Build A Better PowerSports Business

Surviving Or Thriving

How You Approach Your Business Can Make a Big Difference
By Vance Breese

We find ourselves in an interesting situation. Some say that Harley-Davidson sales are off 20 percent or more. Yet a friend of min who is a Harley-Davidson dealer in one the of the states hit hardest by the recession has said his sales are up 5 percent over last year.

One of the Japanese manufacturers, anticipating the downturn, cut shipments early last year. their sales are way off. The other Japanese companies are down statistically, but doing a good business, much better than the manufacturer who cut back. The dealers for that brand seem to have slipped a little.

Credit is tightening, and that making it hard to finance new units. But previous owned units continue to sell well.

The economy seems to be the topic of conversation almost everywhere. Just this morning, my barber told me that people are getting haircuts less often. I don’t feel that sharing this money-saving tip is good for his business.

In my little corner of the market, some of the shops that have Counterman are paying a little slowly, but many are expanding. This would seem to be counterintuitive.

Why do some shops struggle while others are struggling to keep up with increased sales? I called some of my friends in the business to see what I could find out.

First, here’s what I learned from the dealers who are doing well:
I found that they are universally focused on taking care of the customer. It is a mission in those stores to make sure the customer leaves happier than when he came in.
They work at teaching their customers how to enjoy their motorcycles, and they encourage customers to join store activities. I talked to some of their customers, and they all spoke excitedly about their involvement in the motorcycling community.

Successful dealers remember that all sales began with a question, so they ask their customers what they like, rather than assuming that they customer enjoys motorcycling in the same way they do.

They work at keeping morale up in the shop. People just don’t want to come in and hang out where everybody is unhappy.

They have not cut back on advertising and promotions in anticipation of poor sales.

They all seem to understand that the first job is to get the customer to hang around; spending money will follow. They work at finding reasons for people to stop by and hang out.

The successful ones are all careful about their inventory investment, taking advantage of the excellent service they get from warehouse distributors. They order more often and have smaller orders. They don’t let shipments of parts sit on the floor. These dealers get them out on the sales floor the same day and call the special-order customers immediately. They special-order a lot of stuff. They discount the things that aren’t moving, and create excitement with the special pricing.

They are careful to plan their service work and special-order many of the parts so they don’t have a lot of inventory dollars tied up in service parts they can get in a couple of days.

Successful dealers remember to spend time with the customer to show him that the work done was money well spent. They are not afraid to ask the customer about worn tires or brakes. They are not afraid to charge enough to do a proper job. They send out service reminders, and have service specials and packages.

They are organizing more rides, which are well-attended. They are staying involved in the community. They are displaying their motorcycles in more places than their showrooms. They involve radio personalities in their activities. They work at public relations. They work with other businesses to piggyback on each other’s promotions.

Now let me tell you about one of the dealers I talked to who is not doing well (I had planned to talk to more shop owners who are in trouble, but I found it too depressing).

His business is off more than 30 percent compared to last year. And he gave me reasons for each of the steps he is taking to manage the economic down-turn. I will share those reasons.

He canceled his limited advertising. He isn’t getting any new customers anyway, and his old customers already know him.
He stopped pushing motorcycles outside each morning. They just get dirty, and since he fired his lot kid, he has to do it himself.
He turned off the lights in his sign. He wants to save all the money he can, and his customers already know where he is.

Is it dark in there? Turning off lights in your shop turns off your customers, too.

He also turned off half the lights in the place. He says that will cut his power bill.
He turned down his thermostat to save on his heating bill.
He stopped making coffee. He said customers just came in to hang around and drink his coffee without spending any money. He cut out the Saturday doughnuts for the same reason.
He canceled his janitorial service.
His employees have less to do, so they can clean the bathroom themselves.
With few customers, the bathroom doesn’t dirty as fast anyway. The showroom floor is also staying cleaner now that he’s not rolling the motorcycles in and out each day.
He stopped sweeping his lot. The wind comes up once a month and moves his dirt to the other businesses anyway.
He is no longer open on Sunday and Monday, and he closes at 3 p.m. on Saturday. Why should he work so many hours if he’s not making any money anyway?
When I was there, he wouldn’t order parts for a bike that was down because it didn’t add up to a big enough order to qualify for free freight. He told me the customer could wait because he is probably short of cash, too.

I looked at his leather jackets, and he is missing a lot of the sizes. His T-shirt supply is down to mediums and smalls. He told me he’s cutting back on his inventory dollars, and the fast-moving stuff is the easiest to cut back on.

I was not able to ask his customers about the down-turn in the economy because during the three hours I was there, I could not find a customer to talk to.

He spends his days lamenting the economy and the old days.

It is not his fault that he can’t pay his bills; it’s the economy.

I learned a lot. I have known this guy for a long time, and he is not stupid. He just seems to be in a negative spiral that he is not able to escape.

Don’t start down that path. Change is the only constant in business. Embrace the change.

