Marketing for the New Millennium

“If it worked yesterday it should work tomorrow, right?”

If there is one thing that we do know, it’s that just because it worked yesterday doesn’t mean it will work tomorrow.  So with so many mediums to choose from; Internet, Direct Mail, TV, Radio, Reputational, Phone, Text….well the list goes on and on, how do you choose? 

The choice sometimes boils down to simple basics, the area demographics, but most often it is not that simple.  To help you in your choice of marketing we sometimes suggest to our clients that they ask their customers what they look for when they get mail, watch TV, are on-line and such.  What gets their attention?  Remember, you are NOT your customer, so writing or designing something that you would look at may or may not be something that would or could get the attention of your actual customers!  Then write or design your marketing program for the masses which means maybe asking a large segment of your clients these questions.

“What is the most effective form of marketing?”  There is no one answer to that question because again, demographics sometimes dictate what works better and since everyone’s demographics defer greatly anyone claiming to have that answer is probably simply telling you what you want to hear to sell you their specific product.  The best idea we have is to “try” different forms of marketing until you hit on one that works and then stick with it UNTIL it stops.  And by “try” we mean put the effort AND time into what is required to see results.  All too often we see our clients give up before they have really given that specific type enough time to work.  There are some older statistics out there that still seem to be thought of as working today, the best of which is that it takes 9 forms of contact to get a potential customer to notice you.  The bad news, they only actually see 1 of every 3 that is sent.  So, rough numbers, that is 27 forms of contact before you are noticed sufficiently that they would consider using you the next time they need you.  And for our industry as is with most, the last 5 words in the last sentence are key elements in this battle we call marketing.  Not everyone who finally notices you may need you today and this is why we say you have to give each form a fair chance to work because it could be 90-120 days before they even need their next oil change!  Pulling an ad early may simply mean that when they do need you, you’ve already moved on to the next program which may NOT be the reason they came in.  Marketing requires 90—120 days to see if it is going to work!!

Looking into all the forms of marketing that are out there could become a lifelong adventure if you don’t narrow them down to a handful to try and then move on if those aren’t effective.  The current groups of marketing programs that we are currently seeing working are; Internet, but that must be tied into a good website, reputational, and direct mail.  Although some are older forms that you may have used in the past that stopped working (direct mail), currently this medium has become one of the strongest again when done properly.  You also MUST have a great website to drive your potential and current customers too, something that showcases who you are and how you do business.  Then you must have good SEO (search engine optimization) and SEM (search engine marketing) tied into your website for it to be truly effective.  One little thing about websites before we leave this, It is NOT all about how your site looks as much as how it works.  We see far too many clients working on making their sites look great and from what we’ve seen and learned over the last 3 years (really working extensively with website experts), looks are a very small part of actual function.  So chose a good site builder based on how the sites work, not look!  And finally, having a strong Internet presence through reputational marketing as well as the ability to market to your customers through the Internet are a few of the remaining key elements to a successful marketing program. 

A couple of final thoughts regarding pulling your marketing together and attracting more of the business you want.  First of all, we can’t underscore the importance of doing your homework enough BEFORE spending money on marketing!  By this we mean, look at the demographics of the customers you should be trying to attract as NOT everyone is your customer.  There is a large segment of people in every city or every State that are simply looking for “a deal” or “for free” and typically those aren’t who you want as a customer.  So look into a company that can do the demographics of the area that will allow you to pinpoint your customer zip codes and market there.  Next and equally important, remember that when you get that great website, EVERY form of marketing you use from that point forward should include a statement or link that says, see our website for our latest Promotions, Coupons or Incentives.  Drive every customer to what should be your business showcase. This will do a of couple things; show the customer who we are and what we look like.  But equally importantly, the more times a customer visits our site the more hits Google, Yahoo, Bing and others see that your site has been viewed.  and that helps move your rankings with them up when it comes to their maps and organic positioning.

