Elon Block

Hi eveyrone! As a result of the some of the recent changes, I'm preparing to hold a special webinar just for Goodyear tire dealers. Please send me a private message if you would like to be notified when this has been scheduled. Thank! Elon

How To Build An Auto Repair Business That Runs On Autopilot Most shop owners I talk with want a business that runs on autopilot. What exactly does that mean? Well, let's start with the true definition. The dictionary defines "autopilot" as a: "device for controlling an aircraft or other vehicle without constant human intervention." I've never peeked into the cockpit of the plane... continue reading >>>

Dave, Yes, it's been my experience that most negative reviews mean something wasn't explained very well. A sales tip is to have the service advisor ask the customer, at an appropriate time in the sales process: "Do you have any questions about what we've talked about so far?" That question is a real money-maker because usually the customer will have questions. And this gives the customer permission to voice their concerns, questions, confusion, whatever. The benefit is they are more likely to agree to have the work done because they will feel confident in themselves in being able to make a decsion. (No one wants to make a bad, uneducated decision.)

Congrats on your new venture. Welcome aboard!

Selling service and tires is a lot different than it was just a few years ago. Even the most seasoned service advisors are battling to adapt their sales methods to this change in customer behavior.... Because today's internet-driven, "more educated" customer is demanding a more straightforward, transparent approach. This Free Breakthrough Video Series will help you sell more service and tires. Sign up here to get immediate access: Free Training Videos No strings. No fluff. Just solid information that works to fill your bays, increase your sales and boost your profits. without discounting or giving your profits away.

Hi everyone, hope everyone is finishing up their first quarter of 2015 strong! I get lots of questions about what to do with reviews. Common questions are: Do I really need to respond to the positive reviews? How do I handle the negative ones? In an effort to provide some tips, I put together an article with some recommended best practices: The Love/Hate Relationship With Reviews Let me know if you have any questions.

Congrats on the accomplishment and the recognition!

Does any of this look familiar to you when you think about your service advisors (and your business)? They're struggling to make their numbers. They have a growing stack of unsold estimates. Courtesy inspections aren't being offered. Or the work isn't getting sold. The appointment calendar isn't packed. There are empty bays with techs standing around. Car count is down. And so is the ARO. Don't feel bad if these are some of the challenges you're dealing with, because you're not alone. Almost every shop owner I talk with, is suffering from one - or more - of these issues. In response to this, I've created a series of posts, designed to help you solve some of these problems. What you're going to discover, over the next few days, is information no one else, in the industry, has been willing to talk about - until now. It's the hidden problem that's draining the sales, profits - and life out of your business. To read the rest of this article, Click Here Now.

From what you posted, it looks like you guys must be doing a lot of things right. Congratulations! I checked out some of your reviews and one of them really stood out as a testimonial of how you're perceived by your customers. There's nothing better than having customers talk about how trusting they are of your customer service. http://www.yelp.com/biz/kingwood-service-center-kingwood That doesn't happen by accident, so great job! As for your questions about improving your profits... Car count and gross sales are both required to have a profitable, successful auto repair business. You mentioned you thought the business may be "bleeding from places I'm sure we don't even know about." There are a number of ways to improve profits and your boss is smart in wanting to make sure any changes to the way he's doing business now - do not drive away customers (or employees). For example, making blanket labor and parts pricing changes is often suggested as a means of quickly increasing profits. Sometimes, small changes to how you're currently doing things are what's needed... But you have to keep your eye on the big picture - not just making sweeping changes without a really good reason. That may have worked in the past, but today's customers have the exact same information you do meaning... websites such as repairpal.com have changed the rules of the game because parts and labor is all out in the open now. Once the labor and parts formulas are tweaked, (if it actually makes sense for you and your marketplace...) The very next place to look for more profits is by making sure the sales people are not missing any legitimate opportunities. There are many opinions on what that looks in the real world. This is definitely an area you want to closely evaluate to make sure any recommended changes are not going to upset your customers. You also want to make sure the recommended sales methods are employee-friendly, meaning your sales people can actually see themselves doing it, even if they're not natural born sales people. Bottom-line, the sales methods need to be customer-friendly and employee-friendly. The best way to evaluate this is to watch some videso of the trainers demonstrating how they sell jobs. These are just some of the ways to evaluate if the training company philosophy matches how you folks want to do business. PS The same evaluation process also applies to joining a 20 group, just so you know.

