Through the Eyes Of the Bold, Part 30

More bold partnering ideas to make more sales and profits. Take a deep breath . . .

I am such a fan of unique bodies, different ways of doing a thing, better and more interesting solutions. Part of the reason is that those products almost always sell fast and make more gross. Prospects see them and get excited as well because they aren't seeing those anywhere else. It does take courage and vision to get in there and mess with the status quo and get out of that comfortable zone of conformity, but once you begin moving there and see what I see, you won't ever want to go back. You could call it leadership and others may follow you, but you keep innovating and testing new ideas.

Give yourself permission to fail or you will never succeed. Just to give you a bit more confidence, consider this: When you put a truck body on a chassis and it is a flop, the worst case scenario is that you take the body off and put in on the ground and get rid of the truck with another body. The most you could lose is some flooring expense and the cost of the body assuming that it was really and truly unsaleable. That is unlikely though, because everything sells eventually. So the reality is that you might take a loss on the body, but never a total loss. So what? That's just part of the game.

I had one body that I just loved the concept of and the look of and I ended up transferring it to three different chassis, repainting it once a different color, and it finally sold about two years or so later. I didn't order that body again, but I wouldn't have changed the experience. It is a great body, and in other parts of the country it sells extremely well, but I just couldn't move it for a long time. So, you learn. No big deal. The thing to focus on is all the successes and the substantially greater gross profits that result from unique bodies--they were many. Don't be afraid of failure, be afraid of mediocrity, complacency and conformity. The fruit is on the limb.

So, here's some bold stocking and partnering examples that you can try: Develop a relationship with a nearby camper distributor, order up a Camper Body from a supplier like Douglass Truck Bodies who makes many models for this lucrative market, and get an agreement to have the camper on display to sell the truck and camper together.

While it is on display, you will give out literature from the camper distributor and they will be involved in the sale as needed. What is even cooler than this is to order two and have them display one at their location and one at yours, while they hand out your cards and literature as well. This could be a very effective display and sales opportunity. In addition, you are creating a marketing partnership you may not have had before. It's all good. Remember to secure the right chassis with the uplevel trim for this kind of body as the normal lightly equipped unit will not do for this market.

Here's another way to go with this kind of display promotion. Hook up with your local trailer distributor (it may be the same one as for the camper, or you can develop a relationship with another one). Get with Tuscany (an Accubuilt Company) and order up a nice Starhauler.

Get with your trailer buddy (hopefully, you are getting there) and get an agreement to show off the trailer while attached to the truck. Be really bold and get another one from Douglass and have one on display at each location. Douglass makes a very nice 5th Wheel Body that has huge storage space and that is always a plus.

These are both great examples of combining the commercial market and the RV market. Doing promotions like this can really be a huge benefit to your overall operation. You are adding new markets to your existing business. You can also create some very nice offsite displays with these pieces as well. See the possibilities through the eyes of the bold and go for it!