Our suggestion for locating the right companies to align yourself with regarding the above mentioned ideas; seek other industry professionals and ask them about their experiences with the companies they use.  Look for statements like, “they are always receptive to my needs” and “they seem to take whatever time is needed to help me with any questions”.  Be very diligent in asking about the help after the final initial payment was made, how they are with support now that you’re just on their monthly maintenance fees, and did you see any difference in business after you started working with the company.  Many companies offer specific phone numbers that roll into your normal numbers but allow you to actually track their marketing performance throughout the time you are working together which is great way to monitor actual results.  But make sure that you scrutinize these types of reports though as they may also include the calls that are either existing customers or telemarketers calling on any new phone numbers out there.

If you would like more information regarding marketing in the new millennium, contact ESi about our Mega Marketing Symposium coming in June.  We’ll be joined for a full weekend of educational information by some of the country’s best marketing companies.  All have different products and marketing directions so you won’t be seeing the same thing from each which should lead to one of the best education experiences of your professional lives.

What makes one owner successful, while another struggles?

WOW…….we just returned from a month of trade shows all over the country. And after having spoken to hundreds of shop owners in the last 30 days and heard a variety of concerns and opinions about their business. Trying to evaluate all the information, we started looking at what makes one owner successful, while another struggles. Taking that thought process a step further we looked at establishing a categorization process for Shop Owners. The following is a summarization as to the five categories we isolated “today’s” shop owners into;

 Inspired: I’m not satisfied These owners are motivated and looking to the future as evident by their questions and comments throughout the show. They understand their business and keep a close watch on the numbers, and as soon as a number or trend changes they isolate why and are making adjustments immediately. These owners understand what the history of the business means and use it to influence the future and as a net result we see them working on the business, not in the business more frequently. They constantly look for new trends, make adjustments to the business, and then watch for effectiveness. These business owners are involved in the community, have a large presence on social media sites and use networking to its fullest potential. We also found that they have a staff that they trust to provide great customer service, make the business grow and of course make a profit. By and large they are not micro managers, but instead are leaders, accomplishing the business goals through others. These owners dream big, think big and make things happen! They are not just working on today, but have ideas and plans for next month, next quarter, next year and far into the future. These owners understand the value of not trying to do everything themselves, and as such hire professionals to help them take the business to the next level. These owners are always seeking knowledge. In other words they (the Inspired Owners) are engaged and present, mentally & physically. The inspired owners do the hard stuff.  

Complacent: Things are OK These owners are in the Status quo mindset. They may not be satisfied with where they or their business is at, but can’t seem to make the changes needed to change. A success to this owner is the business that does not go backwards. No change in any direction is good, because they have achieved a level of comfort. They’re paying the bills and not much more. Any problems, a bad month, equipment failure, or an increase in any expense creates a huge cash flow issue. They have a tendency to be very proactive in staying up on the technical side of the business, but not the management / ownership side of the business. Even if they attend business training they may not take anything from the training or they may feel they don’t need to change. The problem with the complacent owner is the world is changing quickly and they are not able to change with it. In many cases they go to training just to look progressive while not really wanting to change anything. They are not motivated to make changes and will generally only do the easy things.  

Oblivious: What? The world has passed this owner by! They are so busy fixing cars that they have forgotten or are in denial about the changing world. The idea that’s someone can help them, both with internal and external help, is very foreign to them. They are the ultimate doers; “if they don’t do it then it doesn’t get done.” This owner may attend classes and read the trade magazines, but cannot conceive that the class or magazine is about them, and that they should try new ideas, process or procedures. These owners and managers are the ones that say “that won’t work for me in this area, or with my customers, or in my state.” The oblivious business owner is focused on themselves, sometimes running around in circles and complaining about all they have to do and how there’s no time, almost always with no tangible results. Because they don’t realize how deep the rut is they’re in, they think “I’m OK.” Until, the rut becomes a grave, and only then, do they stop being an oblivious owner and become a Stuck or Desperate owner.  

Stuck: No way out! These owners have been on the business merry- go- round for so long, they no longer get dizzy. They want to change, but never do, even when knowing there is better and different ways to do things, change simply scares them. They don’t see any benefit in spending money to improve the business. They spend a lot of time worrying about how change will affect their life, both personal and professional and may even know that if they don’t change, they may not have a business in the future. Because he/she won’t change, they are always fighting cash flow issues. These owners have employees they should fire, but they justify keeping them by making excuses like “they are OK and I might get someone worse,” “he has some good qualities,” “he’s my friend, or I just can’t fire him.” The business looks like it did 20 years ago because they are still doing business the same way. 

