For Immediate Release:

MontAd Media Announces New Data Marketing Capabilities

October 30, 2023: Novi, MI – MontAd Media, a data marketing company serving the auto aftermarket, heavy duty, and fleet industries announces that it is rolling a significant new marketing platform called Precise Person-Level Marketing.

You can launch targeted display and social advertising campaigns to target audiences at companies showing buying intent based on your leads’ job title, management level, and department.

“We continue to improve our abilities to create and launch high-precision, targeted display and multi-channel campaigns.” said Al Haberstroh, Chief Strategy Officer for MontAd Media. “With our new platform, our clients can now reach the EXACT person they want to communicate with across multiple channels including: digital display, social, e-mail, snail mail and even contact most of them by phone.“

This new capability compliments MontAd Media’s other platforms; ShopReach360, Heavy Duty Connect and Audience ID.

To learn more about Precise Person-Level Marketing, click here or email our team at info@montad.com. You can also see our representatives at the 2023 AAPEX Show in Las Vegas.

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BBB’s Cara Mitchell at the HDAW Show January 2023

Thank you, Cara, for your kind words. This successful campaign between BBB Industries and Auto-Wares highlights the potential for collaboration between vendors and distributors to maximize the effectiveness of marketing dollars. Read more about this campaign>

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For Immediate Release:

MontAd Media Announces New Audiences of Last Mile Fleet Parts Buyers

October 24, 2022: Novi, MI – MontAd Media, a data marketing company serving the auto aftermarket, heavy duty, and fleet industries announces that it now has proprietary audiences of parts buyers for last mile fleet vehicles available for marketing campaigns.

“In meetings and calls with clients the last several months, we’ve been asked about our ability to reach buyers of parts for last mile vehicle fleets. In the past, we built very specific audiences for individual campaigns targeting these buyers that focused on specific vehicle fleets and parts applications. But, we never built a comprehensive audience.” Said Al Haberstroh, Chief Strategy Officer for MontAd Media.

Audience ID is the technology that enables this capability. It allows MontAd’s clients to reach parts buyers and repair professionals in real time based on application specific research regarding repair and parts issues. MontAd Media is the only company serving these industries with this capability.

To learn more about Last Mile Audiences, click here or contact our team at contact@montad.com

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For Immediate Release:

JNPSoft / OptiCat and MontAd Form Strategic Partnership:
Together We Help Customers Sell More Parts

October 14, 2022: Novi, MI and Sandy, Utah – MontAd Media, a data marketing company serving the automotive aftermarket, heavy duty, and fleet industries, has entered into a strategic partnership with JNPSoft/OptiCat, a data management and digital service provider serving the same sectors. This partnership makes it the first of its kind to offer a full-service eCommerce portal with targeted ads designed to increase sales.
 
“Our heavy duty connect platform, powered by Audience ID technology, allows clients to deliver ads to fleet and heavy duty parts buyers based on the application specific online research they do,” said Al Haberstroh, Chief Strategy Officer and owner of MontAd Media. “We are pleased to be partnering with an industry leading company like JNPSoft/OptiCat allowing our customers an even greater reach into the heavy duty aftermarket.”
 
“Our eCatalog and eCommerce solutions help the heavy duty industry in their digital transformation,” said Bryan Thueson, Chief Operating Officer of OptiCat.  “By joining forces with MontAd Media, we are excited to be able to offer our customers the enhanced ability to deliver ads to precise fleet audiences and targeted demographics driving qualified traffic through their online marketplace.” 
 
Both MontAd and JNPSoft/OptiCat share the same vision of delivering innovative products and solutions to meet the ever growing needs of the aftermarket industry. 
 
About MontAd Media
 
MontAd Media is a data marketing company that provides innovative marketing solutions to the Auto Care, fleet and heavy duty industries.  Their solutions include ShopReach360 which focuses on independent repair shops, Audience ID which delivers repair pro audiences based on online research behaviors and Heavy Duty Connect, the only platform that delivers parts buyers researching application specific parts and problems.
 
