ECOMMERCE
ties of a manufacturer ’ s published parts data ,” said Tony Zane , sales manager for website builder Dealer Spike . We recommend ecommerce because of that parts lookup . Customers can get on the dealer ’ s website and easily order parts .” Tony told a story that may be familiar , about buying a part on Amazon and receiving the incorrect one . “ Amazon is less than trustworthy for getting the right parts and is worse for returns ,” he said .
“ PartStream ” is the Dealer Spike online parts platform . “ When you sign up for website services with us ,” said Zane , “ you get this data if you carry a manufacturer we work with . Customers can see all the data and add to a shopping cart . Dealers can choose whether they want to enable ‘ ship to home ’ or ‘ ship to store .’ And dealers have complete control over pricing on all these parts . They can change the markup as they desire .”
More than 30 percent of Dealer Spike customers enable some sort of ecommerce . “ And 80 percent of those use in-store pickup ,” said Andrew Williams of Dealer Spike . And while some OPE dealers we ’ ve spoken with fear that ecommerce inhibits relationship building , Williams said the opposite is true . “ If a store – OPE or other – enables me to get products easily and conveniently , I will have a relationship with them . Ecommerce can enhance relationships by meeting a customer ’ s expectations . It might be a silent relationship , but it can be a positive one .”
Dealers are customers too
Exmark learned it had to shift its ecommerce strategy to better serve its dealer customers . “ A lot of dealers are concerned about ecommerce taking feet out of their showroom ,” said John Cloutier , Exmark ’ s senior marketing manager with innovation and strategy . “ We unplugged our direct selling model . Online transactions are between the customer and their local dealer . When the customer enters their credit card info , they ’ re basically putting money directly into the dealer ’ s account . Full profitability , whether the customer walks into store or buys online .”
“ One of our biggest challenges ,” said Gerber from Johnson Tractor , “ is every manufacturer offering ecommerce wants to offer its own solution . A dealer may end up having four or five different ecommerce sites based on the number of lines they offer . Until there is an integrated solution , it will continue to lead to a somewhat frustrating customer experience . The obvious option would be to create our own , but the time and resources it
Ecommerce can enhance relationships by meeting a customer ’ s expectations . It might be a silent relationship , but it can be a positive one .
ANDREW WILLIAMS DIR . OF PRODUCT MANAGEMENT , DEALER SPIKE
takes to create something like that is astronomical .” “ Kubota has had its ecommerce system in implementation for about 18 months ,” said Don Lowe , executive director , sales at Kubota . “ We wanted to make sure we do not take business from dealers . All ecommerce business goes right to the DBS . Customers see the dealer ’ s own pricing . Some customers just look at the pricing online , and then go visit the dealer .” Lowe admits that Kubota dealers have been slow to accept the manufacturer ’ s Shop . Kubotausa . com system . “ Dealers want to make sure we are not going direct to consumer . About 35 percent of our dealers are on board and live . Many more dealers are waiting , but it takes time to complete the integration . Johnson Tractor is currently setting up its Kubota ecommerce platform . “ We needed to get our feet wet with our CNH ecommerce before we added another layer of complexity ,” said Gerber .
What ’ s next for ecommerce ?
“ I look at what we ’ re doing as an extension of the dealer ’ s showroom ,” said Cloutier from Exmark . “ The thing about ecommerce , it can also boost productivity for landscape contractors who can order online and not spend time waiting at a parts counter .”
Exmark gives dealers the option to sell online . Dealers setup a payment gateway , just like in store , enabling them to take credit card payments . Cloutier said it costs about $ 20 month . “ And the rest is hands off . The only other role they have is if there is a return
The convenience of an ecommerce experience is in direct relation to the quality of the information online . A parts shopping site must be up to date and complete .
18 OPE + March 2024 www . OPE-Plus . com