There are many other factors that play a very distant second, including brand loyalty, price, a good employee relationship, etc. If we can agree that these are the major considerations, then we can keep them in mind as we think about the topic I want to share with you.
As for lost sales, few things can stress a supplier/customer relationship more than when a part is not available and the customer thinks it should be. It doesn't matter if you are a specialty supplier with a limited number of SKUs or a huge parts supplier with hundreds of thousands of SKUs — lost sales could seriously affect your bottom line and customer relationships. So first let's look at the different scenarios that occur. Keep in mind that while I have worked as a counterperson in an independent import store and at a dealership, I am coming at this mostly as an observant customer.
First off is the part that is on the shelf, but doesn't get sold. This has to be a parts manager's biggest nightmare. This part is either in an odd place — so it comes up as an inventory exception — or the inexperienced counterperson doesn't know you carry it. You have to solve this one on your own, but I can tell you from experience that it happens more than you might think.
Then there is the seemingly common part that is not common. How many times have you heard, "They made millions of those, how can you not have it on the shelf?" Here is a situation where your counter team's experience can be invaluable. My suggestion is to try this approach: "According to our inventory system, that is not a very common failure. But I can get one and have it to you by (suggest an appropriate time). Will that work for you?"
Next is the part that never shows up on lost sales. In my opinion, this is an area from which all levels of suppliers can glean great information with some minor changes in inventory or point-of-sale (POS) software. When I am looking up a part and I find a part number that you either don't have or the price just seems way out of whack, wouldn't it be helpful for you to know why I didn't order it?
Adding a "we can have this part to you by..." next to out of stock or special order parts may be all that is needed to get the sale. A lot of the time, if I know when I can get the part, I may sell it to my customer with that date in mind. A box next to the part that says: "I would have bought this if A) you had it or B) the price was competitive," would also help you adjust your inventory.
Another far less "techie" approach you might be able to work with when it comes to your very best customers is to have them keep a logbook of lost sales for you. The window might be too narrow to be of much help, but if nothing else, it tells them that you care.
Finally is the part we didn't know you had. For little more than occasional communication, you may mine sales of many items that your customers did not know you had. I have brought this topic up before, because I know that it is a major area of lost sales for everybody who provides a part or a service. Customers won't buy what they don't know you sell. Here are a couple of ideas.
Send an e-mail that mentions a couple of high volume components or lines you carry.
If you are not sure what's "hot," take one of your great customers on a tour of your warehouse and see what they "ooh" and "ahh" at.
If you want to increase both sales and happy customers, make sure you and your employees know what you have on hand and how to find it, and come up with some way to track lost sales that your customers will buy into and make appropriate inventory adjustments as needed. You can't change everything overnight, so pick the area in which you feel you can make the best impression with your customers and start there.
Donny Seyfer is a second-generation repair shop owner and ASE Master Technician. An active industry educator, Seyfer hosts two automotive radio shows, serves as chairman of the Automotive Service Association of Colorado, works nationally to help repair shops with IT and service information utilization and writes for Motor Age, a sister publication of Aftermarket Business.
