Alex

The key to success depends on the people that move a business forward, the employees! This workshop will cover the common areas management has to deal with to successfully put together and maintain a winning team. As the title says it's hiring to firing and everything in-between. View the full article

The extended weekend is here. Some of us work through it, some take the days off, as much needed time away from the business. However you plan this weekend, make sure it's a great one! School is back after the weekend and the end of the summer season is here. Are you doing any "Back to School" specials??? Have a great weekend!

What would you like to see at AutoShopOwner.com? The staff here at ASO, would like your opinion, on what features/changes you would like to see in the community. We've received feedback from some members on how to improve the layout and feel of ASO. We'd like to get everyone's input! Maybe we're missing a forum/category that you would like to see? Maybe a specific section? If you have some ideas, we want to hear them!

CARQUEST Technical Institute has grown nationwide, and they are offering all levels of training to their customers. Does anyone currently training with them? Website: http://www.carquest.com/proCTI.html Course Catalog: http://www.carquest.com/common/downloads/CTI_Catalog.pdf Course Schedule: http://www.carquest.com/proCTIclassSchedule.html Instructor-Led Technical Training CTI is the automotive industry's leading technician training program offering both season ticket packages and stand alone courses. For more information view the CTI Course Catalog and Class Schedule or visit your CARQUEST Sales Representative at your local CARQUEST Auto Parts Store. Online Technical Training CTI is pleased to offer CARQUEST customers acces to our online technical training programs. Three distinct programs are available including CTI Technical e-Courses, CTI ASE Test Prep Courses and CTI Technician Assessments. Simply visit the CTI Online University to register. Business Solutions CTI Business Solutions is the business management training arm of CTI. It offers independent repair facility owners, managers and service consultants the most comprehensive, up-to-date management techniques available in today’s repair industry.

Hello, and welcome to AutoShopOwner! We do not allow advertisement of businesses that sell to repair shops without the proper membership. Please visit the subscriptions page in your control panel, located: http://www.autoshopowner.com/network/index...&CODE=index There you will find the ability to purchase a "Business Membership" You will receive all the benefits of a Premium Membership. In addition, you will receive permission to post about your business in the community and an included banner (provided by you) on our sponsor's page. Until then, your post links have been removed. Once you upgrade your membership, you may re-enter them. Thank you.

How much do you pay your top level technician. Wouldn;t you like to know what the averages are for pay when it comes to an A class technician? What are your thought on employing high level technicians and how does your business depend on them. Maybe you are the top tech in your shop, maybe you have one employee, or 5. Please take a moment and share your thoughts on this topic and don't foget to vote in the poll!

Let's keep this topic going here. I'm refreshing it, as it's a month old now and we have only a few votes for this. What would be a good time for everyone to meet online in a chat session? Please post your thoughts on this . Thanks.

Almost every major search engine (Google, MSN, Yahoo) lists results from a colaboration of online business directories and website directories at premium top spot positions, when searching common key words such as: auto repair, mechanic, etc. More and more people are Google'ing their local location searches these days. Example: "auto repair paramus nj". What you'll find when the customer searches these keywords are: Local business results for auto repair near Paramus, NJ right at the top of the page! Even if your website keywords are optimized to give you top placement, these directory listing are at the top. As a business owner, those days of turning down a major yellow pages ad that gives you online inclusion should no longer be over looked. Those companies are what feeds these results. I'm also going to give you some links to check and see if you are listed. These also feed most online searches. Online Business Directories: http://www.google.com/local/add/lookup?hl=en-US&gl=US http://listings.local.yahoo.com/ https://llc.local.live.com/BusinessSearch.aspx http://www.infousa.com/ http://corporate.wcities.com/ http://www.discoverourtown.com/ http://www.insiderpages.com/ If you have a website, make sure you are listed in these directories and search engines: http://www.dmoz.org/ http://www.google.com/addurl/ http://search.yahoo.com/info/submit.html http://search.msn.com.sg/docs/submit.aspx

Welcome to AutoShopOwner!

