Because of the range of markets that AMSOIL covers – automotive, powersports, industrial, racing and more – the potential for Dealers like the Farkases is limitless. “Dealers can sign up small parts stores like NAPA Auto Parts or family-owned and operated chains like Home Hardware. Small commercial companies like trucking, landscaping, limousine, and construction companies are big patrons of AMSOIL wherever you go in North America, farmers, too.” The complete Product Lookup Guide found at Hal- dimandsyntheticoil.ca includes information for owners of cars and light trucks, heavy duty trucks, motorcycles includ- ing Harley-Davidson, ATVs and UTVs, snowmobiles, marine outboard, personal watercraft, and small engine crafts. “We always have the most common oils on-hand. Most of our sales are done online but sometimes people come up and ring the doorbell. Whenever we don’t have a particular product in-stock here at home, we make a trip to the ware- house. AMSOIL has two distribution centres in Canada. One out West in Edmonton and one an hour away from us in Mississauga. We make at least one trip a week to Missis- sauga to restock. We’ve also made many emergency trips when the customer needs a product right away.” Anne, Alex explained to me, makes most of the trips to Mississauga. “The manager there, Robert, always greets us with a smile. Anne and I have our orders sent-in well in advance of stepping through the door, so there’s little running around they have to do for us,” Alex laughed. “The average car or truck owner is aware of three or four popular brands. AMSOIL doesn’t immediately come to mind for most of these folks because it’s not prolifically out there on the shelves. It’s the aftermarket goods crowd, the ATV aficionados, the every season, do-it-yourself sort who you see wearing AMSOIL hats and t-shirts. They’re the kind of people who are looking for something better, something top shelf. They’re the shopper who’s doing research, determining what’s misinformation – usually content on online forums – and what the real story is. The official AMSOIL website, as well as Haldimandsyntheticoil. ca, features detailed product information as well as infor- mative videos. What I like about the AMSOIL approach is that it’s information-based; there’s no emotion involved.” The Testimonies from AMSOIL Customers video found amongst the bunch brilliantly profiles the practicality that Alex – and many loyal AMSOIL Dealers and users – find so trustworthy. In a 2013 study of SAE 5W-30 synthetic motor oils, AMSOIL Signature Series outperformed nine leading competitors in nearly every category, including the Four-Ball Wear Test where the average scar diameter was nearly a millimeter less than the engine tested with Mobil 1 and the Cold Crank Viscosity Test where its increased low-temperature
the best ingredients for the best synthetic oil. Once the 10W-40 was finalized, he began to reach out to Big-box stores and began selling his synthetic oil alongside the established brands for four dollars a quart. At the time, though, you could buy a case of the competitor’s oil for four dollars, so you can imagine that sales weren’t every- thing they could have been in the beginning – but that was the price of innovation at the time. He decided to instead embrace a multi-level marketing strategy and rely on the salesmanship of Dealers. The thinking was simple: Consumers needed to be told why the product is superior by people with the know-how to get the message out. Dealers like Anne and I have this know-how because we were customers first.” “They’re one of the few oil companies in the US that’s still independent and family-owned.” “Back in 2000, we purchased a new Honda,” Alex recalled. “We were interested in keeping it for a long time, so natu- rally I was looking for superior motor oil. If you remember at the time, Castrol was running a TV commercial that showcased two engines running side-by-side. The engine with Mobil 1 died first and the Castrol-infused engine kept on going. Like many consumers, I figured Castrol was the way to go. What I noticed was that pep in your engine that comes after an oil change died after 2,000 kilometres. It didn’t last. So I started Googling synthetic oil and came across all these rave reviews for AMSOIL. At the time, their website was the only one that included detailed product classifications for every line of synthetic oil. They also profiled their comparative more oil tests showcasing the performance of AMSOIL and the competition. AMSOIL was the leader in every category. I placed my first order that day and haven’t looked back.” It was no more than practical thinking and responsible own- ership that led the Farkases to become AMSOIL customers.
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SPOTLIGHT ON BUSINESS • NOVEMBER 2016
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