Outside Sales Too Low? by Greg German

A few years ago one of my long-time employees left our dealership to try his hand at another career field. After about 12 months, he realized that it would be difficult for him to be successful in the short-term in his new job and he inquired about returning to our company. We talked and realized that the previous position he held with us was one that no longer interested him and he would like to try his hand at equipment sales.

I asked him what had changed in him that made him think that he could be successful. In the past, he had been used to customers coming to him and now he was going to have to be in the offensive position and go out and seek them. What I didn’t realize that in the job that he was currently employed, it was all cold-call sales. Daily, he was knocking on doors, calling customers, utilizing referrals and whatever else he could do to talk to a prospect. Fortunately for us, his new employer had spent a great deal of money sending him to conferences and tra

GIE+EXPO Elite 2008

Motion Pro—Faster, easier, better. That is what power sports technicians have said about Motion Pro tools for over a decade. Now the same great tools are available to dealers and technicians in the power equipment industry. Founded in 1984, Motion Pro became known for manufacturing and distributing reasonably priced, high quality replacement cables for motorcycles, ATVs, PWC and snowmobiles. Building on that success, Motion Pro expanded into offering premium specialty tools with a focus on tools that would make the technician’s job easier. The Motion Pro line now includes an extensive selection of tools that no technician should be without.

’08 Black Hills Rally Doubles Success In Second Year

The 2nd annual Black Hills UTV/ATV Rally doubled this year in both participant and vendor attendance. Over 1,100 UTV, Side x Side, ATV, and dirt bike enthusiasts attended this year’s event. The Black Hills UTV/ATV Rally is an annual event that offers off-road enthusiasts easy access to hundreds of miles of scenic trails in the beautiful Black Hills of South Dakota, while raising funds for the Off-Road Riders Assn.

The rally was held over Labor Day weekend August 29-31 at Top 50 Rally Park, about 10 minutes from Rapid City, SD. The park offered daily guided rides and demo rides, and displayed many off-road manufacturers and aftermarket vendors. There was also on-site camping, nightly events, the Arctic Cat appreciation dinner, and, most importantly, direct access to hundreds of miles of off-road trails in the Black Hills.

GIE+EXPO: Showtime In Louisville!

The second year of the new GIE+EXPO trade show—the largest lawn and garden event in North America—offers dealers almost too much opportunity to take advantage of in three short days from October 23-25 at the Kentucky Exposition Center in Louisville.

Show organizers expect more than 20,000 participants at GIE+EXPO, including dealers, lawn and landscape professionals, distributors, rental operators, contractors, manufacturer reps and more, with registrations coming from more than 30 countries.

Sales, Service Require Teamwork To Succeed by John Walker

During the past 30+ years I have had the opportunity of working with vast numbers of service managers and service technicians. These people are the backbone of any successful equipment dealership. Without them most sales personnel would be hard pressed to survive or to sell even the best products manufactured.

In talking with these technicians, no matter what line of equipment is sold by the dealership, one point becomes crystal clear: Many service personnel view salespeople as pompous, self-centered individuals who believe that without them the dealership would go belly-up, wouldn’t survive the year, would self destruct.

Storm Prep Key To Survival In Southern Hurricane-Hit Regions

Recent storms—Hurricanes Gustav and Ike—bear eerie resemblance to the catastrophic 2005 hurricane season when Category 3 storms Katrina and Rita devastated the Gulf Coast, from Alabama to Texas. Similar to their 2005 predecessors, Category 2 storms Gustav and Ike arrived 13 days apart, packing a powerful one-two punch along the Louisiana and Texas coastline.

On September 1 (Labor Day), Gustav, the third major hurricane of the 2008 season, made landfall 22 miles west of Grand Isle, La., which is slightly west and south of Katrina’s official landfall. Gustav packed 110 MPH winds and flooding waters. Houma, La. suffered extensive wind damage and flooding extended westward to coastal parishes and inland to many communities in central Louisiana.

Bigger Better Or Smaller Smarter? by Paul Kindinger

I realize some of you wish I would stop writing about “purity” and consolidation. In fact, some of you have let me know you don’t even like the term and want me to give it a different name. With that said, there is an interesting philosophical debate surrounding these issues.

This discussion centers on the paradoxical push by some manufacturers for purity and consolidation into mega dealerships while other manufacturers are supporting diversity and smaller entrepreneurial enterprises. The real question is: Who is right?

