Sales Techniques for Powersports Dealers Targeting Newer, Younger Riders
by Black Ink Team
Millennials are soon to be the biggest and most powerful segment of consumers, and powersports dealers should take note that many sales techniques that may have worked for them in the past will not work as effectively when targeting this emerging crowd. Moreover, in order for powersports businesses to continue to grow – as Baby Boomers, one of the biggest target markets for the industry, are reaching the end of their riding days – they will have to learn and utilize new marketing channels such as online advertising and social media.
One of the most talked about sales strategies today is omnichannel marketing, which refers to having all of your marketing activities work together throughout the customer journey. In the powersports marketing world, this means that once a potential new customer sees or even just hears about a new motorcycle or ATV, a customized collection of targeted campaigns will spring into action.
Take smartphone apps, for example. On Instagram, when a person ‘likes’ an image of your product, another image with a CTA can be automatically created and sent to that person’s feed. Similarly, when a person looks at a product page on your website, doing so will add a ‘cookie’ to their browser – a record of them viewing that webpage – and from then on, search engines and other digital products will serve that person personalized banner ads, which feature that specific product and include promotions to further entice them. A customer’s history doesn’t go away, anymore – instead, it follows them.
Another example of a new type of marketing is social media influencer marketing, which refers to companies giving their products to people with large social media follower lists in the hopes that they will share their good experience with the product with their audience. Brands can partner with online ‘celebrities’ who have an influential social media presence in order to advertise their product, albeit in an indirect way.
The problem is, millennials are savvy to these types of marketing, and some feel that they verge on being invasive, predatory, or ‘creepy.’ To combat this, powersports OEMs/distributors/dealers should always be truthful in the way they advertise and never try to steal people’s information. It would deliver a huge blow to your customer retention and customer loyalty rates, if word got out that you used advertising methods that were unethical.
Beyond adopting new marketing channels, powersports companies should leverage technologies that can help them calculate advertising ROI. With a CRM, they can study customer journey and find out which advertising approach works best for them. They can also identify target markets to go after, make sales management easier with tools like territory-mapping and automated reports, and disseminate customer information easier than before.
After you are done reading these sales tips, please feel free to check out our other blogs/articles on social media marketing, search engine optimization, and more.