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The glorious madness of Ling

Mike Rowe

21 February, 2011

Car leasing is a boring business, right? Not when you are Ling Valentine it isn’t.

Ling runs a car leasing business in Gateshead which is spectacularly, gloriously eccentric, and we love it.

Her website is a deranged collision of hideous graphics, mind-bogglingly weird competitions and anarchic content but it is touched by genius.

ling1-12

Ling has brought colour, entertainment and no little madness to the world of car leasing. On Twitter she is quite unafraid to call customers ‘idiots’ or a ‘pain in the ass’ and they love her for it.

She also is fond of posing with military hardware and has her own armoured truck complete with nuclear missile, a familiar sight in the North East.

But behind the lunacy is a hard-nosed businesswoman who shifts up to 250 cars a month.

Say what you like about Ling, and many do, but she knows the value of daring to be different.

missile

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  • http://twitter.com/LINGsCARS Ling Valentine

    Errrrrrrr – WAH!

    Hahahaha, thanks so much for this.

    It is true I am unafraid to call customers “idiots” but only when they have been idiotic, and you should see the names they call me! The main thing is that my customers and me are both on the same side, to get them the cheapest, best value new car deals, delivered as fast as possible (usually). So we are all bailing the same canoe, in fact.

    Cars should be fun, they are very emotional things. But very few new car dealers make getting a car, fun. Instead it is often like committing suicide, online. Why are most car companies up their own ass? I don't know. They call me “unprofessional” and yet every customer loves to deal with me. How many people normally love to deal with car suppliers and dealers? Yaaagh.

    Thanks so much for considered website review :) Coming from a proper international company like 1000 Heads (instead of those stoooopid loss-making business guru companies who say anything for a bit of traffic) it is a big compliment! :) Thank you Mike Rowe! Different is good, eh?

    Ling
    LINGsCARS

  • Norb

    Of course until you are a customer you miss out on the excellent customer service underpinned by an easy to use secure communications system.

  • Mike Rowe

    Phew, glad you liked it Ling, wouldn't want that missile pointed in my direction. Different is definitely good!