African-Americans On Wheels Rated Among Top 5% Web Sites On Internet

Brent Watters
Chicago Citizen
12-07-1995
African-Americans On Wheels Rated Among Top 5% Web Sites On Internet.

African-Americans On Wheels (AAOW) magazine has been rated in the top five percent of "The Best Web Sites on the Internet" by Point Communications, Inc. (Pointcom), a service whose members review and evaluate sites on the World-Wide Web.

Pointcom, whose "top ten list" was recently featured on CNN, rates Internet sites on content, presentation and experience. The electronic version of African-Americans On Wheels, which went on the Internet in July 1995, has been rapidly gaining recognition by Web browsers around the world because of its comprehensive editorial approach on the automative industry and easy accessibility, according to Randi Payton, publisher.

AAOW was cited by Pointcom members and users for its "Urban Picks" column. "In a recent issue reviewing sport-utility vehicles, the redesigned GMC Jimmy SL stood out and single-handedly became the magazine's first "Urban Pick." The review also stated, "We enjoyed Myron Stokes' articles "A Voice for Change," on the climb and vision of Roy S. Roberts, the first African-American to become a general manager at General Motors."

Published four times a year, AAOW, is a four-color magazine insert in Black newspapers throughout the United States. Companies advertising in the print publication receive free space on the Internet. The idea is to eventually link readers, shopping for cars, directly to the Web sites of vehicle manufacturers says Payton. The free ads remain on the Internet up to one year: some magazines are charging companies between $2,000-$30,000 to advertise on the Internet for one week.

Although the print publication targets African-American consumers, its exposure on the Internet goes beyond racial and geographical boundaries, says Payton, adding that Web browsers are primarily interested in obtaining any information that can help them in their research. "When they reach our site, they find we are easy to understand and more comprehensive than many publications that cover the auto industry. We are receiving E-mail from Hong Kong. Hawaii, Europe, Canada, and from places throughout the U.S.," he added.

More than 500 readers a week browse AAOW's Web site, according to Autonetwork, which monitors its home page. The numbers are continuing to increase as AAOW is being carried by other Web servers and Web search engines. AAOW is not only accessible through Autonetwork, a comprehensive Web site for serious car shoppers, but through other major Internet search engines like Yahoo, Lycos. Webcrawler and Pointcom, etc.

Cyberspace users can reach AAOW on the Web at: http://www.autonework.com, or through Pointcom's hot list at: http://www.pointcom.com/.

Ethnic NewsWatch SoftLine Information, Inc., Stamford, CT