New EPA Rules Include Dealer, OEM Protections by Dan Shell

More details from the new EPA small emissions regulations announced last month are emerging, including key provisions that protect both dealers and OEMs from unfair competition by firms importing non-compliant engines into the U.S. market. The new regulations place a much stronger burden on offshore suppliers and importers, forcing those companies to “put their money where their mouth is” when it comes to bringing products into the U.S.

In a nutshell, beginning in model year 2010 offshore firms bringing small engine products into the U.S. must now have a minimum service center network in place, or if not must post a minimum bond beginning at $500,000 before even starting the engine compliance process.

Deep Thoughts—and a Laugh

Pop culture icons like Brad Pitt and Goldie Hawn have recently acquired tattoos, as have over 70% of National Basketball Association (NBA) players. Thus, it is no wonder that over 32% of young people aged 25 to 29, and 25% of folks aged 30 to 39, also have tattoos (Harris Interactive, 2008). A 2006 Pew Research survey found 36% of people ages 18 to 25 had tattoos, while a full 40% of those 26 to 40 sported them.

For many, acquiring a tattoo or body piercing is their way of expressing their individuality and their availability to members of the opposite sex. Tattoo parlors from Brazil to Malaysia have seen an upward trend in business over the last 10 years.

Supplier Sales, Distribution and Program News

As fall chain saw season approaches, Husqvarna has launched Chain Saw Demo Days through October 31 as part of the company’s “Master Your Great Outdoors” marketing campaign. Customers seeking innovative power equipment that helps curb the high cost of fuel are participating in Chain Saw Demo Days events at participating Husqvarna servicing dealer locations nationwide. The events coincide with fall chain saw season and Chain Saw Safety Awareness Month.

“Chain Saw Demo Days is an important initiative supporting Husqvarna’s ongoing commitment to help drive our dealers’ business,” says David Zerfoss, president, Husqvarna Forest and Garden Company. “The fall phase of our ‘Master Your Great Outdoors’ campaign continues to provide our Total Source servicing dealers with free advertising support to grow their businesses. There are no costs to our dealers for this national campaign and thus no advertising fees on their invoices.”

GIE+EXPO: Be There! by Dan Shell

Every year when industry’s biggest event rolls around and all roads lead to Louisville, I find myself one step closer to that rare group of 20-year Expo visitors. This year will be my 18th in a row—a long way from Hatton-Brown Publishers’ first time exhibiting at Louisville. Back then in 1991, Hatton-Brown had purchased the publication less than a year prior, and PET was known as Chain Saw Age (although a name change was already in the works).

In 1991, I remember sitting down with a Poulan executive who wanted to know where he would advertise chain saws if it wasn’t in Chain Saw Age. From the same show, I also remember a Snapper rep asking why he should advertise lawnmowers in a magazine called Chain Saw Age, but that’s another story in the saga that saw the old CSA logo slowly shrink and then disappear entirely over the next three years.

Latest Recreation Products for Dealers

Kubota introduces the new gas-powered RTV500. This compact UV comes with the comfort, technology and refinement of a larger UV, but is compact enough to fit in the bed of a full-size long-bed pickup truck. The RTV500 is powerful enough to handle the toughest challenges on rugged terrain. At 54.7" wide and 72" tall, the RTV500 gets the job done with a 15.8 HP, liquid-cooled, 2 cylinder Kubota gas engine, 4 wheel drive, and a top speed of 25 MPH.

The Latest In New Products, New Technology

Timberwolf’s popular TW-HV2 commercial-grade log splitter is built to last and designed to handle season after season of heavy-duty use. The model’s horizontal/vertical splitting capabilities make it easy to operate and now, Timberwolf has made the HV2 an even greater value with the addition of both a stripper head and log cradle at no extra charge.

The stripper head ends the problem of “sticking” logs by peeling them off the wedge as it retracts. Log cradle helps control the log in horizontal or vertical positions. HV2 operates in either the traditional horizontal position where the log is lifted into the cradle, or the vertical position where the log is split on the ground. HV2 is powered by an industrial-grade 9 HP Honda OHV engine and has up to 25 tons of splitting force. The HV2 is the only commercial-grade horizontal/vertical splitter made in the U.S. The enhanced TW-HV2 promises the excellent value and rugged dependability that have earned Timberwolf its reputation as