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Here's one way to spread the haulage message

12th October 1973
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Page 22, 12th October 1973 — Here's one way to spread the haulage message
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Which of the following most accurately describes the problem?

American inthistry' s campaign explained in London

by CM reporter • By persuading 52 US vehicle and equipment manufacturers that a healthy road freight industry is good business for them too, American hauliers have obtained massive and convincing publicity support from them.

The way in which this tie-up between manufacturers and operators has been achieved was explained on Monday by Mr Henry Liebschutz, executive secretary of the ATA Foundation, at a private reception in London arranged jointly by the Road Haulage Association, York Trailer Co Ltd and Commercial Motor.

He also produced many examples of the type of advertising which, on TV and radio as well as in national news and business magazinese, uses the names of famous industrial concerns to promote the image of road goods transport.

This is not a new campaign; it has been going on for 20 years now, but it has taken many years for the total number of ATA Foundation members — who are solely suppliers of vehicles and equipment, not operators — to reach 52. The list now includes every American truck manufacturer, the major component suppliers and such big industrial concerns as the Aluminum Company of America and Monsanto.

Briefly, the American Trucking Associations (ATA) provide the secretariat for the ATA Foundation, whose staff encourages industry participation and coordinates the publicity; while the suppliers "covenant" to provide certain funds annually which they then use on advertising through their own agents, over their own name and in their own publicity style. But it is a basic tenet of the scheme that (unlike their normal product advertising to the transport industry, which continues separately) Foundation ads "should be informational, planned for the purpose of selling the trucking industry to the general public or to the special publics. Product 'self is not regarded as proper within ATA Foundation ads."

Right approach

This approach is considered to be of key importance by York Trailer Co, which would like to see a similar scheme mounted in Britain. York's director of marketing, Mr Jeff Harrison, said on Monday that it was unrealistic to think that manufacturing companies would donate money to an SMMT or other central fund for promoting road transport; but he hoped they might lend financial support if they could present the advertising in their own name and style.

The ineffectiveness of "corporate" campaigning was emphasized by Mr Liebschutz, who said the American railroad companies had adopted this method with very poor results.

Immediately after the luncheon on Monday, Mr Liebschutz accompanied York Trailer executives to the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders headquarters, where he again outlined the method of effectiveness of the ATA Foundation. SMMT deputy director, Mr David Gent, showed considerable interest in the way the American scheme was run, I understand.

Mr Harrison. of York, repeated his company's suggestion that the SMMT

should consider setting up a similar body in Britain.

Large sums

The minimum annual "grant" -the word the Americans use — which entitles a vehicle or component supplier to ATA Foundation membership is $15,000— over £5000; most are in the $25,000 to $ 50,000 bracket, and some are considerably higher.

The constitutional aims of the Foundation are declared to be: "To foster and promote more comprehensive public understanding of the trucking industry, its objectives and problems; to demonstrate the broad contribution of truck transport ' to the progress of America and to the comfort. happiness and economic welfare of individual American citizens; and to emphasize its inter-relationship with, and essentiality to, other great American industries in the development and defense of the nation."

Also — very topically from a UK point of view — the Foundation explains that major objectives include promoting the trucking industry as a "highway partner" of the motorist . . . "our common interest in safety, courtesy on the roads, the importance of adequate highways and highway use in the efficient transport of people and property. ..".

The importance which the ATA places on the Foundation may be judged from the fact that the Foundation's national secretary is the ATA's president, Mr William A. Bresnahan.

This week Mr Liebschutz explained how the Foundation was started in 1953, when failure to deal with wartime neglect had left the US highway system totally inadequate for trunk haulage. The ATA arranged a meeting with truck and c.ommponent manufacturers, the ATA president appealed for support in a better-roads campaign, and the Foundation was born — with a big launching cheque. The aim: "Total market development."

The Foundation was an immediate success, said Mr Liebschutz, and now its own budget was running at $120,000 a year.

