TTAC to Become a Social Networking Site

For over two years, we’ve been telling Detroit to wake-up and smell the homily: everything either grows or dies. We’ve admonished them to adapt and evolve. This they haven’t done. The Truth About Cars (TTAC) will continue to chronicle this slow motion train wreck until the last car derails, and beyond. Meanwhile, we’d be hypocritical if we didn’t follow our own advice. The truth is: we’re not growing. So we’re about to shake things up. Again.

TTAC currently welcomes some 14k unique visitors per day. Our readers hang around for an average of four minutes, viewing an average of 2.63 pages, generating 1m page views per month. Other than a 10 percent increase in the number of new vs. “old” visitors, we’ve been generating the same stats for the last six months. Not to put too fine a point on it, we’ve flat-lined.

Our existing strategy: cater to the Google searchers by emphasizing car reviews while maintaining our base (that’s you) with a side order of editorials and comments. The current layout reflects this two-tier tactic, and we’ve been working hard to make it work.

On the newbie Googlista side, we’ve added TrueDelta’s most excellent shopping data and “stars and snarks” mini-reviews for thesaurus-challenged scanners. We’re also finishing negotiations with a car broker. When complete, the fully-independent broker (gotta maintain those brand values) will kick us back some real money– as opposed to the dribs and drabs of income provided by Google Analytics and AdTags.

On the hard core readers’ side, we’ve been posting one car review and an editorial on Monday, Wednesday and Friday; and then two editorials per day otherwise (with some exceptions). In the next couple of weeks, we’re returning to regular podcasts and entering the news blogging arena. We’ll split the difference between Autoblog’s mild-mannered and Jalopnik’s limited slip differential (LSD) approaches, and add some TTAC ‘tude and international coverage.

While I’m delighted to offer these improvements, I realize that they’re minor tweaks to the existing recipe— which, in relative terms, is proving about as popular as chopped liver at a Hawaiian luau. Like GM, small changes to the status quo ain’t gonna cut the mustard. To survive and thrive, TTAC needs a genuine game changer: something insanely great to lift us above the competition (or at least away from it).

Unlike GM, TTAC doesn’t have 421 levels of bureaucracy and the kind of union grievance procedure that makes changing a light bulb a federal offense. So, within the bonds of decency and dollars, we’re free to reinvent ourselves. Ah, but how?

My light bulb moment arrived via an email from an editor/writer with an enormous and well-deserved reputation in the automotive press. After praising the site, he drilled down to what made it unique: you. TTAC’s commentators’ literacy, insight and expertise blew him away.

After nursing my bruised ego, I gave his analysis some serious thought. And of course he’s right. We’re not TTAC. You are. Sure our writers’ in-yer-face prose is stimulating stuff. And yes our Draconian posting policy creates a safe haven for vigorous yet respectful debate. But your comments are what set TTAC apart from all the other automotive websites. We would be an empty shell without you.

And that means YOU are our future. So here’s what we’re going to do…

My team and I are going to turn TTAC into a social networking site. In other words, we’re going to give you a HUGE canvas upon which to paint. An ENORMOUS theme park in which to play. And it will be YOUR intellectual playground to build and explore. TTAC’s writers will still provide reviews, editorials and news. With your help, Frank and I will continue to turf out the flamers and trolls without fear or favor. But YOU will be in charge of TTAC’s destiny.

The new site will have user groups, forums, user generated blogs, live chat, webinars and webcasts, podcasts, event calendars, picture sharing, video sharing and who knows what else. Well, actually, Frank and I do. But for competitive reasons, we’re not specifying the platform or listing all the features. And anyway, it will evolve.

We’re building the foundations now. When we get closer to launch, in a month or less, I’ll invite you, our faithful subscribers, to wander around in the Beta version and claim your own piece of turf. I’ll ask you to tell us what does and doesn’t work.

TTAC will do everything in its power to make the new site the best place for automotive enthusiasts to gather on the entire World Wide Web. And keep it that way. Meanwhile, if you can give me some feedback on social networking sites you use— or hate— I’d be most appreciative.

They say the truth shall set you free. What the Hell; let’s give it a try.