I believe in inclusive reporting. When I’m writing an article, I try to address every topic that comes up in conversation. When I’m at an event, I attend as many educational sessions, meetings and press conferences as possible. As a Truck Parts & Service reader, I believe you have a right to expect to learn as much aftermarket news as possible from us. And as editor, I believe it is the job of our editorial staff to go to great lengths to provide you that information.
With that in mind, I bring you news from the other side of the fence — the dealer market.
Not long after completing our January state of the industry report for this magazine, I started writing a similar report for our sister publication Successful Dealer. Released on the Successful Dealer website last month, the state of the dealer market touched on many of the same topics covered here in January.
For the most part, dealers were pleased with 2017 and are optimistic about the year ahead. Like you, many dealers continue to struggle finding technicians and quality employees. Every dealer I’ve talked to this year mentioned its struggle finding technicians; though, thanks to increased OEM involvement, I do think they have a leg up in solving this issue.
There are other similarities, too. They believe the current administration has helped trucking. They believe e-commerce, remote diagnostics and alternative power sources could fundamentally change their businesses, and they’re concerned.
They know they need to improve their online sales and marketing, and they wish they could find the time and money to improve their store fronts, showrooms and websites.
Dealers also have their own unique problems, as I’m sure you could guess.
