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booboo

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Lilly, I'd like to agree with you, and do appreciate all your enthusiasm and support but vendors shouldn't, and shouldn't have to, be wooed into partnership this way. It is about business and profitability, not about a street corner demo event outside your window. It could be said that if your theory is correct, and has merit, it actually reflects quite poorly on Elio Motor's marketing decisions and business acumen. Just saying.....
Ever watched Snark Tank ? They always demonstrate the product.
 

Rob Croson

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I've had the same thought. They already have commitments from suppliers that they will invest nearly $100M in infrastructure required to build Elio parts. The biggest is, I believe, something like $50M from Linamar for the engine plant. These commitments are included in the latest SEC release. This is where the $100M increase in funds required came from. Previous SEC filings did not include the supplier commitment amounts, but the latest does. So it wasn't really an increase in requirements, just a restatement of them.
 

Johnny Acree

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I think in this case, the suppliers are no different from us. We have "invested" in EM, either in stock or a reservation. The suppliers have "invested" time, resources and money.
When the Elio is on display we want to see it. They are no different, They want to see what they are workin on. They can't close the factory, so every body can go see it. So, they ask EM, If the Elio is in the area please stop by. Our people want to see what they are workin on.
EM is not in the position to say no. EM is not negotiating from a position of power. So they make it happen. and we benefit!
 

Lil4X

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It's true, the marketing of the Elio shifted away from buyers to potential investor/suppliers in the past year, but the same marketing tactics still apply. Fortunately, in this market, many of the same things that attract an individual buyer will bring in the large investors as well. Rather than focusing shows strictly on the features, advantages, and benefits of the vehicle, the company needs to speak to the opportunity it represents for a major investor to get onboard at this stage. Here you are selling "stock", rather than the hardware - think of it as a portfolio as much as a sales brochure. We need to show the potential for ROI as well as the solid base that has been built by the project thus far for putting the concept on the street in large numbers.

Consumer shows are fine, but maybe EM should spend more time (and $) addressing the bigger picture. I haven't done the specific research, but maybe a presence at a couple of industrial trade shows would be warranted. Get in front of the major suppliers, as they are doing with other outreaches. Show not just the product, but the engineering that has gone into it. The E-series are approaching maturity, and other than a few cosmetic changes, the product has reached the manufacturing stage. Going to a stamped steel monocoque body, along with the completion of the Elio engine, and dozens of "manufacturing" tweaks complete, represents a serious approach to the market, not some overnight get-rich-quick scheme. The subtext should be, "This is going to happen, get on board now!" Lay out the path to get from gee-whiz toy to manufacturable product.

Trade shows, and even consumer shows have run surveys for years - and they all say that 95% of delegates respond that they attend these shows to see new products and new technologies. OK, we'd expect that, but there is a finer point to be put on this feedback. Large companies are looking for a way to improve their bottom line. If they can do it by cutting costs, like buying more efficient machine tools and moving toward automation, that's fine, but in order to spread their market base, they have to seek out new applications for their products in new markets. That can bring in far more business than retooling or building overseas markets. This can happen almost overnight - if they back the right horse.

Here's an opportunity for small to medium sized specialty companies to get involved in a whole new market without buying GM stock. It's not just the "big 3" anymore, it's a far more complex network of companies that contribute to the manufacture of this new concept in personal transportation. By seeking out those organizations willing to make a commitment to the US auto industry, EM is doing all the right things at the boardroom level, but now they need to cast a wider net. Bringing in prestigious suppliers and consultants is step one. Now they need to prove they can actually put this vehicle on the street in quantity. It's one thing to build a handful of E-series vehicles for testing, now the big hurdle seems to be convincing a number of major investors that production can begin at the end of the year, and working out the growth plan to bring first one line then two lines on stream as quickly as possible.

Once the general public can see an Elio or two every day on the way to work, the wheels will begin to turn: "Why am I STILL driving this gas hog? That thing even looks like a lot of fun!" From a production rate of a few hundred units a month, the test will be scaling up to meet the market demand. Many innovative and otherwise successful products simply died or were forced to sell when they couldn't meet the initial market growth with a widely-available consumer product. It's death by success . . .and it's going to be a shock trying to meet this kind of explosive growth with a business plan that will support it. While it's probably a year or so away, we're getting to the point we need to begin thinking in larger terms.

