Joe Marconi

Help Service Advisors Sell Value and Benefits We all know that selling the benefits of a particular service is far better than selling parts and labor. But sometimes, especially when we are busy, we forget and fall back into bad habits. To help the service advisors and to add value for the customer, we have been changing all of our most common service operations (we use Mitchell1 Can Jobs) to include a note that features the benefit of the service or item we are presenting to a customer. In other words, a service advisor should not tell Mrs. Jones, “You need a tire rotation.” That does not mean much to the customer. The advisor should inform Mrs. Jones that performing periodic tire rotations will extend the life of her tires, insure that the tires wear evenly and save her the expense of buying tires prematurely. So, as a reminder we included the benefit within the service operation can job. For example: Service Op: Tire Rotation Note: Performing periodic tire rotations will extend the life of your tires; insure that the tire will wear evenly and save money by not having to buy tires prematurely. This note gets printed on the invoice and is also on the screen. It’s just a handy way for the advisor to help remember to always promote value and benefits. The customer can also read the benefits on the invoice. This can be done with virtually any service, item or repair. Remember, always sell value and benefits, not parts and ,labor.

I have been using a method very, very similiar for years, not sure where I learned it. Thanks for the tip, great information!

Every receipt must have a PO number on it. We use the job ticket number created in Mitchell. We have instructed all our vendors to not send a part unless the person calling for the part has a PO. If the part is order electronically, the PO is put on that order. We use Mitchell, In the part field, we put the vendor name and the part company ticket number. So, if you pull up a customer's invoice from 6 months ago, you know who you bought the pump from and THEIR ticket number. I think you can do this in QB too. Right? Every receipt must be signed and then marked, "OK to bill". All the receipts are then sent to the office where the office person doubles checks them (checks and balance process) before they are sperated and tracked. All reciepts are then matched against the monthly statement for accuracy. We do the same with cores and returns. There are mistakes all the time, lost recepits, etc. You need to have a tracking system or you may be losing money.

To be honest with you, if it were not for the Stockel family, I don't know if the shops in my area would be willing to even talk to Advance. There are so many good, quality people at BWP/CARQUEST that we at least owe them the opportunity to see how this developes.

Yes, I questioned the same thing, was there something that occurred with the accident that can be traced back to the engine issue? Was car driven without coolant and the owner did not realize it? Did the owner drive the car to get to a safe area and that caused the issue? Just cover all the steps before you proceed.

Say, “Thank You” As shop owners, we sometimes walk around as if the weight of the world is on our shoulders. And to be honest, for what we have to endure on a daily basis, we have every right to feel this way. But, (you knew there was going to be a “But”, right?) the people that work with you don’t know what you go through and if are looking for sympathy, you are going to be waiting for a very long time. You are the shop owner, the leader. It’s what you decided to do. And with that decision comes a great responsibility, not just to your business and family, but to the people and families of those you employ. With temperatures this past week hovering around zero, it was tough on all of us. We had an unusual amount of breakdowns and higher than normal car counts, all due to the cold. Everyone was affected by the cold and by Thursday afternoon I knew my crew was feeling the effects of Old Man Winter. But, they trudged on, working an additional hour and a half to get caught up on all the work. The next morning everyone was there by 7:15am and we all went to work, no complaints. Mechanics are a tough breed and I am proud to work side by side these guys. I ordered four large pizzas for lunch and we all had lunch together as a family. As I watched the guys poke fun at each other and laugh, I just smiled inside with pride. At the end of the week on Friday night, I assembled everyone together, looked in their eyes and simply said; “Thank you.” Don’t ever take for granted the people who work with, and never forget to say those two simple words…:Thank You….

If there is one thing I learned about business, it’s that there is never a right time or wrong time, only a well-thought out plan of action. If opening up your own shop is truly what you want to do, then put an action plan together with a timeline of goals and do it. Don’t be afraid to fail, we have all failed in the past, just ask any member of ASO. As a business owner for more than 32 years I can tell you that your mechanical skills will not be your ticket to success, your business skills will be. So get as much business training as you can and commit to a lifelong series of continuous training. And, post all your concerns and questions in ASO, we are all here to help, trust me. You have some pretty bright shop owners within these internet pages, all willing to share something with you. Good luck and just do it!

