Commercial vehicle sales can be one of the most overlooked profit opportunities at a dealership. In this Wednesday Webinar with The Shop, Kathryn Schifferle of Work Truck Solutions explains why local businesses are worth pursuing, and how Ford dealers can reach them with tools they may already have. What's covered:
- Why commercial buyers are often your neighbors: the plumbers, contractors and local service companies whose vans and trucks you see every day
- Why one commercial relationship can lead to both fleet deals and personal vehicle sales
- A simple CRM exercise: ask retail customers whether they own a business, then flag them as commercial prospects
- How Convoy, a national marketplace that categorizes vehicles by business use case and upfit, helps buyers shop from anywhere
- How dealers on the platform are automatically listed in the Ford Pro national locator
- Why commercial shoppers tend to be urgent buyers rather than casual browsers, especially when a vehicle is down and costing the business money
- Using service history and a complimentary fleet audit to start the conversation
- The Section 179 tax rule and the Ford Pro promotion tied to it
- Why commercial deals can deliver stronger gross profit, higher service RO value, upfit and accessory revenue, and repeat purchases
- Mobile service as an opportunity for business customers
- A forecast of 8% growth for commercial, compared with a flat retail market
The session closes with a reminder that the opportunity often isn't generating more demand. It's recognizing the demand that's already there and acting on it before someone else does.
