The Dealership Fixit Podcast

PG&A folks - check this out! Today we got to have a great pod-versation with Phil Ammendolia, President & CEO of LS2 Helmets U.S. If you don't know this line, you owe it to your bottom line to check them out. Seeing as it's been many years since I have been working INSIDE a powersports parts department, I'm sure Phil will forgive me for not knowing anything about his brand, but as the old saying goes - Do your best. When you know better, do better! The videos Phil has on the LS2 YouTube page are a great resource to gain insights on helmet "why's" like... Why should a helmet flex?  What is the newest technology in helmets?  Why is a COG (cost of goods), turns and healthy margin important for a dealership?  Why are both MAP (minimum advertised pricing) and MRP (Minimum Retail Price) policies important to help dealers? Why is it important to stock the right products in your parts departments?  Phil has a lot of the answers to questions you may not have known you should have asked. It was very interesting to me and I hope there is value for you here. Please check them out and reach out to LS2 for more info. LS2 America YouTube here: https://www.youtube.com/user/LS2HelmetsUS/videos LS2 U.S. website here: https://ls2helmets.us/ Phil recently posted an article on LinkedIn that may be of interest in discussing how dealers want to see the manufacturers new products asking "have shows outlived their usefulness" here in the US?  That article is here: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/have-motorcycle-trade-shows-us-outlived-usefulness-phil-ammendolia/ Dealership fiXit exists to help dealerships tap into high performance ideas! Please share this with all your powersports industry friends. 

Jay Bernard of Triumph Motorcycles is a regional manager who was kind enough to jump on a session of Dealership fiXit with me and chat about many things Triumph, here in his part of the United States. What's the deal with Adventure bikes and why are they so popular right now? What is Triumph doing differently than the competitors to earn consumer's money? As it turns out, it's a lot! Technology is a heavy focus. Jay also hints of some possible upcoming smaller displacement, lower price point models coming from Triumph.  What makes someone spend more money for a premium product?  We discuss...  Check out Triumph Motorcycles newest collection here: https://www.triumphmotorcycles.com/ Check out and/or sign up for Karl's Mystery Ride here: https://www.karlsmysteryride.com/ Please share this podcast with anyone you know in the powersports industry so we can create the best content to help as many as possible thru the guests I ask on.  From Dealership to Distributor to Manufacturer, we hope to share some behind the scenes info that can make each powersports industry professional better thru these conversations and ideas. Dealership fiXit exists to help dealerships tap into high performance ideas!

Mike Murray, the VP of Sales for National Powersport Auctions (NPA) is my guest in this episode.  He and his team have been a big part of keeping an impressive dealer-first service culture while growing their team, in recent years.  Having worked with and for Mike in the past, I'm a big fan of his passion as well as and NPA.  If you have not been to the experience that is the largest powersports auction in the world and at the level NPA does it... you owe it to yourself to go to your closest location and see it live. It's my firm belief that any dealers who want to be able to most effectively buy and sell units at minimal exposure and for maximum profit need to be savvy in the use of NPA tools and services.  Those tools include their NPA Value Guide but also a whole lot more these days. Check them out here: https://www.npauctions.com/ If you want to see who your area NPA Regional Sales manager go-to is, this link will show you: https://www.npauctions.com/ContentPage.aspx?cp=MeetOurTeam Their business networking & social media pages: https://www.linkedin.com/company/national-powersport-auctions/ https://www.instagram.com/npauctions/ https://www.facebook.com/npacorp Please share this podcast with anyone you know in the powersports industry, especially at dealership level. I appreciate your assistance in reaching more dealerships so I can help dealerships tap into high performance ideas and be their own best fiXits!

