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OPINION FROM THE EDITOR www.PowersportsBusiness.com Powersports Business • February 13, 2017 • 11 Some old haunts will be vis- ited, and business will be done. Maybe not necessar- ily in that order, but it's safe to say that Indianapolis will be an ideal setting for the Parts Unlimited and Drag Spe- cialties National Vendor Presentation Product Expo at the Lucas Oil Stadium Exhibit Hall in Indianapo- lis Feb. 18-19. "Yeah, it'll be a little bit of a homecoming," Jeff Derge, vice president of sales at LeMans Corp., parent company of Parts Unlimited/Drag Specialties, told me in January. "It's funny. That was the first reason we chose to have the show in Indianapolis. It's the right location for the show — that's the first reason. "Everybody's really excited. We've had so many great comments come from across the industry about the fact that we're going back to Indy. The streets are all the same and the classic restaurants are still there for everybody to enjoy." And while the NVP in recent years had played out at two regional events in addition to the traditional August showcase in Madison, Wisconsin, the timing, Derge said, is right for Indy in the winter and Madison again this summer. "For the industry, it's a great spot to be as far as the number of dealers located close to Indy," he said. "It's one of the top convention cities in the country, and they know how to do everything. We wanted to give someplace new a try, and as we considered India- napolis, it got to be 'Well, this is really right.' It became more and more evident as people started to find out about it. It's gained a lot of momentum on its own." It's gained traction, and it's gained in square foot- age. The show's footprint will be about 4,000 square feet larger than the Madison event, allowing for the more than 200 vendors to set up in additional space. Dealers, Derge said, should consider the event at The Crane Bay on Saturday night of the show to be a can't- miss affair. "We do expect great dealer attendance based on the feedback we're getting, and part of that is from the ven- dor product training sessions that we'll be offering." On Saturday, four rooms will run concurrent prod- uct sessions from 16 different vendors. "That was an absolute hit when we did it Madison last year. The dealers were really engaged, and it was clear from then that our plan to do the training events across the country is the right move. This will be a ver- sion of the others that we'll having coming up across the country." POWER 50 OFF AND RUNNING Speaking of dealer events, the 2017 Power 50 dealer applications have already been completed by several dealers. Make sure your dealership gets the recogni- tion it deserves by completing the application today at www.powersportsbusiness.com/power-50. We're looking forward to celebrating the fifth annual event during AIMExpo in Columbus, Ohio, on Sept. 21. We're also proud to announce that as part of the rising number of applicants, we're going to expand the program to include the ranking of the top 10 dealers in North America. Since its origins, we have ranked only the top 5, but the popularity of the Power 50 and the close race among the top dealers has warranted the expanded promotion. Is your dealership sitting on the sidelines, watch- ing the competition rise to Power 50 status? Or is your dealership setting the standard in your neck of the woods? If it's the latter, we need to hear from you. NIFTY 50 ANOTHER HIT I had to make a run to DQ last month in preparation for our selection of the 2017 Nifty 50 winners. PSB editors Liz Keener, Kate Swanson and I spent a day perusing the record number of applications. And who- ever thought of the idea to have a sugar boost after we selected the first 25 got the gold star! Fun aside, one of the most important criteria of the Nifty 50 is profit margin. And while we agree with the manufacturers to keep those numbers confidential, dealers should know that profit margin for each product helped them to get placed on the Nifty 50 list. Thanks once again for making the selection so difficult. It's cool to see the program grow every year, and we hope you'll consider entering your aftermarket product or service in the 2018 contest. NEW ADDITION You'll notice a new feature below, just to let you know there's much more to Powersports Business than what you see on these pages. In each edition of the magazine, we'll highlight a few comments from industry members from our website and social media channels. PSB Dave McMahon is editor in chief of Powersports Business. Contact him at 763/383-4411 or