mspecperformance

I got a lot of nice things from this article and its amazing what they have done. http://www.ratchetandwrench.com/RatchetWrench/September-2014/A-Blueprint-for-Systemized-Expansion/

I am actually switching over to Mitchell from RO Writer. Decision was based on cost mostly as well as Mitchell integrates the best with Bolt On Technology. It would cost me about 4k in upfront cost to upgrade my RO Writer software as well as having monthly costs of subscriptions. I can switch over to Mitchell without incurring any upfront upgrade costs and keep my subscriptions at about the same price. Also I am limited by what will integrate with WorldPac.

Same story I had with a customer and his bumper. He had a scratch and wanted to point it out to me say, "this wasn't there before." Bumper had multiple previous scratches and deep parking battle scars and gouges. If I remember correctly I think I looked at him and walked away. Oddly enough I still see this customer to this day lol

We all heard the "But it was working before" even when its a blower not turning on and the only thing you touched was a transmission flush LOL. Lets hear the stories and also your best responses! I am always dumbfounded when people tell me this and I am quick to go into defense mode. Whats the best way to diffuse this type of situation. BTW I have tried explaining that we have not even been anywhere that part of the car or that system, many times I get blank stares or "Yeah right buddy" type of looks.

I believe I will be trying this program out. I am 95% there on jumping ship to Mitchell TeamWorks5 and Bolt On Technologies Mobile Manager. Everything looks pretty good as far as the Mitchell side goes, I think the only gripe I have is with the scheduler, hes pretty sucky LOL. This little time clock is expensive but I think its definitely something I am sorely lacking.

Great question! I am curious to know the answer to this as well. What percentage per technician recommendations should a SA be aiming to sell.

Matt, you might want to look into a paper time clock then. Those can bemore cost efficient for the time being. You should track idle time just as much as you should track billable time. You want to know where your hours are going. If your tech or you are not working on a vehicle then what are you doing? building maintenance? equipment maintenance? smoking? cell phone?

I am learning that discount is a dirty word (LOL). I think back to all the times ive caved and offered a discount. I don't want to build a culture of discounts at my shop. We are honest, do great work, and care about our customers. On top of that we spend tons more on training and specialty tools than almost all the shops in the area. I am sure you have the same ethos otherwise you wouldn't be offering a discount however you deserve to be successful and make a good living. Giving into customers that don't do the right thing and put their problems in our laps is not the right way to go about things. Believe me I've had years of experience doing the wrong things!

This looks like exactly what I am looking for however it seems pricey for what it is. As an add on management tool they are asking for $129+ a month and a set up fee. Thats on top of a shop management software you may pay for monthly or buy out right AND possibly other such management/profitability tools such as a digital inspection sheet service. Does anyone know of a similar service that has a more affordable price point.

As I understand it, you can charge at least 3% for environmental fees in Cali

Funny story, years ago I had a very strange experience with a customer. I am a second generation Chinese American and I speak English fluently. I had many conversations with this one customer with no problems whatsoever. He was one of those "wants to be your buddy" customers. Long story short, he had a real problem with the final price of his repairs and started ranting about, "In this country, WE have honor" basically implying I'm some foreigner looking to rip him off. Needless to say it did not end well. Talk about crossing the line LOL

Do you know how much $ you will generate from alignments? I'd suggest maybe looking into that first with quality number projections. It may be in your best interest to look into financing some new equipment rather than purchasing used and wasting your time setting it up, learning how to use it and then fixing it when it finally takes a poop on you.

Joe I am glad even a pro shop owner like yourself is not immune to bone heads!!! the "customer is always right" mentality could have certainly applied to the situation if she had politely asked that you honored the quoted price. I think you guys did the right thing in even offering her a discount. However her actions pretty much threw that out the window quick. It sucks to have a customer walk away unhappy. You start to question your methods and what you did that didn't meet their expectations. For me at least it always hits home as if I failed Math Class in school because I was too lazy to do my homework LOL. Customers like that however are unavoidable nightmares.

+1 for tire rack

nc, im going to try your tactic

Apparently Bosch Service does and I am a BSC member LOL

Anyone familiar with banner programs or any other such discounts for an all data subscription? Thanks.

Take what I am saying with a grain of salt since it is just a regurgitation of what i have learned but it has worked for me. You never want to give customers a break down of parts and labor and especially not quote labor times. What you have to do is talk to them about the value of the service, what you will be providing them, your warranty, your training and certs and and the end of all that once u have built a value based service in their mind then you give them the cost at the end. Use softening words like, "Your investment for a professional maintenance service will be XXX." If you talk about price right off the bat without building value into your service, all customers are going to do is think "price price price." In regards to the spark plug issue I would mention that because you have extensive experience with this engine (make it sound like you are an expert with this engine) there is a possibility you may have to perform additional work. Assure the customer you will do your very best to avoid incurring extra costs during the procedure however you are full equipped and capable of handling the proper repair. Maybe this would be a great time to mention your warranty and that you full guarantee the repair once it is made.

It seems that the young people are more and more irresponsible today. The media makes it "cool" or OK to not do the right thing. Getting drunk and high is glorified. Getting into a fight and causing trouble is the in thing. Also kids today don't want to focus on their craft or gain knowledge. They want the quickest way to the top. Had a very nice kid intern at the shop from Lincoln Tech. Didn't really know how to do much but figured it was an opportunity for him to learn. Instead hes late, misses days and then stops showing up and comes up with a myriad of excuses. Long story short, he actually comes back in asking for a second chance. Don't know where these kids are getting that its OK to not be consistent and use excuses as a crutch.

hourly + efficiency is what I was really getting at. Straight flat rate is definitely a good way to starve a tech if you don't have enough consistent work and/or they aren't proficient at all cars that come through your shop. If your shop is capable of flagging 40+ hours a week per tech, you can certainly guarantee them a certain amount of hours regardless of production (30,35,40?) and then give them a bonus for more hours logged. On the flip side there certainly should be a good policy on come back work so that your techs work hard to avoid that type of situation.

what shop software are you currently using.

I assume you have your techs on salary? If they are making flat rate there is absolutely no reason why they wouldn't want to work harder since there is a direct correlation to their pay. If they are on salary maybe you might want to switch it up to flat rate. Obviously there would be huge management and pricing infrastructure changes if you are currently not pushing 40+ hours a week per/tech. Unfortunately it seems that your problem with 2 techs is that they are a package deal. If you get rid of 1, you have to get rid of both.

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If you are willing to share, please post your inspection forms.

Joe is say you stock Mobil 1 synthetic and a customer brings you Mobile 1 synthetic, what is your response then?