Company vehicles can add a great deal of flexibility to your business life. When a client needs something fast, you can deliver. When you need raw goods quickly to finish a manufacturing run, having a vehicle and an available driver can keep your production lines running.
If you need more than one, buying sets of a consistent size and manufacturer can lower your need for multiple maintenance schedules and mechanics.
Start With A Lease
If your current company car fleet is aging out, consider leasing your next one. Invest in removable decals that you can use to market your business without permanently changing the outside of the leased vehicle.
A leased vehicle is critical if you’re hauling things of a particular size. For example, if you’re delivering custom floral designs, you need support to stabilize the container and enough height to make room for the entire design. Carefully measure the largest item you need to haul and lease accordingly.
Buy What You Can Easily Maintain
When you’ve made your decision on what to buy, connect with a local mechanic who can manage these vehicles. If you can find a dealership with a quality team of mechanics, reach out immediately.
This is one of the great benefits of sticking with one manufacturer; once you have that dealership relationship in place, you can easily expand your fleet.
Once you know that you can get parts and maintenance work done easily on your chosen vehicle line, consider an Auto Tempest search. This organization can help you source and ship your new fleet of vehicles.
Build Custom Marketing Images To Fit
Once you find a vehicle that really suits what you need to move, connect with your marketing team for ideas on what to display on your vehicle. In addition to your base vehicle color, consider also adding window wraps, custom logos on the doors, and a bumper sticker that includes your business information.
Do your best to match these new images to your current marketing images. Your new fleet should be a visible improvement; it doesn’t have to be a big change. Include links to your website and your social media platforms.
Your phone number can be incorporated into your business name at the bottom. Finally, if there’s room, list your address to complete the information flow.
Loop Your Employees In Early
Once you’ve made your choice, make your driving employees aware of the change and give them a timeline for when to expect the new vehicles. Even if all you’re doing is changing up your cargo vans, factors such as visibility and even the seat configuration will impact their ability to see possible barriers, park effectively and drive safely.
You can save cash by buying used, of course. Ask your employees to check out recall information and maintenance recommendations so you can get your new to you vehicles updated and brought up to snuff in terms of drivability and safety.
Of course, you may have some employees who will be unhappy with any change. They may have also resented the last vehicle fleet change. Don’t ask on the first set of comments, but do address any complaints about visibility and discomfort.
Pay For Inspections
Any time you buy a used car, you need to get it inspected. The seller should be willing to take it to the mechanic of your choice; if they refuse, keep shopping. If you have a strong relationship with a local dealership and are buying the same product line, ask them for recommended inspectors and get your potential vehicles checked out.
Once you have this vehicle routing process set up with a particular seller, you can save yourself a great deal of worry and hassle. You can even let them know that you are interested in adding a vehicle a year and ask them to keep an eye out for you. Loyalty is easy when the seller has proven their credibility.
Take the time to measure what you need to move. Carefully consider the weight you’re hauling if you are dealing with heavy raw goods or machinery. Lease a possible vehicle to make sure that those vehicles offer the handling and weight tolerance that you need.
Buy used after finding a mechanic that you can trust, preferably with a dealership similar to the one that you currently work with so you can be sure you can get parts when you need them.