1. Sell the Hummer brand! Yes I said it. Get rid of I, if they can. If GM can salvage any money out of this name sake then they need to jump on that. If this is not an option, then I would just say bye bye.

2. No more Buick! Who buys these cars anyways? Young people are not purchasing Buicks. Older people would rather buy a Cadillac. I am 29 years old. I am never going to buy a Buick. Anyone who would have bought one must have been drinking that day.

3. No more GMC Truck! I am sounding repetitive now I know. For those of you that do not know, a GMC truck is a Chevy with a different grill, wheels, and maybe interior parts. The line is redundant. I would suggest offering an upgrade to the Chevy line to satisfy those buyers.

4. Build a inexpensive car younger people want to drive! You know why young people end up driving foreign cars? Because there are no cars made by GM that they can aspire to own. Future car buyers do not dream of one day owning a Cobalt. Because of this they fall for foreign automobiles that they love and become hooked on their products. GM needs a cool car! I would simply shrink a Cadillac CTS to the dimensions of a Cobalt. Next I would put the supercharged 4 cylinder in it as the base engine. This needs to be done for less than 22k. I would also offer an upgraded all wheel drive version starting somewhere in the upper twenties.

5. Require all dealers to sell all brands. This would mean that I could walk into a place and see every model the company has to offer. Your chance of selling a customer something is much higher. You now have a car for every possible situation right on your lot. This also allows for constriction of the dealer network, something that is needed.

6. Hire Someone under 40 to be the face of GM! I would suggest going right to Toyota or Honda for this. Whoever is the force behind Scion would do just fine, if they are under 40. Let’s face it people over the age of 40 are set in their ways. Your not going to turn them into GM people if they have been buying another brand forever. GM needs a young, hip, visionary. No more old “car guy” Take a hint from the country electing Obama.

7. Gm needs a 35 mpg full sized car! I am not talking a hybrid. I do not want to spend an extra 10-20 percent on my car to make it a hybrid. Anyone that has a brain or a calculator would soon know that it would take them years to break even, if ever. GM needs a true gasoline powered 35 mpg sedan. One that 4 adults can ride in. I drive a Saturn Aura, nice, it gets about 30 mpg highway. Close but no cigar.

8. Put a 4 Cylinder in a full sized truck! Blasphemy you say. Most people do not haul a huge heavy load with there trucks. People just like the way they look and occasionally want to hall a couch around town. I thing the 4 banger with a supercharger and the right rear end setup and torque converter would do just fine. Maybe a 4 Cyl diesel with a turbo as most of them have. This would allow for the necessary torque. Point is that in a few years people are going to want their trucks back. I have been without mine for a year and half and I am going crazy. Make a full sized truck that gets 25 mpg and you’re the truck selling giant you once were.

9. Your going to have to not pay your employees as much! I hate to say this. My father is a GM employee. Would one rather have a pay cut or no job. Yes in many cases new hires are paid much less than their formers. Everyone needs to take a pay cut. Most of you people do not know how this company works. It is standard practice to lay 5 guys off and then have the remaining 5 guys work 80 hours a week. You can thank the UAW for that.

10. Once again, market yourself to the younger buyer! GM is losing young people in droves. They buy there first car and it’s a Honda or a Toyota. Maybe a VW. Your never getting these younger people back. They do not worry about the older people, that’s what Lexus is for. GM needs to make younger hipper automobiles that the youth can fall in love with and become GM buyers forever. Oh an enough with the stupid SS moniker. Once again your marketing yourself to a bunch of older buyers who are set in their ways.

These are just a few suggestions I quickly thought of. I would also suggest firing all people who were ever involved in such great automobiles as the Aztec, SSR, HHR, and the Lumina style minivan. These people all need to go. GM makes cars people do not want. They’re not cool. Start buy designing some cool cars.

