The commercial vehicle segment presents exciting new opportunities for dealers looking to serve a wider array of consumers and enter new markets. However, many are afraid to take risks on products and businesses with which they are unfamiliar, leading many capable retailers to leave money on the table.
To find out more about how dealers can invest in new markets and pursue opportunities outside of the traditional car segments, Jim Fitzpatrick met with Kathryn Schifferle, founder and chief visionary officer of Work Truck Solutions.
Through her leadership, Schifferle, an experienced entrepreneur and automotive industry insider, has helped dealerships across the country increase earnings and expand their horizons on what they can achieve with their businesses.
Key Takeaways
1. Dealers now have more opportunities to sell products other than traditional vehicles, including telematics, fleet management, commercial vehicles, gas cards, etc., thanks to a new wave of support from automakers.
2. To pursue a new sector, dealerships should focus on adopting a more “consultative” attitude, improving their understanding of their new customers so they can properly advise clients through the purchase process.
3. Before expanding their horizons, dealers must first adopt the technology needed to serve a different set of clients and investigate the preferences in their local vehicle market. To learn more about tapping into the commercial vehicle segment, download the latest chapter of Work Truck Solutions’ Commerical Vehicle Playbook, here.
"In 2020, we saw the commercial use of vehicles was steady, no matter what kind of pandemic was happening...and so I think that kind of spurred the OEMs on a little bit in being able to start delivering more to that business customer." — Kathryn Schifferle
