Improving ARO thru vehicle inspections

[Shopcat]

I am looking for shops that implemented or improved their inspection process. What made you decide to take action? How did you make the change? What result were achieved? There are so many shops that think they need more car count, when what they really need is to MAKE the cars count.

[Jay Huh]

I hired a master tech and a GS from Mr.Tire. Those guys know how to do an inspection. Hire someone from one of those big corporate chains and you already improved your inspection process 10 fold. 

[Shopcat]

Jay Huh,  How did that impact your customer satisfaction, ARO, etc?  

[Jay Huh]

My average RO increased significantly. We had a record month.... in FEB!! Statistically, Feb was slow for us and our car count was much less than our previous record.

Customer satisfaction wise? Hard to gauge right now but most seem appreciative to know what is going on with their vehicle. Our oil changes take longer now but still much less time than other chains. I tell our guys that inspection process should take 10min max and my advisors to price things out within another 10min. I don't want the customer waiting more than 30min for an oil change if that's all they are here for.  We don't use high pressure tactics or anything like that. Our policy is to "inform" not "sell." Customers see that, we don't show desperation, and most come back for the repair.

[Shopcat]

Nice! Sounds like a great deal for all involved. I really like that you share the information, not"sell".

[mmotley]

3 hours ago, Shopcat said:

What made you decide to take action? How did you make the change? What result were achieved?

I had a business coach (John Wafler (great guy, made it in R&W a few years ago)) who told me to implement the '300%' rule. 100% of the cars get 100% inspected and present 100% of the findings. I didn't like the idea at first. I felt I would be running off my customers. I thought it would come across that we were just trying to sell extra work. Turns out he was right and I was wrong. Customers love it. I've actually got new customers because they heard about how well we do inspections. 

 

We use tablets with Bolt-On to do digital multi-points. Like Jay Huh said, it does make the oil changes a little longer, but most customers are understanding that we're not just doing an oil change, but an actual service. Obviously, ARO went way up. From the month we started, we blew every previous month out of the water. It's a no brainer

[HarrytheCarGeek]

Your guys should make it a habit of doing vehicle inspections until it becomes second nature, for example, one of the 1st thing to note is vehicle mileage, this will give you a lot of information. Second notice the windshield wipers, then the tires, from that walkabout check all the lights, then pop the hood, look at the battery terminals, from there to the hoses and filters, then as you lift the car, you should have the mileage contrast with the suspension, ball joints, tie rods, leaks, power train, bearings, universal joints, exhaust,, etc.

To a new guy, it may look daunting, but to an old paw it should be no sweat.

[mspecperformance]

The biggest hurdle is implementation. Making sure every vehicle is inspected. Whatever inspection process you actually have it is imperative it is done. Second part of this is making sure your Front end people are estimating ALL the work and presenting ALL the found work. At this point you become the consultant and help the customer make the best choice.  

[Jay Huh]

2 hours ago, mspecperformance said:

The biggest hurdle is implementation. Making sure every vehicle is inspected. Whatever inspection process you actually have it is imperative it is done. Second part of this is making sure your Front end people are estimating ALL the work and presenting ALL the found work. At this point you become the consultant and help the customer make the best choice.  

Very true. Rest of my crew are kind of slow to jump on board with complete inspections. Sometimes my new guys find so much stuff that my advisors don't end up letting the customers know everything.

[Shopcat]

M-Spec, you have a great point. Providing all the information puts you in the position of letting your customer decide based on the facts about their vehicle. I am sure everyone has had to make a buying decision based on vague or missing information, and that is a very bad feeling. Your shop develops great affinity giving your customer ALL the information needed...like you said you become the consultant.

[totalautocare]

Very true. Rest of my crew are kind of slow to jump on board with complete inspections. Sometimes my new guys find so much stuff that my advisors don't end up letting the customers know everything.

I'vebeen there. Here's how we addressed it, we enhanced our presentation process! We began saying basic things such as "if we were to bring your car mechanically back up to 100% ..."

In saying it that way..

- They don't feel like the car is junk.
- They don't feel threatened.
- The door is open for them to bring it "completely up to code" or "what can be done now vs later".

You'll be very, very surprised at how many will just buy it all. So much that the few it could scare away will be made up for x10!

We've also had a lot of customers think us for sharing with them everything we see as we see it.

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[Framingham Auto Service]

Since we have implemented the 300% rule in our shop we have seen a 20% increase in sales. Our approval ratio is at 50%, we are currently working on improving our customer education skills. 

[Shopcat]

Awesome results Framingham Auto !  It is a win, win.  Your customers are getting all the information on their vehicles, and a 20% increase in sales is amazing.