Online Parts Sellers Can Be Your Friends
Whether you like it or not online parts sellers of medium- and heavy-duty truck parts are a reality — one that is not likely to go away. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, U.S. retail e-commerce sales for the third quarter of 2021 represented 13% of total sales. Since 2013, e-commerce sales have been on a study upward trajectory that shows no signs of stopping.
While in the past, e-commerce represented only a small part of a fleet’s parts purchasing, changes in consumer buying habits that were in part the result of the COVID-19 pandemic, and parts shortages have caused fleets to look beyond their traditional local parts sources in order to find the parts they need to keep their trucks operating. Customers’ buying behavior has changed and if distributors want to continue to do business they will have to change too.
Parts distributors can choose to look at this as a threat to their own business or they can choose to look at online parts sellers as an adjunct to their own inventory.
It is impossible for a parts distributor to carry every part imaginable, yet failure to have a part the customer needs will likely cause a customer to go elsewhere. And, depending on the kind of service they get, that customer may never come back to your distributorship. By working with an online parts seller, you gain access to a wider breadth and depth of parts that will allow you to fill more of your customers’ requests. Check shipping terms when selecting an e-commerce source to partner with to ensure there are a variety of delivery options available. While some customers may be able to wait for a part to be delivered, others need it quickly and next day delivery could be critical.
When vetting an online seller of medium- and heavy-duty parts, determine their stance on delivering the exact part ordered. Many customers have brand preferences and will not accept a substitute part. You’ll want to partner with an e-commerce site that fulfills your order exactly as you asked with no substitutions so you can give your customer the branded part they want.
Like it or not, fleets and owner-operators are buying parts online looking for either availability of price. Consider giving an online parts seller access to your inventory. That opens up your sales area to those outside the physical proximity to your brick-and-mortar locations. The right online parts seller will display your products in an attractive way, making sure to include all pertinent information so that someone looking for a part can be assured they are getting the part they want.
One thing many parts distributors are concerned about the potential for margin erosion; they erroneously assume that when parts are purchased online they are automatically cheaper. The right e-commerce site actually can help you prop up your margins by selling at prices similar to your brick-and-mortar locations. And just as you have different price points for different customers, the e-commerce site can as well, only those prices will be behind a firewall and require a login and password
E-commerce sites do not have to be the enemy of heavy-duty parts distributors. They can help drive sales to the distributor from customers who are browsing online and also can help distributors meet customer demand by supplementing the distributor’s own inventory.
Supply chain disruptions have made it more challenging for both fleets and distributors to get the parts they need. Savvy distributors are taking advantage of every avenue they can to locate needed parts. Look at partnering with an e-commerce site that is dedicated to selling parts for medium- and heavy-duty trucks as just one more way to demonstrate that you are one stop shop for your customers.