• Computer Industry

  No matter how hard the economy is hit people will almost always be buying new and better computers.  There are two paths to follow on this: the software producers and the actual computer manufacturers. I would strongly recommend going with Apple simply because they produce their software and own computers. If your looking for something cheaper, go with Microsoft, but it does have a lower rate of making more money.

• Car Industry

  Investing in this right now is a death sentence.  The very last thing a recession-hit family wants to do is buy a new $30,000 car.  This is said for engine makers too, without the car companies buying parts, they will probably go out of business(fast!).  

So there you have it the ones you should buy, and one you should definitely avoid.

Wouldn't it be great if you could market your business while driving in your car around during the day? It's easier than you think. Why not place a domain plate on the back of your car? A domain plate is a simple sign that advertises the name of your business, your domain name, contact information or anything else you want to say about your business. The domain plate is attached to the back of your car using automotive adhesive tape. Your car becomes a low cost, moving advertisement for your small business.

Using this cheap advertising technique, information about your small business may be seen by hundreds or even thousands of people every day. All for an initial investment of under $50.00.

To make this technique effective, you should have a short and memorable business name as well as a descriptive dot com domain name. If it can't be short, at least make sure it's clever and easy to remember. People are innately curious. If they're parked behind you at a traffic light, their eyes will naturally wonder to the back of your car where they'll view your domain name. Because they're inquisitive or they genuinely need your service, they'll access your website when they get home.

These unique car signs are working for you all the time whether you're driving or parked in front of your house. Be sure to park your car in an obvious place so you can maximize the number of eyes who see it.

How do you track how well your car advertising is performing? To track the effectiveness of this low cost advertising method, offer a discount to customers if they mention your car sign when they place their order on your website or by phone.

If you're serious about growing your business and you need low cost marketing ideas, find out how effective car advertising can be for you.

For instance, the brand name itself is in Japanese but the range of product is in English, for example, Suzuki Swift.

I have listed several strange and funny names below and what they can possibly mean.

Car Make: Daihatsu

“Daihatsu” basically means “Osaka engine manufacturer” in Japanese.

Strange Names for Daihatsu car range:

• “Naked” - A car without clothing.
• “Applause” - A big clap for you when you buy this car.
• “Rocky” - Possibly named after “Rocky” the movie.
• “Town Cube” - A car in the form of a moving cube.

Car Make: Honda

“Honda” is the name of the founder of this company, “Soichiro Honda”.

Strange Names for Honda car range:

• “Joy Machine” - A very kinky car.
• “Acty Crawler” - A crawling car which looks like a spider.
• “Life Dunk” - A car telling you that life sucks?
• “That's” - A car "that is...?" (still wondering).

Car Make: Mazda

“Mazda” derives from the name of God of Wisdom in the early civilization of the West Asia, “Ahura Mazda”.

Strange Names for Mazda car range:

• “Bongo” - A car which resembles a broad-horned antelope.
• “Bongo Friendee” - A car which resembles a friendly broad-horned antelope.
• “Scrum” - A car suitable for Rugby players.

Car Make: Toyota

“Toyota” basically means “the abundance of rice/wealth” in Japanese.

Strange Names for Toyota car range:

• “Stout” - A car which resembles “Teletubbies”.
• “Toyopet” - “Toyo” means “the abundance of” in Japanese. Most probably it means here “the abundance of pets” if you own this car.
• “Deliboy” - A car suitable for a boy who works in a deli?

Car Make: Nissan

“Nissan” derives from the company's abbreviation used in the Tokyo stock market, which stands for “Nippon Sangyo”.

Strange Names for Nissan car range:

• “Prairie Joy” - A very kinky car on a prairie.
• “Big Thumb” - A car in the size of a big thumb.
• “Fairlady” - A car for “My Fairlady”.

Car Make: Mitsubishi

“Mitsubishi” means “three rhombus” or “three diamonds” in Japanese.

