Hard-Hit Florida Community Rocks Around the Clock—in Chairs at Fort Myers Toyota for a New Car

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

MEDIA CONTACT:
Pamela Templeton or Maria Cid
marketing@fmtoyota.com
(239) 938-2800

SUMMARY:

• When times get tough, the tough get...creative. That’s how Fort Myers Toyota responded to the economic downturn that has rocked central Florida.

Fort Myers, FLORIDA--March 4th, 2010--Fort Myers Toyota Rocks Around the Clock in Rocking Chairs for its ROCK For Charity, ROLL with a Ride (tm) Rocking Chair Marathon.

WHO: Fort Myers Toyota along with 14 Health & Human Service Charities, 28 Rockers, and numerous Broadcast Media Partners held the dealership’s first “Rock for Charity, Roll with a Ride” rocking chair marathon that aimed to raise awareness and funds for 14 local charities, while also generating publicity for the dealership. When Pamela Templeton kicked off the promotion in September, little did she know the extent to which the event would achieve its objectives.

WHAT: “It was an amazing thing,” says Templeton. “It definitely drew a crowd to the dealership. Once people figured out what was going on, they became invested in it. In the end, six people actually made it the full 72 hours, which is just unheard of for something like this. I’m convinced the involvement of the charities made the difference. The contestants’ grit and determination were very humbling.”

Fort Myers Toyota offered up a new Matrix to the rocker who survived to the end and a new Sienna to the charity the rocker represented. Since six contestants went the distance, the winner had to be decided by blind drawing. Richard Irvin, representing Good Wheels (which provides special-needs transportation to the elderly, disabled, and less-fortunate in Lee, Hendry, and Glades counties), prevailed.

In truth, everyone involved came away a winner. After the marathon, Fort Myers Toyota orchestrated an online auction of the rocking chairs with all proceeds going to the charities. Each of the contestants received a $500 voucher toward the purchase of a vehicle at the dealership. And  Fort Myers Toyota raised its profile within the community. In the long run, that could translate into sales.

WHEN: Began in September 2009 with an Idea, October the Rocking Chair Event, and continued momentum through to February 2010 with the culmination of the online auction for the Rocking chairs.

WHY: “This area has been very hard hit,” says Pamela Templeton, co-owner of Fort Myers Toyota. “It’s been especially difficult for the health and human services charities that are so much in need. We’ve always prided ourselves on being a community-oriented dealership. So we decided to step forward and do something to help.”  

“There’s nothing like a win-win for everybody,” says Templeton. “We always try to do our best for our community. Without our community where would we be?”

WHERE: Fort Myers Toyota hosted the marathon over a weekend in October, clearing space on their showroom floor for the 28 rocking chairs. A local radio station issued reports via a live remote. And Jarrod Kilway, Fort Myers Toyota’s eCommerce sales, helped set up a Web cam to feed a live broadcast on the dealership’s Web site. Dealership employees used social media tools such as Facebook and Twitter to post hourly updates. Traffic to www.fmtoyota.com increased more than 70 percent, and the average length of each visit jumped up by a full minute. Upwards of 2,000 people viewed the Web cast. Words of encouragement poured in from followers as far away as England.

The initial concept for the promotion came from Vice President Bobby Yoxall, who had staged rocking chair marathons at other dealerships prior to coming to Fort Myers. Templeton added the charity angle, convincing the service organizations to each sponsor two rocking chairs and, in turn, hire local artists to decorate them, or decorate the chairs themselves.

HOW: Templeton enlisted Radio Media partner Meridian Broadcasting to administer the competition. They sorted through hundreds of contestant applications submitted via a special Web site, randomly selected the 28 finalists who would set out to keep the 28 chairs in motion for 72 hours non-stop (except for 15-minute breaks every four hours) and provided judges to monitor the action throughout. Templeton also worked with local newspaper and television partners to help get the word out—before, during and after the big event.

Credit "TOYOTA TODAY MAGAZINE"

About Fort Myers Toyota:
Fort Myers Toyota has been serving Lee County since 1988. They are located at 2555 Colonial Boulevard on the Big Corner of Colonial and Fowler, just west of I-75 exit 136 West. The strong and committed sales staff have many years of experience satisfying our customers’ needs. Ft. Myers Toyota has a large inventory of new and pre owned Toyota’s in South West Florida, including Toyota Camry, Corolla, Prius, Hybrid, Tundra, Tacoma, Sienna, Highlander, Toyota Venza, Avalon, Yaris, Sequioa, Matrix and Scion. To browse their inventory online, request more information about vehicles, set up a test drive or inquire about financing, visit their website at www.FMToyota.com or call 888-802-9401. Fort Myers Toyota is your Sam’s Club, BJ’s, AAA, and AARP Auto Buying Program Dealer.
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