  Desperate: Survival This owner is robbing Peter to pay Paul. Thinking only about today or in some cases tomorrow. They hope nothing happens, breaks or a problem arises, because that will be the straw to breaks their back. They rush each customers check to the bank, so the check they wrote this morning for the parts won’t bounce and their employees are rushing to the bank to get their check cashed first. They may realize that they need help, but because they’ve waiting so long cannot afford even the most basic training. We generally see that not only is their business in trouble, but in many cases they are behind in all of their personal finances as well. They are so concerned with making money that customer service has all but disappeared. Money is the only thing they focus on and their customers see that. Once this happens, the shops reputation drops fast, they lose customer base, and can no longer afford any new marketing, repeating the cycle again! Where are you, and did you see yourself in any of these scenarios or categories? Remember that you must first identify where you are before you can start working to make a difference in your life and business. Start by addressing any of your personal issues as this will almost always help with business issues. Then work on specific business issues and focus your efforts on moving up the list to becoming an Inspired Owner. It will require refocused effort, energy and a willingness to do the hard stuff. Remember the definition of insanity is: Doing the same things over and over, and expecting different results. Time to get off the treadmill and hit the open road. Make the needed changes and grow yourself and your business. 

ESi is training and coaching / consulting company that can help you rise to the top. Through personal attention and service, recorded training session and a track record of improving business all over the Untied States, please call if you would like to discuss your situation. www.esiseminars.com, maylan@esiseminars.com 866-526-3039

Confident Selling and You; - Do You Believe?

When I first started selling automotive service I was always puzzled by why some customers bought and others did not. At first I thought it was that they did not need what I was selling, but the more I became a student of my position I realized that everyone who I came in contact with needed what I was selling; their car fixed. They did not get up in the morning and say “I have nothing better to do today so I’m going to take my car to the repair shop!” So when I came to realize that I was doing something to create the “no sale” customer, I started to analyze each and every sale, both yes and no. I spent a great deal of time learning about sales and the psychology of selling. Very soon it became clear to me where the issue was... it was ME! This was a harsh reality and it was darn hard to accept, but true.

I had lost slam dunk sales... they never said no till today. I made sales that I would have never have thought possible. Why? Because of my level of confidence, in myself, my product and my business.

To sell, and sell at a high level you must believe in yourself. Your confidence in the presentation of your services has a greater effect on your success rate than anything else you do! Your sales skill depends on your level of confidence. This type of confidence cannot be faked, you either believe or not, there is no in between!

So how do you gain this level of confidence and even more importantly, how do you keep this confidence? First realize that most of us did not set out to be service advisors, it was a twist of fate that put us in that position. Some of us became a Service Advisor because we were brilliant or stupid and accepted the challenge and some by default because no one else would do the job. But for whatever reason we started doing a job we had not been trained to do. Learning on the job can be a brutal teacher. Really how many times do you have to be told NO, our you’re too expensive, or you’re a crook, before you start believing it? So, most of us bring self doubt to the job, created by our upbringing or other influences we’ve had.

Now, let’s get started on building and keeping our confidence!
First and foremost, everyone lacks self confidence at some time and we need to be constantly working on improving and maintaining it. I use my morning ritual to maintain my confidence. Each day, wherever I am I start the morning out by having a good talk with myself, and yes, I said I talk to myself. I have a mini seminar, out loud, to bring the entire positive to the front of my mind. I don’t dwell on any negative(s), only the positive(s). I remind myself that I’m a great person, I’m exceptional at my job, I have an amazing family and Ii work with the best people in the world….and yes, .that’s you! So let’s start with 10 steps to build and maintain your self confidence

Believe in yourself unconditionally - you can do anything you really want to do. The key is to really want to succeed. Strive to be the very best at what you do, every day and you will reach levels you never thought possible.

