High Gear Media

Write About Cars and Win an Apple iPad: August Winners Announced

eric — Thu, 02 Sep 2010 21:21:54 +0000

Participation for this month’s August contest (write about cars and earn a chance to win an Apple iPad) has been amazing – everyone is getting excited about writing about cars with High Gear Media using our easy-to-use open blogging platform.

And we have a winner, and she is… Anne Proffit.. Congrats Anne!

Anne’s been bustling and hustling all month long, kicking in 12 stories and it pays off with a shiny new Apple iPad !

Check out Anne’s recent coverage of the Grand Prix of Sonoma and a review of the 2011 Scion tC (hint: it rocks!).

Also… we have two great mystery prizes to deliver:

* 50 Years With Car & Driver, by High Gear’s very own editorial director Marty Padgett. This prize goes to Nathalie Allison.

* The Complete Book of Shelby Automobiles: Cobras, Mustangs, and Super Snakes – awarded to Vernon Marker.

We’re all about writing about cars, creating great community around automotive and the web, and dishing out cool cash, prizes, and swag in the process!

Congrats again to Anne, Nathalie, and Vernon, and thanks much to all who have participated.

And we will have PLENTY more going on in September, so stay tuned…

And as always, write about cars right here in the meantime!

Boom! — David Armitage Joins High Gear Media As Chief Revenue Officer

jeff — Mon, 16 Aug 2010 16:08:24 +0000

The High Gear Media crew is very excited to welcome David Armitage as our new Chief Revenue Officer starting, well, as soon as he gets a cup of coffee.

David most recently served as VP and GM of the automotive group at Blue Kai. Previously he was VP of Advertising at Autobytel and also Executive Director of Advertising & Sales for Edmunds.com. He’ll put his expertise and experience to use overseeing all revenue initiatives at High Gear Media, with a focus on growing brand advertising on our network of owned and operated automotive destinations like our anchor site: TheCarConnection.com, our luxury site MotorAuthority.com; our green and electric car sites, GreenCarReports.com and AllCarsElectric.com; our family-focused site FamilyCarGuide.com and our industry site, SocialCarNews.com.

That network of automotive sites by the way? Growing quickly. At the same time we’re announcing David, we’re also fired up to say that our July traffic hit an all-time high of 3 million visitors — representing year over year growth of 104%. We’re producing some of the very best automotive content on the Web — and it’s working.

You can read our full press release here.

As a side note, please make sure you check our team’s excellent coverage of this past weekend’s luxury and exotic car extravaganza, the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance. Finally, if you are interested in exploring writing with us, drop us a line.

High Gear Media Names David Armitage as Chief Revenue Officer; July Represented Company’s All-Time Traffic High

jeff — Mon, 16 Aug 2010 05:07:59 +0000

Company Adds Former Autobytel and Edmunds.com Sales Leader;
Visitors to Owned and Operated Network Grow Over 100% YOY

PALO ALTO, Calif., Aug. 16 /PRNewswire/ — High Gear Media (www.highgearmedia.com), a premium vertical content company that publishes more automotive content than anyone on the Web, today announced that David Armitage joined the company as its Chief Revenue Officer. Armitage will oversee all revenue initiatives with a particular focus on accelerating the growth in brand advertising on the company’s fast growing owned and operated network of automotive destinations. The company also announced its July traffic hit an all-time high of 3 million visitors — representing year over year growth of 104%.

“David is a proven sales and marketing executive who understands exactly what automotive clients seek from their digital efforts, especially as ad spend continues to move online,” said High Gear Media CEO Matt Heist. ”We’re excited to add his expertise as we develop High Gear Media into the leading publisher of automotive content and a proven, high-performing solution for brands to connect with audiences making car buying decisions.”

Armitage will drive the comprehensive sales strategy and execution for High Gear Media’s owned and operated network of premium automotive properties including its anchor site, TheCarConnection.com; its luxury and performance site, MotorAuthority.com; green and electric car sites, GreenCarReports.com and AllCarsElectric.com; its family-focused site FamilyCarGuide.com and its industry site, SocialCarNews.com.

