EDITOR’S NOTE
BY SARA SCULLIN
EDITOR
920-568-8394
Sara@VehicleServicePros.com
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Online, on the truck
Would you consider doing traditional and
online business? Some mobile dealers do both.
For many years now, top
mobile dealers have taken
their business online in
different ways and to varying
degrees, or not at all. Some keep
a Facebook page as another way
to connect with customers, who
can learn more about them on a
personal level.
Some distributors go one step
further and continue sales on a
website or create a buy-sell-trade
page on social media. Still other
successful dealers prefer to stick to
the in-person approach of handshakes,
demos and shop visits. It
works for them, and why fix what’s
not broken?
This month’s featured independent
dealer, Geoff Beveridge
of Dallas, set up a website a while
back but recently overhauled it
… and made his first online sale.
He plans to nurture this side of
the business, even though it is
a small part of his business at
this time. While doing so, he
wants to be careful not to sacrifice
service on his multiple
successful routes.
If you remember, last month's
independent distributor Nick
Morello combines his street route
with social media sales. It takes
hustle, though. Morello enlists
plenty of personnel to help promote
sales, fill orders, box and
ship online purchases. He also
spends the time posting frequent
videos, which keeps him in front
of his online audience.
This month, writer Phil
Sasso talks about how to beat
your online competitors (Page
26), but he also mentions those
dealers who “fight fire with
fire” by opening their own
e-commerce websites.
4 Professional Distributor I September 2018 I VehicleServicePros.com
Keep in mind, whether you’re
setting up a site and/or taking to
social media, some amount of
technical knowledge is required.
You’ll need to learn, or team with
someone who knows how these
platforms operate.
You will also likely need people
on the back end who can help
package and ship product, shoot
video and keep social accounts
and websites current and operating
while you manage other areas
of the business.
Finally, finding the time may
be the biggest challenge of all.
Truck-dwellers who pursue
an online presence may feel like
a duck out of water at first. But
for some, it is worth the growing
pains. Many tool dealers report
finding an extension of their loyal
customer base online, and the
social aspect might even prove to
be a satisfying outlet for a naturally
outgoing and service-oriented
person. Online sales can simply be
one more way to match a technician
with the right tool, and social
media sites like Facebook have
come a long way in facilitating
this type of community.
Do you consider online sales
to be the next logical step for your
business? Or a distraction from
the qualities and services that distinguish
a mobile tool seller from
other retailers in the first place?
There’s no right or wrong way
to incorporate new technology into
your business. Don’t be afraid to
experiment.
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