DONE DEALS? Price conscious shoppers using multiple online limo finder services can cost you big money to get the sale as you pay for the same lead to multiple brokers.
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HEALTH CARE FIASCO: I hope you like the smell of goose…because I think ours is cooked.
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LEADING INDICATOR? Wealthy consumers are spending again on luxury goods, according to a report in this week's Wall Street Journal, so could chauffeured service spending be close behind? Consumer spending on chauffeured transportation tends to keep pace with the performance of luxury good retailers. As goes Gucci, there glides the limousine industry. -- M.R.
MARKETING PARTNERSHIP: An "
Under The Influence" program in South Africa pairs a
wine tour with a Lexus; the concept of a wine-tasting, shopping excursion, museum tours, etc., via chauffeured luxury vehicles carries a lot of potential for operators, and offers opportunities to showcase new models/limos.
HIGH-TECH SOLUTIONS: Technology can help a fleet stay up to date and span the generations of clients, as this
Indiana operator shows.
NEW YORK CABBIE SCANDAL: While the New York taxi cab overcharge scandal has nothing to do with this industry, aside from underscoring why chauffeured transportation is a better option, the TLC's explanation now borders on the absurd.
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CADILLAC's XTS Platinum Concept vehicle is on course to set new standars for luxury, technology, and efficiency. Best of all, the automaker is giving operators a chance to peek ahead at its likely successor to the DTS sedan, which is one of the key base livery vehicles in the chauffeured transportation industry.
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BAUER'S INTELLIGENT TRANSPORTATION of San Francisco has carved out a cutting-edge niche with its Wi-Drive WiFi equipped luxury commuter motorcoaches, which are a success among Bay Area commuters wanting to work on the way to and from work while being a bit greener. The service is featured in today's Wall Street Journal under the headline Hailing A Luxury Ride To The Office.
GIVING A GOOD DEAL: Chris Daughtry concert, dinner, and limo ride package are bundled together on TicketMaster.com. Joint marketing helps sell tickets, meals, and limo service.
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BETTER STAY HEALTHY: Well its official…let the insanity begin! Our government runs amok.
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AMERICAN EXPRESS BUSINESS TRAVEL UPDATE: Although business travel is expected to start a comeback in 2010, most companies are still under tight travel budgets and are looking to technology to increase communication and productivity.
GROWTH SPOT: LCT is always on the lookout for operators growing during tough times and buying vehicles for the good times. . .
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POSITIVE & PROACTIVE: Operator Eli Darland of Rare Form Limousine in Seattle has gone on the marketing offensive of sorts by actually getting out and meeting with parents of teen-agers to explain the safety benefits and overall advantages of limousine transportation for school dances. This educates parents, protects the operator, and attracts clients. Darland posts about it at the
Rare Form Limousine blog and a separate
Seattle Prom Limo blog just for that market segment. -- M.R.
FORD/LINCOLN GAINS GROUND: As the strongest American automaker, Ford has retooled and restrategized to the point where its surpassing Honda, Acura, and Toyota in the
J.D. POWER QUALITY RANKINGS for dependability. It's second only to Porsche vehicles, which most American motorists can't afford anyway. -- M.R.
CONFUSION: Time changes affect scheduling and raise questions: Do people understand it happens at 2 a.m., or do they really fall back at midnight?
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QUESTIONING AUTHORITY: Does danger lurk inside the green revolution? Do certain mandates actually worsen the state of the economy and the environment?
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IN THE NEWS: JEFF SERLIN of
Chauffeured Limousine and
Red Dot Shuttle Service in Bridgeport, Conn. says the company is profitable, but didn't see a YOY revenue increase for the first time in its history.
NEWS ARTICLE HERE.
TABLOID BREAK-UP in Hollywood? Now we thought this relationship was solid, since it so appropriately satiated some of the deepest celebrity desires. . .
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RESERVATION BONUS: In an example of how cheapest is not always the best, the New York TLC finds cabbies bilking customers through meter fraud. That doesn't happen with pre-arranged chauffeured transportation. You get what you pay for.
