carolinahigear

First, let me say that I have very few price objections, but I had one last week on a Throttle Position Sensor for an older Chevy Truck. I quoted the job to the father (who is successful and is a great client,) and his ne'er do well twenty-something son was with him. The son googled the part and told me he could get it for $15.00, and questioned why I was selling it for $90.00. I replied that I was paying well over $50 for the part, I could repair the truck within an hour, that our business model was set up to profit on parts and labor like all successful auto shops are, and finished my reply with "If you and your dad want to order the part and bring it in when you receive it, then we will take your truck to the back storage lot and re-schedule the job when the part comes." Dad said to go ahead and do the job. A couple of things to note: I have been dealing with folks across the counter since I was six years old, so I've had lots of experience with it, yet I still cannot come up with the right reply all the time. Another thing is that my shop gives great service, have picked up and delivered the dad's vehicles from home several times, and he's been a client of mine for 12 years. Each of us is going to have objections like this, so I suggest you role play to get accustomed to replying. Have your significant other, a friend, and/or other family members to work with you on this. I sincerely believe that if we use the term "Business Model" it somewhat disarms them and actually makes our shop seem more sophisticated and bigger than it actually may be. That's true if it is a one-tech or multiple-tech operation.

Harry, That's a great sales process list, and I'm going to print it and post it and start using it Monday!! Thank you, Hi-Gear

Swag Master, I know what you mean. We installed both lower control arms yesterday on a Nissan Quest, performed the alignment, and took less than two hours. Client was happy and we were happy!!

When I have a job quoted and scheduled and can buy considerable cheaper online, I will buy online and send the savings to the bottom line. I don't worry about getting it warrantied, I just deal with it if necessary. When the GP % is up there, you tend not to be concerned with eating a part every now and then.

As far as struts go, we ALWAYS use "Quik Struts" when available. We tell the client that we are replacing the entire assembly with strut, coil spring, mount, and bearing, and that it will restore original ride height and ride, brake better, and handle better. Once we complete the installation we perform a 4-corner alignment so that it drives properly and gives the utmost in tire life. We definitely sell the sizzle more than we sell the steak, and we install a lot of strut assemblies. Hi-Gear

Oil, over 50 part #'s of oil filters, over 50 part #'s of air filters, 25 Part #'s of cabin filters, power steering fluid, brake fluid, transmission fluid of practically all types, anti-freeze, wiper blades, hose clamps, wiring and connector kits, butt loads of wire loom, push pin assortments, drain plug and drain plug gasket assortments, headlamps, mini-lamps, oil additives, fuel additives, several very good penetrants (Kroil, B-G, etc.) assortments of fuel, transmission, and vacuum hoses, and lots of supplies like pop rivets, etc. B-G Fuel kits and additives. Interstate batteries and some batteries we get on special.

I use TCI, ATD, and Carroll here in South Carolina and they treat me right.

Hey, Swag Master!! Where have you been, Bro?? I've always enjoyed your posts and have missed you these last couple of months. My son, James, and I are 3 hrs. from the coast, and we're going down the weekend of Nov. 12. We have an 18' War Eagle w/ a 60HP Yamaha, and fish the intercoastal waterway, Charleston Harbor, and the rivers feeding into the harbor. We mostly catch speckled trout, and are learning more about catching red drum and flounder. The trout are very delicious once they come off the grill. It's also neat when my son says "look, Dad!!" That usually means a huge container ship is coming by. James is 22 and works with me at the shop and a getaway for us is usually a fishing trip.

Re: Smoke machines. We make a lotta money with our smoke machine. I don't remember what brand it is, because to me they're all the same. They make smoke and it flows into the system you're checking, and wherever it comes out is where you put the fix!! When a car comes in with the "service engine" light on, and we read an evap leak, we explain that we need to hook up the smoke machine to the car, and it's $89.95 to smoke it. Cha-Ching$$ Hi-Gear

All of us know that good techs are hard to come by. If you like him and want him, then by no means let him leave. Just as we want our clients to be with us a lifetime, we should plan to keep our techs a lifetime, too!! Just as you set his pay rate, you are also in charge of invoicing his work at a premium price. I also have a tech that is very, very good, very dependable, agreeable, polite, personable and did I say he is very, very good at what he does??!! He is my highest paid tech, and I charge more for his work. I make sure that i charge enough hours at enough rate to pay him well and make a premium profit on his work. He has been with me for nine years.

Just some quick notes without getting into a long dissertation. 1) A huge number of my clients have never heard of carburetors, but I think you can perform your specialty (carburetors and/or carb equipped vehicles), and increase your car count with some very profitable and needed service and repairs on new customer's vehicles. 2) Maybe change the name of your shop to (Pick a name) Automotive and operate Coastal Carburetor as a niche business. That way you keep and enhance your carburetor business while attracting a whole group of new customers that you can turn into clients!!$$$$$ I was in the machine shop and engine building business for over 30 years, made lots of money, but that business model is very outdated now. I changed my direction in the 90's and it has really paid off. In your area I believe you can increase your car count and get LOTS of gravy and high profit work by servicing the masses of cars within a ten mile radius of your shop. Money Mailer has been very good for me, and I have a HUGE number of clients that were introduced to my shop by money mailer. I am on a 30,000 traffic count in-town street, and I had to do something to increase my car count. I had several coupons redeemed today, and had some gravy jobs included. You can reach around 10,000 homeowners with money mailer for around $400.