Reward programs work very well for restaurants and other businesses that fall into the entertainment category because the whole idea is to get the customers to dine out more often than they might otherwise - or dine out in your restaurant solely, (instead of spreading your family's dining dollars out over many restaurants). In the tire and auto repair business, your customers don't WANT to spend more dollars than they have to. So, there may be a way to give a loyalty card instead, such as buy 5 oil changes and get one free. But I'm not sure that's a marketing strategy that beats providing the customer with killer service - so much so that they automatically think of you and your shop - regardless of incentives.

Welcome aboard! Good luck with your business. It sounds like things are moving along nicely.

I thought I would have it replaced with an updated one before anyone noticed. Guess not. Here's what happened. Just like you get feedback from your customers, I get feedback. In fact, I constantly ask for feedback because I want to always be in a position of getting better at what I do. The back story of that video is..we have two categories of training videos. One category is for the counter people and service advisors. And the other category includes management videos for the owners. When I originally posted that video, I had instructed my webmaster to take the actual sales training module on "How To Sell Road Hazard" and add one of the management modules to the beginning of it. So, the end result was a combination of two training modules. That's what I had posted on youtube for you folks. Anyway, I received lots of great feedback on the training portion of the video - the actual step-by-step, "How To Sell Road Hazard" part. I've had lots of people tell me they are selling lots more road hazard than ever, as a result of using the sales strategy. I also had a couple of people question what I meant in the management portion of the video, when I said something along the lines of many sales people are using the "wing it and hope method" of selling. I can see how that could be taken as being judgemental or critical. It was clearly a poor choice of words on my part because I never intended it to be disrespectful. In fact, I feel the opposite. What I really meant to point out is the fact that times have changed. What used to work in selling service and tires no longer works with today's more educated, internet-driven customers. Even long-term customers no longer just throw you the keys and say "take care of it and call me when it's done." Even the most seasoned service advisors and service managers are battling to adjust their selling methods to a customer that has the exact same labor and parts pricing information as you do. Anyway, I said all of that to say this... I have reviewed all of our materials, as a result of this very valuable feedback. The sales modules do not need to be edited at all. A couple of our management modules including the short excerpt I had provided for you folks are in the process of being revised. I will replace that video for you soon and will let you know when it's up. UPDATE: The video is now here: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCzE5eJf07QtPVxjZ4r6zL0Q

Okay, now that you and I both have "Made Stuff Up" (otherwise known as MSU) about this customer and why he bought his own oil... How do you find out if the guy needs your help in maintaining his vehicle?

Can you elaborate on what you mean by this? What is it you're concerned about if they say, "no"?

mspec, here's something to consider. I've attended a lot of trainings throughout my years in the business and many of the trainers have taught "tips and tricks to quickly determine who the tire kickers are - so we don't waste time on people that aren't going to buy anyway." Because these trainers were highly respected in the industry, I believed them. It actually made sense to me. After all, why would I want to waste time and energy with someone who wasn't to be a sale and help me hit my numbers. Then one day, I read an article by Jim Rohn (now passed). He shared a story of being on a train. And how he was sitting across from a man with two children that were loud, out of control, screaming, and really being disruptive. Everyone on the train was aggravated. After Jim listened to this loud noise for about 15 excruciating minutes , he leaned over the aisle, thinking he could distract or entertain the children to quiet them down. He said, "hi" to the father first. And as soon as he did, the man started crying. Then, the man started apologizing for his children being unruly. He told Jim, his wife had just died the day before and they were on the train ride to her parents to make funeral arrangements. He said he knew the kids were loud, but he couldn't bring himself to do anything about it. There is more to the story. But the reason I am sharing this with you is: That story changed my attitude about how I view people, in general. It taught me you never know what is happening in a person's life. What struck me as I read your post is for whatever reason this guy had bought his own oil. Maybe he likes to work on his vehicle? He may like changing his oil. It gets him out from under his wife's feet. And maybe he enjoys changing his oil, but as much as he likes to do it, he decided it's too cold. So, he stopped in to speak with you about it. Hard to say. There could be any number of reasons. The bottom-line is... we have no idea what people's reasons are for doing things. You get to run your business any way you like. You can help the guy out with his oil change. And ask him if he would like you to do a courtesy inspection. This saves the mental gymnastics of trying to figure out if he's going to spend any more money with you - or not. We don't know. He could be the most connected person in your town. And if you take care of him, this oil change could turn into tons of business for you. But no one will know until you get the customer in for a conversation about his vehicle.

