• by Karl Greenberg , December 10, 2008

New motorcycle buyers may have a certain brand in mind before visiting a dealer, but the odds are against them buying the bike if they don't like the dealership. According to J.D. Power and Associates' first-ever "Motorcycle Escaped Shopper Study," 51% of shoppers switch brands or reject a motorcycle brand because of dealer-related issues.

The study, which analyzes the reasons that shoppers consider a particular motorcycle brand but go with another, found that a quarter of those who rejected a bike brand because of the dealer cited the fact that they could not test ride the bike of their choice. Based on responses from 3,022 new-motorcycle buyers in September, the survey found that 7% of buyers said that the inability to test ride was the main reason for not purchasing a particular motorcycle brand.

Eighteen percent of shoppers opted out of a brand because the model they were interested in was not available at the dealership. And fifteen percent of shoppers abandoned a brand because they thought they could get better service at a competitive dealership. Price was a reason for rejection offered by 41% of shoppers. Sixteen percent of shoppers mentioned the lack of low-interest financing, rebates or other incentives as a rejection reason.

Survey respondents also said they are commuting more on their bikes now than they did when gasoline was cheaper.

New Rochelle, N.Y.-based New Roc Harley-Davidson is one of relatively few dealerships that offer test rides. "It was one of things I told [Harley-Davidson] I would do before I got the dealership," says dealership owner Jack Meskunas, who adds that offering test rides takes effort. "It's a lot of work to do; you have to have bikes prepped and ready to go at a moment's notice. You have to have enough staff. You have to have a decent route people can ride on, and you have to go with them."

Meskunas says the dealership also does "demo days" four times a year that he says garner more than 100 test rides. "But conversion rates during those tend to be much lower," he says. "[Consumers] come down and figure it's an excuse or opportunity to ride a new motorcycle. They aren't necessarily bike shopping."

Todd Markusic, senior director of powersports at J.D. Power, says that motorcycle makers would do well to support such dealer-based efforts despite the headaches because they save money in the long run. "We know test-ride programs present a lot of issues with things like insurance, preparation and customer licenses, but issues like the consumers' perception of product value are a lot more difficult to change than implementing a test ride. These are things you can do fairly quickly and make a direct impact. And a great dealer experience can overcome a lot of issues with the brand, because a customer will forgive a lot if they had good retail experience."

Meskunas says Harley-Davidson has gotten behind the program. "I think it's part of being a legitimate businessman. If you can get someone on a Harley, what I find is that they will buy."