Here's the deal!
Our sales are wayyyy down. I love my job and I love making bodywork and dealing with racers.
What else can we do?? To help sales?
We make great bodywork, and I know that because i make it all myself and i have personally fit up every single set that we sell. SO, the fit is good, and the final product finish is nearly perfect. I think we are right with from the quality standpoint with the really expensive companies. We are a little more expensive than hotbodies, but, ( i don't make a habit of talking trash about another company) the fact is there stuff is plain JUNK. What do I need to do to create more sales???? I don't know what else to do. We pay contingency, we go to tons of races. If there is a problem with the bodywork, we take care of it! If your not happy we give you your money back. We need feedback!
Please feel free to call me to talk!
Thanks,
Brian
513-*266-6397
Perhaps you are experiencing the early season slump. Racers buy new bodywork over the winter, and everyone is all pretty for the first race. Then it's a while before they crash their stuff into oblivion (unfixable) before they buy more.
The set I bought is holding up beautifully, but I have not crash-tested it yet...
I would recommend Rennsport bodywork to any other racer. Fit, finish and flexibility are good, and the stuff looks like it will crash well. Hotbodies bodywork is trash. Good luck getting it to fit. You may break it just twisting it enough to get it all bolted together. Never again...
1. have u called to bike shops to see if they would cary/ sell your line of plastics?
2. offer Race Cont $$$ every lil bit helps/ if not $ free body work or something
3. Find people who willinig to sell it for u/mid dealers. ( E.G> I would buy X amount of plastics from u and carry and sell them at the local regional events or sell them for u and % going to me.)
During the race weekend a racer is very quick to grab a fiberglass repair kit and some duc tape. Because its cheeper than buying new.
There are more and more Buells out there, don't know if there's enough yet to make it worthwhile, but Hal's, or airtec$$ is about the only place to get bodywork for them. Just a thought.
Brain, I feel your pain, but it takes almost 3 years to get a new biz up and running, especially with limited funds.
What you're doing right: asking for input and trying to respond to people's needs with good customer service.
You need to advertise, but you probably have to keep it cheap. A good website helps, and mine grew my business by 20% last year, all new customers.
I've always relied mostly on word of mouth for my advertising, but I also have a few racers I give modest sponsorship to. I work with local riding organizations and dealers, and with well known racers to help me spread the word as well.
Of course these forums are most excellent for getting information directly to the source, and occasionally I post discounts and specials.
Be patient, it all takes time, and this community does have an ebb and flow. The end of 2003 was painful for me, but the beginning of '04 rocked. Now it's leveling off, with crazy, busy spurts.K3 is right, a few more weekends with more crashing to come (Crashing sux!), so I'm sure you'll be getting more business in the future.
Good Luck!
Brian, stay cool.
Dave Rosno and I were talking about you specifically this weekend. We talked about your business, etc. Dave had some ideas on what you could do, IIRC. Drop him an email.
An ad in roadracing world is cheap. (~$150/mo for 3 months for a 2.25X4)
Ads on message boards?
I also talked with Kevin Elliot this weekend about contigency. PM me for some info on that. Costs are really pretty reasonable.
Alexa is right: 3 years, really. I'll soon be finishing year 2, and I've had some slumps and surges. I'm starting to get it together now, though, and things are going somewhat steady.
Thanks for all of the help. I take it all to heart. Maybe an add will help. I have to keep my head wrapped around cranking out tons of bodywork even when i'm feeling a little down. I know our stuff is some of the best on the market. ESP for the price.
Repectfully,
Brian Renn
www.rennsportbodies.com
513-266-6397
Since I've never heard of your bodywork, I would say exposure is one of your problems.
Where can we get info?
His website.
Brian, a more professional looking site might be in order. Mine needed work. The current one is better than the original, but I'm having someone else do the next one. I think my new one will look a lot more appealing than the current one.
Link to the layout so far. (Tweaks needed, but you get the idea)
http://secondplatform.com/motosliders/index2.html