At Elio's price point, the vehicle is on the cusp of being an impulse item for a LOT of buyers. You're down in the price range of utility motorcycles and aluminum skiffs with a small outboard. 4-Wheeler side by sides are hot sellers at almost double the cost of an Elio, and they're hot only a few months of the year, and then only as a weekend vehicle. There are plenty of people in my neighborhood driving them on the street - just for fun. What about something you drive to work five days a week, saving a lot of fuel, with a new car warranty - and have fun while doing it? THEN the commercial auto shows and mall exhibits will become far more effective in filling in a larger market. I'm sure the powers that be at EM are considering this, but maybe it's time to figure out how to get there from here. Then we need to tell that story.
 

Watashiwah

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It's true, the marketing of the Elio shifted away from buyers to potential investor/suppliers in the past year, but the same marketing tactics still apply. Fortunately, in this market, many of the same things that attract an individual buyer will bring in the large investors as well. Rather than focusing shows strictly on the features, advantages, and benefits of the vehicle, the company needs to speak to the opportunity it represents for a major investor to get onboard at this stage. Here you are selling "stock", rather than the hardware - think of it as a portfolio as much as a sales brochure. We need to show the potential for ROI as well as the solid base that has been built by the project thus far for putting the concept on the street in large numbers.

Consumer shows are fine, but maybe EM should spend more time (and $) addressing the bigger picture. I haven't done the specific research, but maybe a presence at a couple of industrial trade shows would be warranted. Get in front of the major suppliers, as they are doing with other outreaches. Show not just the product, but the engineering that has gone into it. The E-series are approaching maturity, and other than a few cosmetic changes, the product has reached the manufacturing stage. Going to a stamped steel monocoque body, along with the completion of the Elio engine, and dozens of "manufacturing" tweaks complete, represents a serious approach to the market, not some overnight get-rich-quick scheme. The subtext should be, "This is going to happen, get on board now!" Lay out the path to get from gee-whiz toy to manufacturable product.

Trade shows, and even consumer shows have run surveys for years - and they all say that 95% of delegates respond that they attend these shows to see new products and new technologies. OK, we'd expect that, but there is a finer point to be put on this feedback. Large companies are looking for a way to improve their bottom line. If they can do it by cutting costs, like buying more efficient machine tools and moving toward automation, that's fine, but in order to spread their market base, they have to seek out new applications for their products in new markets. That can bring in far more business than retooling or building overseas markets. This can happen almost overnight - if they back the right horse.

Here's an opportunity for small to medium sized specialty companies to get involved in a whole new market without buying GM stock. It's not just the "big 3" anymore, it's a far more complex network of companies that contribute to the manufacture of this new concept in personal transportation. By seeking out those organizations willing to make a commitment to the US auto industry, EM is doing all the right things at the boardroom level, but now they need to cast a wider net. Bringing in prestigious suppliers and consultants is step one. Now they need to prove they can actually put this vehicle on the street in quantity. It's one thing to build a handful of E-series vehicles for testing, now the big hurdle seems to be convincing a number of major investors that production can begin at the end of the year, and working out the growth plan to bring first one line then two lines on stream as quickly as possible.

Once the general public can see an Elio or two every day on the way to work, the wheels will begin to turn: "Why am I STILL driving this gas hog? That thing even looks like a lot of fun!" From a production rate of a few hundred units a month, the test will be scaling up to meet the market demand. Many innovative and otherwise successful products simply died or were forced to sell when they couldn't meet the initial market growth with a widely-available consumer product. It's death by success . . .and it's going to be a shock trying to meet this kind of explosive growth with a business plan that will support it. While it's probably a year or so away, we're getting to the point we need to begin thinking in larger terms.

At Elio's price point, the vehicle is on the cusp of being an impulse item for a LOT of buyers. You're down in the price range of utility motorcycles and aluminum skiffs with a small outboard. 4-Wheeler side by sides are hot sellers at almost double the cost of an Elio, and they're hot only a few months of the year, and then only as a weekend vehicle. There are plenty of people in my neighborhood driving them on the street - just for fun. What about something you drive to work five days a week, saving a lot of fuel, with a new car warranty - and have fun while doing it? THEN the commercial auto shows and mall exhibits will become far more effective in filling in a larger market. I'm sure the powers that be at EM are considering this, but maybe it's time to figure out how to get there from here. Then we need to tell that story.


Spot on!!! Where were you three or four years ago??? If you were with Paul then you wouldn't be laid off today!!! Thanks, I hope your advice is listened to and it's not too late.
 
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