Scott Wright of IMS Products is no stranger to dealerships. Sure, he has been manufacturing and selling powersports products to distributors, dealers and customers for the last 25 years. But, did you know that he worked at a dealership? It's been a few years but he has a great grasp on dealership life and he has some ideas of how any dealer can better control their own destiny by stocking more of the right products. I agree wholeheartedly with Scott in that a dealer cannot stock everything but should be sure to include some items like theirs in that subset of can-do accessories of dirtbikes, ATVS, dual-sports and adventure bikes are units you sell. IMS pegs and Shift levers were items I did believe in, stock and sell thru at dealerships I managed parts of. I'd encourage you to check out the link below where Scott nerds out on technical stuff for some footpeg products why and how, in a 2017 interview. Adventure Rider Radio interview: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/wind-powered-chain-oiler-setting-up-your-motorcycle/id892129995?i=1000380468644 You can check out their Facebook page here: https://www.facebook.com/IMSproducts/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/imsproducts/ Website is: https://www.imsproducts.com/ Thanks for listening to the Dealership fiXit podcast. We exist to help dealerships tap into high performance ideas. Please let us know if you have any feedback on this show or if you or someone you know would make a good guest on a future show. I really appreciate your likes and shares in this podcast player as well as on our social media pages.  Thank you! Brian 

John Slater from SRP, maker of Slater Skins and Slater Shields joined me tonight for a talk about branding opportunities.  He's been doing this a long time and has had some great history of getting outside sponsors to step up and brand up motocross and freestyle mx riders machines with his products that add much needed volume to the available space of these motocross bikes. If you haven't seen what I'm talking about, see the links below for images. These things are impressive. I might have to buy a Yamaha!  ;-) Most recent example I saw was this 2019 Yamaha YZ-F labelled up with Hog Technologies, Dinoliners.com, EBR Performance and Tucker Powersports logos. Check out the Slater Skins on a Yamaha YZ250F here:  https://www.facebook.com/799423086793758/photos/a.799667560102644/2155555291180524/?type=3&theater https://www.facebook.com/799423086793758/photos/a.799667560102644/2155555261180527/?type=3&theater Check out the Slater Shield on a Yamaha YZ250F here: https://www.facebook.com/799423086793758/photos/a.799667560102644/2155555361180517/?type=3&theater I'd encourage any shop with racers sponsored, to consider the front Slater Shield for any off-road race bike and the full Slater Skins & Shield for bikes with fitment available (2014-current YZ250F & 450F at time of this publication, 2019). John says he is working on more bike brand fitments as we speak. Maybe you can think of ways to use it promotionally and get your logos MUCH MORE visible in your area and differentiate yourself from all your competitors. Remember, this is the sort of products that Motocross Action Magazine printed back in the 1990's that would be the way our sport would continue to land and retain big outside sponsors. Serious businesses expect big branding ROI. Maybe it's time to take their advice.  SRP can be found here: http://www.srpinternational.com/ Email: slaterskins@gmail.com 

Brooke Farquhar owns a shop named Motoworks in Fredericksburg, Virginia.  It's different from any shop I've been a part of in that it's a membership only shop where Brooke can invest all of this time and energy into being the exact level of advocate that each and every customer needs to stay engaged in this activity we love so much - motorcycling. Motoworks Facebook page is here: https://www.facebook.com/motoworksva/ This business is more of a labor of love for Brooke and it shows. When he describes what he gets to do every day it's obvious. This is a dream of his and it goes far beyond the normal parameters I'm used to in discussions of ROI calculations, at typical businesses. He has learned from some selfless leaders and coaches like Bob Henig of Bob's BMW Motorcycles and I think he's on the right track to keep that cycle of positive contribution going for many generations to come. I'm impressed that he he chosen to serve the customers seemingly most likely to fall thru the cracks at a powersports store of lesser focus and become an "I tried motorcycling, but it wasn't for me" story.  Contact Brooke here: brookegoride@gmail.com

