In researching this month’s cover story I was surprised to learn how few suppliers in the heavy-duty aftermarket have advisory councils.
Admittedly this was the first time I’ve aggressively searched for them, but from past conversations with suppliers I was under the impression they were fairly common.
That doesn’t appear to be the case.
If what I’ve learned recently is any indication, a well-run advisory council is a wonderfully valuable program. Difficult to manage and more time consuming than one might guess, but incredibly valuable nonetheless.
I think my draw to advisory councils is abundance of information. Bring a group of engaged distributors or customers together for a few days and I’d imagine there’s no topic that’s off limits. To me, that’s incredibly enticing.
I’m someone who craves information. I know that sounds obvious com-ing from someone who asks questions for a living, but it’s true in my personal life as well.
I’m the guy who when watching TV pulls out my phone every five minutes and Googles the last thing I saw on the screen. Who was that person? Where is this place? Why did the host say that? I want to know all the answers, and I’m always eager to find them.
If I was working for a supplier, I’d relish the chance to search for information in an advisory council setting.
To me the one feature of advisory councils that separates and elevates them from other forms of communication with distributors and customers is their longevity.
You can have an incredibly candid discussion—and I’m sure most of you do—during a one-on-one session at HDAW or another industry event. You can address problems you’re having in a relationship with a customer, and you can both work together to brainstorm solutions to fix it.
But an hour is still an hour.
Eventually that customer has to bolt, which means if you can’t solve their problem before they walk out that door you’ll be forced to solve it via email or over the phone. That’s not ideal for anyone. An advisory council eliminates that issue. You have two days to speak with distributors and/or customers about your relationships, and two days to brainstorm solutions to any possible problem that exists. That’s a ton of time.
And that’s not all, because you’re meeting with a group of customers at once instead of one, you’re suddenly looking at how a problem in your business doesn’t just impact one customer, but your entire operation.
That’s immensely valuable, because not every problem can be solved the same way, and not every problem is a problem for everyone.
Think back to that one-on-one in Las Vegas. Say one distributor tells you he’s having order fulfillment issues. He mentions a feature in your online ordering program that seems buggy. So you look into it, maybe even make some alterations, but he keeps having issues.
What if the problem isn’t on your end? What if his settings are off? Do you want to rebuild your program based on information that’s not correct?
Now imagine an advisory council meeting. That same distributor mentions his issue, but before you can even respond, another distributor jumps in. “I had that same problem. You need to change X to Y.” You haven’t said a word and your problem is solved.
Now tell me that’s not worth renting a hotel conference room for two days a year.
