Articles

I don’t believe in leaving my success up to the market, the weather or the economy. If you’re reading this, you likely don’t either. However, I also don’t believe in ignoring tough opponents like the market, weather, or economy. It’s no secret that elections often create uncertainty for all, and for business big and small, concern over future tax rules, government regulations and how they could potentially impact operations. 

As of my writing, President Elect Donald Trump just edged out Hillary in a bizarre and historic election. I say bizarre, because as I watched Fox news Tuesday night nearly every expert including the hosts, polling experts, Washington and political professional guests either outright predicted a Hillary landslide win, or carried a subtle but noticeable anti-Trump tone. Early in the evening, and well into prime time, polling specialists laid out every theoretically conceivable way each candidate could navigate through the tricky electoral vote system for a win. Pretty much all coming to the same conclusion that the Democrats would maintain the Presidency for a 3rd straight term.   

I have a hard time watching blowout games, and was about to check out when they displayed an interesting stat on the jumbo-tron. It was a social media update, just before heading to a commercial that showed Trump had significantly more ‘mentions’ on Facebook than his competitor. The commentators didn’t seem too interested, but as a marketer I took notice. Obviously, a ‘mention’ could be in good or bad context, but it was stimulating enough to keep me engaged. Fast forward another hour or so, with a steady sentiment that Hillary was in control, then it was announced Trump had won the swing state of North Carolina.  While all other ‘experts’ didn’t seem swayed, one commentator looked at his smart phone and shared that the ‘odds’ had just swung to over 70% that Trump would win. This really caught my attention for two reasons. One, it was the first mention in 4 hours that the underdog even had a remote chance.  Two, and more importantly, to me ‘odds’ implied Vegas, betting, and the principle based movement of money. Not necessarily anything to do with politics, Washington, traditional media, and smoke and mirrors. And you know how the story ends.

I’m not one to watch a lot of politics on TV, but there were some big takeaways for me. Traditional media is slanted, social media is very powerful, and I have to stay focused on ‘my economy’ and not get sucked into those ‘other economies’ outside of my control. 

Here’s how it was explained to me. There are 3 economies. One is the ‘Political’ economy where Washington operatives, lawyers, lobbyists, and lifelong politicians revolve around a fake money machine, much paid for by you and I, which is littered with corruption. Then there is the ‘Wall Street’ fake economy where industry insiders and researchers seek to capitalize profits in any manner possible, including fraud and collusion, to maximize personal enrichment. Then, of course, there is a conduit of systemic corruption and legalized bribery flowing between the two. 

The 3rd economy is Main Street America, where you and I live, in your town and mine. Where small-to-medium sized business drive the economy, do real work, and provide real jobs. In the first two economies, up is often down, and left is often right. No logic. However, in the Main Street economy honesty, hard work, and smart business reign supreme. 

This is important to understand, because only in the 3rd economy do the laws of nature have authority. In the first two, it’s a fantasy land. You and I have to understand where we live and work, in the Main Street economy, and not drift over into watching and copycatting those other two worlds which have no relevance to us. 

In 2010 small business made up 99.7% of employment firms. There were 27.9 million small businesses with 500 employees or less, and only 18,500 with 500 or more. Small business accounted for 67% of new jobs between 2009 to 2011. *

However, only about half of all new businesses make it 5 years, and only 1/3 make it 10 years. Some of this failure surely comes from those not understanding which economy they are really in, and instead they end up embracing and emulating the big corrupt world of the first two economies. This is easy to do, because even though the Main Street Economy is the backbone of our economy, it’s not what you see and hear all over the news. 

To tie this into Marketing, be very aware, paranoid, and even skeptical of some of the advice given to you from traditional media reps, and fancy award winning ad agencies backing some of the OEM’s. They’re often operating out of Washington and Wall Street and don’t even know it. 

Here at Powersports Marketing we focus on the principles of marketing first. Right Message, Right Media, Right Audience, and the Right Timing. We specialize in growing new market share and increasing retention for Main Street motorcycle dealers. I’m glad this damn election is over, now lets you and I get out there and sell some bikes and do our part to make Main Street the best street regardless of the market, weather, or economy by staying focused on our world, not theirs.  