That is a great question. Here's what you want to keep in mind. The easier you make it for your customer to say yes, the more business you're going to have. Recognizing the fact that there's always going to be waiters... You either make it easy for them to wait with you - or they're going to find a seat at your competition's. That's just how it is. And as you said, waiters work best for quick simple services, such as LOF's, 2-4 tire sales (depending on how fast your tech is and what kind of vehicle you're working on.) Here's how you squeeze in a walk-in customer. Normally, when you look at your calendar, you may have a time slot or two open. Here's an example calendar, for conversation purposes: http://sellmoreautoservice.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/FullCalendar.jpg Let's say a customer stops in for a LOF. You pull up the calender. If the LOF takes an hour, you can immediately see Harry is open at 11:00 or 2:30. You say to the walk-in... "I know we're super busy. But I want to take care of you. My first waiting appointment is at 11:00. Or we can do it at 2:30. Which would you prefer?" And then, put them on the schedule. In case you're wondering, don't be concerned about losing the sale if you can't take care of them immediately. People like to do business with people that are busy.. Unless it's a true emergency there's no need to drop everything for a customer that just stops in. You can't run a business efficiently by bumping your techs for a walk-in. Because that creates unnecessary stress for everyone. If you haven't been using a calendar up until now, it's going to take a little bit of getting used to for you and your existing customers that are used to just popping in. But once you begin working by appointments, you'll be amazed at much smoother your shop runs and how happy your techs will be. Plus your customers will be happier because you've scheduled time specifically for them.. In addition... you eliminate the stress and chaos of never knowing how busy you're going to be from one minute to the next. One of the biggest benefits is... There is nothing like coming into the shop in the morning, pulling up the calender, seeing all the slots filled and knowing your bays are going to be full and your techs are going to be busy.

By the way, I know some shops do use loaner cars. If you're going down that path, you are going to want to seek professional advice from an attorney and your insurance company (both of them for liability reasons). And you are going to want to speak with your accountant, from an IRS and tax perspective because the purchase of the cars and the related expenses have to be accounted for properly..

There's a strategy to taking the pressure off yourself, your techs AND the customer. It's based on two things. The first thing is: always using a calendar, so that a specific time slot is scheduled for that vehicle. (This eliminates rush jobs and driving your techs crazy.) The second thing is: Setting the customer's expectations properly by telling them how long it's going to take. And then, giving them their options. (This eliminates suprises on their end.) It doesn't matter whether it's a LOF, tires or anything else.... You control the traffic. Here's a word track: "Mr. Jones, in order to do the job correctly... it's going to take (whatever amount of time). I've got an opening today at (whatever time). Or I can take care of it tomorrow at (whatever time). Were you going to wait on it or were you going to leave it with me?" If the customer needs to be somewhere that's fairly local, you can offer a shuttle service and ask them, "Do you need a ride?" Most customers are patient and understanding AS LONG AS they know - in advance - how long the job is going to take. And are given the options for dropping it off, allowing you to shuttle them OR waiting. Even if a customer is waiting, there really shouldn't be any pressure because you already set their expectations and told them how long it was going to take. So, if someone wants to watch, that's fine.

