Invest in Your Shop’s Future: Positive First Impressions Will Heighten The Customer ‘Experience’
Fluctuations in the economy are nothing new. There will always be challenges associated with running an automotive repair facility efficiently and effectively, while still delivering top-notch customer service. But, here’s what we’re all missing: You can’t scale back too much and put shop renovations on the back burner.
Gross & Stevens: Putting Customers First In A High-Tech World
In a day and age where Internet presence is often expected, Gross & Stevens, a preeminent brake and wheel service repair shop in Visalia, CA, is bucking the trend and focusing on something else: good, old-fashioned customer service.
Case Study: Buying And Selling An Automotive Service Business
Jim Torres had owned a prominent auto service center in North Providence, RI, since 1983. Although still in good health and wanting to remain active in the automotive aftermarket in some capacity, he sought retirement from the daily grind of owning and operating a business.
Employer Compliance: EEOC Addresses Six Priority Areas Of Claims Enforcement
With a record number of discrimination/retaliation claims filed by workers with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) in 2010 and 2011, the EEOC received almost 100,000 in 2012. In December of 2012, the EEOC laid out the details of its Strategic Enforcement Plan for fiscal years 2013-’16 and identified six “national priorities” that focus enforcement efforts in the three general areas of hiring, pay and harassment.
Executive Interview: Bob Pattengale, National Training Manager of Bosch North America, Robert Bosch LLC
Bob Pattengale has more than 30 years of automotive experience with stops at OE dealerships, independent repair shops, technician training and equipment sales.
Tap, Snap And Talk: The Electronic Inspection Sheet
Traditionally, auto technicians record the results of their vehicle inspections on pre-printed paper forms and, once completed, the inspection findings are re-entered into the shop management software application by a service advisor. And, finally, the motorist is notified by phone to ask them for authorization of an estimate based on the inspection results.
European Auto Tech Turns A Supplier Benefit Into An Effective Customer Loyalty Tool
Repairing today’s sophisticated cars can be expensive. John Ranney, owner of European Auto Tech, a seven-bay automotive repair garage in Tucson, AZ, understands that. Located near the University of Arizona, he sees how financial pressures affect his business and his customers, many of whom are students and their parents.
Knowing Your Numbers Helps Boost Shop Profitability
Over the last 22 years, I’ve been amazed to discover just how many shop owners are lost when it comes to knowing and understanding “the numbers.” In order to build a successful auto repair shop, you are going to need to know two sets of numbers: your “financial” benchmarks, and your “operational” benchmarks.
