Three Ways Heavy Truck Dealers Can Improve Customer Experience

Heavy truck dealerships are facing a crisis on two fronts: There's a major shortage of new inventory available to sell, and there are major changes in how today's B2B buyers —?like commercial fleets —?prefer to research, purchase, and interact with dealerships before and after the sale.

With fewer new trucks available to sell, dealers must execute on every touchpoint that could lead to a potential sale. While there's no magic formula that can cause every customer interaction to lead to a sale, there is one lever dealerships can pull to improve their chances of closing more business: Improve the end-to-end customer experience.

Why the Customer Experience Matters More Than Ever

There was a time when dealerships could count on steadfast relationships with longtime customers for repeat business. That time has passed, and today's B2B customers have more options and less brand loyalty than ever before. They might switch brands or suppliers for a better deal, but they'll definitely switch if it means a better buying and maintenance experience.

In fact, price and quality —?long the standard value propositions heavy truck dealers have relied on —?are now table stakes. Any buyer with an internet connection can immediately see prices at competing dealerships, and they can read multiple reviews or watch YouTube videos to get a sense of vehicle quality.

Now, the battleground is the customer experience and providing a superior one will be how dealers edge out the competition. With this in mind, let's look at three strategies heavy truck dealerships can use to win new business, build customer loyalty, and drive word-of-mouth sales.

Optimize Your Omnichannel Operations

The pandemic may be in our rearview mirrors but the behaviors and preferences it created continue to impact how B2B buyers prefer to interact with sales professionals. Lockdowns and stay-at-home orders forced businesses that traditionally relied on in-person interactions at a seller's location to take those interactions online.

This was true for retail and B2B customers. What retail shoppers saw as convenience, B2B shoppers saw as efficiency. And that’s not something that they’re willing to give up.

At every stage of the buying cycle, from discovery to conversion to reordering, B2B buyers are almost evenly mixed on the channels they prefer. In fact, two-thirds of B2B buyers opted for remote interaction or self-guided discovery at some stage of the process.

This finding is bolstered by a 2022 report from Gartner that revealed B2B buyers who were able to research products through a self-guided learning path were 147% more likely to purchase more products or services than they originally planned. Meanwhile, another 2022 study, this time from Adobe, found that 71% of B2B sales leaders said they're seeing a surge of existing customers using digital channels for the first time, while 65% said they're earning new business through digital channels.

With these facts in mind, be sure your omnichannel operations (any channel a potential lead could use to discover your products or engage with a seller —?e.g., social, email, chatbots, websites, in-person, etc.) are optimized to be seamless, information-rich, and have clear paths for self-guided discovery and even conversion.

Wait — conversion?

Aren't we talking about heavy trucks that frequently cost upward of $150,000 or more? We are and today's buyer is increasingly willing to spend that much or more online. In fact, 27% of B2B buyers are willing to spend more than $500,000 or more after engaging in digital self-service and remote human interactions.

That's a massive shift in buying behavior, and it's one that should make truck dealers take notice and get serious about improving their omnichannel offerings.

But don't take these numbers to mean that the dealership is irrelevant. Far from it. A Bain & Company survey of car buyers found that U.S. consumers view the dealership as still the most-used channel for researching their vehicle purchases, followed closely by dealers' websites. It's likely that B2B buyers feel the same, which makes providing a better experience at the dealership all the more crucial.

Don't Neglect the Post-Sale Relationship

Customers may be increasingly online but that doesn't mean they don't appreciate human interaction, like help remembering or managing maintenance and service after the sale. This can be especially true for distributed fleets that don't operate out of a central hub with their own maintenance facilities.

But how valuable is a positive ongoing relationship really? Consider that a 2022 study found that 85% of B2B buyers said they value a positive experience with their partners as much as they value their product or services.

?To capitalize on this trend, consider:

• Setting up automated text or email alerts for routine service reminders
• Offering corporate goodwill or loyalty programs that reward fleets for repeat service visits
• Implementing a mobile maintenance service that can perform light-to-medium maintenance at customers' premises
• Creating reminders in your CRM to personally check in on customers

Partner With a Trusted Industry Leader

The right partner will have solutions to elevate your customer experience and improve the end-to-end journey from discovery to purchase and even post-sale service.

For example, a strong dealer management solutions (DMS) provider can offer dealers a single portal to make data-driven decisions that can speed up service, which will mean less downtime for the customer. A leading partner can also offer technicians the ability to send customized video assessments to fleet operators that clearly show what repairs are needed so they can quickly make informed decisions about vehicle service. Likewise, a detailed service history database can help technicians avoid delays, mistakes, and even speed up the payment process.

Meanwhile, a partner who offers a feature-packed CRM system designed just for heavy truck dealers can help streamline the quote and offer process, improve inventory management, and keep sales moving —?even amid a vehicle shortage.

Look for a partner who knows the challenges heavy truck dealerships are facing, how to empower them to create better customer experiences, and delivers new ways to drive revenue —?and loyalty —?throughout the customer lifecycle.