Words of wisdom!

I attended a TECH NET meeting last week, the speaker was Neil Stockel, Pres. of BWP Distributors (the CARQUEST Company we buy from in the northeast). Andy Stockel was also present. Neil Stockel spoke about the purchase of BWP Distributors by Advance Auto Parts and gave a very informative presentation on some of the reasons behind the sale and the future of the auto parts business in general. There were more than 25 shops attending and all of us left that meeting feeling differently than before the meeting. Also, we left more open to seeing how this plays out. No one from Advance Auto Parts was present at this meeting, which I feel was the right decision. There are still many questions, but at least we have a direction. It was great to see so many concerned shop owners, which tells a story within itself. These shop owners have been loyal to not just CARQUEST, but more importantly, to the Stockel family and all the fine people at BWP/CARQUEST. And I know I can speak for all when I say that we really appreciate Neil Stockel and Andy Stockel taking the time to speak to us. An important note to mention; The BWP purchase by Advance is not the entire CARQUEST Company, only one entity. CARQUEST will still be in existence and will continue to service the automotive shops, national accounts, tire stores and consumers. The next step will be to address some of the concerns independent shop have with some of the business practices Advance has promoted throughout the years, especially with their style of marketing to the retail DIY market. Loyalty to Advance from the independents will take a greater level of understanding on the part of both Advance Auto Parts and the shop owners. One thing that Neil spoke about was the big changes to our industry in the coming years and the growth of large companies with respect to distribution. One very positive thing that was brought up is that as independents we still hold the largest share of the DIFM market and our independence is our strength. Our customers trust us to make decisions concerning their cars and our customers are loyal to us because of who we are, not necessarily because of what brand part we choose to install. As more information unfolds I will give additional updates. I also look forward to sitting down with the people from Advance and breaking bread. Change is upon us and we need to remain

Too crazy for me!

Sabotage from assembly line workers is more than rumors. I don’t know if goes on today but let me tell you a story about when I worked at the Ford dealer in the 70’s. I was handed a work order on a brand new 1978 T Bird. The customer was complaining of a sound like a marble rolling around when coming to a stop or accelerating quickly. Sure enough whenever you took off fast or came to a stop there was a sound like a marble was rolling around under the seat. After a number of road tests with a helper, we determined that noise was coming from the rocker panel area just under the door on the passenger side. I removed the seat and the pulled the rug on the passenger side. There was no access to inside the rocker panel so I used my air chisel to cut open an access hole. I inserted a magnet, fished around and pulled out a ball bearing. After a half dozen more cases, we knew this was a joke by the guys on the assembly line.

I started doinng photo insurance inspections for two months now for CARCO. It gives us the chance to meet new people and showcase who we are and our shop. It's hard to tell at this point if we can convert these people to us. We have sold state inspections, oil changes and wipers on some of these cars by just letting people know that these services are due. Plus, we ask each customer if we can add them to our data base and send them promotions. Most say yes. The way I see it, anything that brings new people to your shop is a win-win. You do the man power to handle the added work, don't think you can do it yourself.

I understand. Yes, please contact an attorney ASAP!

First, we have all been down this road, so we all feel for you. Each state is different with respect to laws, storage, mechanic's lien, etc. i don't know if it was a good idea to tow the car out of your shop. It's always best to keep the car under your control, or if you own a storage yard. Having the car at your shop with authorization for repair work is different than no authorization for towing the car to another site. You need to contact legal council. Do you have an attorney? If not, are there any auto ogranizations in your area that has a lawyer on retainer. Or, call other shops to see if they know of a lawyer or other legal counsil. Don't go on what other people say, not even the police. Get legal help. You need to protect yourself at this point. You may be 100% right, but certain protocol must be followed. I hope this helps, I hate this part of the business....I have been there too many times....