Believe in what you are selling - What do you really sell? Brake pads? Alternators? Oil services? Timing belts? NO you do not sell parts or customer service or labor. In fact I believe the biggest issue we have today is that to many of you still think you are selling automotive repair, those days are long gone! Our product these days is psychological; we sell peace of mind, reliable transportation, dependability, safety and yes confidence in their transportation. If you’re just fixing the broken parts, you’re not fixing the customers real needs.

Expect to make the sale! – Ever write an estimate, look at the total and say... WOW that’s a lot of money! In reality you just helped the customer say NO to you. This type of thought process actually means you’re expecting the “NO” and the objection that generally follows. Any time you ask for the sale or even the appointment you must, with every part of your being, be expecting a YES. This one process will close more sales and appointments than anything else. I answer the phone expecting the appointment, every time. I call a customer expecting the sales, the whole sale, every time, no exceptions. The only question I should ever have when calling a customers is, how soon I can get it done. No, Ii don’t get a 100% close rate, but I will always do better than someone who calls the customer hoping for some of the sale.

See yourself closing the sale - you have to visualize success. Pro athletes play the game in their mind and see themselves winning. Why? Because if you see success you will achieve it more often. This is a must do if you want to achieve a higher level of success.

An attitude of servitude - become other peoples focus. Be helpful – put others needs before yours. Do things for the right reasons, and NEVER put money, the dollars you will be paid for the services provided, before the customer’s needs and satisfaction. A satisfied customer will spend more money easier than a first time customer who just got their car fixed. Service is the key; show consideration and patience and be empathetic. Remember that empathy can make you money while sympathy will cost you money. Be kind and courtesy to everyone, even the people that make your life difficult (I know that all of you just had a certain customer pop into you head) for it is those people who sometimes become our best customers!

Start liking yourself - the more you believe and like yourself the better confidence level you will have. Most of us have some form of “baggage” in our personal backpacks, things we have carried deep in our minds from long ago. This baggage is what is holding you back, get rid of it. This psychological weight is preventing you from reaching success. Figure out what is making you think less of yourself and get rid of it. Maybe it was a teacher, parent, sibling or a friend saying you’ll never be good at anything, calling you dumb or just saying negative things to you for a long period of time. These people obviously never saw your potential, so why give them the right to get inside your head and hold you back? Cast them off and become your best friend! Listen to only the positive people in your life, and know that you should be one of the strongest positive people in your life. Get up every morning, look into the mirror and talk positively to yourself, never allow negativity into this process, not from yourself or anyone around you!

Desire to create good things for others – whether you believe it or not, you have a huge influence on others attitudes and moods around you whether they be family, friends, employees, vendors. Think about the number of people you come in contact with each and every day and set out each day to enrich their livers and you will receive a bigger return in your life. Set out each day to improve yourself, for me, it’s that I strive to learn something new each and every day.
Look at each Issue (problem) as an opportunity – Each issue is a challenge, make every challenge an opportunity to improve your life. Take each “NO” and analyze it to make you a better service advisor. Ask yourself, what could I have done differently, what questions should I have ask, and could I have changed my response to the objection and ended up with a better outcome? In other words, review the film; look at each sale as an opportunity to do things differently. Learn from every sale, what worked, what didn’t? To be the best you have to be willing to change and improve yourself.

Have a plan - work the plan - Systems and process in the shop are what makes sales happen. Every one doing the sales process and following the same procedures will allow you to have confidence in what you are selling. Make sure you fully understand the technician’s request. Ask questions. You do not need to know how to repair cars to be a great service advisor; however you need to have an understanding of what you are selling and why. This information needs to be supplied by the technician. The systems and process will help you build a level of confidence in the information given to you. Have a plan – and stick to it!

Always be passionate about what you do! – be excited about the job, the interactions and remember that you are helping people achieve success. The energy that your passion fuels is contagious. Energy and passion can overcome a flawed plan, but a perfect plan with no passion will fail faster. Having passion is the fuel for a positive and successful life, in what ever you do!

Confidence comes from within... I cannot give it to you. Believe in yourself and others will believe in you! During this last year I have had many people write me and comment on a seminar that they attended. The most common comment is that the seminar renewed a confidence and passion in them that had been slowly disappearing. Please spend some time talking to yourself and rekindle the confidence and passion in yourself.

