For more than 30 years, Jayhawk Trailers has been a trusted name in the trailer industry. Based near Denver Colorado, this family-owned dealership has grown to 25 employees and carved out a reputation for specializing in black iron flatbeds, dump trailers, truck beds, cargo, and specialty trailers.
Jayhawk’s success was founded on strong customer relationships and expertise, but they knew that wasn’t enough in an evolving market. With shifting consumer preferences, constant product innovation, and aggressive competition, intuition alone would not sustain their edge. To grow strategically, they needed to move beyond anecdotal evidence and make data the foundation of their decisions.
The Challenge: Guessing Your Dealership’s Next Move
Understanding what is happening in a market can feel like playing a game of Battleship. You might have a general idea of where some of the pieces are, but without visibility into your opponent’s board, you are operating blindly.
Dealerships face a similar challenge with inventory, pricing, and broader strategic decisions. Jayhawk Trailers wanted to move beyond anecdotal signals and secondhand information in order to gain a clearer advantage.
At the time, many of their decisions were shaped by what they observed competitors doing, the products they saw most often on the road, or the requests customers made in the showroom. While these inputs offered some guidance, they also left the business vulnerable to blind spots and incomplete information.
Without a reliable way to measure the market, Jayhawk risked basing strategic decisions on assumptions rather than data. As Zbierski explained:
“You’re not even playing the game if you don’t have a way to score your market share.”
That’s where Statistical Surveys (SSI) entered the picture.
The Solution: Backing Decisions with Insights
About 10 years ago, Jayhawk began working with SSI. Initially, there was some uncertainty about the value it could deliver, but once the first reports arrived, the insights were clear and actionable, quickly proving the importance of incorporating data into their decision-making.
By leveraging this data, Jayhawk Trailers discovered a blind spot in their inventory strategy. Aluminum flatbed trailers were not a focus because they weren’t often visible in the local market. However, SSI market share data revealed that these trailers were actually selling in strong numbers, primarily to homeowners using them for light, occasional tasks. Without the data, this important segment had gone largely unnoticed.
What began with simple scorecards has evolved into a much deeper relationship. Today, Jayhawk uses SSI’s dashboards as part of their weekly routine. Every sales meeting includes a review of market share data, and the team has built a culture where decisions are grounded in facts rather than guesswork.
Scaling Beyond Day to Day Decisions
What started as a tool for day-to-day sales quickly expanded into a strategic advantage. Beyond helping the sales team, Zbierski has found the greatest impact of SSI data at the leadership level, guiding larger business decisions.
For example, when evaluating expansion opportunities, Jayhawk shifted from relying on limited insight to making decisions with greater accuracy and confidence through SSI data. When it came time to consider new locations, the team used market share analysis to identify gaps in the market, assess competitor presence, and pinpoint where growth opportunities were strongest.
Even their pricing strategy has been reshaped. SSI analysis confirmed that reducing margins in certain categories would not necessarily increase sales. This insight gave Jayhawk the confidence to maintain pricing discipline and safeguard profitability.
Playing and Winning the Market Share Game
Jayhawk Trailers’ story highlights the impact of moving from instinct to a data-driven approach. While it’s possible to run a dealership without third party data, growth under those conditions is not always certain. SSI data removes the guesswork by uncovering new opportunities, guiding expansion, and providing an accurate view of market share.
For those looking to grow smarter, Jayhawk’s experience offers a clear takeaway: success isn’t just about playing the game – it’s about having the right data to win it.Ready to see what data can do for your dealership? Connect with marketing@statisticalsurveys.com to start using SSI insights to drive smarter growth.
