Our industry is experiencing a trend towards vertical integration, creating both challenges and opportunities for Thermo King and you, our dealers. As part of the ‘Dealership of the Future’ strategy, the Thermo King team has begun a transformation journey that will move us closer to an integrated dealer model. The results are coming in and soon, all dealers can have a closer look!
Background
There is a growing trend of vertical integration within our industry. This is being seen as customers are requesting other services in order to limit the number of contact points and maximize vehicle uptime.
“Thermo King believes that this challenge creates opportunities for our dealers -- opportunities to win end-customer relationships and offer new, revenue-generating services. This is exactly what the “Dealership of the Future” strategy is all about,” explained Wouter Roels, Channel Development manager.
However, as Wouter points out, not every market and every country is looking for an integrated Thermo King dealer. “All of our dealers are different. Therefore it is very important to study the integrated model carefully and use the dealer’s entrepreneurship and market knowledge to select the right service offerings for their area.”
The Journey Begins
The first steps to develop an integrated dealer model began in June 2016 with a collaborative effort and two main actions.
- Solution Selling Toolbox: TheToolbox, an interactive online document offers resources that will help dealers and sales teams to get a clear overview of a dealer’s market by analyzing competitors and services available, and offer new services by providing hands-on and practical implementation guidelines.
“The goal of the toolbox is to increase our overall capabilities and, as a result, grow the number of units and services we are selling,” said Wouter.
- Pilot Program: Five pilot dealers – Officine Cailotto Di Silvio Cailotto, S.B.R. SA, Station Diesel, Josef Grosse Kracht GmbH & Co. KG, and Euram GmbH – implemented the Toolbox following a focused training session. The training guided each participating dealer to develop and offer a new service designed to bring the dealership closer to an integrated dealer model.
“The pilots are designed and structured to be duplicable,” explained Wouter. “Starting with a market assessment, relevant information about the competition and partners in the proximity of the dealership are captured. Next, the potential for a certain service in the market is calculated, and relevant client segments are identified. This information allows the service to be tested quickly with potential customers. The resulting customer feedback enables the service to be adapted and improved. The approach is based on the ‘lean start-up’ methodology.”
Initial Results are Positive
After the first six months of coaching, positive results are already visible. Station Diesel chose to develop its telematics offering. They had engaging conversations with customers regarding the TempuTrac telematics solution. Their clients were enthusiastic about the offering, and the sale of additional units have resulted.
Officine Cailotto Di Silvio Cailotto opted to develop a customer training package. They defined a list of 30 customers who would be candidates while simultaneously developing the training material. The first trainings took place during the month of October.
All other dealers in the pilot phase are evidencing similar success stories, clearly indicating that the integrated dealer model supported by the toolbox is a strong combination.
Further Deployment Coming!
The coaching of the first five pilots was finalized in October, and the next step is to further deploy the toolbox throughout the Dealer Network.
Stay tuned for more information. If you have questions, contact Wouter Roels at Wouter.roels@irco.com in Channel Development. The Toolbox can be seen on Info Central.
