Firstly today, we have exciting news with the announcement of our keynote speaker for December’s Service Dealer Conference.
Cally Beaton is a broadcaster, business leader, performer and best-selling author. When the organising team told me who they had confirmed for this year, I instantly knew Cally principally as a funny regular guest on Q.I. I think she’s a fabulous signing and will be another in the long line of off-beat choices for our Conference who always seem to kick the day off hitting the right balance of thought-provoking business content, delivered with a light touch. I’m looking forward to hearing her take on company culture, given her stellar C.V of household name corporations whom she has worked with.
Elsewhere today, it’s fantastic to hear from our great friend, founder of the magazine, Chris Biddle. He’s penned a brilliant piece in his signature-style considering “the industry’s constant evolution.” As he always does, Chris has hit the nail on the head talking about how our dealer readers have throughout his (many) years in the sector, always adapted to constant change. I think everyone will enjoy reading his reflective words.
His theme of adaptation and change can be seen in another of our news stories today, with the announcement from Kramp that they are to enter into an e-commerce partnership with their dealers with the aim, in their words, to “transform the spare parts market.”
This a bold statement, but the company’s intention does appear to grapple with an issue that dealers will have faced throughout the lifespan of our magazine.
The company says that today 80% of customers begin their spare parts search online – but that the end purchase may not end up in the tills of traditional dealerships. Now back in the day it wouldn’t have been online competition that our readers would have been battling with, it would have been mass-channel, big box stores. But the principal of the specialist missing out on the sale remains constant.
In the reality of modern retail, it sounds like Kramp is attempting to combine both worlds. Customers can order parts online with immediate payment and delivery direct from Kramp’s warehouse, while remaining linked to their chosen local dealer for support, technical advice and ongoing relationship-building.
This sounds like a logical move as dealers know customer expectations have changed – with end-users now demanding that same fast, smooth experience they get elsewhere online for every transaction they make.
At the same time, parts departments have traditionally been a crucial touchpoint for dealerships. They keep customers engaged between machinery purchases and often help cement long-term loyalty. To lose that entirely would be quite the blow for ongoing relationships – not to mention financially.
So, what Kramp say they are attempting to achieve is most certainly an interesting move. It’s making dealers integral to customers’ desire for convenient e-commerce, but hopefully without losing those purchasers to faceless, generic online sellers.
But how does it sound to you, our valued dealer readers? Do you feel this move is addressing a pressing issue for your business? Or can it be seen as perhaps moving too much ownership of the customer relationship away from the dealership itself? Let us know what you think in the comments below.
I suppose the challenge that all dealers must reconcile is balancing the customer’s need for digital ease with the personal, face-to-face service and technical expertise that independents have always, rightly, prided themselves on.
That shift in mindset of how end-users, be they professional, agricultural or domestic, make purchases has already happened and indeed, continues to evolve. The question now seems to be less about whether dealers participate in digital, and more about how they remain central to the process.
Whether what Kramp are doing becomes a seismic industry change or an interesting experiment remains to be seen. But it certainly raises worthwhile questions about how the dealer network evolves while still holding onto the vital inter-personal relationships that have always been one of its greatest strengths.