Strange names for Mitsubishi car range:

• “Guts” - A car with some guts to be a car.
• “Delica Space Gear” - A delicious car with space-ship equipment.

Car Make: Isuzu

“Isuzu” gets its name from the “Isuzu River” in Japan.

Strange names for Isuzu car range:

• “Mysterious Utility Wizard” - A mysterious car, a long lost cousin of Harry Potter.
• “Giga 20 Light Dump” - A car with 20 gigantic super-useless lights.
• "Mini Active Urban Sandal" - A car in the shape of an active mini sandal.

“Control.”

Control your customers. Control the car deal. Control the situation. Control everything.

In the automotive industry's glory days of 1975-1997 (before the internet came and ruined everything for them), two major things were developed and maintained. 1) Customers were kept one or two steps behind, and 2) Dealerships made lots of money. These two developments were aided mostly by the salesperson and their managers' abilities to control their customers.

This, more than anything else, is why the automotive industry is the last to jump on the “Buy it Online” bandwagon. From your home or office, the dealership has no control over you. For this reason, 99% of new and used car dealers with websites use their web presence for one reason: to get you to their lot.

The few who do offer ways to buy a car completely over the internet and via telephone are the ones who will eventually pave the way. The quality of cars, the length of warranties, and the information available to consumers are all increasing. With a bit of research, people are able to decide which vehicle fits them best without going from dealership to dealership test driving cars and collecting brochures.

A Bit of Research

New cars are simple to research. Sites like Kelley Blue Book.offer a smorgasbord of reviews, photos, and pricing information. Search Google for the vehicle you are considering and literally millions of results beg to be clicked and read.

Used vehicles are a bit trickier, but it is still possible to get almost all of the information needed to make a decision. Classified automotive search sites like New York Used Cars offer a diligent consumer a place they can find their perfect vehicle.

The roadblock occurs at the intersection between the consumer and the dealer. They both lie to each other. Not all of them, of course, but enough to where the trust level between the two is just below Hillary and George W. and just above Syria and Israel. The dealerships started it with shady tactics and the consumers are fighting back with techniques taught by, yes, a barrage of websites dedicated to cutting the dealers' bottom lines.

Breaking through Roadblocks

Nick Umbs, Internet Manager at Ted Britt Ford in Virginia, has tried to bridge these gaps through eBay and other methods.

“We start out by posting 35-50 detailed photos along with a highly detailed description of the vehicle,” said Umbs. “We want the customer to feel like they are actually at the dealership with the vehicle. We don't want them to have any unexpected surprises upon delivery.

“The whole process is very painless with great results.”

Using their prowess with eBay and an eAutoDrop option for consumers, they have been able to sell and ship vehicles around the country and across the world.

Another problem is with the trade-ins. While most dealer websites offer photos, a complete list of options, an available vehicle history report, and a promise that their used cars have been inspected and reconditioned by their service department, most consumers want to know their trade-in value based upon make, model, and miles.

Diffee Ford Lincoln Mercury in El Reno, OK, handles distant trade-ins as part of their Buy a Car Online process. Step 2 of their process has a page where the consumer can answer several questions regarding their vehicle and its condition. They are asked to send photos of their trade-in so that an accurate value can be placed on it.

“We have been able to sell dozens of vehicles to out-of-state customers because of 100% disclosure on both ends,” said Dandy O'Connor, Customer Resource Manager. “We don't expect them to buy ours if it isn't what we described, just as we wouldn't take theirs if we were misled. Since we started the program, we haven't had any of these deals go south.”

Their list of customers last month includes buyers from New York, Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, Kansas, Nebraska, Illinois, Arkansas and Florida.

Buying Online in Today's Marketplace

The industry is reluctantly heading towards less face-to-face contact. Until it fully gets there, consumers can still buy their cars online - it just takes a lot more work.

First, they must find a dealership willing to deal with them in this manner. They may have to send inquiries to dozens of dealerships before they find one that doesn't ask “When can you come in?” during every email and phone conversation.

