tow life
HONK’s 2021 Year In Review
According to an IBIS World Report from July 2021, the automobile towing industry was expected to increase by 8.5% this year. Who agrees with that estimate? In our recent Tow Industry 2021 Survey in November among HONK Partners, 43% of tow business owners agree and 45% of them are hiring more operators.
This is great news for towing and roadside professionals and a nice way to close out 2021. It’s also a great time to reflect on HONK’s 2021 accomplishments. While it was hard to just pick 10 things for us to mention in this blog post, the work WE (HONK & our Partner Network) do together has made a difference.Let’s start with number 10.
10
HONK Partners Maintain High NPS Ratings
As Americans return to roads en masse, lockdown restrictions are eased and schools and offices open back up, the demand for roadside assistance is higher at this moment than it’s ever been. While traditional motor clubs and other roadside providers are struggling to meet the demands of their clients and return to pre-pandemic service levels, HONK has had success in maintaining key performance indicators like high NPS and low ETAs throughout the last year and a half. That is all THANKS to our high-quality Service Provider Partners and the best-in-class customer service they provide that continues to keep HONK ranked with the highest NPS in the towing and roadside industry.
9
Raising Awareness for Slow Down Move Over
Slow Down Move Over Day is held every year on the third Saturday of October. It’s a day to spread awareness of national and state Move Over laws in order to continue protecting all emergency first responders. This year HONK participated in APTRA’s Move Over event and published another HONK Get Hooked podcast episode emphasizing the importance of slowing down and changing lanes when motorists see towing operators working on the side of the road. Listen to the Get Hooked podcast or watch HONK’s Slow Down Move Over PSA for free right now.
8
New Job Types = More HONK Jobs
HONK job volume continues to increase month over month with the addition of Transport & Lockbox tows. By adding new clients from other industries, including online used car retailers, that require a variety of transport services, HONK is able to offer our Partner Network additional revenue opportunities in the form of on-demand vehicle transports, touchless vehicle deliveries, contactless pick-up & drop-off for vehicle repairs, emergency roadside service, and collision repair facility logistics support.
7
HONK is Growing = More HONK Jobs
In 2021, HONK experienced record growth with Q3 being the biggest volume quarter in our history. That is great news for our Partner Network as we continue to send more job volume across the country from a host of different types of clients. Read about a few of our new clients: Vault Insurance, Branch Insurance, Sewell Fleet Management, Driver Technologies, KeyMe, and many more.
HONK was also recognized again as one of BuiltInLA’s 2021 Best Places to Work. As we continue to expand, we’re looking to add members to the HONK team. Interested in joining HONK? We’re hiring!
6
HONK Employee New APTRA Secretary
This year HONK’s very own, Get Hooked Podcast host and tow show celebrity, Y’von St. Cyr was elected to the board of directors as Secretary of the Arizona Professional Towing & Recovery Association (APTRA). Congratulations, Y’von – what an honor! Composed of towing companies and industry suppliers, the organization focuses on “Essentiality, Safety, Awareness and Advocacy,” to be the voice for towers in Arizona.
5
Free HONK Partner Education
Our Partners rely on HONK, the tech leader, for the digital tools they need to quickly grow their business and connect with more stranded motorists that are closer to their available trucks. Our free partner resources, industry education, and access to data help them make better business decisions. Here are a few of the free available resources:
- HONK’s Get Hooked Podcasts – loaded with industry trends, insights, discussions, and best practices to grow your business
- HONK Live Shows – HONK hosts & industry guests provide real-time industry updates for towers
- HONK on Facebook & Instagram @Honk4help – view weekly updates, industry news, and watch how-to videos
- HONK Partner Videos – listen to HONK Partner success stories to grow your business
- HONK Help Center – advice and answers for HONK Partners
- HONK Youtube – check out all our available videos
- Frequent HONK emails sent directly to your inboxes
4
HONK Adds New Services Designed To Expedite Insurance Claims
With FirstOnScene accident scene information services, thanks to our HONK Partners, insurance carriers are able to receive photos, video, and information detailing their customers’ vehicle damage while the vehicle is still on scene. As a result, carriers can reduce the claim cycle time by three to five days, cutting the time required to settle a claim roughly in half. Our Partners capture photos and video via HONK’s platform, which optimizes them for analysis by third-party AI platforms. Images and video are also available to claims adjusters for viewing via their preferred claims management software. To learn more, view HONK’s press release.
3
The HONK Partner App Adds More Features
We’ve been very busy this year ensuring the experience our Partners have with HONK is one of the best. We want to be easy-to-use and send more jobs to providers that are closer to their trucks/operators’ locations.
Here are a few key additions we’ve made to the HONK Partner App:
- New mapping tool displays the pick-up & drop-off locations during active jobs.
- The addition of enhanced job notes to ensure all jobs go as smoothly as possible.
- Operators now have the ability to add “more time” if needed, to their ETAs during active jobs.
- The new Promised Arrival Time button lets providers know when they’re expected to arrive for each job.
- Enhanced tracking lets us find more jobs closer to the exact location of a Service Providers’ truck – watch the video to see how it works.
- More “Manage Job” features include the ability to click a “Contact HONK” button during active jobs to speak with a HONK representative immediately.
2
HONK Gives Tow Professionals Advanced Business Management Tools
HONK’s new Partner Performance Dashboard is designed specifically for tow truck business owners, enabling them to quickly and easily track company performance metrics (KPIs) all in one place. This tool gives business owners complete transparency into how their business is performing on HONK towing and roadside assistance jobs. HONK Partners can now view completed jobs performance, track year-to-date revenue, and monitor customer ratings for each of their drivers – making it easy to manage and oversee how their company is doing. At HONK, our goal is to empower a more efficient workflow to help providers keep operational costs down and set business up for exponential growth driven by the increased demand for digital roadside solutions. View the press release.
1
Meeting HONK Partners at Tow Shows
At the top of our list, this year is getting to meet with thousands of tow truck professionals interested in how HONK can help them grow their businesses. This year, HONK exhibited at nine different tow shows and events to meet our Partners and new tow professionals in person. It was a great time. We’re gearing up for another big travel year in 2022 – so don’t forget to stop by the HONK booth to meet us, get your free HONK swag, have fun in our photo booth, and learn more about relevant industry trends and technologies.
From everyone at HONK, please have a wonderful ‘Holiday Season’ and Happy New Year! At HONK, we’ll continue to listen to our Partner Network and promise to improve as much as we can based on provider and industry feedback. It’s our mission to create the best experience for our Partners. HONK is more than just an app, we’re your industry advocate and essential partner to help towing and roadside companies continue to grow their businesses. We were founded on the idea that helping motorists and tow professionals should be easy, it should be fair, and should not come with any motor club hassles.
Interested in becoming a HONK Partner? Visit www.joinhonk.com today.
Want to learn more about how HONK can improve the roadside experience for your customers? Visit www.honkforhelp.com/industry-solutions/ now.