You can’t turn on the tube or surf the web without getting someone’s predictions for when we can see economic recovery. The speedy depletion of the government’s Cash for Clunkers program gives retailers hope that Americans’ willingness to spend is on a tentative rise, but in an industry that sells wants and not needs, we’ve gotta do more to convince our customers that now is the time to take some cash out of the mattress.
You can’t help but get excited about the new batches of P&A and gear introduced at this summer’s distributor shows and consumer events like Sturgis — neither can your customers. Check out Dean Kelly’s coverage of the Tucker Rocky sales meeting on page 56 of this issue and keep an eye out for WPS and Parts Unlimited coverage in next month’s issue, and visit MPN on Facebook to see photo albums from the shows.
Invite your customers to come and see all of your newest goodies by setting up a 2010 preview night. Excitement is contagious, and your customer’s will feed off each other’s enthusiasm to boost sales at your event.
To promote an event like this you’ve gotta have that up-to-date e-mail prospect list. You are getting each and every store visitor’s contact information, including their e-mail address, right?
Back up e-mail invitations with an event listing on your Facebook page and an announcement on your website. It’s also really important that your new inventory cycles its way onto your site, pronto. When is the last time you updated your website, anyway? This month, Peggy Olson gives us a back to basic web primer on page 32.
In addition, Margie Siegal tackles DMS best practices in her feature on page 14.
As you get on track for recovery, these lessons in efficiency, as well as those shared by our core Shop Talk contributors every month, will make your business more profitable in the long haul.
How is your business faring? MPN wants to hear from you. What are you doing to weather the recession; have your sales started to rebound? Drop me a line at [email protected] or post a comment on our Facebook page.
We’re always happy to hear from dealers, and we want to know what questions and concerns the current marketplace is generating.
How do you feel about Best Buy’s entrance into the powersports market with the introduction of the Brammo electric commuter motorcycle?
What do you think of the 2010 H-D lineup (discussed on page 49)? How about the latest lineup of ATV P&A that assistant editor Doug Dalsing has rounded up in this issue?
Drop us a line and we’ll get back to you. Who knows, your comments and stories ideas might spark our next great idea to help dealers across the country on the road to recovery.