What are you trying to find out? If you want to find out how you're doing, it's been my experience, the best way to do that is for you, as the owner, to contact your customers. I would do this by phone because it's more personal. Following up with two or three a day will paint a pretty good picture. And you can do that in a number of different ways. For example, you can randomly pick out a number of customers that just had work done. Tell them you're following up and you really want to know about their experience because you want to improve the business. People will appreciate you wanting to get their opinion of how you're doing. Just ask them for honest feedback. For example, "Did we meet your expectations?" "What could we have done better?" The other very valuable thing to do is to call customers out of the unsold estimate pile. Especially if the estimates were for safety-related items. Pick out estimates that are anywhere from 30-120 days old... Find out: Did they get the work done? If they went elsewhere, what was the reason they went somewhere else. They will tell you exactly what you need to know so you don't have to guess. In other words, this exercise will help you find out "how am I really doing out there?" Their replies will give you all the answers you need to know so you can tweak some things and get better. If there were miscommunications, just apologize and then, thank them for their honest feedback. This is not the time to get defensive or make excuses. The key is to be neutral and really listen to what they have to say.

Here's something to consider. Let's look at things from the shop's standpoint and from the customer's viewpoint. Starting with the customer's viewpoint... When you start offering coupons and discounts to customers, you're accidentally teaching them to be price-shoppers and coupon-clippers. Let me give you a quick example... Recently, we were doing an on-site evaluation for a new client. One of the things they wanted to know was: why their sales were inconsistent, up one month and down the next, like a roller coaster ride. We discovered a number of things. One thing that applies to the question about flyers and discounts was... They had developed what they thought was a great marketing strategy based on coupons and specials. However, after a few months, it was clear that these discounts had accidentally trained their customers to only come in when they had a coupon running. In fact, while we were there, a long-time customer came in and said... "I was going to get my oil changed a couple of weeks ago, but your coupon I had seen, had expired, so I went somewhere else instead. They told me I need front brakes, so I thought I would stop in and see if you have any deals for brakes." Bottom-line... Any decisions regarding pricing - or anything else for that matter - needs to be critically evaluated from "what is the message I'm sending to my customers if I take this action?" And then, of course, looking at things from the shop's viewpoint... Every time you give a discount, you're opening up your wallet and handing them your hard-earned money. Instead... you want your customers to view you as a shop they can trust to give them killer service at a fair price. Then, everybody wins.

