Snow Check group buy?

[Ndanger]

Here is a thought that came to mind, I am snowchecking a Pro with a dealer in Eastern Idaho that has very competitive pricing. On top of that they will offer an addition 100.00 bird dog fee for referrals.


Here is my thought, do a group buy and drop the already low price by 100 each for folks in the Western Wyoming, Southern Montana, Eastern Idaho area that find price to be important.


With a large order the potential for negotiating a screaming deal would be compelling for a dealer and folding in the incentives to the members of the order would further lower the price.... just sayin

 

[155Assault]

I like your idea of a group buy, however, one of the most important things you get with your sled is the dealer.

It isn't worth 100 or even 200 to have a dealer elsewhere. My dealer takes the sled back at 250 miles and gives it a service. Most dealers also put you at the back of the line if you need something and you buy your sled elsewhere. If I had 5 sleds in line to be worked on, the customer that purchased from me would be at the front.

Makes sense. Buying from a large dealer to save a few bucks isn't always the best idea. Find one that treats you well, and treat him well. The relationship is worth more than $.

 

[Ndanger]

I understand that for folks that are happy with their dealer, that going out of market would not be optimal.

I am Scottish and whenever possible try and find ultimate value when buying a vehicle... just something in the genes so many times I buy out of market with the objective of saving some coins.

I enjoy the process of researching market dynamics and looking for competitive companies that understand the "elasticity of pricing". Even though I will be buying near cost, I will be a profitable sale this year and each of of the next 10 yrs I buy a new sled.

 

[rmk727]

Your key word was " value" what value are you to this guy? for every sled your group buys now next yr pol will expect that number from him so he may have to go even closer to cost to sell that and that ball continues until he's gone . What value are to him then? What value is he to you when your local dealer refuses to work on your sleds until his loyal customers are serviced say April for a dec flash or fix? Why not try forming a valuable relationship with a local or near local dealer, sit down and talk to the owner or manager, let them know what you would like service and pricing but remember they are there to feed their families just as your boss is , hey great idea a low ball hiring group, what kind of quality would you expect from them just as the group buy, not a real value to me. IMO

 

[beamslayer]

I say go for it.I have bought 2 new sleds from Spokane and got bent over on both of them. Straight up lies.
Look how well most dealers dealt with the D8s.They knew they were putting in out of spec parts and still did it.No regard for the customer . How many were loyal customers year after year buying sleds only to have there D8 set in a shop all season with nothing to ride.
So you are implying that if you were out of town and broke down or you bought a used sled that the dealer should take care of his customers first and leave you hanging. There is more money in parts and labor than sleds .
So I say go for it get the best price, you will need that extra $$$ for fuel.
PS Find a small dealer he will take better care of you than a larger one most times.

 

[rmk727]

Beamer , you sir are full of s%^& except the part on not servicing shoppers as well as the loyal folks if everyone were treated the same in sevice why would u be loyal

 

[05900]

If it says POS on it... and it's taken it to a POS dealer it better get fixed in a timely manner regardless of where it was purchased.
Customer Service I believe it's called and we as a motorsport travel with our purchased possesion.
Gotta be in the dealership/franchise agreement.

 

[beamslayer]

Rmk727 you must be a dealer the way you think.If I am full of it show me some proof. Ndanger came on here to ask about a group buy and I gave my opinion so I do not see any reason for you to say I am full of anything.
When companys buy they buy in volume to get a better priceing so they can increase their profit margin.Why can't we as consumers do the same?
If I was in a position to purchase a new pro than I would definitely be talking to Ndanger.

 

[Ndanger]

This may get long winded... First of all I would expect a large portion of sales to be repeat sales to satisfied customers, cost not a primary issue. Also I understand that a lot of very loyal customers would possibly take a polarized view (no pun intended) of a group / slash out of market approach to competitive pricing.

However, I look at business in a global perspective, there are 2 trains of thought when looking at market share, one is that a market is like a pie and a sale lost to another business is a chunk of the pie gone.

The other approach is market penetration, the better the incentives and marketing the deeper into a market you can sell. So if 10 percent of region buys snowmobiles and with better incentives or marketing you can reach 15 percent of the market you grow your business. (more overall profit with greater sales at a lower price)

I would like to believe that aggressive pricing would encourage folks to buy new each year, the used sleds would then become another lower cost option to bring a new member from the sidelines into the snowmobile world when they discover how awesome the sport is and get their friends and family involved.

