Are you selling effectively to the B2B buyer?

In the last several years, the B2B buying process has changed dramatically. Buyer’s expectations have changed accordingly. Consequently, traditional sales processes are becoming less and less effective. Selling to today’s savvy B2B buyer requires new thinking. Here are three factors that influence buyer behavior, and how to deal with them. #1: Availability of Information Today’s […]

How a brand audit can keep you up with the times.

Detroit – most of Michigan, really – has long been the capital of the American automotive industry and where many automotive-related companies are located. Though other U.S. markets have an automotive presence – with assembly plants, R&D facilities, and automotive OEM suppliers – Michigan remains the country’s automotive hotbed, and it doesn’t look like it will […]

Employees must be living embodiments of the brand promise.

A zen philosopher once told me, “The brand is the organization and the organization is the brand.” Yes, we are all one. But let’s not join hands and sing just yet. Developing and protecting your brand takes work. It’s a promise to your customers. And it will all go down the drain if you don’t […]

I interviewed myself, and agreed with everything I said.

AlterErnie: What’s so great about writing a blog? Ernie: It’s therapeutic. AE: How so? E: I vent about things that bother me in the otherwise awesome business I’m in. And after four decades of doing it, I have a lot to get off my chest. AE: So why a blog for automotive OEM suppliers? Why […]

I learned that their biggest challenge is from within.

I had the honor and privilege to make a presentation right here in the Detroit area to a group of more than 100 marketing professionals from various automotive OEM supplier companies. During my 30 minutes, I repeated many of the same themes that I’ve talked about time and again in this blog as the absolute […]