Here's something to consider. In my humble opinion, using a blanket price matrix just doesn't make sense any way you look at it. Because there's different distributor pricing structures, in every region of the country. In addition to that, it's only a matter of time before one of your customers spills the beans that your pricing is off. Think about it... if you can call up your competition and get their pricing, so can your customers. And they are. So, here's another way to look at parts pricing: It's common knowledge that if you're buying straight from the dealer, you're not necessarily going to get the best price... unless that dealer is big into the wholesale side of it, which most aren't. So, if you're buying a lot of dealer-sourced parts, you want to look for a wholesale distributor for that brand. You want to find somebody out there who is hungry for your business. And there's plenty of companies that are hungry for your business. Here's how you do it. You call up the parts dept. And you talk to the parts manager. And find out if they can help you out. You say to them, "We're looking for a supplier. Can you help us?" See what they have to say. You need to be guiding the conversation. If they get off track and start talking about how long they've been in business and how they're a family-owned business, tell them that's great and it still boils down to: "How can you save me time?" Or "How can you make me money?" If he/she can't give you an answer, then next. The first time I learned this was when a Chevy dealer across town - 20 minutes away - approached the shop I was managing. Up until that point, we were buying dealer parts from the Chevy dealer closer to us. But we were getting creamed on price. After negotiating a deal with the one that had approached us, we ended up being able to buy parts that were priced 10-20% better than the closer dealer PLUS we got shotgun delivery service. So, not only did we get better pricing, we got better delivery. Plus they had a better inventory because they were in the wholesale game. I found out later, they made daily deliveries to shops over an hour away. So, the point is: those opportunities are out there. You may have to do some research and make some phone calls. But it's going to affect your bottom-line and pay big dividends, so it's worth it. Even if you're in the middle of a cornfield. Tires, parts, TBA distributors. Those opportunities are out there. The Mighty brake program is another example. We used to make 75% GP on brake jobs because of how we were BUYING: http://www.mightyautoparts.com/brake-pads-shoes So, if you take the time to do some research and interview these companies - in a couple months time, you'll be set up. And you'll be doing business with people that WANT your business. In addition to that... Some parts and tire companies are independently owned and even have a consignment program. For example, if you want to see if you can sell some tires, get on a consignment program. It doesn't cost you any money. Bottom-line... You make money when you buy - not when you sell. And as you said, if you're pricing yourself out of the market, it's only a matter of time, when a customer gets wise to it and the next thing you know - the whole town will know you're not competitive. There are very few shoppers these days that are not using the internet and other means to make sure they are paying a fair price for everything they buy, including auto repair. And they will not hesitate to post reviews about their experience. So, trying to make an extra few bucks on one ticket could cost you tens of thousands of dollars or more... down the road. One more point... If you're not selling a lot of dealer parts or in the rare situation where you can't get hooked up with a warehouse distributor, just set your pricing at MSRP and forget it. You're making whatever it is just to open up a box... whether it's 5-20%. Averaged out, you should still be able to hit a fair GP percentage average. The real money is in the labor and the service you're providing and the long-term relationship with your customers that view you as the trusted shop. PS When it comes to buying parts, tires, supplies, etc., there are group buy opportunities and plenty of other options we can talk about, if you want.

Jeff, what I take away from your post is a sense of confidence. And clarity about where you want to go. And HOW you're going to get there. You said "We are helping people repair and maintain their vehicles in a calm orderly fashion. We are no where near perfect yet but we see a beautiful light at the end of the tunnel." And you said, "I am learning how to manage a successful shop, my service adviser is learning how to treat customers and recommend needed services..." Change is required for things to be different. Congratulations on the shift in how you're running your business. It's great that you're already seeing results! At the rate you're going, you won't even recognize your business in the next 60-90 days! Keep up the good work!

You've gotten some great suggestions already in this thread. I've found that if you read some of the ads on http://www.indeed.com, for example, especially by the big companies, you can get some ideas for wording your ad. Use common sense. Obviously, you would not use their ad word for word, but you can use it as a template. One of the key things to put in the ad is: "You're hiring because you're growing!" Otherwise, people will be wondering in the back of their mind... "why the other guy quit." Even if that's not the case, it's more exciting - to the right person - if there is an open position "because you're growing." You can use craigslist. Depending on the area, you may get a higher caliber applicant if you go through indeed.com, monster.com careerbuilder.com. I also vote for the local VoTech and trade schools. Now, let's talk "Positioning". In other words... The ad is just part of the equation. How you interview is the other important part. Meaning... the ad is meant to get them in for the interview. What happens in the interview is critical. Some common mistakes are: trying to sell the applicant on why they should work for you. This makes you seem needy and possibly even desperate. That's going to start the relationship off on the wrong foot. What you want to do is have a list of questions that are important to you... outside of their experience and qualifications. These questions need to be delivered one at a time, in a neutral, conversational manner - not like you're a police officer, doing an interrogation. You're more like Colombo, coming from a place of curiosity. Because let's face it... you are curious about all of these things. What made them get into auto repair, to begin with? What do they like about working on cars? What don't they like about it? What was it about the ad that caught your attention? What do they like about working where they are currently working? What don't they like about working where they are currently working? Why are they looking to make a change? What are they looking for in the next place they work? What is their greatest strength? What is their greatest weakness? Why do you want to work here? What is their current pay plan? What do they like about it? What don't they like about it? What was the last training you attended? What was the biggest thing you learned that made a difference at your job? These are just some examples, but what you are looking for as you listen to the responses is: What are the reasons I SHOULDN'T hire this person? This is opposite of what bosses are usually thinking when they are looking to hire people. And it makes all the difference in the world. You would rather find out NOW, in the interview... what his/her quirks are. We all have them... it just matters if the ones he/she has are deal breakers. Plus as you're having this conversation with them, you're making them WANT to work there, as opposed to you SELLING them on working there. As much as you really, really need someone because of your new plans for 2015... you do not want the applicants to KNOW you need them. PS Only if you really like the person, do you tell them much about the job, your culture, your philosophy, how you pay, etc. Otherwise, it's pointless and a waste of everyone's time. You can say to them... "I really appreciate you coming in. I have other interviews. I'll get back to you if I want you to come in for a second interview."