Succession Planning

This month we are going to task about something that makes most of us very uncomfortable… What happens to our business when something bad happens? Anytime we bring this subject up most people tune us out, because we have never given any thought to the idea that we may not going to be in business tomorrow. Part of what makes us Automotive Business owners is the personality type that we are invincible. Succession planning is something we all need to have discussed, and have a plan in place; otherwise we can burden the business and our family with debt, uncertainty and fear.

What is succession planning? The dictionary defines succession as; “the act or process of following in order or sequence.” In most cases small business owners are so concerned and involved with running the business they never get to plan for the future. In our opinion succession planning needs to be a high priority, because without a succession plan the future of the business is not defined. What areas does the succession plan help us in?
• Preparing for loss of leadership.
• Responsible planning for the future.
• Leadership development of the younger generation.
• Smooth transition of control

In most cases we have not planned the future of our business; In fact we don’t give a thought to our exit plan. We work very hard for 20 or 30 years and then in the last year or two of our careers we decide what to do with the business. We have never spoken to our family (spouse, children) about what happens to the business when we retire or if we have illness or death. We need to have a succession plan for these reasons;
• Planning the future direction of the business.
• Provide a training plan for future leaders.
• Ensure business continuity.
• Reduce tax liability.
• Provide peace of mine for your family and employees.
• Security for your family.

The facts are… we as an industry are aging and have not realized it. Consider this; the average shop owner is 53 years old, and has been in business an average of 28 years. We have spent no time planning for the future and some cases we are in poor health. Long days, short nights, high stress levels and poor eating habits have made us the poster children for heart disease and strokes. And because we live and breathe only our business, we have spent zero time planning for the future; in fact we don’t plan next week much less twenty years into the future. Our biggest potential failure is that we keep all of the business information in our head, and when this happens, if we can’t function, the business can’t function.

Some interesting facts about family small businesses…
Only 30% of family businesses survive to the second generation, and of this 30%, only half make it to the third generation.
A lot of small business owners think the sale of their business will finance their business retirement, but in most cases the business has not been staffed or structured correctly to allow for a profitable sale. One thing to keep in mind is that if you are the main point of contact to the customer and you go to sell your business, it could bring half of what it is worth. If you have a team in place and they are the main point of contact your business is more valuable. Part of a good succession plan is an exit strategy for you that is planned and not based on a major negative event.

How do I start this succession plan? As we have talked about in other seminars and articles you need a Team of professional to provide guidance in many areas. We feel we need to have a relationship with these professionals.
Accountant
Attorney (a business attorney and a succession planning attorney)
Financial Advisor
Insurance expert
Business Coach / Consultant
Now, when I talk about a relationship with these professionals, I mean we want them to be familiar with you and your business. It’s never a good idea to wait until you need one of these professionals to hire them. Interview for these positions until you find someone you’re comfortable with, and then check their references until you find the right fit for you. Once you have your professionals located, put them on retainer, or build a working relationship, so that they can jump into action as/if needed.

After you have your professionals in place, the next step is to review and assess your current employees. Identify the strengths and weakness of each employee, and understand that not every weakness means they shouldn’t be there! . Ultimately, the end result is that you are looking do develop the Team so that we feel comfortable leaving our business. If you do not have the crew now, this needs to become a priority! Once the Team is in place we need to develop processes and procedures for the day-to-day shop operations.

We need to have enough processes and procedures that will allow the Team to run the business profitably, and without you! We have seen many shops struggle to survive because the shop could not function with the owner sick or worse, out of the picture all together. Your also business needs an operational manual, a step by step manual of how to perform each job in the business. Now do we need to spell out what direction the toilet paper should roll out in this manual, well maybe, that depends on the quality of the employees you have!

Having regular meetings with your staff is an important step to having a Team that has the knowledge to make sure the business survives. These meeting should include such things as an overview of what is currently happening within the business, where the facility is on the company goals, etc. Some of these meeting should also be used to develop an emergency operation plan as well as “what if” contingencies.

Next we need to developed leadership in our employees. You want a group of decision makers as employees, not followers, and then you need to empower them to make decisions. What is empowering your employees? Simply allowing your employees to make decisions based on their experience, AND the policies & procedures for your facility. Empowering your employees also means that you aren’t micro-managing them, which in theory means you have more time for working in instead of on your business.

