GFK, customer research institute France, has made a plurimedia (TV, Web, and magazine) research concerning the Mercedes Classe C in 2008. The results, released recently, reveal that the use of these three Medias in this campaign have been positive in term of visibility, and brand memorization, in addition they have reached efficiently their respective target audience. The researches reveal most importantly that the combination of the newspapers + internet makes the difference. Internet in particular is considered by the institute as a complementary media .Effective mostly on memorization, it does not have a real effect on visibility and image. Internet makes the difference versus the use of traditional media only as it reinforces memorization and gives a better understanding of the offer in households, yet it cannot be use as a unique communication tool. Television for instance is more focus on quality and creativity even though it is also more costly.

Audi builds customer loyalty by giving them the opportunity to download freely music from Universal catalog… (France)

Universal music’s subsidiary (U Think) has developed a partnership with Audi to allow clients to download free music while giving them free access to some events. The goal of this action is to build and maintain customers loyalty. For information, Uthink is a company that aims to distribute recorded music and create markets for company that associate themselves with the brand.
Through a website: Myaudi.fr in May, 1st 2008; the automaker’s customers should benefit from free music either classical, French or international. They will also be able to watch videos or musical documentaries and will receive invitations to special events such as concerts, show cases and music awards. Finally they will have the opportunity to download free music from Universal’s catalog.

Smart creates a website shortening url, reminding of its product’s benefits … (international)

“Tweeters” all around the world are regularly looking for web sites that reduces heavy web addresses (URL). This action permits to include lengthy URL’s while staying within the 140 characters limit.
Web sites are actually specializing in shortening whatever type of URL you want and need in a tiny version (this is the case of Tinyurl.com for instance). Smart has been the first company who had the clever idea to tiny up URL on its website “so-smart.be” allowing customers to ‘park’ large URL in small spaces. In adequacy with the brand message “small is beautiful”, this marketing initiative is brilliant to remind the company’s strategy to internet users.
The web site has developed more complex tools so far to tiny up URL which can even be tailored by its visitors and users. It also gives the opportunity for bloggers to add the compressed URL in their tweeter blog, reaching at the same occasion one of the most powerful and visited online network for almost no costs.

Insurer alerts client by txt message when roads get icy

A Dutch car insurer for women recently launched a useful new service. As soon as weather warnings are issued about conditions that could make driving hazardous, Onna-onna sends its clients a text message advising them to be extra alert or even stay off the road. The company relies on weather reports from the National Meteorological Institute, and provides the text messages free of charge to clients who have signed up for them.

Aiming to reduce the number of accidents caused by heavy winds, icy roads and severe thunderstorms, the warning service is part of Onna-onna's wider efforts to promote road safety. Which isn't a purely philanthropic gesture, of course—lower accident rates are good for any insurer's bottom line. Onna-onna is planning to trial the service for a year before evaluating and potentially adding other SMS-based perks.

For companies trying to build their brand and forge meaningful relationships with their customers, text messages offer a relatively inexpensive way to keep in touch. And a powerful one, if used to share information that's both relevant and useful. What would your customers like to hear from your brand, in 160 characters or less?

Website: www.onna-onna.nl

Technology's next frontier: In-car computing

LAS VEGAS, Nevada (CNN) -- Cell phones and TVs converging with the Internet? That's so 2008. The next big tech trend may be the marriage of computer technology to your car or truck.

This spring, Ford will offer a dashboard computing system on its full-size pickups and E-series vans.
This month, Hyundai is launching a system that warns motorists when they drift out of the lane they're traveling in. Another manufacturer has developed pedestrian-detection software that works with heat-seeking cameras to alert drivers when someone is in their path.
In March, Ford will release a fully functional, dashboard computer -- complete with keyboard -- geared to contractors and other business folks who want to access the Web, review documents and log inventory while on the go. In the spring, AT&T will launch an in-car entertainment service with 22 satellite TV channels.
Industry executives hope the new technological bells and whistles will put some sizzle back into stagnant vehicle sales.
"Consumers want a vehicle that's always on and always connected," said Kieran O'Sullivan, vice president at Continental Automotive Systems, which supplies parts and technology to automakers. In the near future, he said, "consumers and carmakers will be able to customize the [dashboard] instrument panel to their individual tastes the same way that people customize their mobile phones."
O'Sullivan spoke Thursday at a panel discussion at the International Consumer Electronics Show subtitled, "The Automobile's Convergence with Consumer Electronics." Panelists, including executives from Microsoft, Nokia and GM's OnStar service, agreed the industry is just beginning to tap the potential of in-car computing.
"We'll someday use this information technology in ways we can't even predict today," said Tom Phillips, general manager of Microsoft's automotive unit. "To me, we're in the infancy in terms of the amount of evolution that's going to occur."
As consumers are growing accustomed to having mobile Internet through their smart phones, more car buyers are seeking connectivity in their vehicles that will allow them to move seamlessly between their digital lives at work and home, panelists said.
Half of the new vehicles sold in the United States are now compatible with MP3 players and 80 percent can connect with wireless Bluetooth headsets, said automotive technology expert John Waraniak, who served as the panel's moderator.
General Motors' OnStar service, which can remotely unlock car doors, reduce gas flow to a stolen vehicle or dial 911 if a car is involved in a crash, now has almost 6 million subscribers. Toyota said this week it plans to launch a similar driver-assist program on certain models beginning this summer.
Not to be outdone, Ford's similar Sync system, which now comes standard on many vehicles, is adding voice-activated, on-demand traffic, sports and weather reports, plus GPS-assisted navigation. In a keynote speech Thursday at CES, Ford CEO Alan Mulally said the automaker is learning to think more like an electronics company.
Ford will begin installing its Works Solutions package on its full-size pickups and E-series vans this spring. The dashboard computing system costs $1,195 plus a monthly Web access fee, has a 6-inch touch screen and runs on Windows. It will allow electricians and other contractors to create Excel spreadsheets, print invoices and even access other computers.
"Ford is truly making the office mobile," said Ford product development manager Bill Frykman while demonstrating the system Thursday to reporters in an F-150 parked in a large tent outside the Las Vegas Convention Center. "This bridges the gap between the full laptop and a smart phone."
Meanwhile, an entire hall at CES is devoted to the latest in automotive technology, from portable navigation units to rear-mounted cameras which, with the help of a dashboard screen, allow the driver to see what's immediately behind his vehicle while backing up.

Published January 9th 2009

Source: www.cnn.com

(http://edition.cnn.com/2009/TECH/01/09/ces.cars.computers/index.html)