[SpeedWerks.com]

I have been invited to another wonderful Kawasaki event. I am one of a couple of females who will be presenting to dealers on how to effectively sell to women.
I have already given my thoughts to them on some key points for the presentation, but thought I'd get some more feedback from the list ladies.

My biggest point to dealers is not to treat women poorly. We walk into a dealer and if we are lucky to get anyone to talk to us in the first place, then they treat us like ding dongs. I also suggested they may want to offer a beginning maintenance class to men and women who buy their bikes because a lot of women don't know what they should be watching out for and what they should do to keep their bike maintained.

My question to you gals is, what if you could sit down with a bunch of dealers and tell them your thoughts on how to effectively sell to you, a female rider, what would you suggest to them?

Laura

 

[XtremeRacingDiva]

ahh Before I got my 05 gixxer 600 I went to a few shops to look for bikes. I already had an idea how much I should pay for it and knew what I wanted. I knew about bikes more than some of the guys I know that been riding for years.

When I go in some of the stores that I didnt buy from I didnt see any women sales person. The guys that were there didnt even say anything to me... like I was invisable. When a sales rep finally came up to me he was saying hi darling or sweetie.. like a child.

I had to actually bring my boyfriend..at the time.. and they treated him so much better. Even when he said its not for him its for me the guy still was sitting there talking to him about it.

Eventually we came across this one shop. There was a girl sales rep MY SIZE and she rode a lowered CBR 600. She was sooooo friendly and talked about her personal experiances. Also gave me some advise on buying gear since they didnt have any in my size.

Now me and her ride together but whenever I need a bike or know someone who wants one I always send them to her and she always gets the sale. :dthumb:

 

[BabyNinja]

...My biggest point to dealers is not to treat women poorly. We walk into a dealer and if we are lucky to get anyone to talk to us in the first place, then they treat us like ding dongs. I also suggested they may want to offer a beginning maintenance class to men and women who buy their bikes because a lot of women don't know what they should be watching out for and what they should do to keep their bike maintained....Laura

Good points! :dthumb:

:iagree: with Diva abt salesppl treating women poorly. They're stuck on the stereotypical image of a female buyer. "Sorry it doesn't have a vanity mirror!" Having a knowledgeable female salesperson is good for starters. I'd want to be treated as an equal. If someone ever treated me like that when it came time to purchase a new bike, I'd have a few choice words for them/their manager/owner and walk out. They don't need my biz if that's how they act!! It wouldn't matter if I had to go 100 mi till I found someone decent. <<off the soapbox>> Just burns me up when I see/hear abt those types of sits. Most guys just don't understand, imo.

1. what u & Diva already stated
2. gear for women on site & not just cookie cutter sizes either--real women sizes
3. female tech (wishful thinking, I know) or someone who could drop it down a notch if need be for those mech. challenged w/o belittling the person
4. maybe a lowered bike for the women who aren't avg/tall. to ck out
5. not a major thing, but something to consider, dlr-sponsored events for women only

If anything else comes to mind I'll post it, but that's all I've got for now. This was a good idea Laura--hope they listen.

 

[XtremeRacingDiva]

Good post baby ninja :dthumb:

Women are up and coming in this sport! My friend (a female) is going to school to be a bike mechanic so pretty soon we will have those too.

I also wanted to add more towards gear. Even though I am a rider I am still a female. There's just not enough gear that is fashionable. Yes I want to look cutre riding. I believe they would make more money if women had more options.

 

[hooters_on_two_wheel]

when I first started looking for a bike of my own, I actually took my husband with me.
However I agree, for some reason MALE salemen, seem to think, just because were females, that we dont know anything about bike, what we want or like. They seem to think that bikes and racing are just for "THE BOYS". However....I disagree.

I pretty much knew what I wanted when I walked into the dealership, and I what color I wanted set in mind. I wasnt going to be pushed over or told...Oh well that bike might be too much for a woman of your size.....BULLSH*TT!!!! And in the end I stood my ground...I was firm, but not nasty...and I got the bike I wanted!

 

[neebelung]

I agree with everything that's already been stated. My biggest pet peeve is guys in the dealerships (like at the parts counter) who tak down to me. They condescend because we're female, and they assume we don't know what we're talking about.

The worst was when I went to get a replacement base assembly plate for my boyfriend's Helmet. I had called ahead, knew they had it, but couldn't find them on the wall with the helmet accessories when I got there, so I had to ask for help. When I told him what I was looking for (and I had to explain what it was, since based on the name, he had no idea), he asked, "What kind of helmet does he have?" I replied, "Who says it's for a him?" He stuttered a bit, paused and said, "Oh, I thought you said it was for your husband." I said, "No, I said no such thing." He got embarassed, found the part, and sheepishly started to walk away, when I added, "You really need to stop doing that." He asked, "What?" I said, "Assuming that if a woman is in here, she's buying something for her man. More and more women are taking up the sport, and with that attitude, you're going to lose business." He apologized, and I went on my merry way.

 

[SpeedWerks.com]

Thank you so much for all who have taken the time to reply. I am impressed that Kawasaki is doing so much to bring attention to the ever growing population of female riders. I think all of you have very excellent points, and if you don't mind, I would like to share them with the lady who is putting together the presentation.

As far as gear, I have gone over the women's gear stuff with every manufacturer that I know. If you think sizing men is hard (and trust me, yes, it is), you should try to build stuff for women. All women are different shapes, sizes and have different size parts, so trying to come up with sizes for women that will fit the general masses is not an easy task. I've toyed with the idea of creating a line, but it takes a ton of money would take a lot of research. As much as I agree that the female population of riders is growing, I think it will be a while before we see some decent gear put out specifically for us ladies.

Thanks again for all of your replies. I really appreciate it!

Laura

 

[itgirl25]

hearing that kawasaki wants opinions from ladies makes me respect them so much more. i know i bought the right bike now. my suggestion for them concerns their bikes. when i bought my first 250 i could find absolutely no cool accessories for it outside a tank bra. i wanted to fix my bike up just like the boys but couldn't due to lack of options. perhaps they could offer the same types of accessories for their smaller cc bikes (ie. the 250 ninja) so that those women that are just starting out can personalize their bike as well. why should the boys and the tall ladies get to have all the fun. that was always my biggest concern with kawasaki. other than that i love them.