Simply ticking over is no longer good enough if your business is to succeed, and the tide of disruptive technology that the coach and bus industry has seen over recent years means that going through the motions and remaining successful have become permanently disconnected.
But good times are still to be had – regardless of whether you run coaches, buses or both – by thinking outside of the box, and that starts with challenging suppliers and telling them what you want them to do, rather than vice versa.
Some – if not most – of them will require a little cajoling, but operators who have followed this route already report that, eventually, most come around.
After all, your business is their business, and if a supplier’s customers are doing well, the chances are that the supplier will be, too.
Even in a challenging environment, rewards are there for the taking if you challenge the norm and push the boundaries.
As one leader puts it, now is not for the industry to meets its customers’ expectations. Instead, it must exceed them, and that starts with the basics of what you offer to users.
The alternative is to do nothing and tread water while your competitors push ahead and leave you in their wake.
History is littered with businesses that went backwards as quickly as they stood still. Don’t let yours be among them.