*Bureau of Labor statistics

DEALERSHIP:

MotorCity Motorcycles is a brand new Indian & Victory dealership nestled in the Bloomfield Hills area. As a new store, they didn’t have a customer database to market to and, therefore, had to start from scratch. They knew a key way to grow their business was by having consistent events at the dealership. The biggest challenge for a dealership in their shoes is finding people who ride and getting them through the door. 

SOLUTION:

Consistency is king. Whether you’re talking about working out or marketing your dealership, consistency is the key to your success. 

According to a recent study in the Powersports Industry, it takes up to 28 touches to gain a new customer. A touch can be a mail piece, a phone call, visit to the dealership, email, social media update, etc. What this means is, if you’re serious about carving off new market share, you have to be consistent. You have to be dedicated. You can’t send one mail piece to a group of people who’ve never done business with you before, one time, and expect they all come running into the dealership waiving the mail piece begging to buy something.

The challenge is, many dealers lack a plan. When you lack a plan, you end up shooting from the hip and wind up just ‘doing something’ because you feel like you need to ‘do something’. This type of marketing never gets the results you want. The results MotorCity received started by identifying proven riders in their backyard. We found all the metric 600cc+ on-road cruisers and H-D customers living in their immediate backyard. We combined these folks with customers they’d logged in their CRM. Each month, we gathered all the new customers who purchased and the new logged customers and rinsed and repeated. 

Once we identified the customers where the majority of their sales should come from, we put a plan in place to hit them 52-104 times per year with a value-added message. By using up to 12 direct marketing touches per month, you’re guaranteed to achieve this target of 52-104 touches per year. The Sharp Shooter Program uses a combination of integrated direct mail, emails, call blasts, web banners, event signage, fliers, social media updates and even more on each campaign. Each piece of communication incentivizes customers to go online and compete a survey so they can tell you who they are and what they want to buy from you. Over time, this style of marketing drives a ton of quality traffic to the dealership and generates a pipeline of leads for every department. Most importantly, it puts a fence around your herd, making your customers immune to other offers from other dealers. MotorCity Motorcycles is experiencing the payoff from using the Sharp Shooter Program consistently to market their events.

RESULTS:

These guys are creating major affinity with their buying base by executing a consistent marketing plan by hitting the Right Target Audience, through the Right Media Channels, with the Right Message, at just the Right Time. Altogether, MotorCity will execute 13 Sharp Shooter Campaigns this year. 

As they’ve continued to market to their Buying Base, they have created a warm and responsive list and generated a consistent pipeline of leads for each of their departments. Over the past year, they have generated 1,714 sales opportunities for each of their departments, which include 441 New & Used Unit Leads, and hundreds of hand raisers for Parts, Accessories & Riding Gear from an almost 100% conquest list! The lead generation aspect of these campaigns, turns a weekend event into a month-long sales process allowing our clients the opportunity to grow their Return On their Investment exponentially over the weeks following their event.

LOOKING FORWARD:

A lot of dealers leave it up to Santa Claus to hopefully deliver a solid December. Don’t let the big box stores rob you this holiday season. Claim what’s rightfully yours and invite your customers in for a Christmas Event, What Santa Forgot Event or New Year’s Event. Give them an excuse to skip the mall and the traffic jams and come have fun with you. Your cash register will thank you. Check out the inserts for a few more proven winners. To have Powersports Marketing build your dealership’s Buying Base and put a plan in place to hit them consistently for FREE, call me on my direct line at 877-242-4472 ext: 112. Happy selling!

DEALERSHIP:

Arkport Cycles is one of the largest dealers in New York State for Harley, Honda, Suzuki, Yamaha, Kymco & Arctic Cat. Located in Hornell, NY, they’ve been a family-owned business since 1972 and are still going strong. 