Great job turning what appears at first glance to be a situation where it could seem like the customer is trying to get over on you. And understanding it as an opportunity to get a new customer. Adopting this new policy can add thousands to your bottom-line. Think about it... They're showing up at the door and you didn't have to spend hundreds of dollars in marketing to get them there. That person now views your shop as the shop that cares and is trustworthy. There's a really good chance when they need service or tires, they're going to think of you because you took care of them. And... if they're like most people... they're telling other people about how they were treated. You taking care of them is like throwing a stone in the pond. You just don't know who they know or how many people they will tell, about their experience with you and your shop.

I understand. It's frustrating trying to figure out what the solution is. The uncertainty of not knowing whether you're going to have work or not is scary to say the least. And it seems like there's lot of information out there when it comes to running a profitable auto repair business. Some of it's good. Some of it's not so good. So, it's not your fault if you've tried various things that didn't work because they make it sound so appealing. For example, you've got all the companies trying to sell you marketing gimmicks such as couponing and loss leader advertising. Discounting your services is not the way to grow your business or your paycheck. And it's easy to see the articles in the industry magazines that brag about a shop's ARO but if you look at their business model and/or their reviews.... everything is not always what it appears to be. So, focusing on the main thing which is: you're getting paid to solve problems, is the only way to go. Customer comes in for an oil change. Offer courtesy inspection. If nothing needs to be done. Thank them and tell them you'll see them at their next LOF interval. If something needs to be done... even IF it's the guy that is behind on maintenance, take the list of items discovered by your tech and PRIORITIZE the findings for the customer so that: #1, they don't feel like you are using this opportunity to take advantage of them, which is their worst fear. #2, you HELP the customer to take this short list of things that need to be taken care of and chunk it down so they can begin to bring the car back to good operating condition. If you don't prioritze the findings for the customer... they're going to be overwhelmed and confused at why they are even able to drive the car considering the long laundry list of things they were just told needs to be done. Now, using this as your basic business model does require you have processes in place. For example... you need to have your pricing set up so that you get paid for your expertise and the customer feels like they are getting a fair price. Anytime it's not a win-win... someone's going to be resentful. Shop owners have a gold mine if you're surrounded by box stores, dealerships and large chains that are doing a poor job. Your competition is your best advertisement. Because all you have to do is do just a little bit better and treat people right and you'll have bays full of PROFITABLE jobs and a booked appointment calendar. What would it be like to be able to legitimately say to anyone that calls or stops in... "Let me look at the schedule and see when I can squeeze you in." And then, tell them the first available time for their oil change is next week? That's absolutely doable... but only if your business is set up so that it's customer-based - not transaction-based. I am not talking about giving anything away here. It's the shop that's perceived as the most trust-worthy - that wins. And the way you do that is you treat your customers the same way you would if they were a good friend or family member. And treat each vehicle as if it were your own. (The question you would ask yourself... "if this were my own vehicle, how would I maintain it. How would I repair it?") It's not the shop with the biggest ARO that wins. It's the shop with the largest number of loyal customers coming week in - week out. Month in - month out. Until that becomes the focus... the struggle will continue. Think about it... you only need less than 1500 LOYAL customers spending the national average of $750 year - with YOU - to have a million dollar business. That's the number to focus on.