GUEST BLOG: Three Simple Things to Sell More Heavy-Duty Parts
Selling heavy-duty parts is complicated. There are many challenges including finding knowledgeable employees, stocking the correct parts, and being price competitive. With all that complexity, I would like to share three simple changes that have the potential to help you sell more heavy-duty parts.
A colleague once said, “keep it simple, because simple is hard enough.” This is genius because it contains a fundamental truth: one simple thing, done correctly over time, can have an exponential impact on results. This article will provide you with three simple things that can dramatically change your results and help you sell more heavy-duty parts.
#1 - Answer this Simple Question:
Why should a customer buy from you instead of your competitors? You cannot use any of the following:
- Years of experience
- Quality products
- A wide range of products
- Quick delivery of parts
- Competitive pricing
These five things are barriers to entry into the business, not differentiating value propositions to gain customers. Instead, answer with points that are unique about you and your company.
# 2 - Identify Your Perfect Customer:
Have you ever hit something you were not aiming at more than once?
To be successful selling heavy-duty parts or anything else, you must create a repeatable system that produces consistent results. An important step in this process is creating ideal customer profiles.
This ideal customer profile must be specific. It should include details about customers unique qualities. Think about your top five customers; what makes them great to do business with?
These five customers may be similar or different. If you sell to many sectors, you may need to create multiple profiles. Here is an example of an ideal customer profile that I created for an Independent Parts Reseller. As you can see, there are many specifics that identify the ideal customer. Include demographic and psychographic details and personalize the profiles by giving them a name.
Once you have these profiles developed, make sure everyone in your company and referral sources understand who you want to do business with. Clarity is important.
# 3 - Ask Your Customer What They Want and Give It to Them
This is the simplest thing to do that will increase sales. It has always amazed me how this act can have a dramatic impact on sales.
A great example is when I took over a sales territory for a regional aftermarket parts distributor. The first thing I did was interview current customers and ask what they wanted from a distributor.
While the person who hired me expected me to visit the customers more, the customers wanted less visits and more value during visits. I decided to give the customers what they asked for and sales increased.
Keep it Simple and Sell More Heavy-Duty Parts
As our industry changes, technology will impact trucks and how people buy parts. It will be important to develop our value proposition and provide customers with what they want, when they want it. By keeping things simple and focused, we can be more successful.
Leave a comment