“Automotive marketers are inundated with choices for reaching buyers, but the key is creating unique ways for them to connect with audiences and build brand affinity with customers as they interact with content on the Web,” said Armitage. ”The High Gear Media team has a totally unique approach that has resonated with automotive consumers and demonstrated growth. While the usual players will continue to garner their share of ad dollars, this is a tremendous opportunity to deliver innovative solutions for marketers looking at new ways of winning customers.”

Most recently, Armitage served as VP and GM of the automotive group at Blue Kai. Previously he was VP of Advertising at Autobytel and Executive Director of Advertising & Sales for Edmunds.com. Before that, Armitage was Vice President of Sales and Marketing for PRIMEDIA’s Digital Automotive and Motorcycle Groups.

About High Gear Media

High Gear Media is a vertical publishing company publishing more premium automotive content than anyone in the world through websites targeting key buyer and vehicle segments. High Gear Media’s owned and operated network of automotive destinations reaches 3 million visitors monthly and includes its anchor site, TheCarConnection.com, its luxury site, MotorAuthority.com, green and electric car sites, GreenCarReports.com and AllCarsElectric.com, and its family-focused sites including FamilyCarGuide.com. High Gear Media’s editorial staff and over 250 contributors have written at publications such as Car and Driver, AOL Autos, AutoWeek, Automobile Magazine, and Wired. The company’s content is syndicated to partners including Yahoo! Autos, Huffington Post, NASCAR.com, Discovery News, SpeedTV and The San Francisco Chronicle. Independent automotive writers and people who are passionate about cars can contribute content by visiting HighGearMedia.com. High Gear Media is headquartered in Palo Alto, Calif. and received its funding from Accel Partners, Greylock Partners and DAG Ventures.

Contact Info:

High Gear Media, +1-650-576-8371, feedback@highgearmedia.com

GreenCarReports.com Launches Electric Car Buying Guide

jeff — Tue, 10 Aug 2010 16:10:15 +0000

Shopping Guide Gives Buyers a One-Stop Information Center; Editor Available for Green Car Media Commentary

PALO ALTO, Calif., Aug 10, 2010 — GreenCarReports.com, the fastest growing green car destination on the Web, today announced the launch of its definitive “Electric Car Buying Guide” – a continually updated shopping guide for the 12 different electric cars expected to appear in dealer showrooms between now and the end of 2012. The electric-car buying guide gives vehicle shoppers a one-stop resource to learn everything they need to know about electric cars for sale.

“Not so long ago it seemed like a concept out of the Jetsons, but the era of electric cars is here, and consumers are asking for guidance,” says John Voelcker, Editor of GreenCarReports.com. “Our electric car guide lists which electric cars are available and when, it covers they key details, and it explains the pros and cons of each.”

The GreenCarReports.com Electric Car Buying Guide includes:

- Complete listing of electric cars by availability date in 2010, 2011 and 2012, including the Chevrolet Volt, the Nissan Leaf, the Toyota Prius Plug-In Hybrid and more.

- Expected launch markets where each car will be offered, plus production volumes

- Specifications, pricing, and links to comprehensive drive reports and reviews

- Live updates when information from car manufacturers changes.

- Access to useful material from sister site AllCarsElectric.com

John Voelcker, Editor of GreenCarReports.com, can also be your guide on this and other green or electric car stories and is available for media commentary and analysis. John is a Senior Editor for High Gear Media and oversees editorial content for all of High Gear Media’s green sites, including GreenCarReports.com, AllCarsElectric.com, and AllAboutPrius.com.

John has covered advanced auto technologies and energy policy for various print, online, and radio outlets, including Wired, Popular Science, Technology Review, IEEE Spectrum, HybridCars.com, and Portfolio.com. He has appeared as a green and electric car expert in print, radio and TV, and was recently interviewed as a guest on NPR’s ‘All Things Considered.’