So far, so good....

Any football fans want to share your predictions?

Past, Present, Future I’m pretty sure we can all agree that the last few years have been a roller coaster ride with respect to business. But, if you are reading this, you are still in business. Maybe a little battle weary, but you’re still standing. Hopefully by now you have gone thru all the numbers from last year and made your assessments on the state of your business. It’s crucial as you move forward to take a long hard look at all areas of your business and carefully calculate your cost of doing business (breakeven), all your expenses and all your key performance numbers. See where your weaknesses are and more importantly, see what brings you the greatest amount of return. After you have done this, prepare a “State of the Business Document” and share this with your employees. They don’t have to know all the little details, but they need to know how the business did and where the business is going in 2013. Also outline all the accomplishments of 2012, leaving out the negative stuff. Remember, whatever you want to see more of is the stuff you promote and concentrate on. Keep the document focused on the positive attributes of the business and outline your goals and plan for 2013. From time to time review the goals to keep everyone energized. Come up with a theme that everyone can rally around. In my shop I came up with “Lucky 13”, referring to 2013 being a great year. I walk around the shop when I see everyone working and say, “Great job, Lucky 13, this is our year!” When you believe in your goals and keep them in focus it becomes real. Lucky 13!

There are many great books on leadership, and from what I have found the great leaders share so much in common. Also, the principles can be applied to business, sports, politics and life. Although these are not specific to the auto repair business, it really does not matter in my opinion and greatly helped me. Here are a few of my favorite choices: -The 21 Irrefutable laws of Leadership; John C Maxwell (he wrote many books on leadership -Lincoln on Leadership; Donald T. Phillips -We Shall Not Fail, The Inspiring Leadership of Winston Churchill; Celia Sands & Jonathan Littman -How to win Friends & Influence People; Dale Carnegie (A must read for anyone in business) There are more books, but these are my favorites.

It might be a good idea to create a memo about the rise in social security taken out of everyone’s pay and give it to your employees. Many people may not realize what the increase is and how it will affect their take-home pay. Social security tax is now 6.2%, up from 4.2%. That means a family that earns $50,000 a year, will see an extra $1,000 deducted from their paychecks this year. That comes to an extra $40 a paycheck. Less take home pay means less money spent in the economy too, so we all need to see how this plays out for business.

We started something new at my shop about six months ago that is having an unexpected positive result. For years I have reviewed the previous week with the techs. I inform them of their productivity hours, comebacks, any commissions earned, etc. But I never really gave them a formal written report. Six months ago I created a simple report card with key performance number: Productivity hours, commissions earned, comebacks and their ranking in the shop. They get this report at the end of the month. The two numbers they focus on is the comeback number and their ranking in the shop. When they see “zero” next to the comeback line, they feel elated. We all like to know how we are doing and how we stand among our peers. By the way, this report is private. Only the tech knows his numbers and his ranking, unless he opts to share it with the other techs. Another benefit, technician comebacks have gone down to near zero. I guess when they see it in black and white and know there is a formal record, it has a bigger impact.

The storm affected different shops in different ways. Some shops lost of ton of business due to the storm destroying houses, stores and cars. Many areas were closed to any traffic. Shops that were in these neigborhoods lost a lot of work and actually could not conduct business and people were either out of work or relocated. Areas that were hit with minor damage did better. Probalbly the best case scenario is a normal winter with expected snow storms, but not those that devestate an area.

Your unique way of dealing with his behavior is a lesson for all of us. Going head to head with him would have solved nothing and if you did what he asked, it would have resulted in an even worse situation. If you think about it, you allowed him to remain in control, but ultimately you were in control, a win-win for all. Great story, great lesson.

Nice, oh the memories!

Here we are in January, and the winter in the north east, so far, has not been that bad. While most people are enjoying the mild winter, body shops and repair shops would prefer a more normal winter. It’s not that we want to wish the motor public bad things, but we could use a boost in business at this point.