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You are the key to uncovering your return!

We're super proud to be able to share the following article with our blog readers.  

If you had to explain the value of two-step distribution, could you? Two-step distributors buy products from the manufacturers and then sell the product to independent dealer businesses. The dealers, in turn, sell it to the end user, thereby earning the two-step definition.

For those of us in the OPE industry, it is the way we do business so we do not think about the inherent value. It just is. Many times the simplest and easiest way to explain something is to just list some of the benefits for the dealers; explaining why they would want to use distributors, and then do the same thing for the manufacturers.

Starting The Process

Have you been debating whether or not to expand your client base to include municipal and government entities? While this may seem like the perfect way to expand your profits, pursuing this type of customer is not for every outdoor power equipment dealership. Many dealers do not have the staff, equipment, and time to successfully roll out a plan to follow up on this type of business. Like most business projects, it pays to start slow and ramp up if you start to see success. If your business can handle the new influx of work, then here are some tips to successfully engage potential municipal and government clients.

Dealers who have worked with manufacturers directly in the past may wonder how distributors fit into the equation and what value distributors can add to their retail business. When I speak with dealers who purchase and promote power equipment available through distribution, I hear a wide range of reasons why dealers get excited about working with a distributor. Here are the benefits I hear most frequently from OPE dealers.

We cannot begin a conversation about a customer-centric business approach without first defining “customer centric.” To make it simple, it is putting the customer at the center of your business. Understanding what the customer needs and putting them first creates long lasting business value.

In order to develop a customer-first approach, get to know your customers and ask them these questions.

• What goals are they looking to achieve with a new piece of equipment?
• What challenges are they currently facing with their existing equipment?
• How are these challenges impeding their success?
• What would success look like to them?

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the number of small business births is exceeding the exit rate of companies, or company closures—a positive trend we haven’t seen since 2007.  With increasing competition, how can your small business stay ahead of the pack?

An increasing number of Lawn and Garden dealers are starting to realize the benefits of selling plows in addition to lawnmowers.  They can satisfy more of their customers’ needs during the summer and winter months as their current landscape customers who are cutting grass from May to September are also the ones pushing snow from November to March.  Servicing the needs of your customers year round will drive more business to the bottom line.

The question becomes where do you start? 

More and more commercial landscapers have grown their companies into year-round businesses.  They are not only cutting grass and maintaining lawns throughout the summer growing season, but many commercial landscapers have matured their business to include snow and ice removal throughout the winter months. Upwards of 60% of commercial landscapers are now also pushing snow.  So, what does that mean to most Lawn and Garden shops throughout the Northeast?  It means you are missing a great opportunity!  

Chances are, you have been extremely successful in earning the commercial landscaper’s respect with his lawn equipment.  That landscaper places his trust in you when it comes to purchasing and repairing his lawn equipment.  Don’t you feel he would do the same when it came to purchasing his snow and ice removal equipment?