We also need to cross train all of the employees to be able to cover all positions in the company, even if only basically and temporarily. Remember that cross training should make your life easier in the long run as it allows you to fill a temporary position from within.

What else should you do? Get all you legal issues handled. These should include but are certainly not limited to, a properly set up, living will or trust that is set up and funded correctly. Then there is the insurance required, be sure you and the agent of your choice have your insurance coverage set up correctly, and you have all the coverage you need! Failure to have the right insurance will cost you more in the long run in most cases than you’ll save going with the least expensive insurance.

You also need to have a date for you to exit the business. Don’t get mad, you don’t have to leave, just have a plan in place so your business is ready for you to leave. There are four basic ideas for an exit plan;
• Retain ownership and manage control
• Retain ownership, but not manage control
• Sell it and hope for the best. Most repair shops are sold and the seller carries at least part of the loan. In many cases they end up with the shop back in 3 to 5 years.
• Close the shop

By being prepared, empowering your employees, making sure your business is covered, and plan on selling will protect not only your investment, but also help protect your family and the businesses extended family!

Succession Planning is available as a recorded Webinar on our web site www.esiseminars.com. We have 17 1 hour long Webinars that cover all aspects of repair shop management available. Many of the Webinars come with other resources such as spreadsheets and sample documents to help you improve your business and profitability of your shop. If you have any questions or would like to discuss your succession plan with us please send an e mail to Maylan@esiseminars.com and we’ll schedule a phone conference.

Look at Your Business Through Critical Eyes

Last issue, we discussed long-term problems that are occurring on both sides of the automobile. These include customer apathy, the higher complexity and lower service requirements of today’s cars, and the fact that cars, customers, and employees have changed, but too many repair shop owners and managers have not.
So, how do you fix the business? It starts with you! Look at your business through critical eyes. Better yet, hire someone to be very honest with you about it all! Grow in knowledge with fresh ideas and a strong will to try new things. Read books and take classes at the local adult school or community college. Attend the local chamber of commerce and service clubs, find someone successful, and pick their brain.
Clean out the attic in your brain and accept new and different thoughts. Look at your business differently, advertise, join community events, and make your business the automotive hot spot! Solve problems for customers, educate them, and establish your business as the authority on car repair. Very important: become a leader of your business and lead by example.
Write down your vision of where your business should be one year from now; five years; 10 years, and include an exit plan. Describe what the perfect staff is. Decide your goals for the year (and make them ones that are reachable… challenging, but reachable). Determine yearly, monthly, and daily sales goals, monthly car count, average repair order goals, and gross profit goals. Your true aim should be handling fewer cars at a higher average ticket. Determine what needs to change to reach these plans. Do you have the correct staff, and in the correct positions? Do you have the correct customers? (That is a tough one because of our personal attachment with some, but it must be done and without emotion.)
Financial foundation: Understand what the important numbers are in your business. Confirm that your hourly rate is correct for your overhead. Measure everything. Think of the numbers as the score of the game of business (you must keep score to know who’s winning). Confirm that you have the information to make good decisions. Update your technology to manage your business; embrace the management software that allows you to manage your business with the least amount of time invested.
Employees: Establish goals for every position. For the service advisor, that means daily sales goals, gross profit goals, and average repair order goals. For techs, production goals and hours billed to the customers. Develop job descriptions for each position - even for owner - and share your expectations with each employee, including full-shop goals. Educate your employees about the business; share some of the numbers and make sure they understand why you need the goals met. Each position should have a minimum number of training hours per quarter (if you’re not learning, you’re going backwards!).
Marketing: Market in three phases, including for service reminders and recommended work, to keep your name in front of current customers, and to attract new customers (customers leave for lots of reasons, so the task of attracting new customers must be forever ongoing).

