Growing up in a European Car Repair Shop allowed me to sell automotive service at aboutseven. When I was 5 I spent my days riding my skateboard through my dad's car repair and car sales lot. As I grew older I graduated to answering the phone when no one was in the service office. It was at about 8 that I started selling car repairs and service.
The first question is, how could a child be an automotive service advisor? In reality it was very easy. The customers trusted my fathers reputation. Each customers vehicle was checked over meticulously. The shop kept a small note card for each customer. The technicians would add recommendations to the card and cross them off when they were completed. All I did was walk into the shop and ask: What does the car need? I would relay the message and the customer would give the OK.
This was the 80's and car service departments were completely different. Today it is harder to communicate our companies values without a strong marketing engine behind us. My families car repair business is thriving today for many reasons. A strong brand image and presenting everything a car needs is the success story. Presenting and informing is different than selling. Informed customers have the information to make decisions When your company creates a reason for the customer to trust you it becomes a win win.
Business is about optimizing processes and enhancing the trust and value proposition. Empowering employees, or little boy's, to trust in the tool set you give them creates an overwhelming likelihood for success. What is your shop doing to make it easy for a customer to trust you?
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Disclosure and Transparency
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Strong Reviews & Referrals
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Present In Your Community
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Present On The Web & In Social Media
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A Focus On Preventive Services
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Consistent Communication
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Meet Your Customers' Needs
Today we have many tools to help us with labor operations and estimating. We also have service guides for determining routine service intervals. Software is available to pre-build these services and repairs into labor op's and part kit's. In order to be successful at the in our car service department we must deliver all of these in a consistent and relevant manner. The key is to tie value, service, convenience and trust into everything we do.
When a customer asks, Do I really need it? Your service staff needs the tools and resources to offer the customer information. With information the customer can make a decision. There is no definitive data but odds are: If you cultivate a customer base of informed car owners your bays will always be full of profitable recurring maintenance.
It does not take a seven year old to figure out how to sell car service. It takes one to not know how to sell. Give your service department the tools and processes to be successful. Schedule a time to meet with Adam Kushner below.
