Many suppliers of industrial construction equipment focus strictly on local sales, believing there's no benefit to going "online." However, the truth is that all business-to-business (B2B) companies can benefit from selling their products and services online, including construction equipment suppliers. But if you're thinking about selling industrial construction equipment online, there are a few things you'll need to consider.
Do you plan to deliver equipment to customers, or will you only accept local pickups? As most suppliers already know, delivering construction equipment isn't easy, nor is it cheap. You won't be able to use the services of your local USPS office for this purpose. You can, however, choose a third-party shipping company that specializes in heavy equipment. Regardless, you'll need to decide between delivery or local pickup when selling industrial construction equipment online.
It's a good idea to build your website with a content management system (CMS). Basically, this is a framework that streamlines many common tasks associated with developing and maintaining a website. Some of the most popular CMS include WordPress, BigCommerce, Drupal, Joomla and Shopify.
For customers to make payments on your site, you'll also need a payment processor. There are more than a dozen different payment processors, each of which has its own fees, rates, terms and accepted methods of payment. If you need help choosing a payment processor, check out this article for some helpful tips.
It's a good idea to allow customers to post reviews about industrial construction equipment purchased on your website. Statistics show that 84% of people trust online reviews as much as personal recommendations from friends or family. By allowing customers to post product reviews on your site, you'll create greater transparency while subsequently encouraging others to make the same purchase.
Don't forget to use customer relationship management (CRM) software. While CRM isn't required when selling industrial construction equipment online, it can benefit your company in several ways. First and foremost, CRM software allows you to keep track of prospects through every stage of the sales cycle. Depending on the specific type, it may even offer email integration and automation. So, once a visitor enters his or her email address on your site, you can use CRM to automate followups.
These are just a few things to consider when selling industrial construction equipment online.