More riders means more sales, parts and accessories for the dealer (can you say cha ching) as the cost barrier becomes lower, the momentum of the elasticity of price kicks in, ultimately resulting in greater market penetration!

Dealers with the best reputations and word of mouth would benefit significantly from the additional business, for marginal dealers that do not have high levels of customer satisfaction, not so much.

 

[The Fourth Wolf]

So there's a compromise...

Get together with friends and associates (and even friends of friends) who are likely to Snowcheck a new model and team up and order them together.

The ad hoc Snowchecking group brings some leverage to the negotiations with their local dealer, and the dealer makes a group sale.

Assuming the dealership is reputable, everybody wins!

 

[MTNRCR]

Beamslayer you are correct! rmk727 is a dealer....i agree with him about buying local but not when it costs $1000 more!! I can understand paying 200-300 bucks more at local dealer to help them keep the doors open but any more than that i'll go eleswhere.

PS. he's one of those dealers that will tell you one thing and then do another! seen it first hand!!

 

[Jaynelson]

Dealers with the best reputations and word of mouth would benefit significantly from the additional business, for marginal dealers that do not have high levels of customer satisfaction, not so much.

You shoot yourself in the foot with this remark. You stated very clearly earlier that your purchase decisions are based around lowest price. This would negate all other factors, including customer satisfaction and reputation. I would also guess that you have a fixed income union or government job and have not been in the business world before....but that's just a guess.

 

[Jaynelson]

When companys buy they buy in volume to get a better priceing so they can increase their profit margin.Why can't we as consumers do the same?

I highly highly doubt that a sled dealer would get a break on their dealer net for a sled by ordering more. I'm a car dealer and my cost on a new car is the same whether we order 10 or 1,000.

 

[WFO or go home]

Polaris, or any other manufacturer, does not give a price break if a dealer orders more.......period.

Glad to see there are a few people intelligent enough to know the difference between "value" and "cost."

FYI, a dealer has every right to put you at the back of the line if you did not buy from them. In soMe situations the manufacturer will automatically ship a limited number of warranty parts to a dealer based on the number of effected units they sold. A smart dealer will protect their purchasing customers by doing their repairs first, as they should.

 

[KG]

Polaris, or any other manufacturer, does not give a price break if a dealer orders more.......period.

Glad to see there are a few people intelligent enough to know the difference between "value" and "cost."

FYI, a dealer has every right to put you at the back of the line if you did not buy from them. In soMe situations the manufacturer will automatically ship a limited number of warranty parts to a dealer based on the number of effected units they sold. A smart dealer will protect their purchasing customers by doing their repairs first, as they should.

Yeah that's fine if he doesn't look out for you during a warranty time, but the dealer should want to continue and try and earn a customers business. Not snub him because he wasn't close on a deal, because it's dealers like that who will eventually be locked up! Isn't service the big part of making the money for a dealer anyways?

 

[Cardiac Kid]

beamslyer
I'm with you. I pruchased a sled in spokane after many sleds and the owner treated me so poorly and even went as far as belittling me when it came to fixing my sled. I went all the way to montana to get my next sled and if I have to drive 170 mile to make sure the local dealer doesn't get my money I likly will. What a much nicer dealer even called to see how I was doing and if there was anything they could do for me. Eastern Idaho well that might be pushing it for me. but I think ya get the point.

 

[G-Force]

Polaris, or any other manufacturer, does not give a price break if a dealer orders more.......period.

Glad to see there are a few people intelligent enough to know the difference between "value" and "cost."

FYI, a dealer has every right to put you at the back of the line if you did not buy from them. In soMe situations the manufacturer will automatically ship a limited number of warranty parts to a dealer based on the number of effected units they sold. A smart dealer will protect their purchasing customers by doing their repairs first, as they should.

You're right WFO, there is a HUGE difference between "value" and "cost". However it's up to the dealer to make us see the benefit of paying that extra "cost" to see the "value" of dealing with them. I own my own heavy duty parts/equipment sales company. Lose deals these days, mainly due to A. price and B. delivery time. When I do my follow up calls and see I've lost a deal to price I try and remind them that I'm the guy driving parts 200km to them in the middle of the night and that has a slightly higher cost attached as part of the service. More often than not I get the next 5 calls they need to make without any "competition calls" because they remember that.
That being said I don't see our local dealers going out of their way to service the $h!t out of anyone that buys elsewhere, seems their attitude is " bah I'll sell it in 2 days to someone else". And that very well may be the case.
For me however, I will continue to search for the dealer that still believes in good old fashioned customer service. And if that comes with a break in price as well, yay for me !