MEDIA EXPOSURE: FOX-TV CHANNEL 25 in Boston has a feature about the Royale Ford Fusion Hybrid L, a luxury vehicle alternative to both the Lincoln Town Car and the Toyota Prius. Dawson Rutter, CEO of Commonwealth Worldwide Chauffeured Transportation in Boston, talks about the benefits of the hybrid.
A VERY GREEN DAY? A
limousine company near Detroit has figured out a way to
make money on St. Patrick's Day March 17 --- discounted limousines AND shuttle bus service to celebratory hot spots.
SLIPPERY FINGERS: The transportation business affords many opportunities for employee theft. From the theft of time through unauthorized use of vehicles to the theft of fuel, cash, beverages and other things, theft prevention is a constant battle.
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ARE THEY SERIOUS? $7 a gallon gasoline may become a reality in the near future. Why, you may ask?
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CONNECTIONS PAY OFF: The mother-daughter team that runs Reprise Limousine in Exeter, N.H. does a lot of things right, as their latest recognition shows.
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GO-GO TIMES FOR GREEN ARE OVER: It’s not easy being green lately, let alone a Toyota Prius. Just like the global cooling hoopla of the late 1970s, the green-global warming movement is finally getting past its “Studio 54” phase, having overdosed on all that carbon on a spoon. . .
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TRANNY NANNY: A commentary in The Washington Times rebuts the need for the pages and pages of transportation regulations issued by the New York Taxi and Limousine Commission governing cab drivers. One key point: Since when do privileges, voluntary amenities, and individual choices become "rights?"
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BROKEN CLOCK THEORY IN ACTION: The decidedly anti-business President Obama has managed to give piecemeal help to the private sector and the travel industry. Better yet, passage of this legislation doesn't involve taxpayer dollars. Now that's some real stimulus for a CHANGE, and a template for true economic revival efforts across the board .
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CHAUFFEURED SUPERIORITY COMPLEX: Smart Money magazine has an excellent article on the
top 10 things cab drivers won't tell their customers. Chauffeured operators very likely know about all these tricks, but it's doubtful much of the traveling public does. If they did, it would bring more business to chauffeured transportation. Comparing chauffeured service to cab service should be a part of any marketing and ad campaign. -- M.R.
LAWMAKERS LICKING THEIR LIPS: Another costly reality of this recession has been the revivial of long-dormant regulations and laws on the books that were casually or intermittently enforced for years, or in some cases, outright ignored. Operators servicing the Baltimore-Washington Airport recently discovered this trend, much to their horror. .
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PAINFUL LESSON: Knee-jerk reactions can kill relationships. Make sure, whether professionally or personally, you always GET THE FACTS BEFORE YOU FACE OFF with someone.
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CLIMATE CHANGISTS are not exactly the most tolerant types, so dealing with them requires, well, tolerance, patience, and an open mind.
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FORMALS & ILCT POST-SHOW ISSUE PREVIEW:
The March/April 2010 issue of LCT Magazine has been drop-kicked over to the presses, and will soon rebound to all the mailboxes beyond. This issue revolves around the entire "formals" theme of weddings, proms, and funerals.
LCTMAG.COM FEATURES include: Finding limo/bus transportation for WEDDING GUESTS; handling all the hazards of PROM SEASON; and how to train your chauffeurs for FUNERAL LIMO DUTY. Funerals offer a consistent market for operators, especially as more funeral homes outsource their livery vehicle needs.
Our second big theme is the 2010 International LCT Show. We've already covered the Show in LCT E-NEWS and have plenty of photos up at LCTSHOW.COM, so our annual print coverage this year brings you eight pages of show round-ups, four photo galleries, and the launch of LCT's first-ever, reality-based Great Limo Race.
Also, don't forget to check out the latest LCT WEB POLL and Create-A-Card Inc.'s MARKETING TIP.
-- Martin Romjue, LCT editor
WOULD IT ALSO BE "GREEN?" The concept of a chopper/motorcycle limousine is nothing new, but this vehicle makes the most of the chopper-sedan hybrid.
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