dmcmahon@powersportsbusiness.com. 1. Three Harley-Davidson dealerships sold to dealer group 2. Arctic Cat to be acquired by Textron for $247 million 3. Polaris winds down Victory brand 4. Patent infringement suit result 5. Suzuki announces 2017 pricing, availability 6. York County Harley-Davidson production temporarily shut down 7. Polaris reports Q4 results 8. Arctic Cat issues voluntary snowmobile recall 9. KTM North America names vice president of Sales 10. Yamaha launches GDR155 scooter for ASEAN markets 11. BRP recalls side-by-side vehicles due to injury hazard 12. AMA objects to higher tariff on European motorcycles 13. EBR Motorcycles is shutting down 14. BMW Motorrad breaks sales record in 2016 15. Polaris reveals new off-road models The headlines above belong to the most frequently viewed articles from Powersports Business' three-times weekly e-news during the Jan. 10-29 period. The number is based on the percentage of e-news viewers who clicked on the article's headline. To subscribe to e-news, go to www.bit.ly/PSBEnewsSignup. WHAT'S THE HOTTEST INDUSTRY TOPIC? Powersports Business blog ONLINE WITH POWERSPORTSBUSINESS.COM Leading industry executives and dealer consultants are among the contributors to PSB's blog. See below for recent blogs. It'll be old home week with Parts Unlimited show in Indy Visit powersportsbusiness.com/blogs LinkedIn surpasses 5,000! The Powersports Business LinkedIn group has officially passed another mile- stone — 5,000 members! Our LinkedIn group was created to give powersports industry profession- als a place to share in the discussion of powersports trade news and developments and to encourage the exploration of solutions and best practice to drive industry success. Interested in joining Powersports Business' LinkedIn group? Visit www.linkedin.com/groups/2908806. JIM JABAAY Vice President of Sales & Marketing, LotVantage According to Facebook, as of April 2016, the average amount of time a user spends on Facebook, Facebook Messenger and Instagram is 50 min- utes per day. If your page is delighting its audience, you will capture their attention and stay top of mind. FORREST FLINN Managing Partner, Powersports Management Concepts If you employ "order takers" on your showroom floor, then get rid of them! If a salesperson cannot make a friend with every customer that comes into your dealership, he or she is not add- ing value to what your dealership is trying to do. TIM CALHOUN President, SpeedMob Inc. As we head into 2017, consumers will once again begin to pull the rope, and your ease of doing business, creation of a unique buying experi- ence and your employees will be the cornerstones of their great shopping experiences. NAPOLEON TETREAULT Sales Representative, Tucker Rocky The retail battle is not getting any easier. We cannot rely on what has worked in the past to produce the results of tomorrow. If you want to win in this marketplace, you must be con- stantly refining the skills of your staff to provide a high level of service. Some old haunts will be vis- ited, and business will be done. Maybe not necessar- ily in that order, but it's safe to say that Indianapolis will be an ideal setting for the Parts DAVE McMAHON WHAT THEY'RE SAYING... ON INDIAN DEALERSHIP GROUP CLOSING "The problem is that they clearly didn't know the business. They promoted salespeople into management positions that had no experience or actual knowledge of the industry and they failed to listen to anyone that did. They had money and connections but no experience. Akin to someone thinking that they can open a bar or even bartend because they drink. A little more involved ..." ON TIM CALHOUN'S BLOG POST "I think this is a great article that should be motivating every dealer who reads it to become better at building strong relationships with their customers. Training is the key here with continuous follow up! I encourage all who read this to not look at training as a cost. Training is an investment in the future and the profitability of the dealership. Customers today will go anywhere to buy their stuff. Let relationship building with your customer be your dealerships competitive advantage. Be smart!" ON NAPOLEON TETREAULT'S BLOG POST "I really enjoyed reading this. As a long-time dealership guy, I feel this is even more important today, since so many consumers go online, and when they do walk through your door, you likely have one chance to grab them as a customer. Many larger scale dealers seem to have forgotten this or take the approach that there are plenty of customers around and still pre-judge people. I will bring this up in our next store meeting."