MEMBERSHIP MATTERS
ATRA Members
Get Customers
by Kelly Hilmer
www.atra.com
T
he truth is out – ATRA Members becoming more aware of the associa- on a business-to-consumer level. Each
get customers simply by being tion through a recent article published has their specific benefits and each
a member of the association. on
eHow.com that features ATRA. work well for the association.
ATRA’s technical support, busi- Anne Kinsey, a contributing writer
ness management and technical train- for
eHow.com, wrote an article on
ing have traditionally been the associa- “How to Choose a Transmission Shop.”
tion’s bigger selling points, but with our
eHow.com is a how-to site with articles
current business climate, gaining new and videos explaining how to do almost
customers is a key virtue in joining anything. Their Alexa ranking of 152
ATRA. demonstrates that their website receives
For nearly a year, ATRA has been more traffic than Dell, Best Buy or even
working diligently to create more con- Walmart websites. This should provide
sumer awareness of the association and further perspective of how popular the
its mission. Consumers know that eHow website is in terms of traffic. ATRA is branching out beyond the
associations require their members to Anne’s article addresses the need internet, as well. The ATRA Gulf States
adhere to a code of ethics and minimum to choose a reputable transmission shop chapter is preparing to have a poker
rebuild standards. Consequently, these for repairs. She continues by provid- run, on May 15, 2010, to benefit the
consumers are more likely to choose a ing the necessary steps to properly Ronald McDonald House of Mobile,
member of the ATRA for their vehicle research for repair shops. Included in Alabama. Participants will embark on
maintenance and repairs. these steps is a reference to the ATRA a 92-mile motorcycle ride, stopping at
Last year, ATRA began placing Website to look at the listings of ATRA several ATRA Member shops along the
ads on Google, Yahoo and Facebook. Member shops. This is yet another route. Publicity of the event will be
These ads address several ATRA bene- opportunity for ATRA Members to gain in local newspapers and broadcast on
fits, but all link to the Shop Finder page visibility by consumers. local radio stations. This is a wonderful
on the ATRA website, where the user Visit the
eHow.com website at opportunity for ATRA to not only gain
then enters their location to search for a
http://www.ehow.com/how_5863168_ awareness of the association and its
member. This tool is specifically used choose-transmission-shop.html to read members, but to support a great cause
for finding an ATRA Member Repair the complete article, or use the search and help to raise profits for the Ronald
center within a radius of the user’s loca- term “How to choose a transmission McDonald House.
tion by city and state or zip code. shop.” ATRA publicity and sponsorships
Since the advertising began, more ATRA has also set up Facebook are becoming more prominent. The
and more users are visiting the ATRA and Twitter accounts. By establishing most recent sponsorship ATRA became
shop finder page looking for a repair a presence on these popular social net- involved with is the Road2ACure cause
center. Currently there are more than working sites, ATRA is reaching out to for pancreatic cancer awareness. Chris
5,000 users each month that visit the thousands of consumers in a friendly, Calaprice of Castaic, California is a
website specifically for that purpose. familiar way. six-year survivor and is embarking on a
In addition to the thousands of Twitter is used mostly for network- 42,000-mile journey across the country
users searching for our members in ing on a business-to-business level, and through parts of Canada to raise
the Shop Finder online, consumers are while Facebook is used for networking money to help find a cure for this
50 GEARS March 2010
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