February 2023

(844) 673-2266

DEALERS UNITE IN THE PURSUIT OF RETAIL EXCELLENCE 

News from YOUR National Powersports Dealer Association



Welcome to the February 2023 newsletter from the NPDA! There is strength in our growing numbers, and we're on the move in furthering our mission: "To advance our industry by elevating Dealers to be well prepared, sustainably profitable and exceed the expectations of a growing Powersports customer base."

In this issue:

• ALERT - Website Compliance Issue Requiring Immediate Attention!
• All Things AIMExpo:
• Going to the Big Show? Take Our Survey!
• Can't Miss NPDA Events at AIMExpo 2023
• NPDA Annual Update to Showcase Successful Year, Future Plans
• Just Something to Think About ...

The NPDA has been hearing from Dealers who have received demand letters and threats of lawsuits alleging their websites are not compliant with laws regarding the disabled, specifically blind people.

Title III of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) prohibits discrimination based on a disability in places of public accommodations and therefore prohibits businesses open to the public from discriminating against people with disabilities.

Specific claims leveled against Dealers are that a website’s content is not coded to either increase the size of or convert the visual information (pictures, images, videos and or text) to an audible format.

The NPDA is recommending Dealers put their websites through a test to determine whether there are compliance issues in order to take steps to correct them.

We are working to learn more about this matter, including the responsibility of website providers who work with Dealers have in correcting things, as well as the role OEMs could serve, especially those recommending that Dealers use specific companies for website services.

While the NPDA works for YOU, do your own work and get your website checked today through the Lighthouse online tool, available HERE. For step-by-step instructions on how to use the tool, click HERE.

Can't Miss NPDA Events at AIMExpo 2023

AIMExpo 2023 is February 15-17 at the Las Vegas Convention Center. This is THE SHOW for the Powersports Industry, and it is FREE to Dealers. Here’s the LINK to all you need to know and to get signed up!

Of course, THE ASSOCIATION for Powersports Dealers is the NPDA, and we’ve got a “Can’t Miss Calendar” of recommended events at AIMExpo 2023. Please consider attending the following:

Wednesday, February 15:

• 8 to 9:15 a.m. – NPDA Harley-Davidson Dealer Council Opening Session, LV Convention Center Room #231 (Private, Harley Dealer Owners Only)
• 3 to 3:45 p.m. – H-D Dealers, Session #2, Room #231 (Private, Harley Dealer Owners Only)
• 4 to 4:45 p.m. – “Inventory Excellence” talk by NPDA Board Advisor Jim Woodruff, National Powersport Auctions, part of the AIMExpo 2023 “Disruptive Thinking” Program
• 6 to 9 p.m. – AIMExpo 2023 Industry party

Thursday, February 16:

• 8 to 8:45 a.m. – AIMExpo 2023 Industry breakfast
• 9 to 10:30 a.m. – NPDA Annual Update, Room #231
• 2 to 2:45 p.m. – “MIC Dealer Advisory Council Panel” featuring NPDA Founding Directors Bob Althoff & Kim Harrison, part of the 2023 “Disruptive Thinking” Program
• 5 to 5:45 p.m. – H-D Dealers, Final Session, Room #231 (Private, Harley Dealer Owners Only)
• 6 to 8 p.m. – Dealernews Dealer Salute 

NPDA Annual Update to Showcase Successful Year, Future Plans

Many in the Powersports industry were first introduced to the newly formed National Powersports Dealer Association at the 2022 AIMExpo. We’ve come a long way since last February, and will be making an even bigger impression at this year’s show in Las Vegas.

Come learn all about YOUR Powersports Dealer Association during our Annual Update, being held Thursday, February 16, 9 to 10:30 a.m., in Room #231 of the Las Vegas Convention Center. This is just down the hallway from the AIMExpo show floor (follow the signs to Room #231).

Since last year’s show we’ve added nearly 200 Dealer members, bringing our total to 250, including 135 Harley-Davidson Dealers. We also have a total of 16 Partners representing a variety of business sectors.

We also helped raise tens of thousands of dollars for charitable efforts supporting Dealers, and partnered with other associations to address legislative issues of importance to our members.

