Social Media Vital to Automotive Marketing Success

Social Media - Especially Online Forums - Plays Vital Role in Automotive Aftermarket Success, Says PostRelease`s Tyler Tanaka at SEMA`s Business Technology Symposium

Tanaka to Moderate Two Panels on How Automotive Aftermarket Companies Can Use
Social Media to Increase Sales and Build Their Businesses
PASADENA, Calif.--(Business Wire)--
Automotive digital marketing expert Tyler Tanaka, account director for
PostRelease (www.PostRelease.com), is bringing his advocacy for online forums to
automotive aftermarket companies at the Specialty Equipment Marketing
Association (SEMA) Business Technology Symposium, held today at the Pasadena
Convention Center. 

Tanaka will moderate a breakout session entitled Reaching Your Customers on
Forums and Blogs - the first SEMA session ever to zero in on online forums - and
the closing general session, Social Media for Your Business. 

"I`m particularly excited about the session focusing on forums as one of the
best ways to reach targeted audiences online," said Tanaka. "Online forums are
the original social media. Forums contain what is arguably the most concentrated
audience of influential brand advocates and word-of-mouth powerhouses you can
find. Companies are missing a huge opportunity to increase sales and build
loyalty if they`re not actively engaged in online forums." 

Tanaka is Chair-Elect of SEMA`s Street Performance Council, through which he
helps educate others with programs like the council`s Business Technology
Conference. Tanaka has been an active participant in the automotive aftermarket
for more than 20 years, as an enthusiast and a marketing specialist. He has
pioneered the use of social media in helping brands form direct connections with
their customers online. 

In Reaching Your Customers on Forums and Blogs, Tanaka will lead a discussion
among Mike Martinez from izmocars, Stewart Lawson from VerticalScope and Adrian
Harris from Internet Brands, about how businesses can take advantage of forums
and blogs to connect with their audiences. 

In Social Media for Your Business, Tanaka will lead a discussion among Bryan
Elliott of SoCal Action Sports Network, Mark Davidson of Shift+One Media and
Mike Martinez of izmocars, on the do`s and don`ts of using Facebook, Twitter and
YouTube to multiply company sales. Perhaps more important, they`ll cover how to
avoid social media disasters that can jeopardize a company`s reputation. 

PostRelease enables companies to insert clearly labeled sponsored posts as
relevant content into targeted online forum discussions. PostRelease began
testing its platform in 2008 by addressing a single category - automotive
forums. The company has executed more than 200 campaigns for companies such as
eBay Motors, Pioneer Electronics, Toyota/Scion, Nitto Tire North America,
American Tire Distributors and more. 

About PostRelease

PostRelease (www.PostRelease.com) is the first effective solution for online
forum advertising and influencing word-of-mouth forum discussions. It enables
companies to insert sponsored posts into targeted online forum discussions.
PostRelease empowers marketers to become part of the conversation in forums, at
a time when opinions are being formed and purchase decisions are being made.
PostRelease is a spin-off of Cie Digital Labs, and is based in Long Beach,
Calif.