Lots of businesses rely on a fleet of vehicles to deliver customer orders. Unfortunately, maintaining a fleet of vehicles is costly and far from being hassle-free. Plus, business owners must cope with the significant cost of adding new vehicles to replace older ones or keep up with customer demand and business expansion. But before you add a new vehicle to your fleet, consider the following factors.
Will a fleet addition align with long-term goals?
It’s natural to want to add to your fleet immediately if you suddenly experience a sharp increase in customer demands. After all, if you can’t keep your customers happy, the reputation of your business will suffer. However, even just one new vehicle represents a considerable investment, and it’s best to carefully consider whether the addition will still be a smart move one, three, or five years in the future. In other words, if you’re thinking about adding to your fleet because of an increase in customer demand, it may be wise to outsource your needs while considering whether that increase in demand is temporary.
Is a new fleet addition doable within your budget?
Remember that purchasing a new fleet vehicle involves more costs than just the purchase price. You’ll need to pay for the insurance on the vehicle, as well as its maintenance and repair costs. You’ll also need to determine who will drive the vehicle. Will you have to hire a new driver? If so, what will the cost of hiring, training, and certifying that driver be? Quite often, business owners find that it’s more cost-effective to use fleet replacement services from a delivery company, rather than to add to their own in-house fleet.
Before adding to your fleet, check out the fleet management options available from Xcel Delivery Services. Our professional drivers and fleet vehicles can replace some or all of your current fleet and handle overflow orders during busy times while keeping your overhead low. Explore the possibilities by talking to one of our representatives in Phoenix at (602) 368-1300.