Speaking of Harley-Davidson – H-D Dealers aren’t a typical sight at AIMExpo, but there are more here this year thanks to the work of the NPDA’s Harley-Davidson Dealer Council, which is holding a series of private meetings during the show specifically for H-D Dealership owners.

We hope you will make room in your busy AIMExpo schedule to attend the NPDA Annual Update and find out about all we are doing – and plan to do - for Dealers!

Where to Find OUR Partners at the Show!  

A Who’s Who of NPDA Partners are attending this year’s AIMExpo, and we are excited for you to meet them!

Here is the list of our Partners and their expo booth numbers:

• Accelerate2Compliance – Booth #5120
• Bellavia+Blatt/LABNation – Booth #8132
• Cycle Trader/Statistical Surveys – Booth #5012
• Dealernews – Booth #1005
• Liqui-Moly – Booth #7083
• National Powersport Auctions – Booth #6059
• National Powersports Dealer Association – Booth #1008
• Octane Marketing – Booth #4076
• Performance Brokerage Services – Booth #4078
• Protective Asset Protection – Booth #7124
• Rollick – Booth #5040
• Tucker Powersports – Booth #6087

Want to meet many of these folks in one room? They’ve all been invited to attend the NPDA Annual Update Meeting (see item above). Along with providing industry insight and sharing our plans for 2023, we will introduce each Partner and have company representatives say a few words, including why they support the NPDA.

Want to know why YOUR Company should partner with us, too?

Consider this:

• Partnering with the NPDA gives your company legitimacy, credibility and connectivity in the Powersports Industry – this is a multi-billion dollar industry, but the “family” isn’t all that big. By partnering with us, you get access to and insight from the “Best People with the Best Relationships in the Industry.”



• You gain access to and awareness among Dealers via our extended communications channels, including our website, newsletter, e-blasts, social media, as well as a strong relationship with Dealernews, which contains a regular NPDA update (and will be featured in the Show Issue created especially for AIMExpo). Additionally, we have extensive outreach efforts via webinars, attendance at events, and are developing additional programs such as seminars and regional gatherings.

• We can help coordinate efforts to work directly with Dealers on things like pilot programs, “case studies” and “White Papers” on products or services. Our goal is to help Dealers run their businesses better while you get “real-world” insight into their needs.



• We can provide you with opportunities to help us in our efforts and connect you with other industry leaders via advisory roles and strategic planning work and meetings. Dealers Create Final Demand, and if they are stronger in their work, the Powersports Industry will become stronger!

All of us attending this year’s AIMExpo next week will be busy working to “Connect, Engage, Unite” at the great show taking place inside the Las Vegas Convention Center.



But if you get a chance - especially if you’ve never been to the fair desert city - get out of the building and study the real-life business Petri dish that is Las Vegas. No, not the germy underbelly that would grow mold in a real Petri dish, but the environment created to separate people from their money.

Certainly gambling drives a lot of this, and much of the marketing, advertising and promotions in this town are geared to this pursuit. But there is so much more going on to observe and learn from in order to make your Dealerships places where customers want to be, and the longer they are in your buildings or on your websites, the more money they hopefully will spend.

Lights, sound, colors, graphics, Vegas is the ultimate consumer laboratory. Looking around and gather information is about one of the only free things you can do in Vegas, so get out and gather!



An M&M candy store? You can pick up a low-cost bag of this treat at literally any gas station or convenience store across the country, but in Vegas there is a multi-level showroom that pays tribute to the snack while charging sky-high prices for the same sugar-coated chocolate morsels.

Dinner and a show? People dress to the nines for fine dining found in most cities, and then flock to see this or that “musician-in-residence”, shelling out thousands of dollars for experiences they’ve been sold on in brochures, online and even on the top of taxis.

Rent a Ferrari? Shoot a machine gun? Operate a bulldozer? All this and more is the swipe of a credit card away.

Not knocking any of this, mind you – sharing that you can get a low-cost education in marketing by paying attention to your surroundings while in Vegas. That is, if you can keep from grabbing your own wallet – remember, these folks are good at making your money disappear.

See you on the Strip!

The NPDA Founding Board