Internet RV Sales versus Traditional Dealer Lots

I was reading an article from RV Industry News yesterday at our dealership, and it definitely caught my attention. The article was titled, Internet Intrigue, and was published in the June/July issue of RV Industry News magazine. To sum up the story, it was about the new battle brewing within the RV retail industry between the traditional brick and mortar dealers and the new online retailers.

The reason this article caught my attention, was well, because I am a part of one of the online retailers that were deemed evil by dealers not joined in the internet transition. We were not mentioned in the article, sadly, but I am the lead salesman for RV Capital Wholesalers. What is being deemed as a new thing in the industry, really is not. There are just many more people realizing the necessity. It seems that some dealers have stopped in their tracks to shout, Hey you can't do that, where we hit the ground running with the idea and said, Hey we HAVE to do this. Trying to slow down the internet these days is like trying to stop a speeding train.

I think we have opened up the RV market by allowing more people to be able to afford these units. Granted we are in a down economy right now, so numbers are lower than usual, but it has opened up doors for more people. I don't know how many times, I have had a customer call in pricing a Sundance mid-level fifth wheel, and see the price, and say, well how much to jump up to a Big Country or Big Horn. Well, they end up getting the Big Country or Big Horn because they can get a high-profile unit for the cost of a mid-level unit at a local dealer.

I am sure I will have much more to follow up on this subject, but I would love to turn this post into something a little interactive and find out what your opinions are. Many people have already purchased units over the internet and we have received comments from them. But I would still like to know some people's main problems or concerns with the situation or buying process.