About JNPSoft and OptiCat
 
JNPSoft and OptiCat teams have been providing industry leading solutions to support Aftermarket auto part suppliers with the mapping, maintenance, development, validation and publishing of their catalog data in industry standards ACES® and PIES™.  These software solutions help automotive, light, medium and heavy duty truck aftermarket suppliers develop, manage and distribute their digital product and catalog information internally and externally.
 
For more information about how heavy duty suppliers and distributors can grow their parts sales using JNPSoft/OptiCat eCatalog and eCommerce solutions, contact JNPSoft/OptiCat at www.jnpopticat.com.
 
Media Contacts:
Al Haberstroh, Chief Strategy Officer
MontAd Media
248-761-0316 or ahaberstroh@montad.com
 
Annette Bardakjian, Marketing Manager
JNPSoft/OptiCat
647.588.9997 or  annette.bardakjian@tecalliance.net

For Immediate Release:

Leading auto aftermarket digital media company and strategic digital marketing company team up to offer enhanced services to the auto aftermarket industry

Novi, MI – April 29, 2022: MontAd Media, the Motor City’s leading automotive aftermarket digital media company, has partnered with ALLign Marketing to further enhance both companies’ marketing and service offerings to auto aftermarket, fleet, and heavy duty clients.

According to Al Haberstroh, CSO and owner of MontAd Media, “Current market conditions are challenging for many companies in the industries we serve. Our Audience ID targeting platform allows our clients the ability to quickly and efficiently connect with light duty, fleet and heavy duty trade pros researching parts and repair issues, right down to application specific issues.

We’ve witnessed a marked increase in online research and online-to-offline behaviors leading to an increased demand for our services. The decision to bring in Anjali Boyer and Monica McKay from ALLign Marketing will further enable us to provide support services to maximize our client’s online presence when it’s needed most.”

Anjali Boyer stated, “We were excited to bring new digital solutions to the AASA Vision Conference this month. I’ve lived in Metro Detroit most of my life and I know this new technology is a game changer for the Auto Aftermarket.”

Haberstroh noted, “The technology that we employ connects people who sell parts to those who need the parts. The result is a marked increase in sales and marketing ROI.”

January 25, 2021 – Motor.com

Tech Expo Goes Viral

by Al Haberstroh, MontAd Media

Auto-Wares, a Midwest parts distributor, is a pioneer in many areas of the aftermarket. Among those is their emphasis on training. For 21 years, Auto-Wares, has produced an event called Tech Expo. From small beginnings, Tech Expo has grown into a valued and much anticipated event. It brings together shop owners, technicians, service writers, collision specialists, fleet operators and parts suppliers to attend training sessions, meet with valuable manufacturer reps, network with peers and have fun. This year Tech Expo is going virtual. The dates are February 11 to 13.

Shop owners, technicians and service advisors from all over the Midwest attend the event every year and take valuable business and technical knowledge back to their workplaces. Last year the event in Grand Rapids, Michigan drew over 3,336 attendees. Going virtual this year means attendees have no travel commitments and times to attend the various sessions are flexible. At past in-person events, seating was limited due to classroom size and those sessions often filled quickly. One of the benefits of this year’s event is there will be no limit on the number of attendees for each session.

Over 100 suppliers will be featured in the virtual exhibit hall and more than 25 notable industry experts will be speaking at the event.

“Going virtual allows more industry professionals to take advantage of valuable training classes” said Todd Leimeinstoll, CEO of Auto-Wares Group of Companies. “Education and training are vital given the rapid rate of change in our industry. Auto-Wares is committed to creating sessions that are engaging, fun and offer real business value to attendees.”

Among the industry experts conducting training sessions are John Thornton, Dave Hobbs, Tim Wackel and Jeff Cowen. John Thornton and Dave Hobbs will focus on repair and diagnostic training. Hobbs, for example, will conduct a session on ADAS diagnostics; a skill that will be essential for technicians in coming years.

“More vehicles with ADAS technology will be driving into repair shop bays as the technologies continue to be offered by OEs,” said Hobbs, Senior field technical trainer and curriculum developer for Delphi Technologies. “These systems will require shop owners, technicians and service writers to become educated so they can service the vehicles and address customer concerns.”

