Are you fully utilizing the online tools available to you for selling inventory? Ninety-four percent of consumers will conduct research online before making a purchase (Source: Compete.com, 2010). Providing your visitors with a positive online experience will help you make the sale. Read more >>
One of the benefits of spending each fall catching up with the industry’s major OEMs — as we do annually here at Powersports Business — is we’re often in the know before the general public. Here’s one thing we can tell you: More UTV offerings are on the way, including from a growing presence in this field: KYMCO.
KYMCO USA’s Director of Marketing Rick Pawelka provided insights on the four-wheel market for us, including a teaser of what’s ahead in the new year. Read more >>
Scenario (based upon a real-life customer service call center report) – A dealership recently changes owners. The new owner hires a call center to contact every person in the system that has not stepped foot in the dealership in more than a year. There are more than 5,000 people to contact. Everyone was invited to a dealership “open house” to meet the new management team. After completing the task, the call center reports that 22 percent of those customers have been in the store over the last year, but were not entered into the system. Sixty-three percent of the customers were happy to hear from the dealership, and they were inclined to attend the dealership “open house” event. Another 13 percent of the people had a bad experience with the dealership and never expected to hear from them again. All of this information, along with specific comments, was forwarded to the new owner. Read more >>
Both the parts and service departments need to make a profit, but it CANNOT be at the other’s expense. If the parts department sells parts at MSRP to the service department to make their profit, then how does the service department maximize their profit? Read more >>
You’d never guess UTV sales were believed to be down last year from the number of upgrades and additions this year in both areas of the side-by-side market – utility and sport. Read more >>
Tags: Karin Gelschus, UTV
There’s a new, interesting tease of data concerning North America market share for the four-wheel side of the market. I say “tease” because it’s not complete information, and it’s partly based on estimated data. The market share information is included in a recent Polaris Industries investor presentation that is available online on the company’s Web site. Read more >>
While I’m personally not ready for the bitter cold the Farmers’ Almanac is predicting in the central part of the country, I am ready to hit some freshly groomed trails in various states, including participating in the 2010 MS Tour in Northern Wisconsin. It’s evident others are getting the snowmobile itch as well.
If you’re at all hopeful Congress will somehow lessen the impact of the lead law on your dealership, then it’s time you heed this reality: “The majority of bills and resolutions never make it out of committee.” That’s a statement found on http://www.govtrack.us/, a terrific, nonpartisan Web site that tracks ongoing legislation. And the statement is particularly important in regard to the Congressional reaction to the impact of the 2008 Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA), a law that effectively banned youth-designed ATVs and motorcycles earlier this year. Read more >>
They ranged from developing new service department positions to staff-wide marketing to new sales programs. These best business practices and others were submitted by dealers throughout the nation to Powersports Business. These practices, which we call Bold Ideas, helped dealers get through these less-than-ideal economic times and in some cases, dramatically increase their sales. Read more >>