Don’t Worry, Be Happy

Customers Just Want to Have Fun

I feel that in the motorcycle business we sell happiness. So what happens when we run out of happiness?

Is this the kind of greeting your customers get when they walk into your shop?

I eventually bought the shop I did because when I first walked through the door I knew it was in trouble: There was no joy.  I could see a mechanic reading a magazine, and a fellow holding down the counter with his coffee mug. There was no greeting. No one asked, “What brings you in today?”

I have tried to remember that experience as I have traversed the rocky retailer road.

In my experience, if a customer is happier when he leaves your store than when he came in, he will also leave money with you from time to time. Happiness is best when it is a shared thing, and people just don’t seem to want to visit—or spend their money—when I am not happy.

Sell Pleasure, not Technology

I suspect that people don’t really want to know how things are going when they ask. I feel that they are only opening the door to talk about enjoyable things. I learned a lot about this by watching John, one of my employees.

John is a retired fireman who loves to ride his motor-cycle. He doesn’t know all that much about bikes, other than that he loves them. I hired John because he was a pleasure to be around, and he loves people. I do not always share this quality.

I remember one day when a customer asked how Harley’s Softail suspension worked. He was not a Softail enthusiast, so I was prepared to explain about the hidden shocks and the hardtail look, when John began to tell a story about riding over the Sierras with seven other riders on Harleys.

He talked about the curves and the fresh air and the vistas. He spoke at length about camping and friendship. After a lot of talking and gesticulation, he concluded by saying, “Three of them were Softails, and the suspension worked fine!”

It reminded me that we are selling pleasure and not technology.

John was also the guy who would run ice cream rides at night, even when it wasn’t really ice cream weather. People would show up because they wanted to share happiness.

In addition, he edited our newsletter to let people know when they could join him in the merriment of these rides. People like to read about themselves being happy and having fun.

Life is Good

I have a bit of a head start in this area because I am basically a happy person. Sometimes, though, unhappy experiences happen even to me (a divorce comes to mind). That is when I really have to work at being happy.

During one of my dark times, I was walking to work one day and I started thinking about all the things I had to be grateful for. By the time I had walked the half hour to the shop, I was singing, and I was ready to take on the customer experience that awaited me. I have made this a morning ritual, and it works to this day.

I live the American dream. I have my own business. People work for me. I am making a living, and most of what I do is pleasant. I have access to motor-cycles, and I am recognized on the street. My life is good.

Working in the motorcycle business is not like working in a hardware store, where the customers are often tackling some home repair project that is an annoyance.

When someone walks into a motorcycle shop, he is pursuing something he loves. Even if a biker’s personal relationships may be troubled, he still loves his motorcycle. If I remember to allow it, that joy and enthusiasm are contagious.

Getting through Troubled Times

Your sign says it, but do your customers feel welcome?

Sometimes our relationships with our motorcycle stores can get a little troubled. Sometimes they don’t provide as much time or money as we feel we need. It takes work to avoid this negative spiral.

I cannot imagine how my days would be if I were in some other industry. Sure, I have given up a lot to stay in the motorcycle business. But I love being around people who love their motorcycles, and I love helping them make that relationship better.

This is why the Internet will never replace the motorcycle dealer. I’m cheap, so I can understand the allure of the Internet. But I also know what is missing: there doesn’t appear to be a lot of happiness on the Internet.

I sometimes have trouble remembering to charge enough to put me in a good mood. If I don’t charge enough, I won’t be able to provide my customer with what he wants, and even I find it hard to be happy when I am broke. Money is not that important until it runs out.

Lessons from Cincinnati

There were two main camps at this year’s V-Twin Expo in Cincinnati. There were those who knew that the economy was in trouble, so they were cutting back on their orders. In the weeks since, they probably have been proven right, because their sales are down.

I am glad the other camp was at the show also. For them, business is growing, because they are selling fun.

They know they are providing their customers with a reason to ride. Their business is growing as the people who forgot that motorcycles are about fun go out of business. Their stores are fun places to visit. They love being in the motorcycle business. They remember to be happy. I find pleasure in this attitude.

Let Your Customers Make You Happy

I watch that show on TV with the abusive father who has a motorcycle shop. I feel that if I treated the people who work for me the way he treats his employees, they would have a hard time being in a good mood. I know I don’t like it when someone makes unreasonable demands on me and then yells at me when I am not able to fulfill those demands. It is interesting to me that people who aren’t even into motorcycles love that show.

Sometimes, people who work for me forget how much fun working is, and I have to remind them they are having fun. I have found this to be difficult, but always worth the effort.

And on those days when I don’t have any fun to share, I will ask a customer to tell a story about his most recent adventure on his motorcycle. If I ask the right person, I find these stories remind me why I am in this business. I don’t have to be the source for all good humor.

Every morning when I open up, I take a moment to soak in the reality of the experience. Most people would love to be in my shoes. And I am grateful for the people who will help to make the day full of joy.