 

[Ndanger]

You shoot yourself in the foot with this remark. You stated very clearly earlier that your purchase decisions are based around lowest price. This would negate all other factors, including customer satisfaction and reputation. I would also guess that you have a fixed income union or government job and have not been in the business world before....but that's just a guess.

JayNelson, the best I can assume from your comment and logic is that you are associating cost with quality (the more you pay the better the company). For a lot of people flying first class is something that they find value with... I tend to go with a quality airline and fly coach (exit row seems plush to me ; )

I also assume that you are inferring that I would do business with the devil for a good deal. Both are assumptions that I reject.

For some context, I founded one of the most successful communications businesses in the western part of the US for over 30 yrs prior to retiring in 2007 to pursue sports. I tried to balance aggressive pricing with quality customer service, the velocity of business the pricing created allowed my business to do the 'lions share' of sales in my region, the momentum of business allowed for a budget to have a quality staff.

I feel quite fortunate to have been able to be part of a business that I enjoyed as well as the financial success that it generated.

 

[Ndanger]

Polaris, or any other manufacturer, does not give a price break if a dealer orders more.......period.

Glad to see there are a few people intelligent enough to know the difference between "value" and "cost."

FYI, a dealer has every right to put you at the back of the line if you did not buy from them. In soMe situations the manufacturer will automatically ship a limited number of warranty parts to a dealer based on the number of effected units they sold. A smart dealer will protect their purchasing customers by doing their repairs first, as they should.

Invoice price is the same for all dealers, I would assume. However dealerships receive compensation other than margins on sales. That is why a customer can buy a vehicle under invoice pricing.

Manufactures offer a bonus for dealers that step up the the plate and invest in their facilities, staff, training, and inventory as well as customer satisfaction ratings.

A dealer with low customer satisfaction ratings does not receive the same bonus as a dealer with high ratings. The same goes for a dealer that has not invested in the facility compared to a dealer that builds a quality location with a dedicated approach to their showroom / service area/ vehicle flooring.

Hence a dealer that has 'skin' in the game has a price advantage as a dealer that is not willing to invest in the endeavor.

In addition... speaking to the comment that volume does not effect dealer cost, I beg to differ, if a dealer were to up their quota by 50% a following year will be in a different compensation tier that a dealer that orders the same quota has been my experience. Just sayin...

 

[Jaynelson]

JayNelson, the best I can assume from your comment and logic is that you are associating cost with quality (the more you pay the better the company). For a lot of people flying first class is something that they find value with... I tend to go with a quality airline and fly coach (exit row seems plush to me ; )

I also assume that you are inferring that I would do business with the devil for a good deal. Both are assumptions that I reject.

For some context, I founded one of the most successful communications businesses in the western part of the US for over 30 yrs prior to retiring in 2007 to pursue sports. I tried to balance aggressive pricing with quality customer service, the velocity of business the pricing created allowed my business to do the 'lions share' of sales in my region, the momentum of business allowed for a budget to have a quality staff.

I feel quite fortunate to have been able to be part of a business that I enjoyed as well as the financial success that it generated.

Incorrect, I do not feel that paying more (or the most) necessarily results in higher quality service. Personally, I feel it's a balance and sometimes a tough one to find. If I find a seller that provides excellent, reliable service, however, he is not always the sharpest pencil, I can accept that. Basing logic on statements such as;

just something in the genes so many times I buy out of market with the objective of saving some coins.

I can only assume that is not how you operate. That definetly sounds like you would "deal with the devil" to save a few bucks, no? This infers to me, that you will buy wherever and with whomever will sell a product for the lowest price. Maybe I'm off-base with that. But so far its seems as though you have an articulate and eloquent manner of stating you wish to buy at/near dealer cost for X product and that this is somehow doing the dealer a big favor and not simply because you like to grind for your personal benefit. If it's the former, I think you're only kidding yourself. If that latter, you can knock yourself but know that they probably dread when you walk in the door to buy something.

Maybe the end product/service result is the same either way....hard to say. That said, for the measly $1,000 or $1,500 total profit in a new sled, if the local dude is even halfway reasonable, and provides good service, why not support him? If $500 either way was going to sink me, buying a new sled is the last thing on earth I'd be involved with.

Again, basing this on my fairly extensive car dealership knowledge, there are no volume bonuses with dealers that I'm aware of (I've worked at a car dealer for most of my working life). Whether it's service volume, sales volume, CSI, whatever....doesn't matter. Your bonus is selling more stuff. Unless something is different for sled dealers.