SOLUTION:

One of the biggest challenges dealers are faced with is marketing. Most dealers lack a plan so they end up making reactive advertising decisions and randomly buy radio, tv and newspaper because they know they should be advertising. They react. If they have poor weather and traffic slows, they buy a big radio campaign hoping to drive traffic. If they have a couple busy weeks, they hold off on marketing hoping well-timed weather keeps the door swinging. If the economy takes a step backwards, they stop spending to conserve cash. These ‘Market Driven’ dealers wind up leaving themselves completely vulnerable to the whims of elections, the weather, market and economy.

‘Marketing Driven’ dealers have more control over their business because they have a pro-active, integrated, direct-marketing plan designed to touch their buying base 52-104 times per year that is quantifiable. So, barring a natural disaster, ‘Marketing Driven’ dealers experience predictable growth. 

Arkport Cycles made the conscious decision to put more control in their hands this year. We started by identifying their ‘Buying Base’ made up of two groups of customers: 1) Past Customers who’ve spent money with their store in the past four years in Sales, Service & Parts. The Sharp Shooter Program helps dealers grow by increasing the number of ‘Active Customers’, those who spend money with your dealership every 12 months. Most dealers have only a fraction of their database actively spending money with them, representing a huge opportunity for growth. Arkport Cycles had 5,100 past customers within 30 miles of the dealership who’ve spent money with them in the past four years. 

Next, we found their 2) Conquest Customers, folks who live in their backyard and ride what they sell but haven’t bought from them. Arkport has 3,242 of these competitor’s customers and other orphan owners living within that same 30 miles of their dealership. These two groups of customers are called a ‘Dealership’s Buying Base’ because this is where the majority of their sales are going to come from.

Once we identified their ‘Buying Base’, we put together a multi-touch, direct-marketing plan designed to touch them 52-104 times per year. This essentially puts a fence around their herd and guarantees they’re staying in front of every real opportunity they have to sell a unit, parts or service in their backyard.

Once we’ve identified the ‘Right Audience’ and the ‘Right Media’, we turn our attention to the ‘Right Message.’ The Sharp Shooter message focuses on the party which increases frequency of visits to our clients’ dealerships. Simply put, the more frequently customers walk through your doors, the more often they will purchase from your individual departments resulting in increased ‘Average Annual Customer Value.’ 

When you increase 1) The Number of Active Customers and 2) Their Annual Average Customer Value, your business grows predictably.

RESULTS:

Arkport just finished their second event using the Sharp Shooter Program. Their first event was, “…extremely successful with a ton of traffic!” After her second event, Jenny said, “I had an idea of what the traffic was going to be after our first event, but it far exceeded my expectations.” 

The store was so busy, Jenny ended up calling some of her best customers to help out with demo rides and working the event. Customers drove from as far away as two hours to attend. They ended up taking 40 trade-ins on Saturday, but were unable to finish all the deals because they didn’t have the specific model or color in-stock. The regional H-D rep showed up for the event and was blown away by the traffic and the overall success of the event.

LOOKING FORWARD:

What’s next? We are officially into the 4th quarter and that means ‘Hallo-Thanks-Mas’. Between Halloween and Christmas Day, the average American consumer will spend 70% of their entire, annual discretionary budget. How much of that budget are you going to capture? Don’t make the mistake of pulling your advertising dollars back this year and leaving it to hope. Let us help you have a record 4th quarter. When you become a ‘Marketing Driven’ dealer, you can move the needle all year long. Check out the inserts for a sample of a proven winner. 

For more information on how the Sharp Shooter Program can help put more control over the growth of your dealership in your hands, give me a ring on my direct line at 877-242-4472 ext: 112 or visit us at www.PowersportsMarketing.com. Happy selling.

DEALERSHIP:

Harley-Davidson® of Louisville set down roots over 70 years ago in the ‘Gateway to the South’. On their website they ask you to, “Stop in anytime for a cup of coffee and some good old Southern hospitality.”

OBJECTIVE:

Increase market share from competitors and generate more quantifiable leads from the dollars being spent in marketing.

CHALLENGE:

Traditional marketing had always been a challenge for H-D® of Louisville. In the past, the dealership depended on radio, billboards and some print advertising to reach new riders. Like many dealers, they struggled with quantifying the effectiveness of this style of advertising and they weren’t convinced it was working.