About Green Car Reports
GreenCarReports.com, the fastest growing green car destination on the Web, is the place car shoppers turn to for help deciphering the world of “green” cars, reporting on which ones benefit the Earth, and which don’t do as well. GreenCarReports.com drives and reviews all green cars, offers advice and tips to consumers on going green, and keeps green-car enthusiasts in touch with the latest news and information they need to make informed buying decisions.

GreenCarReports.com is part of High Gear Media–a vertical publishing company that creates more premium automotive content than anyone in the world through websites targeting key buyer and vehicle segments.

Contact info
Contact John Voelcker and the High Gear Media team of automotive experts for commentary at:
Email: desk@highgearmedia.com
Cell: 2106-IN-GEAR or (210) 646-4327

Write About Cars and Win: BIG July Contest Winners Announced, and August Heats Up

eric — Sat, 07 Aug 2010 01:59:06 +0000

The BIG July contest winners are in, but before we get to that let’s talk August.

Write about cars in August and earn a chance to win an Apple iPad!

The deal could not be simpler: every time you publish a story about cars using our easy-to-use open blogging platform, it counts as an entry into our Apple iPad sweepstakes. So the more you write, the better your shot to win.

And as always there will be all kinds of mystery prizes along the way.

Now, let’s get to that BIG July contest…

First of all, we have Pauline Abreu walking away with $300 in cold hard cash this hot summer for publishing the most stories during the final week of July. She’s been rocking it out all month long and wrote four stories in the final stretch to take away the prize. Congrats Pauline!

We also had a month long mystery prize that was recently revealed to be a Microsoft Zune, and a 16gb, wi-fi enabled and HD radio edition at that. Every story published in July counted as a sweepstakes entry, and new writer Martin Smith snagged it!

Keep it dialed in to High Gear Media for hot car writing contest action all summer long.

And in the meantime, you know what to do…

Write about cars and win!

GreenCarReports Editor Interviewed on the Dr. Pat Show

jeff — Thu, 05 Aug 2010 20:10:27 +0000

Our good friends at the Dr. Pat Radio Show interviewed High Gear Media’s very own GreenCarReports.com editor, John Voelcker, to talk about — wait for it — green cars. John is pursuing radio with reckless abandon (see his NPR appearance). That said, we won’t make any “face for radio” comments. Just won’t do it. Nicely done, John.

Listen to the clip

You can also see more of John’s reporting and analysis at GreenCarReports.com.

GreenCarReports Editor Appears on NPR’s ‘All Things Considered’

jeff — Mon, 02 Aug 2010 16:57:20 +0000

High Gear Media’s very own GreenCarReports.com editor, John Voelcker, appeared on NPR’s ‘All Things Considered” Friday. ATC Host Robert Siegel interviewed John to get his take on why the Chevy Volt may not qualify for a California tax rebate of $5,000 and why single drivers of the Volt may not be able to use the HOV lanes in California, as the Nissan Leaf drivers will be able to do.

In short, the mean green machine continues to roll. You can listen to the clip and read the transcript here. You can also see more of John’s reporting and analysis at GreenCarReports.com.

High Gear Media CEO Talks ‘Beyond Content Farms’ With PBS’ MediaShift (VIDEO)

jeff — Wed, 28 Jul 2010 13:27:51 +0000

High Gear Media’s very own CEO Matt Heist had a chance to join a recent PBS MediaShift video roundtable on the rapidly changing world of online content. Matt was joined by speakers from Bleacher Report, Examiner.com, AOL’s Patch and the Internet Content Syndication Council — plus MediaShift host Mark Glaser.

MediaShift, which does a great job chronicling how content is being transformed by the Web, has been examining different angles to the content farm issue all week. The show gave Matt a great platform to talk about how High Gear Media is different:

- vertical focus (on automotive content and tools)

- laser focus on creating super high quality content that is rich and deep (advertisers and users demand that level of quality in autos)

- unique blending of both a full time staff of long-time journalists and a wider set of passionate content contributors who themselves have deep automotive backgrounds or expertise.

