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What and how do you pay your Service Writer?


MINI4U

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We are in the process of getting a new service writer and wondering what other shops pay.

 

I looked up the average pay and median was $42k up to max $69K. We are a small shop with 2 techs and don't want to start out too high.

 

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That is interesting. When we were interviewing one of the dealer service writers said it was 100% commission. We had done previously salary of $3735. per month with a bonus calculated when we went over 50k in sales for the month.

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You have to be careful with commission. This is one of the reasons why we all are in business at independent shops. Customers are getting sick of getting taken advantage of at the dealerships. I have these conversations with new customers daily. You don't want to put excessive pressure on your service writers. Your service writers are the face and voice of your business. Keep them happy. I do agree with not over-paying them. We do salary plus commission with a majority of their pay coming from salary.

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Our last guy was not as good at sales as I feel he could have been so he ended up making about 50k. The guy we want to hire says he currently makes a little more than that but is payed hourly with some kind of bonus system which made me wonder what other shops do.

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Our last guy was not as good at sales as I feel he could have been so he ended up making about 50k. The guy we want to hire says he currently makes a little more than that but is payed hourly with some kind of bonus system which made me wonder what other shops do.

 

Salary is around $50k, then the commission is matrixed by percentage of gross profit. The higher the profit each week the higher percentage they make. They must hit above 60% gross profit though before commission will start.

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50K salary for the CSA? Is he/she working 40 hours/5 days a week? If working 40 hours/5 days a week that breaks down to $24/hour before commission. We aren't able to afford quite that high of a salary/pay rate for our CSA. Our CSÁ's start out at $12/hour + 5% commission on parts and labor sold over the base sale. It typically comes out at around $16/hour at our current volume.

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So do you have an office person or does he do that as well as service write? We have a front office person so our writer wrote up estimates, ordered parts and answered the phone when the front office person was busy on the other line or cashing out a customer.

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Service advisors even at the dealers around here make $12-$15 an hour. I have a few friends who work as SAs at dealerships. $50k seems crazy to me for a 2 tech shop. If your advisor is going to make $50k, what are your techs making, $75-100k?

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I currently pay my SA hourly. The plan is to move her to 100% commission once she has enough experience and training. Commission will be based on hours sold.

 

KMS mentioned being careful as to not wanting your employees to over sell just to increase their paychecks. I think you can probably offset a lot of this by having strict recommendation intervals (ie, filters every 15 or 30, trans every 30, etc.). Hopefully you trust your employees not to over sell, but it's still something to monitor.

 

I've chosen to base their pay off of hours produced so I can easily calculate GP on labor and parts. If both the SA and the tech's pay is tied to labor hours, I can calculate my effective labor rate, then figure out the percentage that is GP.

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I know you techs out there hate to hear this but a SA worth his/her weight should actually make more or close to a tech. Remember a SA is the face of the shop. They are the people who greet customers, manage the front end, estimate and sell service, etc. Essentially they are and can be the manager of the businesses.

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I know you techs out there hate to hear this but a SA worth his/her weight should actually make more or close to a tech. Remember a SA is the face of the shop. They are the people who greet customers, manage the front end, estimate and sell service, etc. Essentially they are and can be the manager of the businesses.

Much agreed!

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Selling without standards is stealing. Therefore, that should not be an issue. A combination of hourly or salary, sales goals, gross profit goal, and month end bonus works well. Salary or hourly should not be so high they are satisfied. Your pay for advisor should be about 10% of sales.

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  • Have you checked out Joe's Latest Blog?

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      It always amazes me when I hear about a technician who quits one repair shop to go work at another shop for less money. I know you have heard of this too, and you’ve probably asked yourself, “Can this be true? And Why?” The answer rests within the culture of the company. More specifically, the boss, manager, or a toxic work environment literally pushed the technician out the door.
      While money and benefits tend to attract people to a company, it won’t keep them there. When a technician begins to look over the fence for greener grass, that is usually a sign that something is wrong within the workplace. It also means that his or her heart is probably already gone. If the issue is not resolved, no amount of money will keep that technician for the long term. The heart is always the first to leave. The last thing that leaves is the technician’s toolbox.
      Shop owners: Focus more on employee retention than acquisition. This is not to say that you should not be constantly recruiting. You should. What it does means is that once you hire someone, your job isn’t over, that’s when it begins. Get to know your technicians. Build strong relationships. Have frequent one-on-ones. Engage in meaningful conversation. Find what truly motivates your technicians. You may be surprised that while money is a motivator, it’s usually not the prime motivator.
      One last thing; the cost of technician turnover can be financially devastating. It also affects shop morale. Do all you can to create a workplace where technicians feel they are respected, recognized, and know that their work contributes to the overall success of the company. This will lead to improved morale and team spirit. Remember, when you see a technician’s toolbox rolling out of the bay on its way to another shop, the heart was most likely gone long before that.
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