In an effort to bring the consistent and discounted national pricing packages for tires and related services enjoyed by large national carriers to smaller trucking companies and owner operators, Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. is introducing a program called “Goodyear Smart Fleet” that requires no fee or credit check to join.
Jose Martinez, business solutions manager for the Goodyear Commercial Tire Systems division, explained in a conference call with reports that new “smart fleet” program provides owner-operators and mid-size fleets access to benefits that up until now were reserved for Goodyear national account fleets.
“This is not for fleets looking for a ‘cheap deal’ on tires,” he stressed. “Rather, this is for fleets that are looking to obtain a combination of products and services on a consistent national pricing basis.”
Martinez said owner-operators and mid-sized fleets can apply online using a verifiable phone number, email address, company address and credit card account. After a review of the information, he noted that Goodyear will then activate their membership in the program, which includes the following:
- Online access to pricing on new tires, retreads and services, which will be honored by those of Goodyear’s 2,200 commercial tire dealerships participating in the program;
- Access to 24/7 roadside assistance, offered through the Goodyear-FleetHQ suite of business solutions with the dispatch fee for road calls waived;
- Customized tire performance and service activity reporting to help fleets and owner-operators manage their tire investment more effectively;
- Tools to help fleets lower their operating costs and improve their results.
“All prices will be published at national account rates, which eliminates uncertainty around price,” Martinez emphasized. “’Smart Fleet’ members will receive the same pricing at any participating Goodyear commercial tire dealership nationwide, so there are no pricing surprises, whether on the road or at home.”
However, he pointed out that the “Smart Fleet” program only involves Goodyear-branded truck tires and services; the company’s Dunlop and Kelly tire brands are not included.
One reason for the exclusion of those tire brands is that interest in retreads among owner-operators, mid-sized and small fleets surveyed by Goodyear is relatively low.
“We were a little surprised on the retread interest,” Martinez said, as 34% of fleets operating 25 to 99 trucks showed any interest in retread services, with just 24% of owner-operators showing any interest. “That’s why we made this program an exclusive Goodyear-branded product.”