SOLUTION:

The General Manager, Jay, began carving off new market share. Here’s how we identified all the Harley owners who lived within 30 miles of his dealership but haven’t bought from him. We combined that list with past customers from their Talon DMS, customers who spent money with the dealership in the past four years and customers that lived within 30 miles of their store. 

Once we identified their ‘Right Audience’, we went after them with the ‘Right Media’. We utilized 12 direct-marketing strategies including direct mail, a recorded call blast, email blasts, social media updates, in-store fliers, in-store signage, a web banner, a lead magnet and even more to ensure the target audience was reached multiple times leading up to the event. 

Using up to 12 touches per campaign guarantees they will touch their buying base 52-104 times per year. At first that number of touches may sound like overkill, but what we’ve proven is that frequency of touches produces a system of Predictable Growth and the dealership 1) Grows the number of Active Customers spending money with the dealership every 12 months and 2) They increase the Average Annual Customer Value. 

To generate leads, each piece of communication incentivized folks to go online and complete a survey to tell the dealership two pieces of information: 1) First and Last Name, Email Address and Phone Number & 2) What they want to buy from the dealership. This typically generates hundreds of leads for not only unit sales, but parts & accessories, Motorclothes and service as well. Combine this formula with consistency and we are systematically carving off new market share and generating more leads for Jay and the team at H-D of Louisville

RESULTS:

H-D of Louisville has executed five Sharp Shooter Programs in the last five months and have generated 1545 sales opportunities for their individual departments. Broken down, this means the Sharp Shooter Program has generated 293 new & used unit leads, 436 parts & accessories leads, 165 service leads and 464 apparel leads. By increasing frequency of visits to the dealership and generating a consistent stream of leads, these guys are increasing both the number of customers spending money with them and their average annual customer value. Jay said, “The Sharp Shooter Program is the best dollar you can spend in marketing.”

LOOKING FORWARD:

If you haven’t planned your marketing for 2017 yet, please ask yourself the following questions: How are my sales year over year? What does my marketing mix look like? Can I quantify my results? And, am I satisfied with those results? If sales are stagnant and the answer to the last two questions are, ‘No’ then it’s time to ask, “What changes am I going to make with my 2017 Marketing Plan?” 

We’ll help you start planning your 2017 Marketing Calendar with a FREE Market Analysis. It’s a two-step process 1) We pull a 4-year history of past sales, service & parts customers and 2) compare them to a list of conquest customers (people who ride what you sell and live in your backyard but have never bought from you). 

For more information on how the Sharp Shooter Program can help 2017 be your best year yet, give me a ring on my direct line at 877-242-4472 ext: 112 or visit us online at www.PowersportsMarketing.com. Happy selling.

OBJECTIVE:

The team at Cowboy Harley-Davidson of Austin are proud of the incredible level of service they offer to all their customers, which is evidenced by the thousands of incredible reviews on their review site and on their Google listing. In spite of their massive 53,000 sq. ft. showroom (which is quite impressive), they strive to maintain that ‘small town shop’ feeling.  Every member of the dealership makes an effort to treat their customers like family.  And it shows. One way they win over the local Harley riders is by the fantastic events they host at the dealership.  Everyone loves a party – and the folks at Cowboy H-D of Austin are no exception.  One of their objectives is to make sure their local riding community knows all about their upcoming events and feels like a welcomed member of the Cowboy family.

SOLUTION:

Marketing Manager, Andrea Gutierrez, has the responsibility of creating compelling email marketing messages each week to ensure her customer database stays updated on all the upcoming events. Cowboy Harley-Davidson wants their customers to ‘feel the love’, so they have a strategy for sending emails that are interesting and that focus on the party (not a stuffy corporate message all about finance offers).

For anyone that’s had the ‘privilege’ of creating marketing emails, they understand that staring at a white screen trying to be compelling and creative each and every week is a HUGE challenge.  That’s why Andrea jumped into the Firestorm Email system within the Local Web Dominator Program and started cranking out killer emails using the powersports-specific, pre-made themed templates.   Now, in a matter of minutes (not hours), Andrea’s able to touch base with her entire customer list at least once a week to share the cool events that are happening at the dealership.

