Bad Industry News Reveals An Interesting Sales Strategy

With increasingly bad economic news citing slower and slower housing starts, growing unemployment rates, falling consumer confidence numbers and fears about another round of bank and finance company defaults, an interesting strategy is being revealed that many competitive and innovative homebuilders and developers may want to consider.

Nancy Keates of The Wall Street Journal recently reported on her experience in building a new home while making some interesting observations that are a result of the woes of the economy in general and homebuilding industry specifically.

While the article begins by playing on buyers’ perceptions that it is currently cheaper to buy an existing home than construct a new one, for those consumers that conclude a home built to their specifications is superior to one that they might settle on based on cost, there hasn’t been a better time to build new than now.

Chrysler’s Gas Price Lock: Strategy for Other Businesses?

Some companies are actively searching for the silver lining in depressing economic news and turning American consumer’s frustrations and doubts into an effective marketing campaign. Can other industries take a page from Chrysler’s game book and brew sweet lemonade from sour lemons?

Beginning today and lasting until June 2nd, Chrysler is promoting their newest incentive — Let’s Refuel America, a rather experimental strategy to get you to purchase one of their new automobiles, SUVs, crossovers or trucks.

Under this plan, Chrysler guarantees the price you’ll pay for a gallon of gas at $2.99. Anything above that, they pay for it (within limits and terms, of course). The price guarantee covers an annual allotment of gallons based on 12,000 miles divided by the average mileage per gallon of the vehicle purchased. Thus, as the price of gas increases, so do your savings.