When cars in your local market drive across your dealership’s service drive, the dealership hits a double home run. Sell the labor at a respectable profit margin, typically 70% margin or more, and you sell a part that goes along with that repair at about a 35-40% margin. Both combined is a huge money maker for the dealership, especially in terms of overall expense absorption.
The unfortunate part here is that the dealers see only a small fraction of all the cars in operation within their local market. Retention of service customers is a priority. Industry statistics indicate that owners typically defect from the dealership after the 2nd to 3rd year of ownership, which is, on average, about the period in which the manufacturer’s warranty will expire.
If you’re the service manager, it’s the end of the road since labor cannot be sold to a car that never returns. however, as the Parts Manager, it’s just the beginning. Selling factory-quality parts to returning car owners should be the easy part. The challenge is connecting with customers with these older cars who never return to the dealership.
The next most popular revenue stream for the Parts Manager (a stream that they have 100% control over) is wholesale. Competitive and time-consuming, wholesale involves dedicated specialists and account management for the aggressive pricing when it comes to collisions. Getting those parts delivered in an acceptable time frame is always an additional challenge.
Rounding out the revenue streams that Parts Managers have control over is retail. Selling parts today is no longer about just selling into your workshop or a few local wholesale accounts. Selling your parts across eCommerce channels brings a host of options for the Parts Managers to sell and drive volume since they are no longer constrained by their local market. Additionally, selling to remote customers who don’t have access to a local dealership helps cast an even wider net.
RevolutionParts has turnkey solutions for your needs and will be there every step of the way to help in any way we can. We are your business partner to help sell more parts, make you more revenue, and become more efficient.
