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Expo Business
Channel Blade presents five Pride Awards at MDCE
Boating Industry
Wednesday November 18, 2009
ORLANDO, Fla. - "The Internet doesn't sell boats... good dealers do." That's how Bob McCann, Channel Blade director of education, opened his presentation yesterday during the Marine Dealer Conference & Expo, Nov. 16-18, at Disney's Coronado Springs Resort, Orlando.
Still, he said, dealers can't afford to squander the opportunities the Internet provides by ignoring leads generated on their Web sites. That's why McCann and Channel Blade chose to present Pride Awards to the five dealers who performed best in a secret shop of MDCE registrants.
The winners were Jared Lacefield of Bohner Lacefield Marine; Jason Taska of Lake Union Sea Ray; Christy Van Bevers of Lynnhaven Marine; Steve Edwards of Dockside Marine; and Kenji Gima of Seattle Boat Co.
Lead management tips
During the presentation, McCann pointed out the importance of responding to leads immediately, citing a study that suggested leads that receive immediate responses have a 20-percent conversion rate, while those that are responded to in more than four hours have a 2-percent conversion rate.
"Respond to a lead immediately and improve your chances to make a sale ten-fold," he stated.
The quality of a lead response is also key, according to McCann, who suggests dealers use pre-written e-mail templates, which are branded with the dealer logo, use consistent and professional language, minimize sales rep key strokes and encourage process adherence.
E-mail leads should be followed up with a phone call in order to make an in-store appointment, says McCann. And those appointments that are confirmed in advance are 30 percent more likely to be kept.
And finally, McCann urged the audience to be patient. Research shows most customers buy after seven customer touches by the dealership, he said. Nurturing un-sold customers has been shown to reduce lead neglect to less than 25 percent, improve sales conversion rates by 7 percent, accelerate the buying cycle, reduce discounting and improve margins, according to Forrester Research.
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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.
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