 RESULTS:

There have been rumors around the marketing world for years that indicate that email marketing is dead (being replaced with more shiny, exciting things like Social Media and mobile apps).  But, both the Cowboy H-D of Austin team and their customers can attest to just how wrong those rumors are.  The emails being sent out of the Firestorm email program are using email marketing best practices, with killer creative graphics, wrapped in a theme that customers are excited to open and read.  And as such, they’ve seen some incredible results.  

For the month of September, Cowboy Harley-Davidson of Austin sent 6 emails to their customer database (a list of more than 9,000 customers).  Each email had an average open rate of 15% which is right on par with the industry average.  However, the really exciting part of the data is the Click Rate.  Click Rates in email marketing are kind of like Click Through Rates for Search Engine Marketing.  Impressions (AKA: Open rate) are really good to have, but the real traction happens when folks click on your email and visit your website for more information.  The industry standard for click rates range between 2-6%.  The average click rates for Cowboy H-D is between 8-13%!  WHOA!  It’s amazing what happens when the marketing emails are sent regularly, using email marketing best practices, and focus on the party (not just the finance offers).

Want to have an email marketing program that was created exclusively for the Powersports industry, has pre-populated images and ad copy, and generates killer results?  Firestorm is a FREE component of the Local Web Dominator program.  Give us a call today at 877-242-4472 and we’ll be happy to show you around.

We’re quickly approaching the time of year where business is happening so fast that we sometimes abandon our well-known business best practices because we feel that so much is happening that we just don’t have time to do things properly.

We make excuses. I get it. I’ve been there. I’ve been behind the counter at Christmas time for more years than I care to think about. More years than some folks reading this have been alive. That last sentence actually stings a little.

The point is, we can’t abandon best practices out of convenience. What I’m talking about specifically is the best practice of having a good data acquisition strategy in place and following it. Having good, accurate name, address, email, and phone information is key to a dealership’s success.

During the Christmas season, traffic levels go off the rails the closer you get to the big day, and the temptation to just get people out the door can be huge.

If you’ve followed us for any length of time, or been to one of our marketing boot camps, you’ve heard us talk about the number one hidden asset that your accountant won’t tell you about: your customer list.

We also talk a lot about being a MARKET driven dealership vs. a MARKETING driven dealership. 

Market driven dealerships operate and are successful based on market conditions, which are fickle at best. They are affected (good or bad) based on any number of things that are out of control of the dealership owner – bad weather, local economy, national elections, etc. 

It’s like they unlock the doors and wish for the best. It’s a terrible way to run a business, let alone live. Talk about bleeding ulcers…

With good customer data, a dealer can have a marketing driven dealership. We are a niche, passion driven market. By having good customer data, you have the ability to target exactly the right people, using the right media, with the right message, at exactly the right time. You no longer hope for the best, you control your outcome.

Of course, this all starts with committing to the strategy – even when it’s tough. 

Average annual client value has been shown to be $675 gross profit. That’s per person. So, having the ability to reach out to those people and get them back into your dealership not only ensures that you get all of that $675 (and not another dealer), but gives you a shot an increasing that average value. And it doesn’t stop there – according to the Motorcycle Industry Council, the number one reason people get involved in riding is the influence of friends and family. It’s been the number one reason forever. So it stands to reason that if you’ve got the ability to reach out to those interested in riding with a compelling message, as they influence their friends and family and those people will be coming to YOUR dealership, bringing their money with them.

This is what we call a predictable growth strategy, and we have seen it work hundreds of times in every state. 

The hitch is, you need the data to make it really successful. That’s why it’s so important not to abandon best practices when they get tough during the Christmas selling season. 

Sure, there are times that the lines get long at the parts counter. I’d advise getting extra staff, and adding impulse buying options at the registers so that people have something to look at as they are waiting the extra few seconds while employees are ringing up folks properly. It works at grocery stores, it’ll work at your dealership too. I’ve done it.

