By Steve Bender, CEO, Fleet Street Remarketing
The last year has been hard for fleets, that’s for sure.
And for allied service providers like Fleet Street, equally as challenging as well. From dealing with a virus that has threatened people’s well-being, to embracing a new world of protocols that changed the way we do business, let’s all hope the worst days of the pandemic are behind us.
Perhaps worse than anything, the pandemic has caused all of us to lose that critical “human connection” that all of us crave, and that was so vital to our wonderfully vibrant industry.
For fleet, the changes have been stark, and real. From working tirelessly to ensure top service to going without seeing our customers, colleagues and friends at great events like AFLA and NAFA, the past 15 months has been a tumultuous time virtually none of us could have imagined outside of a Hollywood soundstage.
At Fleet Street, we think that at a time like this, it’s vitally important that we listen to what the “word” on the street is telling us. We thought it was so important that we’ve created a mindset – and even a marketing campaign – dedicated to keeping on finger on the pulse of “the word on the street.” We want to hear from our customers, partners, and friends how they’ve been affected, and what the loss of human connection has meant to their businesses, and on their ability to be “creative,” and “productive.”
Unfortunately, getting back to “normal” won’t be easy for a lot of fleet-related businesses, some of which succumbed to the effects of the pandemic, or who are suffering from the loss of diminished business opportunities.
Like most of these fleets – and the businesses that serve them – we’ve seen friends and customers hit hard by the challenges we’ve been presented. As a company that prides itself on the relationships we’ve built, that loss of human connection has been especially difficult – and sometimes even impossible – to comprehend. Like most of you, we’ve felt the pain of losing loved ones, and of having to find new ways of doing what may have come as second nature before. Worst of all, we’ve been missing the comfort, warmth and camaraderie that come from the power of those human connections.
By the same token, we’re also proud of many of our accomplishments during the past year. Of our ability to help customers excel under extremely trying circumstances. Of getting their assets sold – and them paid quickly – so they can keep their fleets running at peak efficiency. These are the important things we’ve been dedicated to, but for all that they mean, even the greatest accomplishments are better when you share them with the people that matter most.
If you asked a fleet professional over the last 30 years, what the “word” is on Fleet Street, we’re confident you’d hear a lot of great things. But perhaps the “word” you’d most often is that Fleet Street is a partner fleets can “trust.” At the same time, we’re as equally sure that you’d also hear that we’re “innovative” – as in our new retail offering CarvantEdge, a direct-to-consumer solution that lets fleets quickly and easily sell end of lease vehicles on our website before they even come out of service.
And one word we’re sure you’d hear a lot is “connected.” That’s because at Fleet Street, we pride ourselves on building deep personal connections that other remarketers simply can’t.
And while some people may say things like “trust,” “innovation,” and “connectedness” are just “words” – we’d like to offer up the fact in today’s world, words matter more than ever. And besides, it’s how you back them up that matters most. So as the world – and especially the fleet world – move a little more back towards normal, please know how much we look forward to seeing you all soon. And to renewing so many of the human connections we’ve been missing, and we know you have been too.
That’s the “word on the street!”
About the author
Steve Bender is CEO of Fleet Street Remarketing of Largo, Fl, and a member of the board of the Association of Fleet Leasing Association. A leading vehicle remarketer for more than 30 years, Fleet Street is a trusted fleet partner to fleets looking for a hassle-free way to sell their end of lease vehicles quickly and easily. And its online solution CarvantEdge is fleet’s only direct to consumer solution for remarketing vehicles before they even come off lease. To find out more, call us at 1 (800) 539 – 2277, follow us on social media, or log on to www.fleetstreetremarketing.com.
