Editor’s Welcome -- Focus with eyes wide open
by Clair Urbain
It’s easy to become complacent in good times.
We’ve had nearly 10 years of positive growth, low inflation and low unemployment. The popularity of renting equipment is growing as more contractors understand the business dynamics of owning vs. renting.
In fact, there is a growing percentage of young professionals in the job market who have never experienced the sting of mass layoffs, filing for unemployment and the frantic and sometimes futile search for a new position.
These are the times when it is easy to fall into “we’ve always done it this way” trap.
For Air Compressor Services out of Odessa, Texas, they were in a “We’ve always done it this way” trap. They focused on selling equipment first and took rental income as it came to them.
That was until they started tracking the requests for equipment. In the past, they’d check inventory and if they didn’t have it, they suggested customers could call back tomorrow to see if a unit came in.
Tracking rental requests revealed a tremendous opportunity existed for air compressor rental. The unmet demand was so great Air Compressor Services was able to easily justify acquiring several new compressors of various sizes. It’s now become a new focus in its operation.
The approach that owner Brian Stubbs and his staff was methodical and reveled a tremendous opportunity right in front of them. Taking a fresh look at customer requests and quantifying them may open tremendous opportunities for additional business.
As of this writing, the stock and bond markets have sent some signals that a recession may be in the offing. Perhaps now is the time to open your eyes – and books – to ferret out opportunities that lay in front of you.
This article originally appeared in the July-August 2019 issue of Pro Contractor Rentals magazine. ©Urbain Communications,LLC. All rights reserved.
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