Can artificial intelligence (AI) help tire dealers? The answer is an emphatic “yes,” says Sunjay Dodani, the CEO of Revvo Technologies, a San Mateo, Calif.-based company that makes and markets TireIQ, an AI-based tire data analytics system.
Revvo uses TireIQ to analyze and predict tire conditions and deliver actionable insights via Revvo-native dashboards and other compatible systems.
TireIQ can pair with existing tire pressure sensors or Revvo’s proprietary suite of sensors.
Revvo’s clients include fleets of commercial trucks and last-mile delivery vans, a major new vehicle original equipment manufacturer and even a few tire dealerships. (Editor’s note: Dodani declined to provide specifics.) Discount Tire also is a Revvo investor.
In this MTD exclusive, Dodani discusses what AI is and how tire dealers should be thinking about it.
MTD: First, can you explain what AI is and how it could work in a tire service context?
Dodani: AI is a misnomer in some ways because it’s lots of different, intelligence-based algorithms that are working together. When you’re in a one-on-one engagement with another person, you’re limited by your life experience and what you know. AI has knowledge based on millions of people who have contributed to the Internet. And it can sift through that at a speed that is blindingly fast.
To make AI valuable to specific industries, one has to ingest data from a particular vertical. We’ve collected billions of data points (about tires) from customers. There’s no human in the world who can sift through that in a short amount of time to deliver an insight. AI can crawl through it and identify where there’s an insight to be highlighted – things like cost-per-mile and the wear rate of a given tire – and then serve that to the folks who are looking for it.
MTD: There are both consumer and commercial applications for AI products like yours, right?
Dodani: Yes. For example, if you’re a commercial tire dealer in today’s environment, you’re facing headwinds in hiring. It’s a challenge to find people you can trust and rely on to go out there and check customers’ tires for you. Having an AI solution that does that for you remotely and automatically - and tells you when there’s a (tire) issue - can help you reduce your head count and other constraints on your business.
MTD: Can dealers use AI to help sell tires?
Dodani: AI can go through your CRM system - (looking at) your customer support tickets, your notes, all the history you have with (customers’) tires, how those tires are used, who bought them, where they were bought … it takes into account all the subjective feedback customers have made on a particular tire. That makes it even more likely that the recommendation you will make is the right one. Now you become an even more trusted source. And you don’t have to put much effort into it.
MTD: Could AI be sold as an add-on at the sales counter?
Dodani: If you’re a dealer, you can sell Revvo’s TireIQ and we can connect to the (customer’s) vehicle remotely, using its onboard tire pressure monitoring system. It’s like having a technician ride along for the life of the tire, without the owner having to do anything.
The dealer also now knows how the consumer is using the product and there’s a hook for the customer to come back. You can analyze trends for customers so they know when to come in for service. It’s another touch point and tool for customer retention.
MTD: Are there other applications of AI at the tire dealer level?
Dodani: There’s AI in operations and then there’s AI in analytics and longer-term, strategic decisions. In the latter area, AI is supremely helpful in forecasting supply and sales. AI is able to serve up a projection of what tires will be needed in a dealer’s area. It also can help dealers manage inventory (levels) in real-time and let them know what they should take action on today and tomorrow.
MTD: Inventory management is a big issue right now...
Dodani: There’s been a cooling in demand for tires. It’s slowing down. Every sale matters.
MTD: Should tire dealers be thinking about AI now or take a wait-and-see approach?
Dodani: If you’re questioning AI, you’re already behind. Even in our personal lives, AI has infiltrated and is doing things subtly. When you turn on Netflix, recommended shows pop up on the screen. There’s AI behind that, selecting shows and movies for you.
For business, I think the easiest point of entry is to look at the major drivers that affect your business today. Sales, service, customer experience – each has an element where AI can help.
Seek out some of the low-hanging opportunities, where you can have (an AI tool) that’s plug-and-play. You can test it out, see how it works and see how you can leverage it for your business. Some more advanced tire dealers are already deploying AI. If you aren’t looking at AI or adopting it in small ways, you’re already losing out.
