Brandon Prokupek: Leadership advocate, marketing expert, dealership owner

November 22, 2022, the most prevalent word right now is uncertainty, especially among the powersports industry. After what could be considered the biggest boom in the history of powersports, the number one question that remains is “Can we expect to maintain what we have gained?” I cant speak from any other point of view other than my own experience, so I think we must look back to look forward.

I started in the powersports industry in 2008 at which time the statistic was that 70% of all dealers went out of business between 2008-2011. This is a staggering statistic but an all too real one. So with that being said and the uncertainty of the economy right now, it’s important that dealers are doing everything possible to retain current customers, reach new ones and deliver an experience that keeps customers coming into the dealership. Even though our product line has grown with the addition of the UTV, we do still sell a product that is bought with discretionary income so this is a relevant threat during a looming “recession”. Recently, our environment changed drastically, we couldn’t keep product on the floor and units were essentially selling themselves. This was a major advantage in some ways but a disadvantage in other ways. On one hand, we had built up a massive amount of inventory from 2017-2019 which increased our floor plan bills to record numbers and pushed the outer limits of most dealers facilities and the surge of sales during Covid was a major relief and a breath of fresh air. On the other hand, over the course of the last 2 years we have experienced unprecedented sales and at some points we felt like we couldn’t lose which built a false sense of confidence at almost unhealthy levels. So the questions remains, “What does “normal” now look like and how do we maintain with inventory growing and sales leveling off?”

I believe that the key to moving forward is in retaining the new customers, reaching new ones and providing the best experience possible to each customer. The answer can be found in two places. Leadership development and marketing. In order to retain your customers and give them the best experience possible, you have to have the best team possible. Lets face it, people do business with people, not a place. So, even more now than ever people are looking for a place they feel welcome and a place they are treated well. This industry has always been a community and I believe now more than ever it’s the dealers responsibility to keep the community together. We have people entering the space that never would have considered it if we did not experience Covid. On the front line is the dealer, we are literally the people and place that all the consumers associate their experience with and if we want to maintain the business we have gained, we have to recognize that. Leadership development has been a key factor in my success at the dealership level. It’s the magic potion that cannot be physically seen in the dealership but can be felt and seen on our P&L’s. The reason leadership development works so well is because inside the subject of leadership are skill sets and values that allow your employees to grow themselves professionally and it empowers them to be confident in decision making. Often, the best decision is the one made with speed and confidence. Leadership gives them the mindset as well as the compass to do so. On the other hand, leadership starts at the top. That’s you, the owner or GM of the dealership. They say you can’t push a rope uphill, you have to go to the top and pull it up. People are always looking for someone with direction and they are looking for someone to take interest in their professional career. Once you do this you will motivate your staff to work even harder (and they will be happy about it) and thus your customer will have a better experience. This is the key to retaining what you have gained, the experience the customer receives when they walk in or call in to your dealership.

In terms of marketing, there hasn’t been much need to really do so over the last few years in terms of selling product. BUT, dealers that did marketing during these times will have an advantage over those that didn’t. The reason is simple, they have built an online presence. They have formed a relationship with their target audience and they are used to seeing those dealerships online therefore they are more top of mind when the time comes to make a decision to walk into a dealership. Currently, a consumer only visits two dealerships before purchasing a unit therefore if you are one of the two they visit you have a 50% chance of making a sale. Online marketing increases your chances of that happening. Marketing is all about attention. Money follows attention. Luckily, if you haven’t started, it’s not too late. In terms of the sales cycle, marketing actually comes before sales. If people don’t know about your services or that you exist there’s no possible way to sell your products. Fortunately for all of us, over the last two years we didn’t have to tell people we existed or stand out we just simply had to have the product and they flocked in and paid whatever price we said or else “someone else will buy it in an hour”. So how do we stay top of mind or ensure we don’t loose new and existing customers to our competition? We market! We set ourselves apart and let the world know we are here and want their business! Pre-Covid we used new age marketing strategies to reach new customers to grow our business and it worked phenomenal. We experienced 20-35% growth year over year while the industry standard was 3-5% YOY growth. In terms of strategy or medium, the absolute best place to spend your advertising dollar is online. The percentage of the population that’s currently interested in our product is about 6% so that means if we buy ads on TV, billboards, or magazines we are essentially hitting 6 out of 100 viewers. I don’t know about you, but that seems like an awful lot of wasted dollars to me. Using online marketing, you can target your audience specifically to ensure you are reaching your target audience 99.9% of the time. Believe me, your customer is on social media and they are on there A LOT. It’s the new TV and luckily for us we can put our ads directly in front of the right person at the right time.

The key thing here is to be proactive not reactive. Start implementing these practices into your dealership and I assure you that you will be ahead of 95% of your competition. Believe me, there are a lot of dealers out there that are complacent because they have had unprecedented growth over the last two years and right now is your chance to stand out. Get ahead now and don’t become a statistic. These are two things you can do now that will have the biggest effect on your success in the future and two things that you can control. I’ve always operated by the motto “control what you can control and let the rest happen”. These two things, especially combined together are the magic your dealership needs to maximize your future. The marketing gets the customer calling and walking in and the leads coming into your CRM while the leadership is what elevates their experience and creates a loyalty like never before that will keep them coming in for years to come.