Skilled service writers can make a huge impact on a shop’s business. Tim Wackel and Jeff Cowen are among those who will discuss repair shop and parts store business issues and service advisor sales training. Cowen for example, will teach customer retention techniques for service writers that are invaluable for progressive repair shops.

There will also be sessions for heavy-duty technicians, collision shop operators and more. In all there will be over 40 sessions and each will remain available online for 90 days after the event. Attendees will also have the opportunity to meet with manufacturer representatives and take advantage of show specials. Casino Night and its associated prizes are something attendees look forward to every year. Even though this year’s event is virtual, there will be more than $40,000 in prizes for participants to win.

Prior to this year, only repair professionals in Auto–Wares trade areas in Michigan, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois and Wisconsin could attend Tech Expo. This year, because the event is virtual, it is open to professionals from around the world.

Audience ID finds valuable, in-market audiences using 100% observed deterministic data.

July, 15, 2020

Heavy Duty Parts Digital Campaign Yields Nearly 50% Conversion Rate

Our Challenge:
Efficiently and quickly communicate the advantages of the new parts line to the right trade audiences.

MontAd Media’s Solution:
The client shared with us the vehicle coverage of their parts lines. Since most online research by trade professionals is application and vehicle specific, we were able to find very specific audiences of fleet parts buyers researching the parts our client sells, or problems our client’s parts solve, for the truck lines our client’s brand covered.

An exceptionally high conversion rate confirmed our targeting reached the exact right audience for the client’s heavy duty parts line:

2,605 visits driven to the landing page for a cost of $4.03 per visitor

1,245 converted for a cost of $8.43 per conversion

47.79% of landing page visitors converted

June, 3, 2020

Research for Parts and Technical Issues Strong for Fleet Audiences

The data for May showed strong online activity for content specific to heavy duty and fleet audiences. This seems to be driven by a few trends. One is that we’ve seen consistent increases in content specific to school bus repair. Another is a large increase in the light duty diesel tech category. This audience also includes medium duty vehicles such as Sprinter and other delivery vehicles.  

The heavy duty technician audience is very vehicle specific.

It is built to find technicians and parts buyers researching issues related to brakes, wheel end, rotating electric, and other parts categories for specific heavy duty vehicles. This allows us to segment the audience by professionals researching parts for school bus brands like Blue Bird, Collins, Starcraft, etc.

The light duty diesel audience was built to find technicians researching repair issues for specific diesel engines as well as vehicles.

For light duty diesel audiences, we focus on technicians researching repair issues for specific engines, such as Cummins, rather than only on specific vehicles. This allows to develop application-specific campaigns for our clients that make parts for these engines and vehicles.

The fleet manager audiences were built based on an understanding of the business issues these professionals research.

Our fleet audience was built as a business specific audience. The audience is built by finding managers and owners researching issues like hours of service, ELD, replacement cycles, order to delivery, and other issues unique to fleet management and maintenance.

May 19, 2020

The Data Paints a Picture of the Aftermarket Coming Back

As more states open and miles driven rises, pent up demand for service will lead to rapid growth in parts sales. Consumers and repair pros are spending more time online, creating a great opportunity to grow your brand’s market share with hyper targeted digital marketing campaigns.

MontAd Media’s data shows that technicians researching technical issues has increased to 81% of COVID 19 levels. Techs researching diesel truck issues, like delivery and work vehicles, is up to 92% of COVID 19 levels.

We looked at the data being generated by the trusted industry sources Aftermarket Pulse, IMR and Hedges. This data helps show a way forward for aftermarket supplier companies.

Below are some data highlights with links to the full reports.