I just read and wanted to share the article plus my thoughts on the Powersports Business article entitled, "Harley-Davidson Dealerships are number 1 at Replying to Website Customers" study, in which they include a Pied Piper PSI study (article link included below as well).   Imagine, you are a regular consumer, ready to move forward in the purchase of a new widget, product X that costs several thousand bucks. This is a product that you don NOT need but believe it will help make you lead a happier, more fulfilling life. (not that any product but powersports products do this anyway. LOL) So, you email the area location selling product X including your name and phone and ask a question to help you slim your choices and sped up acquisition of said product.  If that dealer doesn't reply to you in an hour, what do you do?  What about if they don't reply within 24 hours?  Now, what about if they NEVER reply to your inquiry?  This is an inquiry that you sent right to their preferred virtual doorstep... The place that anyone would understand to be the pinnacle of what the shop is about and how it could be benchmarked to perform for you in any/all future interactions.  This is at minimum, bad first impression at more likely a prohibitive problem if we want to continue selling products that people do not need to own. This process needs to be thoroughly examined and dialed in to a much better level of time sensitivity.   How have dealers of the brand(s) you represent performed in 2019 vs 2018? What parts of this study are surprising?   Please let me know you thoughts on this. I will be sharing it on my personal/Dealership fiXit page LinkedIn page, here:  https://www.linkedin.com/in/bc315/   If you prefer Facebook or Instagram check us out there.    Article referenced, can be found here: https://powersportsbusiness.com/top-stories/2019/05/06/harley-davidson-dealerships-are-no-1-at-replying-to-website-customers-study/?oly_enc_id=6012I5636790F0K If you've read this far down - Please take a moment to check out my non-paid testimonial for Wild-Ass Seats and then get some for your parts department stock. I'm a firm believer in that product and no, they haven't paid me anything to say this. 3 sizes to fit anyplace you sit down and available from either Tucker Powersports or Parts Unlimited / Drag Specialties. www.wild-ass.com 

I've heard for many years that powersports dealerships are many years behind automotive dealerships in regards to their advertising, branding and data utilization around those investments. I found Michael Annable on Linkedin this year and started following him since he shares a lot of insights there, on where dealerships in the automotive vertical are making mistakes and possibly wasting money. I knew I was harassing one of the right people when I saw he was co-founder of Showroom Logic his currently Chief Product Officer at ROI Detective.   I Linkedin messaged him and asked if he would like to come on the dealership fiXit podcast, after hours one day, to share some of that story.  He agreed! You can check him out here:  https://www.linkedin.com/in/mikeannable/ Please feel free to send me any feedback or questions to: dealershipfixit@gmail.com  Your rating on the podcast app of choice means the world to me so please give me some stars and also share with anyone you know that could gain insight from this conversation. Dealership fiXit exists to help powersports dealers tap into high performance ideas!

Are you doing the right things for digital growth? "Stop wasting your time posting to Facebook!" Wow.  Yes - Joe Iribarren got my attention with that statement too!  Thankfully, he was ready to back it up with real world insights. I'll start out by saying that this episode will only be an initial insight into this topic but you'll want to hear what Joe Iribarren has to say on how you are using social media now versus some changes you may want to make to use the medium for better engagement and visibility. I am hoping to get him back on for a more in depth as soon as possible. Maybe send me questions for him so I can ask him the sort of questions you want more info on. You can find Joe's company on LinkedIn here: https://www.linkedin.com/company/gobeyondcreative/ You can find the specific video that Wow'd me here:  https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:6509531291828973569 As always please reach out of I can help you in any way or you have questions or feedback for me. Email: dealershipfixit@gmail.com Dealership fiXit exists to help powersports dealers tap into high performance ideas!

I welcome Derek Sanders of DS1 Consulting back for another visit, this time about the F&I department of your powersports dealership.  Do you have an F&I dept in your dealership? Since I haven't spent any time in that role, I had Derek come chat about how every dealer can be a better, more profitable finance and insurance department plus better satisfy your customers at the same time. Seem counter intuitive? It isn't! I welcome your feedback on this or any Dealership fiXit episode. These are just the opinions and observations of myself and my guests, from working in and into dealerships. Please share this episode with anyone you know that needs to hear it or would maybe like to be a guest on a future episode. You can email me at: dealershipfixit@gmail.com  or find me on Linkedin here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bc315/