New Product Showcase Adds New Element

	This stock ’12 Jeep Rubicon will be customized with TORA-member products during the Carlisle Truck Nationals event on August 3–5, 2012. The products used will also be on display in the TORA New Product Showcase tent at the Nationals.

The annual Truck and Off-Road Alliance (TORA) New Product Showcase at the Carlisle Truck Nationals has proven to be a popular member benefit in just its first two years. But in the best SEMA tradition, the TORA Select Committee keeps working on the format and is introducing a new element for 2012. During the weekend, a Jeep Rubicon will be customized with many of the same products that will be on display in the New Product Showcase tent. The build will take place right on the Carlisle Fairgrounds property.

“We think this Jeep build provides a couple of things for the council and its members,” said TORA Chairman George Lathouris of Keystone Automotive. “Our council is identified mainly with pickups. Choosing a Jeep for this project gives visibility to our member companies that make products for Jeeps, and it also lets non-member companies that sell Jeep products know that TORA is more than caps and tonneau covers.”

The build will also facilitate pointing customers to dealers and vendors who sell the products being used to customize the vehicle. When attendees come through the New Product Showcase, they will be pointed toward the build to see the products installed in real time, and when they visit the build, they can also be pointed to the New Products Showcase tent to see other products.

“When they visit either location, we can point them to vendors on the Carlisle grounds or in the area where they can learn more about the products and/or make a purchase,” Lathouris said. “‘Go here to buy this product’ is a message we’ve never really delivered at the New Product Showcase. So along with all the great product exposure provided by the tent and the build, we want to help our members sell products. We want to turn this from a ‘show and tell’ into a ‘show and sell’ for our members.”

	The New Product Showcase allows enthusiasts to see and touch the latest offerings from TORA-member companies. Many of those same products will be installed on a Jeep Rubicon during the event.

A list of products to be installed is still being finalized as of press time for this issue of SEMA Member News. Stay tuned to SEMA eNews and the TORA web pages for the latest product updates and installation schedules.

TORA-member companies may display products in the New Product Showcase tent regardless of whether or not they participate in the Jeep build. Being a part of the New Product Showcase display is still a tremendous member benefit by itself. Online registration is available now .

In addition to being on display in front of one of the largest truck-enthusiast crowds in the country, items featured in the New Products Showcase will be professionally photographed for inclusion in an TORA gallery on the TORA webpages. The photos will also be presented at the SEMA Show in a video in the TORA booth and during the TORA Fall Nationals Awards Reception.

All of this product exposure is free to TORA members as a membership benefit. The only cost incurred is for shipping products back and forth from the Carlisle show. SEMA and the Carlisle Events staff will unpack and set up each product for display and then repack everything for return shipment.

The 2012 TORA New Product Showcase and the Jeep build will take place at the Carlisle Truck Nationals on August 3–5, 2012, in Carlisle, Pennsylvania. Time is running out, so register your product now.

“Carlisle Events is a great partner,” said Lathouris. “They recognize the value in SEMA and the councils as well as the added value that our New Product Showcase display and Jeep build bring to their already successful event. They receive, store and deliver all of the products to the tent, help us with setup and teardown, and promote us along with every other aspect of the weekend. We couldn’t ask for more from a partner.”