August 2012 Parts, Accessories and Apparel Department Performance
Steve reviews August 2012 P&A department performance data. Following our past format, we’ll compare a good-performing metric 20-group with the national norm numbers and the averages for the top five dealers in each category.
Snowmobile Prep Tips
Techs universally hear one common complaint at the onset of sled season, “My snowmobile won’t start!” Maybe the machine in question will crank over, but fire eludes the cylinders. The machine owner doesn’t understand why — it ran when he put it away and it sat in the barn under a cover for the entire off-season. Share some of these best practices with your customers to help them avoid unnecessary service and convince them of the importance of proper storage!
Liquid Gold
Pittsburgh-based body shop owner, Bill Steele, has mastered the art of custom paint and fabrication from stripped down shovelheads to this amazing bagger that started its life as a ‘06 Road Glide.
Destination Dealership: Robison’s Cycle Sales
Being in business for 50 years in the same high traffic location goes a long way toward ensuring that your customers will continue to find your shop. That’s certainly an advantage for Joe and Angie Robison, longtime proprietors at Robison Cycle Sales on International Speedway Boulevard in Daytona Beach, Fla.
Tis The Season To Sell
Believe it or not, you are competing with Target and Wal-Mart this holiday season, so if you haven’t pulled your Santa suit out of moth balls, it’s time to pull Rudolph in from the pasture and get going on your holiday marketing plan!
F&I Ain’t Rocket Science
Real rocket science makes our jobs in the F&I office seem really simple. What we do is definitely not rocket science, but the more I think about it, maybe the process is similar to building a rocket.
Revisiting The Three Cs of Service Writing
I have received some reader feedback from my recent article about the three Cs of service writing. The feedback asserted that I’d gotten the three Cs wrong. I defined the three Cs as consistency, customer service and clarity. I believe that a service writer’s job is to be focused on the No. 1 priority of taking care of the customer.
AIMExpo: One Year Out
MPN goes one-on-one with Larry Little to get an update on what dealers and consumers can expect from the inaugural American International Motorcycle Expo
F&I Department Performance Benchmarks
Steve Jones dives into the profitability of top performing and national average Finance and Insurance departments. How does your dealership stack up?
Increase Your F&I RBI — Keep Swinging For Success
When you ask a top-shelf F&I manager how many swings they take when trying to sell an extended service contract, they will usually respond, “As many as it takes.” Ask a mediocre player, and they’ll usually say two or three. How many swings do you take? This is not baseball. The only way to strike out is to stop trying! There are at least five basic swings available to an F&I Manager when selling an extended service contract to a customer. Let’s take a look at these five key plays.
Pilot Screw Adjustment
Pilot screws are preset from the factory and should only be adjusted under necessary circumstances. In this installment, we’ll cover pilot screw adjustment basics.
Powersports Values More Volatile Than Usual
Prices in the powersports market have taken a serious and substantial downward turn this month. Normally we see prices for most of the powersports segments hit their peak in late June and early July, followed by a gradual dec