Houston Radio To Lose One of Its Most Reliable Advertisers

[michaelshiloh]

A company spokesman says Columbus, GA-based Bill Heard Enterprises Inc. with 13 dealerships nationwide, will close all its Chevy sales operations TODAY (Sept. 24)

A trade magazine says the company can't get the financing it needs to stay in business.

The company doubts there will be a buyer because "nobody has the guts to have a big dealership anymore."

Bill Heard traces its roots to 1919, just 11 years after Henry Ford first produced the Model T automobile.

 

[radioguyintexas]

I just heard (LOL) this minutes ago on the 5pm news. According to the story, Heard owns 14 dealerships across the country, and is closing all of them.

 

[michaelshiloh]

They closed their Scottsdale Arizona dealership September 12th. You know things are bad if you can't sell enough cars in Scottsdale.

 

[stan]

They are trying to sell Chevys. That's a tough sell.

 

[radioguyintexas]

But.....Buick's and Senior Citizen's go together like peanut butter and jelly...

 

[12 In a Row]

To date close to 600,000 jobs lost this year.
A dealership in business for almost a hundred years goes under. More folks on the unemployment line.

Trickle this one down to those who printed the monthly flyers, to newspapers, TV, internet, radio.
All spells, BAD!

 

[Mediafrog+]

I suspect that much, if not most of Bill Heard's problems were similar to the sub-prime mortgage mess. Heard's business model has long seemed to target the "no money" crowd with wheeling and dealing to people who really can't afford what they're buying. This may be why GMAC cut off its relationship with the Heard dealerships a few weeks ago. With that credit gravy train gone, along with the general tightening of lending standards, the business imploded.

Of course, a lot of car dealerships work that way, but the Heard outlets seemed particularly over the top.

All that aside, Heard pumped a lot of ad dollars into local broadcasters. The ailing auto industry will have a domino effect on station revenues, as car/truck advertising is a huge slice of any broadcasters income.

 

[TexasTuner]

I suspect that much, if not most of Bill Heard's problems were similar to the sub-prime mortgage mess. Heard's business model has long seemed to target the "no money" crowd with wheeling and dealing to people who really can't afford what they're buying. This may be why GMAC cut off its relationship with the Heard dealerships a few weeks ago. With that credit gravy train gone, along with the general tightening of lending standards, the business imploded.

Of course, a lot of car dealerships work that way, but the Heard outlets seemed particularly over the top.

All that aside, Heard pumped a lot of ad dollars into local broadcasters. The ailing auto industry will have a domino effect on station revenues, as car/truck advertising is a huge slice of any broadcasters income.

He also had a lot of problems with high pressure sales tactics, customer complaints, etc. Lots of pending lawsuits and case histories with the BBB in Houston. That, and everything else, has evidently caught up with him.

Never the less, one never wants to see someone give up the ship...over 600 folks got their walking papers yesterday.

 

[snoman]

It also has a lot to do with people not buying trucks and SUV's. I'd be willing to bet that was a majority of their business. None the less, it just shows how rotten this economy is now and how people need to wake up and see what's happening. It is very sad, and I just have a horrible feeling we are going to see a lot of stories like this at least until the first of the new year, if not into the new year.

 

[radioguyintexas]

Well, at least locally, there was a story on the news this evening that Bill Heard Chevy was still operating, but that it would be under a different name - but no idea what the new name/owner of that location is.

Regardless, this is an example of how we are part of a global economy, with crude as well as the situation involving mortgages affecting every fiber of our daily lives.

However, there may be some ad dollars to be gotten from whomever the new owner(s) of what is the former Bill Heard Chevy.

 

[kendro]

They lost Chevrolet. Can't send out false recall notices and remain on the stocking dealer list.
They have also lost a $50 million suit to the State of Georgia and another one running up the pole from the State of Arizona.

Don't forget the 3500+ jobs that ultimately pay for the spots.

 

[purpledevil]

Say what you want about the Heard family and the dealerships, the employees have been treated well up until this point. Suffice it to say, when you hear that your job is gone at the end of the week, on Wednesday it makes you a bit upset at first, but when one door closes another one opens.


Bill Heard Chevrolet in Sugar Land will continue to operate without interruption. Ed Heard has bought it, and it will assume a new name soon. Landmark Chevrolet closed its doors yesterday for good. GMAC picked up the keys to all the cars on Wednesday and shut down the Parts Department as well. (Damn, I needed a power window motor for my truck ;D)

Keep an eye on E-Bay for the big "Landmark Chevrolet, World's #1 Selling Chevrolet Dealer" sign. It was "removed" by one of the employees yesterday, as well as other novelties such as bar stools, caps, shirts, etc.