• According to Aftermarket Pulse, repair orders are only off 20%, but are up from a low of 40% in early April. Phoenix is not down at all.  The report documents pent up demand as RO data has risen continuously week after week from the low.*

• IMR reports 48.8% shops reported they had very frequently, frequently, or occasionally had problems getting some of the parts needed for vehicles they service. Of those 61% sourced those parts online.**

• Hedges and Company reported that online sales of automotive parts were up 42% the week of 5/03 from pre-COVID 19 levels.***

*aftermarketanalytics.com

**automotiveresearch.com

***hedgescompany.com

May 12, 2020

5 Steps You Can Take to Grow Your Market Share During the COVID-19 Downturn

In an economic downturn, market share becomes more important then ever. History shows that brands that invest in marketing during downturns are the winners when the economy improves. Below are 5 marketing tactics auto parts suppliers can use to take share from competitors. They are affordable and effective.

• Start Marketing in the States as They Re-Open
  Begin campaigns geo-focused on states that are reopening and where you have good distribution.

• Support Your Distribution Partners
  Create campaigns that increase awareness of your brand with shops in the trade zones around your distribution partners. Use their logos and leverage their brand equity with the trade to grow preference for your brand.

• Get Ahead of of Your Competitors
  Many of your competitors have a corporate mandate to cut or eliminate marketing during this crisis. This gives you a unique opportunity to steal share from these competitors.

• Take Advantage of Surplus Digital Ad Inventory
  Industries like travel and hospitality have stopped marketing which has opened up a great deal of online ad inventory. This allows for unprecedented bonus impressions. The repair trade is online and you can reach them more efficiently then ever.

• Consider Marketing to Consumers
  If you manufacture a parts category that’s easy for consumers to understand like brakes, shocks, belts, exhaust etc., consider testing campaigns to niche consumer audiences. If you narrow the consumer audience down to just those who really care about the parts in their vehicles AND are in-market for the parts you sell, you wind up with a very small but very valuable segment of consumers. This makes marketing to them efficient and affordable.

MontAd Media…

ShopReach360

• Over 150,000 shops targetable at IP level
• Over 300,000 repair professionals targetable at device ID level

Audience ID

• Hyper targeted consumers in-market for parts and service
• Niche trade audiences of repair pros researching the problems your parts help solve

Heavy Duty Connect

• Efficiently reach heavy duty parts buyers and heavy and medium duty fleet managers

Weekly Trends: Heavy Duty Parts and School Bus Brakes Audiences

Tuesday, May 5, 2020 – Our focus this week is on heavy duty parts. We observed 3 categories that we monitor for trucks category 6 & up. We’re pleased to say their audience research and demand activity levels have just about reached pre-Covid averages. There was a significant spike in the school bus brakes segment that began the week of 4/19.

Weekly Trends: A Look at Performance Parts and Truck Brakes DIY Audiences

Tuesday, Apr 28, 2020 – This week we focused on the data for the performance categories Brakes, Exhaust, and Shocks / Suspension, as well as the Truck Brakes DIY audiences.

In both the performance and general categories we monitor, Shocks outperformed and is now above the pre-Covid 19 averages.

Chassis DIFM and Tire Replacement categories have also pulled ahead of the pre-Covid average, but only Chassis has surpassed the average from April 2019.

Weekly Trends: Parts & Service Online Research

Thursday, Apr 23, 2020 – Last week we published data that showed how the coronavirus has impacted online research of consumer parts and services. This week’s update shows another healthy surge in activity and a return to pre-Covid 19 levels for many categories. Some are even surpassing them.

Since April is a big car-care month, we also analyzed this year’s data vs. the average numbers from the data we collected last April. Clearly, the current crisis has had major impact, but many categories are rebounding, even compared to last year’s numbers.

Put the Power of Real-Time Data to Work for Your Brand

Auto Aftermarketing Analysis: Online Research for Auto Parts and Service Trending Up

Thursday, Apr 16, 2020 – The initial impact of the coronavirus crisis on online research for parts and services was significant. This week’s analysis shows that, despite the crisis, there is a significant upward trend in research from a low point the week of 3/15.

Our analysis shows that while repair professionals may be spending less time overall researching technical repair issues, they’re spending more time online consuming news and general content.

Inevitably, there will be increased demand that will need to be met when the stay at home orders are lifted. Now is the time to start marketing to maximize this opportunity.