My response is going to start off like a property management seminar. I have some residential rentals and the absolute key to being successful in SFH (single family home) rentals is to have the right tenant. The right tenant pays on time, doesn't worry you, keeps the yard and house in excellent order, and stays with you for many years. I am very successful because I have the right tenants. Success in a shop is similar in that you need the right employees. All of you know that. When I advertise for a tech, I let them know that I want someone who is hungry, who will bust his butt, who will keep the shop clean, who wants long term employment, will be a willing team member, and who is ready for a very busy, fast-paced, take no prisoners environment. Most of these kind of techs have a job and are not looking. But I'm like the Marines. I only need a few good men!! I pay my guys three ways. Hourly, percentage, and spiffs.They make a good hourly check every Friday, and the first Friday of the month they get a percentage of their labor for the previous month's volume. My goal is for each tech's monthly bonus to be enough for his rent or mortgage payment. They work hard for it and really look forward to it. Every Monday they get paid spiff money for the previous week. These spiffs are paid on all flushes, fuel services, shocks, struts, air filters, cabin filters, and wipers. This is what works for me so I wanted to share. Hi-Gear

I'm planning for an economic nuclear winter with a MUSHROOM CLOUD OF SALES, higher car count with higher ARO, MORE MONEY in the BANK, wearing the rollers out on the garage doors opening and closing them, and in general a great last quarter and even better first quarter of 2017!!!

I have been at my present location eleven years, and have been asked my labor rate only a few times. Most of these have been on the phone and I could tell they were price shopping. We typically only quote tires and not mechanical work over the phone.

Back in the day, a situation like this would have really bothered me, so I understand how you feel. I know that looking at the big picture is hard to do sometimes as we are working daily to make our shop the best shop, and to be really profitable, too. Especially with the shop at about 102F with 110 % humidity!! Probably if her dad had not gotten involved, it would have worked out just fine. If Tire Rack has been working for you, by all means continue!!

The two AAA shops in our area are rip-offs with Jackleg techs and High-Pressure sales tactics.

Welcome, Tony!! There are some great folks on here. It has helped me a lot, so please participate!! Hi-Gear

If I have a car that needs to go to a specialist shop (transmissions) or a dealer shop (programming, etc.), I send it to the other shop myself. I NEVER give my client a chance to hear or see anything from the other shop. Controlling it from start to finish is what I do.

You weren't slow with your reply.......it was only 11 months!!! But thanks for letting us know!!

Having our associates looking professional and being clean should be a priority with every shop owner. As I said above, I have been providing uniforms for many years. Two of my techs wear white shirts with gray pinstripes, and three techs wear blue shirts with stripes. The techs with the blue shirts like the fact that they hide grease and dirt better, and the techs that wear white are cleaner workers that do lots of electrical, computer diagnostic and troubleshooting, A/C, and Timing Jobs, etc. We have been using this color scheme for 11 years. Our uniform supplier also supplies us with shop towels, walk mats, and fender covers. He does a fantastic job of keeping our uniforms repaired and looking good. Some of my techs wear shorts in hot weather, and he supplies them, too. The only communication I have with him is paying him every Wednesday, because he knows I am not involved with the uniforms other than paying. **** I make sure that my "shop supplies" charges total enough monthly to cover our uniforms, bank card fees, and other expenses. *** Like i say lots of times when I'm writing a check....."Somebody's gonna pay for it!!!" Hi-Gear

Are you going to wash the uniforms or have the techs wash the uniforms?? I have been using a uniform service since 1970, and it is very easy to use a service vs. buying the uniforms. I understand that uniforms are an expense, but my clients pay for my techs' uniforms through shop supply charges and optimizing the gross profit on jobs. The uniform route driver handles everything, and all I do is write the check. Speaking of the check, I enjoy writing the check every Wednesday because it prompts me to remember that somebody's going to pay for those uniforms today!!

Trrguy, I can definitely see your point on this. The example I was giving was for jobs in the shop that we are pricing. We do very, very few phone quotes other than tires, so we don't have to remember the quotes. We also save all our estimates on Mitchell 1, so it's there when we need it.

Just remember this: You can have the best percentages in the world, but you cannot buy groceries, pay the power bill, or make a house payment with percentages. You make these payments with profit dollars. And lots of them. With that said, I am a numbers guy. Always have been. Always will be. I have a grid, mark-ups, and etc., but the one thing that some folks don't have is a "Profit Mindset." Most of you have one, some of you want one, and it's something you have to work on just like remembering names. I may be pricing out a job, and the matrix price on a belt is $51.88. I'll use the retail pricing strategy(Sears, Lowe's, Wally World, etc.) and make it $59.77. A water pump on the matrix at 67.14, I'll make 79.95. Now I'm in a pretty good demographic area for my business, so this works for me. What I'm saying is....always make money so you'll have a good chunk left after paying that big overhead and all the unexpected expenses. You know what I mean. For you young bucks out there, youtube this song "Nothing From Nothing Means Nothing" by Billy Preston. Gonzo and Xrac and a few others probably know it by heart. I may write a new song entitled "Something plus a lot times 1.34 equals Profits!!!"

Each tech gets a monthly bonus of 5% of his labor billed for the month. All of our techs are paid hourly, and they really look forward to this commission check. It is paid without fail on the first Friday of the month.

I don't bill them out until they pay. It makes a clean transaction.