 

[walter1]

Both dealerships will survive just under different ownership. If you read the whole story GMAC pulled their financing from Heard. Hard to sell GM products when they won't give you the money to operate. From what I've heard the issue ran far deeper than sales. Nuff said.

 

[upstate29651]

...and here I was thinking y'all were talking about "Matress Mac"! God he grates on the nerves! Him & the Hilton furniture people!

G

 

[aunti-terrestrial]

Say what you will about Matress Mack, but we went in on a recent Saturday morning to look for a coffee table. He was behind the front desk, helping a little old lady file her order and calling down to the pickup bay to make sure they had it ready. Between the tennis, derby, and many other events and scholarships he sponsors, he hasn't forgotten how to work a busy shift and he's not bullsh*tting when he talks about customer service. I actually admire him quite a bit.

 

[FilioScotia]

Another Mattress Mac Story

Yes his commercials do start to grate on you after a while, but this guy believes in customer service like nobody I've ever encountered.

One Saturday last year, my wife and I decided to buy two new twin beds for our kids. We picked out the beds we wanted on the Gallery Furniture website, and at 4pm I called the Gallery phone sales office to make my order. Two twin mattresses, two box springs and two bed frames. Bottom of the line stuff. Nothing fancy.

The salesgirl asked if I wanted it delivered. I figured that at 4pm on Saturday it would take till the following week to get it delivered, but she said they could deliver that day -- as late as midnight if need be.

So for a 75 dollar delivery fee, a Gallery Furniture truck was in my driveway at 7:30 -- three and a half hours after I bought the stuff over the phone -- ON SATURDAY NIGHT -- and two delivery guys were putting the beds and frames together in the bedrooms. They were gone by 8pm and we had two new beds. They even took the old beds. I'm still flabbergasted by that experience.

Say what you want to about Mattress Mac, and how brash and brassy he seems in his commercials, but that kind of same day service is why he's kicking all the other furniture stores' collective butts seven ways from Sunday.

 

[adguy]

Both dealerships will survive just under different ownership. If you read the whole story GMAC pulled their financing from Heard. Hard to sell GM products when they won't give you the money to operate. From what I've heard the issue ran far deeper than sales. Nuff said.

You've got to wonder what brilliant radio or TV GSM is going to take the account exec to task on how he/she plans on replacing THAT lost revenue.

 

[its time w (your name)]

I agree about Mattress Mac. He's the best. If you're doing a remote at Gallery, he treats you well, also. I wish him even more success.

 

[FilioScotia]

You've got to wonder what brilliant radio or TV GSM is going to take the account exec to task on how he/she plans on replacing THAT lost revenue.

With the possible exceptions of Channels 51 and 55, no TV station manager is going to lose any sleep over losing the income from just one ad account. Even a hefty account like a big car dealership.

No one likes to lose large accounts, but it won't have much impact on the annual P&L statement at most Houston area stations, including those who speak Espagnol.

Losing Heard Chevrolet was just a momentary blip on their sales radar screen, and I'm betting they already have new accounts signed up to take its place.

 

[adguy]

With the possible exceptions of Channels 51 and 55, no TV station manager is going to lose any sleep over losing the income from just one ad account. Even a hefty account like a big car dealership.

No one likes to lose large accounts, but it won't have much impact on the annual P&L statement at most Houston area stations, including those who speak Espagnol.

Losing Heard Chevrolet was just a momentary blip on their sales radar screen, and I'm betting they already have new accounts signed up to take its place.

I guess you missed the slight sarcasm. I was in sales/mgt for many years and experienced several bonehead GM's, GSM's and LSM's that would never understand the dynamics and circular motion of ad sales and REALLY take AE's to task over losing an account that went under or left the medium or some other reason beyond the station's control. In today's environment, stations are down in sales year-to-year big time because of the economy. It's no secret. Some stations in this market are running wide open going into the 4th quarter with an election. That's unprecidented. There have never been more inexperienced and inadequet station managers running the business today with grossly inexperienced employees.

Your right, not one account will affect the P&L statement, but you can bet your a#@ that the collective of many accounts, the economy and the inadequet talent will make the P&L look like a steep ski slope week-to-week and month-to-month. You'll see some managers let loose, unfairly, on their AE's.