Once an e-friendly dealership is identified, it is best to cut to the chase. Find the vehicle you want and make an offer. If there is a trade-in, your offer should include how much you want for it. Many websites advise people to “hide” their trade until they have worked out a price for the one they are buying. This is absolutely pointless and incredibly annoying to the dealership (so much so that it can actually hurt the final negotiated trade difference - this is explained below).

Online negotiations can be tedious. Emails can take time to be answered. In the meantime, the vehicle in question could sell. If possible, a consumer should initiate a phone conversation to discuss the money. The consumer should be prepared with information on both vehicles, including payoff on their trade-in.

While Edmunds and Kelley Blue Book are excellent for finding information about vehicles, their trade evaluators are usually inaccurate. Black Book is used by dealerships and offers realistic trade values.

Once both parties agree on a price or trade difference, payment can be arranged. Whether through online credit applications or simply having the dealership fax a buyer's order to the consumer's bank or credit union, it is not difficult to pay for a vehicle via internet, telephone, or mail.

Finally, arrange to have the vehicles and paperwork transported or set an appointment to finalize the deal at the dealership. If the paperwork is to be transported, the consumer will want to talk to the finance manager to discuss any warranties, fees, and insurance considerations before the paperwork is drawn up.

If the deal is to be consummated at the dealership, the consumer should still talk to the finance manager. They will want to talk face-to-face about other products. Let them talk to you about everything over the phone and ask them to have the paperwork drawn up before you get there. Finance is the last, best place for the dealership to make some money, so they will not do the paperwork ahead of time unless you ask.

The Truth About Trade-Ins

If a dealership whittles their price down, then learns of the trade, they will simply offer less for the trade than they would have prior to negotiations. Here is a realistic example:

If their car is listed at $20,000 and the trade-in's actual cash value (ACV) is $5,000, the dealership might make an initial offer of $20,000 for theirs and $6,000 for the trade.

This is a necessary dealer “trick” because the vast majority of customers believe their trade is worth more than it really is. Dealerships can “show” more in the trade by decreasing their profit and run less of a risk of insulting their customer. After all is said and done, they are still counting the trade in as a $5,000 car.

Now, after some more negotiating, both parties might agree at $19,000 purchase price and $6,500 for the trade-in, yielding a trade difference of $12,500. In this case, the dealership most likely raised their ACV of the trade-in to $5,500 because they wanted to make the deal work and it was negotiated in good faith.

Given the same situation but where the consumer doesn't mention the trade, the dealership might offer an initial $500 discount from the $20,000. Back-and-forth they negotiate and agree on an $18,000 selling price. Then the trade is brought in.

The dealership will still think the vehicle is worth $5,000 and will probably offer that much since they have no room “show” more money in the trade. Many dealerships might even offer a little less out of annoyance. Chances are very high that they will not budge from the $5,000 ACV, so negotiations end. The consumer can either take the $13,000 trade difference or not.

The Future

The ability to complete a vehicle transaction over the internet and telephone is slowly working its way towards fruition. The advantages are aplenty for both consumers and dealerships. It would broaden the options of consumers, decreasing the need to settle for a vehicle that isn't exactly what they want. It would expand the potential customer base of dealerships by making distant buyers more accessible.

As of now, the consumers want it, but the dealerships are hesitant. They will all eventually break under the weight of necessity as more dealerships learn the lesson that “sometimes, it's okay to lose control.”

Barnardo's is a charity for children who are being fostered into care because the parents didn't have financial status to afford a child. The president of Barnardo's is Cherie Blair or also known from her maiden name as Booth. The charity where provided with the money to launch a campaign against poverty, in which a million pounds was spent. The campaign was launched in August of two thousand and three and lasted until October of two thousand and three. The reasons for this are that the campaign was banned as the pictures were offensive to people of the general public.