Here is a segment of the show where Matt talks about quality:

You can see the entire show on the MediaShift website. NOTE: We are also still looking for more writers who want to write to one of our sites and share in the revenue — know anyone? Contact us.

More About High Gear Media

High Gear Media is a vertical publishing company publishing more premium automotive content than anyone in the world through websites targeting key buyer and vehicle segments. High Gear Media’s owned and operated network of automotive destinations reaches almost 3 million visitors monthly and include its anchor site, TheCarConnection.com, its luxury site, MotorAuthority.com, green and electric car sites, GreenCarReports.com and AllCarsElectric.com, and its family-focused sites including FamilyCarGuide.com. High Gear Media’s editorial staff and over 250 contributors have written at publications like Car and Driver, AOL Autos, Autoweek, Automobile Magazine, and Wired. The company’s content is syndicated to partners including Yahoo! Autos, Huffington Post, NASCAR.com, AOL Autos, and The San Francisco Chronicle. Independent automotive writers and people who are passionate about cars can contribute content by visiting HighGearMedia.com. High Gear Media is headquartered in Palo Alto, Calif. and received its funding from Accel Partners, Greylock Partners and DAG Ventures.

Write About Cars and Win: July Contests Furious Finish

eric — Tue, 27 Jul 2010 00:25:42 +0000

Recently, we reported on the results of our first July contest. And just like this (snap your fingers while you read that), we’re near the end of July and heading into our third contest already.

And this is the biggest contest of the month yet.

Starting today and running through the end of the month, write about cars and earn the chance to win $300. It’s very simple: if you publish the most stories about cars (submission deadline: July 31, midnight PST), you walk away with three hundred smackers.

And we’ve also been pitching our BIG mystery prize for writing about cars throughout July: every published story in the month counts as a sweepstakes entry to win. And the mystery prize is…

A Microsoft Zune player! It’s 16gb, it’s got wi-fi and HD radio, and it’s all yours if you’re selected as the winner!

So get going right now – write about cars with High Gear Media!

Now, let’s get to our latest contest results…

Pauline Abreu walks away with $200 once again for the contest period of July 12 – July 23, her second victory in a row, by publishing five stories about cars. Congrats again Pauline!

And we have a mystery prize to dole out for this contest as well, and this one goes to George Cudd. It’s a beautiful hardcover book about the Audi A1.

So, in short: you write about cars and you earn yourself lots of chances to win cash and cool swag with High Gear Media.

Let’s go!

Write About Cars and Win: 1st July Contest Winners Announced

eric — Thu, 15 Jul 2010 00:43:42 +0000

Here at High Gear Media, the write-about-cars-and-win contest truck – a metaphorical truck, but a truck nonetheless filled to brim with cash and prizes – just keeps on…. well, trucking.

And we have winners to announce for our first July contest!

The deal this time around was as follows:

* Top publisher from July 1 – July 11 (total stories published): wins $100
* Mystery prize – all published stories count as sweepstakes entries

Well, it turns out that we have multiple mystery prizes to distribute !

But first, our top publisher is Pauline Abreu, who came in at six stories. Congrats Pauline on winning $100!

Now, for the mystery prizes. First, we have a copy of Muscle Cars, which Matt Rigney at Camaro Blog reviewed recently. That prize goes to Matthew Malamut, congrats !

And we also have four t-shirts from Discovery Channel’s Ultimate Car Build Off. These go to:

* Anne Proffit
* Justin Kaehler
* Simon Norman
* Bruce Richter

Check out the amazing-looking trailer for the Ultimate Car Build-Off:

Thank you to all who participated!

Also important to note: we are in the middle of a new contest where the cash prize is DOUBLED: $200 cash up for grabs between this Monday and next Friday night (July 23^rd, midnight PST) for top publisher based on number of stories published, and more mystery prize goodness.

AND there’s a month-long COOL mystery prize up for grabs as well where all published stories in July count as entries.

Just head here to write about cars.

Let’s do it !