Media Sales Today

Car sales were up in a big way at the end of 2011 and that could be due to you! Did any of these brands advertise with you?

Now that thousands of auto dealerships have learned their fate, the survivors have an opportunity to remake their businesses – even in this down economy. As John Baldoni points out in his post on Harvard Business Publishing, many of these dealers are small business owners who have endured decades of economic expansion and contraction. This longevity, according to Baldoni, can be linked to plain and simple business excellence.

Marketing budget news from the big automakers has been bad, with GM revealing last week that they will cut $800 million from this year’s budget. But there may be more bad news to come, if the trends from fourth quarter of 2008 continue in the new year.

Automakers were among the first to spend big dollars online, and auto Web sites have commanded some of the highest online rates. But The Wall Street Journal reports that while as the industry cuts costs as well as their brands, spending is leveling off. Traffic to these sites – like Edmunds.com and KBB.com – is also down, as consumers put any car buying thoughts on hold.

  Would you buy a car made by a manufacturer that has filed for bankruptcy? With all things being equal—like price, performance, and features—would the automaker’s financial woes affect your decision? CNBC and Portfolio.com asked 800 Americans that very question in the most recent “Wealth in America” survey, conducted from December 1 through December 3. [...]