Alex

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Happy Thanksgiving!

This is correct in the mobile version! Topic moved to Member Feedback forum.

Let me know what you are looking for and I'll try and put something together.

Happy Father's Day!

Happy Father's Day!

KMS, I removed the links to that site. You seem to have the only site on there and are the only member on that site. There is no way they can offer any backlinks or SEO value to any member here from one registered site, unless they are linking all their member sites together (when they get some members). I can appreciate your success with that site and wanting to share the info with this community. However, whether it's yours or not, the owners need to follow our guidelines on advertising, if that site is to be promoted on ASO: http://www.autoshopowner.com/forum-8/announcement-3-promoting-your-company-on-aso-please-read/ I'm going to leave this topic open because you have been a member here and we value your opinion. But one mention about them is fine, lets let them register if they want to promote their services as a paid advertiser. Thanks.

Federal-Mogul Motorparts is offering onsite, online and on-demand training to technicians, service writers and shop owners through its newest program Garage Gurus. “Each year, millions of consumers turn to professional automotive service providers to help restore the safety and reliability of their vehicles,” said Dan Ninivaggi, CEO of Federal-Mogul Motorparts. “Garage Gurus is an important new investment in the future of these vital local businesses and in the thousands of technicians and other professionals who help keep motorists safe behind the wheel.” Garage Gurus is part of the company’s Tech First initiative aimed at strengthening the automotive service industry’s support of the front-line professionals who repair and maintain vehicles. Each Garage Gurus training center will include multiple vehicle repair/training bays equipped with the latest tools and will be staffed by more than 100 ASE certified Gurus, Federal-Mogul said. Operating out of these garages will be Gurus-On-The-Go product technology vans that will visit repair shops and technicians throughout each region. The first four Garage Gurus regional training centers will open in April in Bronx, N.Y., St. Louis, Mo., Skokie, Ill., and Van Nuys, Calif. The company expects to have 15 training centers open by the end of the year. Source: http://www.tirereview.com/federal-mogul-launching-garage-gurus/

We all know that Google rules the internet in terms of searches that drive traffic to websites. ASO alone receives 75-80% of its traffic from Google, then Bing. So ranking in search results is very important for website traffic. That being said, Google is now going to put weight on the "mobile friendliness" of websites and rank those that have a mobile layout, better. Starting April 21st, Google will use its new algorithm to re-rank results based on how well a website renders on mobile screens. So if your website does not have a mobile layout, get with the webmaster or company that designs your site and make sure you have a mobile version working properly. Below is a recent post from Google this past Feb. Source: Link Webmaster level: all When it comes to search on mobile devices, users should get the most relevant and timely results, no matter if the information lives on mobile-friendly web pages or apps. As more people use mobile devices to access the internet, our algorithms have to adapt to these usage patterns. In the past, we’ve made updates to ensure a site is configured properly and viewable on modern devices. We’ve made it easier for users to find mobile-friendly web pages and we’ve introduced App Indexing to surface useful content from apps. Today, we’re announcing two important changes to help users discover more mobile-friendly content: 1. More mobile-friendly websites in search resultsStarting April 21, we will be expanding our use of mobile-friendliness as a ranking signal. This change will affect mobile searches in all languages worldwide and will have a significant impact in our search results. Consequently, users will find it easier to get relevant, high quality search results that are optimized for their devices. To get help with making a mobile-friendly site, check out our guide to mobile-friendly sites. If you’re a webmaster, you can get ready for this change by using the following tools to see how Googlebot views your pages: If you want to test a few pages, you can use the Mobile-Friendly Test. If you have a site, you can use your Webmaster Tools account to get a full list of mobile usability issues across your site using the Mobile Usability Report. 2. More relevant app content in search resultsStarting today, we will begin to use information from indexed apps as a factor in ranking for signed-in users who have the app installed. As a result, we may now surface content from indexed apps more prominently in search. To find out how to implement App Indexing, which allows us to surface this information in search results, have a look at our step-by-step guide on the developer site. If you have questions about either mobile-friendly websites or app indexing, we’re always happy to chat in our Webmaster Help Forum.

As a Tech-Net shop starting in Feb, you should be getting a 12mo/12k labor warranty. Its new for 2015. www.techauto.com 12 month Local Labor Warranty on parts purchased from CARQUEST and Advance Auto Parts - Beginning February 1, 2015, members will have a coverage on their labor for 12 months when they buy and install a part from CQ or Advance that fails. All members will be paid $50 per hours using standard Mitchell labor time. Most claims are settled within 24 hours, but could be settled the same day if received by 3:00 eastern with all the required paperwork. First claim is always approved with no part inspection, although the part must always be returned to the store. Claims are filed with a 3rd party that is staffed by ASE Master techs that are qualified to administer technical claims.

I will "piggy-back" on what Joe said and would like to say thank you for the comments and also to thank Jeff and every other member for your participation. It is all of you that make this site what it is. Happy New Year and may you all have even more success in 2015!

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!!!

Welcome to ASO! Love the profile pic. Can't tell if that's a Can-Am or Suzuki you got there, but looks like fun!

ASE has them also https://www.ase.com/Test-Prep-Training.aspx

Advance has stocking programs and sells BendPak lifts. Check out http://pro.advancecommercial.com/commercial-shop-services

CARQUEST Technical Institute has ASE test prep online training. http://ctionline.com/

Changed the title to 2000 Members and Growing!

Bradley, very interesting news. Autel is a hot scan tool on the market so it will be interesting to see how this unfolds.

I believe because you are using a plugin for social links from addthis and not direct links. What I would try to do more than anything is manipulate your page titles, which seem to be controlled by your menu tabs. For instance your services tab/page has a page title that is "Services", its too simple. Either append your company name to the end of it like "Services - Woodstock Auto Repair" or differentiate it somehow, make it unique. I'm an advocate of appending the business name if it contains key words, like "Auto Repair" to every page title. Your main page title should be something like "Woodstock Auto Repair - Auto Repair in Woodstock, GA", you'll get more hits for locations.

That's usually the issue with "cookie cutter" websites. However, Godaddy has a business plan that includes SEO, is that the plan you have? I think it's currently $10.99 a month. If not, I would suggest an upgrade to that and read up on https://support.godaddy.com/help/article/8509/how-to-use-metatags I also posted in another topic a useful tool to check SEO: http://seositecheckup.com Hope that helps.

Social networking is a big help for any site. Get followers and only share relevant information. As soon as you write a new blog post, share it on your company pages. Also share any specials, tips, etc. As far as SEO, try this tool to see where you can optimize and have your coder/programmer make some adjustments: http://seositecheckup.com

Thanks everyone!

I agree, it will affect more the parts store sales than repair shop sales. Different customer. http://www.ratchetandwrench.com/RatchetWrench/September-2014/Home-Depot-Entering-DIY-Auto-Repair-Segment/