Mark Rodgers of Rodgers Performance Consulting led an important AIMExpo educational session today, all about digital marketing designed to dramatically improve sales. He covered methods that were easy and affordable as well as projects with long-term return on investment.

“The first thing you should do – you and your team need digital business cards,” Rodgers said. “You can do it as simply as creating a contact in your iPhone Contacts and sharing it with your customers, or you can go to services like One Card. You want to get as many customers as possible to have your data on their phone.”

Right now, it’s about reducing friction when customers want to contact people they know at dealerships, Rodgers said. And he had another fee-free fix.

“Claim your digital real estate,” he said. “There are over 48 free sites where you can list your business. Chances are, you are only on two or three of them. Email me if you want and I’ll send you the list.”

Another must-do: Revamp your online newsletter. He stressed the need for newsletters that provide meaningful content for customers and aren’t just about sales and deals. And his digital retailing suggestions did not stop there.

“You need to create a text club,” Rodgers said. “It’s like $35 for a thousand texts a month. A lot of services can do it and most people who sign up for it say ‘I just love it.’ This is one more way to digitally market to your people. But remember the principle of nudge. If everything you do is ‘You wanna buy it? You wanna buy it? You wanna buy it?’ – see how annoying that is?”

Instead, Rodgers suggests maintaining digital connections that help develop and maintain relationships. For example, he recommends that every dealer create a Zoom Room for remote, one-on-one sales consults through the popular video conferencing service (while noting that it would never replace store visits). It maintains connections and it’s not expensive, he said.

“And then, guess what you can do?” Rodgers said. “You can have seminars, you can have get-togethers, you can have cocktail parties, with your customers. Listen, remote’s the way to go.”

When you have a good relationship with customers, when they appreciate the service you provide, Rodgers said, you can then ask them for something that’s also free but extremely valuable: testimonials. You can ask to record a video with a positive message about your dealership, or ask them for a personal recommendation to post.

“In the online digital world, reviews and testimonials are everything,” Rodgers said.

AIMExpo’s second panel discussion on the electrification of powersports focused on smaller electric-powered transportation that’s emerging fast in the market: utility bikes, e-scooters, and skateboards that can also be sold by powersports dealers. Brian Healea, with Tucker Powersports (which distributes some of these new products), moderated today’s talk with John Klinger of MiniMotors USA, Travis Manton with Evolve Skateboards, and Ethan Ralston from UBCO.

“These vehicles are very simple,” Ralston said about his company’s bikes. “That’s because of what electric motors can do. When you get on a vehicle like this, they are automatic. It’s bringing in new riders into the store. It’s making it approachable for powersports. It’s definitely time to jump into the electric space.”

Brian Healea, Ethan Ralston, John Klinger, and Travis Manton

“Electric mobility is one of the fastest, most exciting segments in the market now,” Klinger said. “This space has really blown up since the production of Lime and Bird (rental e-scooters). The last few years we’ve seen these electric mobility groups develop and become really popular in the cities of San Francisco, New York, Chicago, Austin, D.C., and LA.”

Klinger said that large riding groups for more powerful e-scooters are coming together and these communities are venturing throughout cities, with many riders even wearing motorcycle protective gear. For more and more people, he said, it’s becoming a primary form of transportation and his firm is seeing e-scooters racking up 5,000 to 20,000 miles of use. He said that many customers are first riding an entry-level scooter, then trading up to faster and more powerful models, and there are electric scooters capable of 70 mph.

“The way the industry has grown over the past couple years, the laws haven’t really caught up with the growth,” Klinger said. “There are certain states where the city can be more restrictive (than the state itself). There is a clear path toward registering the higher-power units – we’d love to see that.”

It’s an emerging market not to be ignored, Healea said.

“Take it serious,” he said. “Don’t just put these products back in the corner. You have to get people to ride electric vehicles. They will walk out of your shop with a whole different perspective. Get a test-ride experience set up. Butts on seats, butts on seats, butts on seats.”

AIMExpo attendees who are not yet MIC members are invited to contact Membership Manager Lisa Delaney.

“The MIC has a lot to offer members, and we want everyone to understand the far-ranging benefits, not only for companies, but for powersports as a whole,” Delaney said. “With legislative matters, with public land issues, businesses do much better standing together as one powerful industry force. And we support MIC members through regular communication aiming at our tangible membership benefits: advocacy, industry research, market expansion through Ride With Us, as well as our excellent monthly symposiums that provide professional development opportunities and keen insights on industry trends.”

What’s more, MIC members earn a $200 credit per 10′ x 10′ of AIMExpo floor space, with a maximum up to 50 percent of total annual MIC dues.

A wide variety of powersports businesses can join and benefit from MIC membership. And any powersports dealer can join the MIC for only $495 a year.