Joe is talking about this: http://www.technetprofessional.com/

That is very impressive. Are you part of any tire/automotive banner programs? Goodyear, Firestone, ACCC, etc..

Hi Mark, I'm glad you found us here. We are aware of the typo in the article...hopefully everyone will be able to find us here. My suggestion would be to start a new topic for: Incentive programs that are a win-win for sales people, managers and techs in one of the forums. Welcome Aboard!

We here at AutoShopOwner.com are thinking about introducing a chat area where we will hold an online chat meeting per scheduled time and with scheduled topics . We'd like to know if you are interested in seeing something like this? This will be only for members of AutoShopOwner.com Your opinion and feedback counts!

Is anyone part of the Tirestarz program? Some articles: http://www.bridgestone-firestone.com/news/...id=2002/021015b http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_go14...211/ai_n7260264 Dealer Program: http://www.tirestarz.com/dlrprogram.aspx

ASE’s toll-free telephone registration for Spring 2008 testing opens TODAY! Toll-free registration is available 7 am - 7 pm Central Time Monday - Friday, and 7 am - 5 pm on Saturdays. Testing will take place May 8, 13, and 15, but you must register by March 31st. Call 1-866-427-3273 to register. TIP: Test Centers are available on a first-come-first-served basis, so register early to better ensure the center of your choice. http://www.ase.com/template.cfm?Section=Home

Thanks for the feedback, we are a very new site and are looking forward to more participation from our current and future members.

What do you think about the article below: How to start an auto repair business Starting any business takes time and management. When it comes to auto repair there are a many items that you need to consider before venturing out. Auto repair to most people might seem hard, but as long as you have the experience and know what you are doing you should be all set. If you don't plan on being hands on in the business itself, you are going to want to hire qualified mechanics. Doing this is probably going to be one of your most difficult feats when it comes to the business. Start interviewing possible candidates before you open your doors. Take the time to make those phone calls to verify a resume. Read More

Here is another site that may be of some interest: http://www.uslegalforms.com/automobiles/?p...CFQPslgodpjIMew

Well that would be interesting, we could use a businessman in office!

Online Automotive Training: Do you have the time? With the availability of automotive repair and business courses online, do you and/or your technicians find the time to complete any online courses? Do you have a training policy in place that requires your associates to take online training? What are your thoughts/feedback about online automotive training? Here are some industry leaders: http://www.amionline.org/ http://www.elearners.com/courses/automotiv...d-mechanics.htm http://www.autoshop101.com/ http://www.carquest.com/proCTI.html

Thank you Tony, for taking part in what we think, will be the premier online network for automotive shop owners. We wanted to create an environment where shop owners could work together towards a common goal and help one another be as successful as possible.

This was an opinion that was stated back in 2001. Here is the article: http://www.matisse.net/opinion/internet-alive.html

GM GoodWrench (Free site) http://www.techinfo.gmgoodwrench.com This second General Motors site is devoted to providing technical collision repair information for a number of late model GM vehicles. Note that the information on this site is from the NACE publications and is not maintained. http://www.goodwrench.com/gmgoodwrenchjsp/...epair_index.jsp

http://www.bmwtechinfo.com The BMW site provides information on vehicle service, technician training, bulletins, etc. Subscription rates are available for one day, one month, or one year. The system requirements for the web site include Windows operating system with Netscape 6.0 or higher or Explorer 5.0 or higher. Subscription Rates: 1-Day (24 hour) Subscription: $30 1-Month (30-days) Subscription: $250 1-Year Subscription: $2500 http://www.bmwtechinfo.com/

This Mercedes-Benz site contains online service and training information, as well as bulletins and information on tools and equipment. Contact information is also given for ordering manuals on CD. Subscriptions are available by the day, month, or year. STAR TekInfo is an official Mercedes-Benz USA, LLC site for hosting service and repair technical documentation for Mercedes-Benz vehicles. The site is provided by the MBUSA Dealer Workshop Services Department at MBUSA's Montvale NJ headquarters. Dealer Workshop Services Mission: To be the source for timely and high-quality workshop support services that includes information on repairs, tools, and equipment. http://www.startekinfo.com/StarTek/index.jsp