The advertising complaints commission received around five hundred complaints saying that they were shocked and distressed by the advertisements. They went to the advertising standards agency and the ASA ruled that the advertisements would cause wide spread offence and should not be repeated. One million pound's was spent on the campaign that lasted three months.

The images on the print consist of newly born babies with implements that show a scene, and sense of poverty. The adverts contain babies with objects such as a syringe and mentholated spirits super imposed onto the picture and into the babies mouths another contained a cockroach in his mouth. With this evidence I can see that the main strategy of the campaign is to shock you these are what are known as scare tactics. They want to scare you into reading the text that contains information about their aims. Their aim is to raise awareness of poverty around the UK so they can raise a charitable fortune to put an end to sufferings of people with children living in poverty. They raise issues such as “A child's chances when born into poverty can be dead against him/ her and very much direct you towards a life of crime and drug abuse in later life”.

In these images the babies are on their backs and the photographer (Miles Aldridge) has taken the pictures on an angle looking at the baby from the side. This makes the baby with the image of, for example a cockroach in its mouth look uncared for and not nurtured. Also the positioning of every baby is on its back showing weakness towards the poverty that he/ she must face. All of these connotative meanings represent the weakness of the child

In comparison, one of the images, which is of a baby with a “silver spoon” in its mouth, we see the baby from a birds eye view. This connotative meaning signifies some one watching over the baby like a mother nurturing a baby. There are other connotative meanings such as the colour in the image; it is gold on a soft cushion. The gold in the image signifies wealth and a good upbringing that the child will have because of the benefits of wealth the cushions shows comfort that the child will witness.

In the other images we see that the surface that the babies are on is firm and looks uncomfortable and the back ground in the images are very indistinguishable. It looks like the room is empty and cold. The colours in the image such as a slimy green and a very dull grey/ white wash on the surfaces make you think and feel that the room is cold and empty. The image of the baby drinking mentholated spirits is on a drunken angle that looks and suggests that the baby will be an alcoholic in later life due the conditions of poverty she/ he has grown up in. the syringe suggests drug abuse, and the cock roach signifies poor living conditions.

These images are trying to get you to read the text in the image. In this text it contains a lot underlying emotion that it try's to draw from. For example the text next to the images it will contain the name of the baby and how old it is. This makes you feel emotionally drawn to the circumstances that the text outlines that the baby with have to cope with. The photographer in a way takes away the innocence of the baby with the images of drug abuse and the text gives the baby back its innocence and draws you to feel more for the child. The text in one of the images say's, “If only poverty didn't crush the spirit, hopes and joy of thousands of children every year. If only poverty didn't rob them of the choices of a positive future.”

The text is trying to emotionally draw you to making the decision to give money to the charity of Barnardo's. Because of the information in the text I know who their target audience is. They are looking for people who go to work and earn a wage that is of a sufficient amount a year. To be a bit more precise they are looking for people with disposable incomes and even perhaps people who have children. These adverts draw your emotional feeling for the baby's position.

In this world of advertising it's hard to determine weather they failed their aim to raise the awareness of poverty. It brings the question to mind, does bad press in the advertising world potentially fail your aims of advertising? In my opinion this is not nessaccerally true. As people looked at the images in disgust they will see the logo of Barnardo's and through the shock tactic that the photographer has used they will remember the charity and what they stand for, not nessaccerally in a good light but they will remember. And that in my opinion is successful advertising. Barnardo's was asked these questions bellow and these are the response they gave.

“What does Barnardo's think the adverts will achieve?

“The adverts are part of the Barnardo's campaign 2003 on Child poverty. The one key role of these adverts is to deliver the message across the nations that children growing up in poverty are robbed of their future.”

“These hard-hitting images will cut through the prejudice and apathy that we know exists, and engage with the target audiences and drives them towards supporting Barnardo's vital work. We want the adverts to provoke debate surrounding child poverty and establish this issue as significant”

“Finally, these adverts will continue to build the position of Barnardo's as a modern, relevant and deserving charity to maximise our potential for fund raising and influencing social policy for children.”

