Wednesday 18 July 2012

Car and Truck Rentals' Competition and Collaboration

With around 9 car and truck rental companies on the Sunshine Coast, an equal portion of which are big and small players, competition is rife. Although it is not as fierce as most would think considering the small market these 9 players are dealing with. Mutual respect for each others business and collaboration in dealing with customer needs when another cannot, is common place in the realms of car and truck rental.

So what sets one car and truck rental company apart from the rest for a customer trying to choose one that is best for them? The key to satisfying consumer needs is customer service. Staff and management that go out of their way to provide good service are indicative of a business that will do the right thing by their patrons.

With the smaller car and truck rental businesses one of the benefits is that their service is actually people to people. Many of the large companies are electronic based and customers mainly deal with computer software and there is next to no human interaction. This can become problematic especially when the customer has a special request, a complaint, is not computer and internet savvy or just prefers to speak to a real person.

The car rental market on the Sunshine Coast, especially amongst the smaller companies, is upheld by Sydney, Melbourne and New Zealand holiday makers; it is a tourism market. Truck rentals are for the most part, are sought for mainly house removals and commercial leasing so it is a real money saving experience when the alternative is hiring a removals company or buying a truck! For people on a budget, it pays to shop around the hire companies and to ensure the price quoted includes all the extras like fuel, insurance and damages excess. Often customers are reeled into hiring from more expensive hire companies by misleading quotes.

To ensure the best possible hire experience for car and truck hirers, they need to assess their needs, budget and source the best company for those needs. Shopping around is essential as is asking if quotes include all of the cost associated with the hire. Coupling excellent service and a willingness to meet customer needs is an excellent and worthy quality for a company to maintain. Finally, reliable and well maintained vehicles are essential to ensure customer time and money is not wasted.

Local car and truck hire company, Come and Go Car and Truck Rentals owner/manager Bill says "The hardest part for smaller companies with excellent customer service is getting their profile out there and known." For the bigger multi-national companies with enormous advertising budgets, getting their name known is easy through advertising country wide and securing contracts with Airlines. However, for the smaller companies it is nearly impossible so much of their business is generated through word of mouth, referrals and return customers." While these are invaluable methods of advertising, they struggle to compare to tv, print media and radio advertising, airline partnerships and national catering and recognition.

With this in mind, people looking to hire trucks and cars should really shop around so they can get a realistic idea of what is available and the price comparisons between companies. Just because a company has a large profile doesn't mean it is any better than the smaller players. Sunshine Coast car and truck hire companies have many similarities but the one that will stand out from the crowd and grasp the customer will be one with exceptional customer service. Potential hirers are advised to be on the look out.

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