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Toy & Hauler Business - Selling the Lifestyle Buyer - A Worthwhile Long-Term Commitment Selling the Lifestyle Buyer - A Worthwhile Long-Term Commitment By Jon Lintvet If there is one thing "recreational" dealerships have in common, it's the dud lead. We know with complete confidence that time will be spent each and every day talking to consumers that have absolutely no intention of buying from us - on the phone, in the showroom, at a show or via email. And like all great businesses, dealerships that focus on "buyers" and not "time-killers" will differentially drive increasing sales and profits. Enter industry-wide initiatives like Go RVing and Discover Boating. Tens of millions of dollars are being spent annually to stimulate consumers into transforming dreamers into owner for years to come. To date, Go RVing has generated more than 183,000 leads in 2007.  The general perception is that these industry initiatives generate low value leads. When asked, many dealers will say the primary reason is that these prospects are not ready to buy - not even close. If we look to the marine industry as a reference point, it is clear that this is not just an RV or power sports industry dynamic. According to National Marine Manufacturer's Association's (NMMA) research, there is some indication that unless the leads specified that their purchase horizon was in one to three months, they really didn't want a phone call, even if they gave their phone number. They've visited DiscoverBoating.com - not your website or your showroom - and they may have upwards of a year or more, maybe even three years, before they actually purchase a boat.Herein lays the opportunity. Go RVing and Discover Boating are not short-term retail promotions. They're long-term awareness campaigns designed to get people excited about being on the water or hitting the road with their family. This is your chance, as a dealership, to establish an ongoing relationship with these prospects and close the deal when the timing is right. Yet, despite a challenging market, most of the dealers I've spoken with are placing little to no value on them, rolling these lifestyle leads in with the time-killers. After reviewing recently reported results from Discover Boating, it occurs to me that we may want to reexamine our current approach. According to Info-Link, based on new boat registrations, 10 percent of all leads generated on DiscoverBoating.com purchased a boat, and more than half of those boat buyers were first-time purchasers. Furthermore, the NMMA reports that since March of 2006, one of every six people (17 percent) registered on DiscoverBoating.com as a boating prospect, purchased a boat since visiting the website. That's just in the campaign's first eight months, and again nearly half of those leads were first-time buyers. I believe that we are missing out on a golden opportunity. Consumers responding to these initiatives are predominately responding to a lifestyle message. These ads generate passion for the associated benefits of owning an RV, ATV, snowmobile, or boat - not for a brand or specific model. Take a look at the Discover Boating video "Good Run" (www.discoverboating.com) when you have a moment. There is not a single, dominant brand reference in over 3-1/2 minutes of video, yet I am left with a compelling desire to spend time on the water with my father. This dynamic begs a natural question and essentially what I believe to be at the core of the consumer/dealer disconnect stemming from lifestyle leads. After watching this video or the Go RVing DVD, what type of dealer or brand do consumers expect, or better yet, want to hear from? The answer is overwhelming "none." Most consumers have a warm, fuzzy feeling and don't know where to go next. The opportunity is for your dealership to turn curiosity into sales with a long-term, tailored approach to prospects that are typically new to the industry. The dealerships that are setting themselves up - and apart - to capitalize on these lifestyle leads recognize this dynamic and are adapting to leverage it as a competitive advantage. The following hit list highlights several creative approaches that will pay dividends.
I believe these types of approaches are unlikely to work in isolation and require a dealership's strong commitment over the long haul. As we're discussed, these consumers are rarely ready to buy from the onset. According to Go RVing, more than 50 percent of consumers who requested more information and identified a purchase timeframe indicated that they were not planning a purchase in the next six months. If we assume the consumers that didn't identify a time-frame, or simply weren't sure, fall into the long-term buyer bucket as well, the rate jumps to nearly 80 percent or roughly 140,000 leads received in 2007 alone. This is real money. If RV dealers nationwide can convert the Go Rving leads at half of the rate Discover Boating is experiencing, we're looking at an estimated $174 million in retail sales - and that is just from the leads through August 2007. Sure a percentage of these 183,000 leads would purchase regardless of any uniquely tailored approach. And yes, quantifying the overlap would be challenging. But at risk of over-simplifying the discussion and potential value, I would argue that if we get caught up in such a debate, we risk missing the bigger point. The critical question in my mind is: What is your dealership doing to capitalize on these lifestyle leads? What investments are you making to ensure your dealership is capturing whatever incremental sales these consumers represent? Historically, a significant hurdle in managing leads with customized messaging and content was the complexity or cost of tools that made it easy. the market has evolved, the industry has innovated and these tools are more accessible than ever before. The lead management solutions currently available can record and capture leads from virtually any source, including those from Go RVing, manufacturers, online classified portals, your website, shows, walk-ins and phone leads. Further, these solutions make it easy to quickly set up customized e-mail response and template-driven communications, search and segment the prospect and customer database, consistently use scheduled follow-up activities and develop and launch powerful e-marketing campaigns in minutes. From a management perspective, dealers now have unparalleled access to powerful reporting and analysis tools to quantifiably measure and improve their sales team's performance and evaluation the return on investment of individual marketing efforts and lead sources. Most importantly, these solutions are web-based, meaning dealers are not required to purchase expensive software and hardware, fuss with on-site service calls and limited accessibility. Through permission-based access, sales reps, management and ownership can run the dealership, build customer relationships and close sales from anywhere there is Internet access - truly providing you access to your business. Anywhere. In practice, I recognize that every dealership will balance the potential upside these lifestyle leads represent relative to the perceived investment required to sell them. As discussed, the solutions available today make this easier and more cost-effective than ever before. Combined with a creative approach to connecting with these consumers, sales and profits will increase over time. My father-in-law and at lease 183,000 others just like him are out there, so who's going to sell them an RV? Jon Lintvet has over 10 years of experience in new business and product development. As Channel Blade Technologies; director of business development, Lintvet focuses on building strategic partnerships to support the company's growing list of clients, including more than 50 leading manufacturers and 2,000 dealer locations worldwide. Channel Blade provides website, lead management and education solutions to the RV, marine and power sports industries. |
About Channel Blade and ARI
Channel Blade, an ARI company, provides online lead generation, lead management and sales education solutions that drive more leads and sales to manufacturers and dealers within the marine and recreational vehicle industries. Channel Blade supports its clients worldwide with its award-winning, cost-efficient solutions and hands-on education programs -- including 70 percent of Boating Industry's prestigious 2008 Top 100 Dealers.
ARI Network Services, Inc. (ARI) is a leading provider of electronic parts catalogs and marketing services to dealers, distributors and manufacturers in the manufactured equipment markets. ARI currently serves approximately 100 manufacturers and 190 distributors worldwide, as well as more than 25,000 dealers in several markets, including outdoor power; power sports; marine; recreation vehicle; appliance; agricultural equipment; floor maintenance; construction; and aftermarket auto and truck parts. Both of the companies’ products, as well as the websites designed for its customers, have received numerous industry awards, including Editor’s Choice Award for SearchEngineSmart™ in February, 2009 awarded by Powersports Business Magazine and this year’s Best Dealer Website of the Year for MarineMax.com.
For more information on Channel Blade and ARI, please visit www.channelblade.com and www.arinet.com.
Media contact: Lindsay Rapoport, (757) 222-6723; lindsay.rapoport@channelblade.