“The concept behind the silver spoon campaign refers to the proverb “born with a silver spoon in your mouth” meaning to be born into life of opportunity and prosperity.”

“Barnardo's is using metaphor within the advertising to make the point that not all children are born with the same opportunities or aspirations for the future. Children born into poverty are more likely to have a life that stays hard and a future of homelessness, substance misuse or crime.”

“Using the line ‘not every child is born with a silver spoon,' there are three different executions each featuring a newly born baby with an object superimposed in his/her mouth in order to demonstrate metaphorically the possible future consequences of children who are born into poverty. The objects chosen are a syringe to signify drug abuse, a bottle of methylated spirits to signify alcohol abuse and a cockroach to signify poor living conditions.”

“There is also a fourth advert in the campaign that shows a newborn baby with a silver spoon with the strap line ‘if only every child in the UK was born with a silver spoon'. This presents Banardo's vision that the lives of all children should be free from poverty.”

“The cockroach is an effective symbol of poverty. It is an unpleasant and unwelcome pest that thrives in squalid living conditions and blights the lives of those children

And their families that are unable to escape using the cockroach as a symbol of poverty was triggered from the experiences of service users and staff that were consulted.”

“The entire campaign cost £1,000,000 this is less than 1% of turnover, this spend was stretched considerably by the contribution of free recourses from our agencies and negotiating reductions of cost”

Isn't that a lot just for print? Wouldn't the money be better spent on your projects?

“The spend is less than 1% of turn over and is a fraction compared to other organisations' advertising activities. This budget has been stretched considerably due to the reduction of costs through out the development of the campaign, for example, the photographer Miles Aldridge waived his fees, and we have been given agencies' resources for free”

“Poverty is a key part of Barnardo's vision. We need to address the lack of awareness and apathy that we know exists surrounding child poverty in the UK . The campaigning activities are vital to ensure that the public are aware of Barnardo's work and that Barnardo's continues to be positioned in the mind of the public as a modern and relevant charity to stimulate deservedness and provide a climate for fundraising and influencing”

Did you use real babies for the ad's?

“Yes we used babies of between two and fifteen weeks old who were bathed and then had special make up and petroleum jelly dabbed onto their skin to signify that they were new born babies. There was a nurse on the photography shoot as well as the babies' mothers who were able to swap stories and chat to the photographer who has three young children of his own.”

Aren't you encouraging young children to put dangerous objects into their mouths?

“The adverts are not targeted at small children and will be shown predominantly in news papers.

We photographed the babies separately and then superimposed the objects as a later date in order to create the illusion that the objects were in the babies mouths.”

My responses to the advertisements were of mixed messages. I can't agree that leading a life of poverty can nessacerally lead to a life of drug abuse and a life of squalor, it's the choices the child makes, and it is up to other people such as parents and drugs education teachers to try and deter their child from making the wrong decisions. In this advertisement they have provided a stereotypical outlook on people who live in poverty, this brings present a lack of sensitivity to the poor population in the UK , who's argument is that of offence to the poor population. The up roar that is concerning these advertisements in my opinion is exact. These adverts are offensive as it could create repute between the social classes of society and label these people with an image. The advertisements should be banned. I do not think that the target audience would sympathise with the children in these circumstances so therefore I think that the campaign is at loss.

I think they have succeeded in their aim to raise the awareness of child poverty and their brand awareness in the UK but through neglectful language they have failed the campaign by failing to reach their audience with a positive message. They make fair points that poverty can change a child's life and choices and may lead to missed opportunity but they are insensitive. The pictures implicate that people who live in poverty do not care for their children, it is in a very subtle way that this is put to the audience but I can see the subtle offence that the public may have picked up on. One million pounds was spent on this campaign and it was then later banned, this with care and sensitivity could have been avoided and successful.