Engage your staff in the effort to harvest good customer data. Help them understand that being able to market to customers and bring them back in is good for everyone. Good sales equals good job security – it’s especially easy to get buy in if they are on an incentive based pay plan (the best kind of pay plan). 

The only time there may be more folks coming to your dealership is at the start of spring – and that may or may not actually be the case depending on your geography. The point is, that while you have the opportunity to get good customer data it’s imperative that you do so.

I encourage you to make proper customer data acquisition a hill you’re willing to die on through the Christmas season. If you do, you will be locked and loaded to have a very successful 2017.

 What is your mission?  In other words, let’s cut through the clutter of everything your dealership does and answer the question… why does your dealership exist? 

Why do you do what you do; what do you stand for?

Many businesses write out a Mission Statement to communicate their mission & vision. While I’m a huge believer in the power of a good Mission Statement, I don’t believe that just having one is the end-all to a dealership’s problems. 

Most mission statements are generic, stale and completely useless. Often times they actually do more harm than good. For instance, when customers and staff know your mission statement, but it’s not genuine or lived out/executed, it’s nothing more than a constant reminder that having integrity and doing what you say you’re going to isn’t important in your organization.

At Powersports Marketing our mission is: “To enrich lives by providing powerful turn-key marketing, so people, businesses and our economy can thrive.”  Our goal is to enrich the lives of Dealer Principals, the dealership staff and customers, to grow the industry as a whole, which can impact the entire economy. 

We often discuss this (and our vision) with our staff to create a culture that desires a win-win for everyone we come in contact with. 

In my articles over the years I’ve mentioned Proverbs 29:18 a few times. It says, “Where there is no vision, the people perish…” What is your vision? Without vision your staff is just going through the motions and your business is more dependent upon the market, the weather and the economy than it should be. Without vision and passion your marketing isn’t working as it should be either.

The advantages of being mission-driven are large and ongoing and impact customers and staff. Below are some benefits of being mission-driven in not only your operation, but in your marketing as well. 

1. Gains interest from the affluent. People who have money spend it decisively – they are more careful with their money.  That can make it more difficult to earn business from them, but they are often more loyal. Plus, the affluent will spend more money with you and have a higher annual customer value than the non-affluent.  The affluent have a very strong preference for choosing companies that are more than “business as usual.” 

On the opposite side of the equation, poor people often just hope you can get them financed. Most won’t be able to buy, and even if they can/do, you’ll never see most of them again for additional purchases of PG&A or service.

2. Increased profits. Mission-driven marketing will generate more responses from your buying base (past customers and conquest riders in your area) and result in a higher frequency of visits. When you get more riders to come through your doors more frequently it’s a system for predictably growing your dealership.

3. Increased loyalty. Mission-driven marketing focuses on the emotional side of the purchase/shopping process. It utilizes 1-to-1 relationship style marketing instead of one-to-many and drives an elevated and emotional level of engagement. It gives customers a go-to place to come back and do business again and again.

4. More new clients. In addition to being very good at keeping old customers, mission-driven marketing also excels at bringing in new ones.  91% of consumers said they’d switch to a brand associated with a good cause, according to a recent study. 

5. Stronger awareness & a positive image. Aligning yourself with a higher mission enables you to be seen in an ‘operating for a greater good, rather than your own’ point of view. This is good, especially in a time when businesses and business owners are seen as evil, selfish and uncaring. Being mission-driven differentiates you in a significant way. 

6. Attraction and retention of high-quality employees. Am I saying that when you do mission-driven marketing you’ll have better luck at building a great team? Absolutely. Where there is no vision, the people perish. 

It’s no secret that one of my favorite restaurants is Chick-fil-a. They have the absolute best employees of any restaurant (especially fast food), hands down.  Chick-fil-a doesn’t pay more, have a super easy workload, or better hours of operation – what they do have is an excellent vision/mission that’s incorporated into their entire culture. 

Our Sharp Shooter and LWD programs are distinctly mission-driven. Our goal is to touch your buying base 52-104 times per year. We not only build loyalty for the long-haul for our clients, we also generate quantifiable traffic and sales for a positive ROI on marketing dollars spent - right now! It’s time to stop all the image-enhancing advertising designed to build your brand. It’s a complete waste of money. 

