When you match price, do you also match value?

[Joe Marconi]

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[b1qwkbird]

Excellent post and definitely something we should all keep in mind. Especially on those days when all the phone calls and walk in customers tell us how much cheaper the shop down the street is.

 

You know, the one with the gravel lot, broken door windows and the cars sitting on jackstands (in the gravel lot) getting worked on. Not to mention getting Autozone parts and selling them at cost to the customer or letting the customer be the parts delivery driver.

 

I'm sorry I can't compete with them on price, nor would I want to. What I can offer you is a complimentary shuttle service, a comfortable waiting area, ASE Certified Technicians and an excellent nationwide warranty. Not to mention quality parts and no hassle service.

[xrac]

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[cdhowell]

A sales man at a local dealership bought a Jeep Wrangler that was traded in. We do a lot of aftermarket work for these guys so he comes looking for a deal on a lift kit. Not just any kit, but a high dollar long arm kit that require a lot of cutting and welding to the frame and axle.

 

Long story short he bought the kit on line to save tax but freight cost him more than purchasing from me. These are solid steel control arms front and rear. Plus the rest of the components.

 

He shows up yesterday looking for help. The kit was installed in his buddy's garage for half of what I would charge. "Something happened to the rear axle." he says " So we put a new one in and its doing the same thing. I've had it a few months now and can't really drive it" It was an obvious hack job and the pinion angle was way out. "Can you tell me what wrong?" he asked. "Yes, you went to the wrong place. But for $600 I can fix it."

 

We looked at some other custom work I had done. Now he could see a night and day difference in the quality of work. Between the freight cost, the axle he did not need, and the additional labor for me to fix it. Lets just say lesson learned. He's scheduled after Xmas.

[Shopcat]

Great post, and a great reminder that this is a service business. We can not let the conversation devolve into a price war. Educate your clients and let them decide if they appreciate value, and the experience of having a go to shop. Quality is remembered LONG after price is forgotten. The experience cdhowell shared is typical of "saving money". The guy with the Jeep will have spent more by the time his vehicle is done correctly than he would have spent by simply having it done professionally. xrac's story is equally telling. Years ago I was managing a tire & repair shop having a similar problem with a few local "price cutter" shops in my area. I did a reader board sign that read "We fix $59.95 Brake Jobs". I got quite a few new clients that became loyal!!

[alfredauto]

Hey no need to bust on a gravel parking lot. Mines gravel. Its almost one acre I'm not paving it :-)