MPMC - Education, Honors, Awareness

SEMA Member News - March/April 2010

MPMC Finds New Outlet With Seminars/Webinars

	MPMC hopes that increased involvement in seminar and webinar events like the one the council hosted at the 2009 SEMA Show will increase exposure for its member manufacturers.

As reported in the last issue of SEMA Member News, the Motorsports Parts Manufacturers Council (MPMC) hosted a panel discussion/seminar titled “Motorsports Marketing: How to Measure Your Return” as part of SEMA Education Days at the SEMA Show. The event was such a success for the MPMC that the Select Committee is looking to utilize similar seminar venues as a new means of increasing the council’s exposure.

“The seminar at the Show was an experiment,” said MPMC Chairman Bill Floyd. “We were all happy with the outcome and knew that we wanted to do another one next year. Then Camee Edelbrock of Schiefer Media called and told me of their plans to do a similar discussion at the NHRA museum in Pomona the same week as the Media Trade Conference in Covina, California. I talked to a couple of Select Committee members, and it just seemed like taking part would be the natural thing to do. Almost at the same time, SEMA invited us to host a webinar on April 22. It looks like we’re in the seminar business!”

The seminar hosted by MPMC at the NHRA Motorsports Museum in conjunction with the 13th annual MPMC Media Trade Conference in January was presented by Wyotech and Source Interlink Media. MPMC Select Committee members Kyle Fickler of Weld Racing, Steve Matusek of Aeromotive and SEMA Board Chair-Elect Scooter Brothers of Comp Performance Group participated on the panel and answered questions under the general topic “Future Trends, Technology and Training in the Performance Aftermarket.”

On April 22, MPMC will host a SEMA webinar with a theme similar to the motorsports marketing seminar it offered at the SEMA Show. As of press time, panelists and final topic details were still under review. Check the MPMC website for details on when, where and how to participate.

Motorsports Awareness

The March issue of SEMA News highlights racing and performance. Coincidentally, many racing facilities across the country and around the world are shrugging off winter snows and revving up for another season of competition at this time of year. What better time, then, to remind everyone about motorsports awareness and the MPMC-founded program Take a Friend to a Race.

“This is such a simple idea,” said Floyd. “It’s taken some time to catch on, but I think we’ll start to see some legs under it entering the second year. More and more magazines are running the promotional ads, and our MPMC member companies are beginning to catch on to the idea of putting the logo on their letterhead, packaging and so forth. SEMA News ran a story last year about one of our members who invited his daughter’s friends to the local dirt track. By the end of summer, he had neighbors going to the races who, prior to that invitation, never even knew there was a racetrack 20 minutes from their houses! And that’s the idea. Just take someone to a race and let them have the experience. We’re all in this together—manufacturers, promoters, track owners, competitors and spectators. It’s a big circle, but it all comes down to having people watch the events in which our products are used. Take a friend to a race. It’s good for all of us.”

Go to www.sema.org/mpmc for more information on Take a Friend to a Race, or to download logos and ad slicks.

 

Karl Fredrickson Voted 2009 Robert E. Petersen Award Winner

	Karl Fredrickson (left) of Speedway Illustrated magazine with Bill Floyd, MPMC chairman, as he receives his Robert E. Petersen Award. The award was presented at the 13th annual MPMC Media Trade Conference on January 19, 2010.

Each year at the MPMC Media Trade Conference, a member of the automotive media is presented with the Robert E. Petersen Award. The Robert E. Petersen Award is named in honor of the publishing icon who founded Hot Rod, Motor Trend and dozens of other automotive and enthusiast magazines and to whom the motorsports industry owes so much. The award is presented to an individual from the media who has made a positive impact on the motorsports industry and the MPMC during the past year. 

The nomination criteria for the Robert E. Petersen Award includes the following:

• Individual must have made a substantial, recognizable, positive contribution to the industry within the past year.
• Individual must have an ongoing record of service and support to the motorsports industry.
• Individual must be an active member of the print, electronic or broadcast media.

The media hold this award in high regard, not only for its namesake, but because it is voted on by MPMC members themselves. Nominees for this year’s award were:

James Lawrence of PowerTV Media, Joe St. Lawrence of RTM Productions, Steve Wolcott of ProMedia LLC, Darr Hawthorne from Racing Net Source and Karl Fredrickson of Speedway Illustrated. Fredrickson emerged from the record voting returns as this year’s recipient. He was presented the award at the annual Tuesday-night media reception at the MPMC Media Trade Conference.

“We had more than a 25% return on the electronic award voting this year,” said MPMC Chairman Floyd. “I think this shows just how passionate our members are about the media, and the relationships we build with them.”