It’s time to build something greater. Call me to discuss - 1-877-242-4472.  

- Tory

The 6-P Rule: Prior Planning Prevents Piss Poor Performance. I can’t remember if I first heard that one from my dad who is retired Air Force or my late cycling buddy, T.A., who was a Marine. Either way, it stuck to my ribs. I’ve tested this rule in many ways and many times over the last 40 plus years, and the rule always wins. First in school, then in sports, business, and even in family life of being a husband and a father. No matter how many times I show up for a situation in life unprepared, I always lose. 

Nowadays I’m pretty seasoned in the art of, “If you’re gonna be dumb, you’d better be tough,” and it feels good to already have a plan in place for 2017 and beyond. In fact, here at Powersports Marketing we’ve taken our planning well into the future. With the help from a great book called Traction by Gino Wickman, my leadership team and I have created a big picture vision by setting a 10-year goal based on realistic sales history and previous year-over-year growth. Then, using the same math, we rolled it back and painted the picture for where we should be in 3 years. We then rolled it back again to a 1-year goal, and now we live in a 90-day, quarterly, goal world.  We’ve also factored in our existing company core values, created a core purpose, and have very specific marketing strategy. 

What’s exciting is that if we execute our marketing strategy the growth will come. It’s a Predictable Formula.  In fact, it’s the same principle based growth formula we teach our dealer clients in boot camps and online presentations. 

The 90-day world we’re living in right now is focused on three of the biggest holidays and marketing opportunities of the year: Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas. Or Hallow-Thanks-Mas as we like to call it. 

When we execute our 90-day Hallow-Thanks-Mas plan, here is what the Predictable Growth Formula looks like in action. 

Annual increase in customer list size + annual increase in customer value (or the same) = Annual Growth. Simple math. 

The two fundamentals behind the Predictable Growth Formula are:

1. Generating new leads. (Growing New Customers)

2. Increasing the value of existing customers/ reactivating lost customers. (Increasing Retention)

The objective of the Predictable Growth Formula is to experience growth year after year, despite elections, weather, the stock market, etc. 

Too often business owners mistake having an “up year” with growing. There is a HUGE difference. Most businesses are market driven, meaning their results vary based on the ebb and flow of the economy. Businesses who execute the two previous mentioned fundamentals experience Predictable Growth and are marketing driven. They’re not sitting around waiting for the market to come to them. 

But to accomplish Predictable Growth in this very important last quarter of 2016 you must first embrace the 6-P Rule. With no plan, you’re just another reactive dealer sitting around waiting on the door to swing. 

Let’s dive a little deeper into the difference between a Market driven dealer versus a Marketing driven dealer.  

A Market driven dealer is oblivious to its number one asset. It’s customer list. A Market driven dealer doesn’t invest in and train its staff, nor does he have a Q4 and beyond marketing plan to take advantage of the massive holiday spending that is about to go down. A Market driven dealer isn’t aware that Amazon and his competitor down the road are all fighting for a piece of that holiday spending as well. A Market driven dealer will react, and whatever the outcome of his holiday sales are come January 2017, he will blame the good or the bad on the outcome of the election. 

A Marketing driven dealer understands that his customer list is his number one asset (what I often refer to as “The Number One Asset Your Accountant Forgot to Tell You About”). A Marketing driven dealer trains his staff on how and why capturing accurate data on his customers is of the utmost importance. A Marketing driven dealer has a pro-active plan and is doing an integrated, lead generating, marketing plan for Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas, and will finish the year strong come hell or high water.  

Ultimately, continual growth is achieved by executing the 6-P Rule, and now is the time to take action. If you’re reading this right now, then you understand we’re practicing what we preach because this newsletter is part of the plan.  

Pick up the phone right now and call us to get your Hallow-Thanks-Mas campaigns on the books, so you can finish strong regardless of Trump or Hillary and learn more about how the Predictable Growth formula can help you in 2017 and beyond! 877-242-4472.