Over the past decade, it has become increasingly widely adopted that you must partner with a fleet management company (FMC) once your fleet reaches a certain size.

While there are benefits to this strategy, this assumption has led to fleets overlooking the many new advancements to the modern-day dealer and the benefits a dedicated commercial and fleet department inside it can provide.

The first value is the obvious one — stock inventory. With inventory already on the ground, including passenger and upfitted commercial units, this provides a solution if you have a vehicle "go down.” You can have it replaced the same day with an updated, identical unit. No ordering, no searching, and no additional markup simply because you need the vehicle now.

Often, you can find additional savings on the dealer lot, with many having aging units, a canceled order, or a model included in an OEM manufacturer special. If a dealership has a true commercial and fleet department, there are deals for fleet and procurement managers with an immediate vehicle need.

How Planning Ahead Lowers Fleet Costs and Improves Efficiency

Now, what if you can wait? Let's say you have a fiscal quarter where you can properly forecast your vehicle needs and order exactly how you need them, nothing more and nothing less, helping you control the acquisition cost to the cent.

A fleet dealer can streamline this process directly by communicating factory constraints, build times, and cost. Dealers can get orders in as you need them and provide updates as they go into production, ship, and then ultimately show up on the dealer's lot.

This communication gives you time to prepare your team for new units to arrive and allows for a much more controlled approach to custom upfitting, wrapping, or modifications needed for your fleet.

Exploring Flexible Financing and Leasing for Fleets

Beyond acquisition, how you pay for the vehicles is where the flexibility of the dealer triumphs.

It all begins with the simple cash purchase, which is not the most advanced total cost of ownership and lifecycle strategy. However, it is still a preferred method for many fleets and one you can utilize at a dealer without penalty or issue.

Beyond that, you have flexible financing with multiple terms from numerous banks, and the dealer can nail down what option makes sense and establish a line of credit to simplify this process.

Now I know what you are thinking: what if I lease my fleet? What if I told you that commercial leasing is my specialty with my customers and an incredibly popular option in the dealership?

Just like with financing, a line of credit can be established, and with multiple leasing options through various banks, the dealer can find the option that best fits your acquisition and exit strategy for each vehicle. Indeed, you read that correctly. A dealer can provide cash purchasing, commercial financing, and commercial leasing — all centralized and tailored to your specific needs.

What if you operate your fleet outside of a single state? Out-of-state deliveries are a standard process for a true fleet dealer and are not an issue with the different purchasing options listed.

Dealerships Can Simplify Fleet Maintenance and Repairs

Beyond procurement, how about maintenance? Well, let's not forget partnering with a dealership allows you to go to one location for all the parts and services required during the ownership cycle.

Modern-day dealers even have mobile service teams to come out to you, all under the OEM manufacturer guidelines and standards, as well as mobile parts delivery and loaners for extended service stays. This service lets you have one point of contact, typically your fleet salesperson. You can rely on them as your total dealership account manager for all your fleet-related needs.

From Maintenance to Discounts: Perks for Drivers

The dealership is also your partner in employee retention. For the reasons we mentioned above, as far as supplying employees with the right vehicle for the job, they also have that single point of contact as the actual driver of that vehicle.

If a maintenance issue arises, how convenient is it for an employee to have the business card in the truck to call and reach the contact at the dealership directly? They then can get assistance in scheduling to remedy the issue versus finding a random shop in the fleet network and having to coordinate on behalf of the company with a shop they have no rapport with and will not prioritize things like loaners and wait times.

For the employees managing their vehicles, employee pricing is an overlooked benefit. As an employer, the ability to advertise that your company's employees get special pre-negotiated pricing from the dealership due to the standing relationship with the company provides a huge incentive for an employee looking to purchase their next personal vehicle or get maintenance help.

To call the fleet salesperson and get treated with quick, convenient, and top-notch service as if they are the business owner themself is a huge perk and builds pride and loyalty in the brand they represent in the office or field every day.

Leveraging Dealer Support for 2025 and Beyond

Many OEMs, including mine, now provide fuel card programs, consolidated billing, and even fleet analytics, digging into the cost of ownership and fleet electrification strategies.

As a business, time is money, which is why partnering with the right automotive dealership with a dedicated commercial and fleet team can greatly aid in every aspect of your fleet management needs.

I urge you to consider all this when developing your fleet strategy for 2025 and beyond.