ates financing, and schedules a build.
Three moments spanning three eras reveal one industry in transformation.
Where We Are Now
Research has gone digital, so buyers show up informed. They’ ve compared pricing, read reviews, and formed opinions before they pick up the phone. But the transaction hasn’ t caught up, creating tension between how buyers research and how dealers sell.
“ Buyers are not only researching the trailer they want, they’ re forming an opinion about the level of service you provide. Rather than reading customer reviews, they are now going to AI to ask for a summary of what to buy and where.”— Shane Ehrsam, Owner & CEO, NTX Trailers
Derek Hentges, Channel Development Manager at Novae, sees the same shift:“ Buyers are walking onto dealer lots with clarity instead of curiosity. The dealer’ s role hasn’ t been diminished, but it has shifted. The value is less about explaining what a trailer is and more about validating whether it’ s the right solution.”
The dealers who do well right now still lean on expertise, relationship, and deep product knowledge. Those qualities aren’ t going away, even as the context around them continues to shift.
The Near-Term Future: 3-5 Years Out
The next few years will reshape how trailers are sold in ways the industry hasn’ t seen since the move from paper to software.
Unbalanced information situations disappear. When pricing, availability, and specs all become accessible before the buyer reaches out, both sides can start from the same facts. Conversations get better as dealers stop defending prices and start adding value.
Online configurators go mainstream, allowing buyers to build specs online, see real pricing, and submit leads that are pre-loaded with intent.
The industry gets wired together. As Mark Wagner, Territory Manager at Aluma, puts it:“ Many dealers are being pulled toward multiple platforms that don’ t communicate with each other. The result isn’ t efficiency, it’ s fragmentation.” The Trailer Data Standards project is the plumbing that makes this change possible.
Dealership software becomes the nerve center. Wagner sees this coming fast:“ The concept of an AI assistant that can guide a customer through needs analysis while pulling from live DMS inventory is very real. The ability to quote, take deposits, and tee up a deal before the customer arrives is where things are heading.”
Trade-ins and F & I go digital, with online valuations presented transparently and connected to the specific unit configured.
The dealer’ s role elevates. When buyers already have the specs, the salesperson who wins is the one who knows the customer, not just the product.
“ Dealerships need to look at their current tech stack and consider what might need to change to stay competitive. We’ re also seeing AI become part of daily operations in all modern, growing businesses, including trailer dealerships.”— Ronnie Enns, CEO, Happy Trailers
“ Dealers need to ensure they have the right material online that is positively informing LLMs to suggest the brands they carry and their dealership. Being visible on Google isn’ t enough anymore. They need to be visible to AI.”— Shane Ehrsam, Owner & CEO, NTX Trailers
The Long-Term Future
It’ s 2056, and a general contractor opens her phone at 6 AM to find that her fleet management AI has flagged her 2038 trailer as approaching replacement, already pulling specs, sourcing pricing, and pre-qualifying financing. She reviews options and calls her dealer, the same one she’ s been buying from for twelve years, who suggests upgrading the axles based on heavier loads. The AI handled the research while the dealer handled the judgment call.
Immersive virtual showrooms become real, allowing a fleet manager in a headset to walk through a life-size rendering while changing configurations with a gesture.
AI-powered purchasing sits between buyer and market, recommending strategy like“ Replace these two units now and hold the third,” while the salesperson provides what AI can’ t: validation, relationship, and judgment.
The dealership visit becomes a choice. The best dealers make it worth it through experience centers, hands-on training, and community building.
But real constraints remain.“ A challenge that needs to be overcome is shipping costs. The cost to deliver a trailer directly to a customer can often be as much as 10 % of the price.”— Ronnie Enns, CEO, Happy Trailers
What Doesn’ t Change
The trailer industry is a relationship business, and no technology replaces that. It enables it. When friction melts away, what’ s left is the relationship.
“ Building trust with the customer. More and more of that will be done before anyone from the dealership speaks with the customer, but the point remains. Customers need to trust what you are recommending.”— Shane Ehrsam, Owner & CEO, NTX Trailers
Wagner adds:“ Trust, relationships, and traditional customer service still carry significant weight. The sales side may lag behind service, parts, and warranty, where efficiency will drive faster adoption.”
Having the right product at a competitive price will always matter. The dealers who thrive embrace tools and use them to get back to what they’ ve always done best: knowing the customer, earning trust, and delivering the product.
What’ s Next
This is the first article in a four-part series for The Haul, NATDA’ s magazine, on the future of the trailer industry. In the next issue, we’ ll follow the trailer past the sale and into the service bay, where the relationship either deepens or disappears.
What are you seeing on your lot? What’ s changing faster than you expected? If something in this piece rang true, or if you think we got it wrong, reach out and be part of the next article.
Johnathan Aguero is the SVP of Revenue at Blackpurl and writes about the future of dealership technology. Follow the complete four-part series as it’ s published: natda. org / news / industry
48 The Haul www. natda. org