Although the campaign started with roads — and they still attract publicity — the Foundation advertisements cover many subjects. For instance, at present both the ATA and the Foundation are spending a lot of money on telling youngsters about the career opportunities in the trucking industry, a campaign made more urgent by a fast-developing shortage of middle and lower management in road haulage.

Attracting youth

This latest campaign, directed particularly at students, is using advertisements in newspapers, magazines and on television, plus films and live speakers. Because the airlines and even the railways still have a certain glamour attraction which road transport lacks in the USA (as here), the campaign stresses, for example, that modern trucking companies use more advanced electronic equipment even than airlines.

A recent double-page advertisement in a glossy US business magazine showed a young boy reading, alongside a bold head

line: "Is your son smart enough to end up in the trucking business?" It curried the manufacturing company's name, plus an ATA Foundation logo — the latter used so that hauliers will know this was spending by Company X on their behalf. There are arguments that this partially negates the idea of having a non-haulage company speaking, as it were less selfinterestedly, on behalf of road transport.

But although the Foundation's ads range over a wide field, the campaign is still aimed primarily at making road freight transport acceptable to an increasingly environment-conscious public. Notable successes include a double-page ad picturing six State governors, each stating the essential nature of road freight in his territory.

Another whole-page colour ad depicts New York from the air, with the simple caption: "It came by truck."

A whole-page newspaper ad has the bold heading: "It takes a lot of transportation, mostly trucks, to make our lives complete. Without it. . ." And under the headline is a huge picture of a Chicago with deserted streets.

Vast demand

Mr Liebschutz was adamant that thi focal point of such campaigns, both it the USA and in Europe, now should bi the vast transport support which wouh

be needed to meet communities' vast, mushrooming demand for goods and services. In the USA, for instance, the population was expected to double in 25 years. To maintain the present standard of living for this number of people. let alone increase it, transport tonnage would need to double.

"And we'd better start planning it and building it now, because you don't achieve that sort of growth overnight. If that means more owner-operators or more fleets, we'd better open the nation's eyes to the fact that we'll be in trouble if we can't provide for that growth.

-And don't just look forward — look back, to see how demand has grown. What sort of transport growth have you in Britain seen in 25 years?"

Answered RHA national chairman. Mr John Wells: "A staggering increase."

Mr Wells wondered what was the "miracle ingredient" in the ATA Foundation's success. Apart from York, manufacturers had not responded actively to approaches by the haulage industry for support. Mr Harrison added that when his company launched its Snowball campaign recently, letters were sent to 70 major road transport equipment suppliers, with little active response.

Mr Liebschutz said there was no miracle. In the States, operators With "buying muscle" had — individually, not jointly — approached manufacturers to convince :hem of the need to support road transport.

As well as direct advertising, the Foundation supplies free editorial material. )f genuine reader interest, to some 50 ndustrial and trade magazines. This is written by acknowledged transport ournalists, and new material is distributed :very three months. It had, said Mr ..,iebschutz. been widely taken up, and was Limed especially at informing industrial :mployees on just how vital was transport o the success of their companies and the ;ecurity of their jobs.

itate-based The American Trucking Associations epresent, as a national focal point, 50 ;tate associations, plus two city associations ri Chicago and New York, America's two liggest road freight centres.

As well as being organized on this egional basis. the ATA has functional xoups — called "conferences— which re almost miniature ATAs in their own ight, dealing with the same special operating .ctivities as the RHA's functional cornaittees.

The ATA is almost exclusively fleet-based — the owner-driver has shunned the big ,attalions — but Mr Liebschutz said that LTA was now more actively seeking the mall man's membership. partly in his own efence, since although the owner-driver aulier was excluded from the intensive :gulation of road freight imposed through le Interstate Commerce Commission vhich includes rates control for a host

commodities), the US authorities were )w pressing for increasingly efficient and liable transport systems, and they did n see the "freewheeler" — as the small an was called — fitting into this picture.


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