There is valuable opportunity right now for manufacturers to engage repair pros and gain critical brand awareness more efficiently.

Increased time spent online leads to higher quality ad inventory for repair pro audiences. Technicians and shop owners are spending more time online just as many industries are limiting digital ad spend. This means more impact from marketing spend.

For immediate release:

MontAd Media Appoints Jeff Peake as Director of Analytic Services

Wixom, MI, Wednesday, Nov 20, 2019 – MontAd Media, a data marketing and media company serving the auto care industry, has appointed Jeff Peake to a new position: Director of Analytic Services.

Jeff comes to MontAd Media with over 20 years experience bringing value to businesses in many industries including automotive. He has extensive expertise in marketing technology and enterprise analytics & analysis. Before joining MontAd Media, Jeff was the co-founder of Abundance Studios. Abundance created a data-driven, digital-shopper engagement platform to help marketers and advertising agencies make fact-based business decisions, deliver real-time personalized web site experiences, improve lead generation, and increase sales performance.

“Jeff has worked with us in the past as a consultant on several projects. He was also instrumental in the development of our Audience ID platform. Now, with the addition of Jeff to our team, we are able to offer more advanced analytic services to our clients. This gives us the ability to show clients a full picture of the true business value of their marketing programs,” said Al Haberstroh, Chief Strategy Officer of MontAd Media.

“Marketing attribution and access to accurate data that ties marketing performance to business outcomes is a pain point for many of our clients,” said Haberstroh.  “Our goals are to bring advanced targeting technologies to the auto aftermarket along with analytic services that enable companies to achieve the most value from their marketing programs.”

Jeff will begin working with several MontAd Media clients immediately as the company expands their marketing services to include marketing intelligence, advanced analytics, attribution analysis and reporting.

For more information contact Al Haberstroh at MontAd Media: ahaberstroh@montad.com

EXTEND GROUP Partners with MontAd Media to Enhance Performance of eCommerce Parts Sales

WIXOM MI, Wednesday, October 30, 2019 –  EXTEND GROUP has built a successful business offering a broad range of services to auto care companies.  Those services include website and mobile app development, social media management, content marketing, email marketing and brand development. The company also offers eCommerce services enabling companies to quickly and profitably sell their products on Amazon, eBay, and Wal-Mart.

MontAd Media is a data marketing company serving the auto care industry.   It delivers hyper targeted media solutions driven by advanced data intelligence. The company’s Audience ID platform enables digital display ads to be delivered to consumers in-market for automotive parts and services as well as to niche trade audiences.

“MontAd Media’s Audience ID technology is the perfect fit to help accelerate sales of our clients’ eCommerce product offerings”, said Shawn Collins, Founder and CEO of EXTEND GROUP. “Audience ID gives us the ability to efficiently deliver ads to consumers as they research auto parts. It catches them at a crucial point in their purchase journey and fits well with our content and search engine marketing tactics”.

“Our technology delivers clear benefits to EXTEND GROUP’ clients”, said Al Haberstroh, Chief Strategy Officer and owner of MontAd Media.  “Patented artificial intelligence allows us to understand purchase intent so we’re delivering ads to the most valuable audiences for clients selling parts and services to consumers. It is a perfect fit for EXTEND GROUP and their innovative approach to auto parts eCommerce.”

Audience ID audiences are all customized and aligned to the precise parts marketed or to the business goals of the client. “If a company wants to market performance brakes or European specific brakes we’ll deliver those exact audiences, not a general audience looking for brakes. This makes the ad spend much more efficient”, said Haberstroh.

The two companies will begin working together on several projects immediately and expect to expand their services as the industry continues to embrace eCommerce and changing consumer preferences and expectations.

To learn more about EXTEND GROUP visit: theextendgroup.com

To learn more about MontAd Media and Audience ID visit: autoaftermarketing.com

For more information contact:  Shawn Collins at EXTEND GROUP shawn.collins@theextendgroup.com or Al Haberstroh at MontAd Media: ahaberstroh@montad.com