Suppose I asked you if a Peterbilt, a Volvo and a Freightliner were all the same; What would you say?
My guess is you’d say something like, “ABSOLUTELY NOT”.
But they are all Heavy-Duty Trucks, correct?
An apple is a fruit, and an orange is a fruit. But an apple is not an orange.
People in Thailand have a phrase for this. They say, “Same Same but Different”.
If I asked you the same question about Vendor Locator Services; what would you say then?
You may struggle with this one because unless you look under the hood, Vendor Search can sometimes appear the same from the outside. But it pays to kick the tires because when you’re looking for Semi Truck Repair, All Vendor Search is NOT created equal!
How do Vendor Locator Services differ (and why should I care)?
The difference between services can vary in many subtle (and not so subtle ways). If you’re the one looking to get an 18 wheeler repaired, it can make the difference between hundreds or thousands of dollars and hours off the clock if you don’t keep your eyes open. Here are a few things to keep in mind when you’re searching for your next truck or trailer repair.
- size and accuracy of vendor database
- ability to fine tune exactly where you need service on a map
- assuring you find the closest and most qualified repair vendors
- ratings and reviews you can trust
- a system built to save you time in your search
- ability to distinguish mobile only service providers from shop listings
- a system offering vendor management tools that actually work
The bottom line is CHOICE for Fleets and Drivers. It’s having clearly defined choices between qualified vendors in a given area, and getting access to them quickly!
What can Fleets do to Assure Trustworthy Vendor Searches?
Be aware when a Vendor Locator permits advertisers to buy their way to the top of searches, limiting your choices. Vendor locators are not non-profit agencies. They are real businesses, and some have spent many years creating and updating their vendor databases to reflect up-to-date information on quality vendors who provide quality service to Trucking Fleets.
Most Vendor Locators use advertising as a way to recoup their investment and pay current employees to maintain the system. Advertising enables them to continue providing fast and efficient service to searchers for free. Sort of like Google.
Check advertising policies and search capabilities. Here’s why…
Some vendor locators may default to a search radius within a particular city/state. Phoenix, Arizona for example, is a huge city at over 500 square miles. That’s a BIG search radius, and if you are looking for the nearest truck repair shop, you want a vendor you can get to FAST. Will your driver have to battle traffic to get all the way across the city? How much time will that take?
A city/state search can have even more consequences in rural areas. What if you are near a small border town with limited resources and you search a city/state you’re in? Will you get results from a far-away town in the state you’re searching from instead of a repair vendor located a few miles across the border in a neighboring state?
TruckDown defaults to running a search within a 15-mile radius of your exact search location. You may change the default search radius if you chose. If you have your own preferred vendors they will appear first no matter if they have premium listings with TruckDown or not. TruckDown advertisers will appear next in the search, but only if they are within your default search radius.
Only if you choose "More Listings" or there are no other vendors available within your default radius will you be presented with other truck repair listings that are further away.
Note on Preferred Vendors - TruckDown allows you to set entire National Networks as Preferred Vendors if, for example, your Fleet has a Bridgestone National Tire Account or you prefer to use Freightliner Dealers first because those are the trucks you run.
Although it's not the case with every service on the internet, TruckDown advertisers are not permitted to buy their way into the top of searches. Many advertisers would prefer this capability, for obvious reasons, but TruckDown believes this restriction gives Fleet Managers better information and CHOICE!
Does the system you are searching have flat-rate pricing for advertisers? Not only does bidding reduce Choice for Fleets but it also drives costs up for the Vendor. Are those costs passed on to you?
Why is this important?
Imagine you have a driver with a repair issue and he needs to get to the nearest shop as soon as possible. Wouldn’t it be better to send him to a qualified repair shop that’s less than 15 miles away opposed to one that's 60 miles away (all other things being equal)? The extra time it takes to get to the shop and back out on the road could cost a lot of money. How much? $100? $300? $600?
That extra time will also burn into a drivers’ hours and fuel budget!
BE AWARE if you are not able to set your exact location in a Vendor Locator Search. You may be led to believe that the closest truck repair shop is 60 miles away when in fact there may be one five miles down the road!
We invite you to compare TruckDown search results with any other Vendor Locator Service in a geographical area you are familiar with. We believe you’ll see a marked difference.
In future posts, we will talk about more ways for Fleets to save time and money on truck and trailer repair across North America. In the meantime, review your company’s Semi Truck Repair Vendor Search Process, and make sure to compare apples to apples and Kenworth to Kenworth. All Vendor Search are NOT created equal.
Same Same but Different!
