Auto Recyclers Need to be More Digital-Centric in 2022
There is an increasing demand on auto recyclers for improved online experiences such as enhanced search capabilities, online ordering, and other online services. 2022, is the time for auto recyclers to shift to more digital-centric experiences, both customer-facing and internally.
This transition to digital has been a long time coming for all industries, but the rate of adoption has significantly increased in response to the pandemic, global restrictions on travel, working from home and stay at home orders.
Consumer buying habits and the subsequent expectations of the recycler have evolved:
Consumers are a more tech savvy generation now.
They do their research online rather than yard inspections.
They want to transact online.
They no longer want to pick up the phone, wait on hold.
They demand instant answers/results.
They expect the online experience to be easy and accurate.
I have experienced this firsthand, and everyone I speak to agrees that they too have changed their buying habits.
We now have at least one parcel delivery a day coming to our home, compared to maybe one per month 18 months ago.
As I write this article in fact, I just paused to take another delivery of a pair of jeans that I ordered just yesterday!
Why would I want to spend the time and effort doing anything but ordering online if the seller can make it fast, easy, convenient and offer a no obligation free return?
So how does this relate to the automotive recycler and the expectations of their customer?
Auto Recycling businesses need to build out their digital-centric experiences with online transaction-friendly technology, scheduling appointments and the ability to view vehicles and parts online. At a high level, this is what is required, but let’s dig a little deeper and look at what this really means.
Again, speaking from experience, we want to do business with someone, or an organisation that makes us feel we can trust them, that offers a quality product, that does not need to lock us into a deal, and someone that makes the ordering and/or returns policy easy.
An amazing example of this is Net-A-Porter, the online fashion store. They do all the above and they do it really well. So, let’s explore a little, then relate this back to how we can replicate this experience.
Trust: they have a professional site, excellent reviews and make it clear that if you are not happy with the product you can exchange it, no questions asked.
Quality: the products they offer are not cheap, they do not try to compete on price, but they are very competitive if you try to shop for like-quality products.
No Risk: if something goes wrong and, say you order the wrong size, or you do not like the product, you can return it without question. In fact, they even provide a return package, with their address printed on it with free return postage.
Easy: their checkout capability is simple and easy, but their return process is even better.
Now I know this makes us all nervous. We don’t want to make it too easy for someone to send something back right…or do we? Do we need to rethink this?
I mean I know that freight on an engine can be expensive, and we cannot afford for every second engine we send out to just come back. But let’s face it, customers don’t wake up every day to go online, find an engine just so that they can then return it to us.
They need your engine because their one is faulty! And if there is a need to return it, 9 times out of 10, it is because there is an issue with it, or they ordered the wrong one. Both these circumstances can be dealt with if we manage the sales process better, provide better information to the buyer, confirm buyer needs both before and after the sale, and make sure that our product meets their requirement.
What a wonderful opportunity to interact with the customer and build trust, a relationship and in doing so, ensure that the part we will deliver is the right one, first time, every time!
If we can make it easy for our customer, take the risk away from dealing with a reused part, make them feel safe and that they are buying a high quality product from a reputable organisation, could we not increase our sales?
YES, YES, YES, we CAN!
The science tells us this, the data proves it. For example, if you look at online sales or eBay sales of businesses that do all this, they outperform the market in the multiples. This is not supported by what we think, it's supported by what we know - Not only will you increase conversion and beat the market, but you will also win repeat customers to your store and win their friends and family too.
My work with eBay UK directly as their subject matter expert affords me the opportunity to see how our industry behaves and performs compared to many others. Suffice to say that there is significant ‘Blue Sky’ for businesses in the automotive recycling industry if they choose to build a better model for the future.
In the next article I will publish in this series, we will break the impact of a more digital-centric world into clear segments for an automotive recycler and talk specifically to what it really means for the business and those within it, including:
Sales and the sales team.
Salvage buying.
Data, analytics and reporting.
Inventory processes.