Customers: Study the demographics of your customer. Can you upgrade - newer cars, higher average income, etc.? Determine what your customer really wants from you. Remember that true customer service is not what you think is needed, but rather what the customer desires.
Win your battle through change - it’s the only way, but will keep you motivated! Act like it’s your first day in business. Many businesses failed to evolve through change and are gone forever. Good luck

How to get away

For too many business owners today, the idea of jumping ship and heading out the door for a week’s vacation is unheard of. After all, there’s a business to run and that’s already a full-time job and a half! Somebody’s got to make sure the cars go out, the money comes in, the bills get paid, and the uniform man gets handled along with the plumber, the oil distributor, and the tool guy, too! So, how can it be possible to drop everything and take some time off?

Let’s take a peek at your true circumstance and make some evaluations. Do you wish you could take more serious time off? Can you trust your employees to do the job you need done? Do they work well together and with customers? Are they dependable and loyal? Are they self motivated and do they work through directives and tasks executed through the strategies of a self-directed team?

For owners with shops operating through a self-directed team, taking time off on a moment’s notice is a reality enjoyed more often than you’d think. For those driven to bless every move made in your business every day, however, here’s the good news and bad: The good news is that, sure enough, with you at the helm, business stands a good chance of moving right along the way you’d like. The bad news is that, in your zeal to master it all yourself, you’ve exchanged that victory for the chance to bask in the sun with the special people in your life - the personal time so desperately important in maintaining a healthy attitude today.

Is the idea of taking time off for a personal life truly unrealistic? Here it is in a nutshell: Self-directed team operations can be as much a reality in your shop as they are in shops just like yours. Your business is not unique - neither are your circumstances with it, problems and all. The difference is that others have taken the time to make the conversion that you haven’t. Maybe it’s time you did.

Consider transferring your responsibilities as a self-driven business operator to a strong self-directed team instead. Act on the following:
1) Most employees, even those who enjoy working independently, want to believe that they are part of a team working toward common goals. They need reassurance that they are valued members of a team.
2) Employees want to feel you are thinking of their welfare. They want to know you care about what’s going on in your own business, right along with what’s going on in their personal and professional lives. You must acknowledge the positive with as much zeal as you notice the negative in employees’ contributions.
3) Team members want to feel employers listen to them. They like being a part of your business and feel ignored when you don’t listen to and act on their recommendations. Poor communication is the number one problem in employee / employer relationships. Employees are the biggest part of your business and it’s wise to listen to what your business is saying.
4) Team members want to feel special, not easily replaceable. They each want to feel like they are your best choice for what they do for you, and that takes complimenting their performance often and sincerely.
5) Team members want to be informed about your business. Inadequate or lack of communication about business expectations affects productivity too greatly to not inform employees about what’s going on.
6) Team members want to work for an employer who works efficiently and confidently. The character and performance employers display either inspire the actions of employees or discourage them. As team members experience the positive in you, they will easier take the action needed to be successful inside of business goals.

Although there is a continuous process of refining team strategies and performance to gain what the business needs, to seriously consider the reality of a self-directed team in operation is my biggest recommendation to increase odds to succeed.

Time Management and Productivity

A simple improvement in daily productivity can result in a substantial increase over the course of a month. Let’s do the math based on 3 technicians working 8 hours a day. Your inventory labor is 24 hours of billable time each day and, in a perfect world, the shop will bill 24 hours. The question is, “How many perfect days do any of us ever really have?” We average about 72% productivity across the nation, which an 8-hour day tabs out to billing only 5.75 hours! If you are within the average 72% productive, billing 5.75 hours per day, per tech, strategies for improvement could start with increasing productivity to just 80%. You’d bill an additional .65 hours per day and, multiplied by 3 technicians, that totals an added 1.95 hours per day. In an average month of 21 working days, this is an additional 40.95 billable hours, an increase that many would consider substantial. Remember that this simple improvement represents only slightly more than one half hour per day!

Low productivity happens, but why? It’s always easiest to blame the techs, but several factors contribute.

Battling strategies between technical and sales staff created by inadequate skills: An example would be a service writer who does not agree with the charges and timeframes the technician has recommended. The service writer ignores the proper resale rules and adjusts the charges to the customer, selling the job for less. This heavily impacts productivity. On the flip side, regardless of skillful sales management, inability in technicians to perform the work properly will always impact productivity, too. Insufficient space to handle the car count: Too few work bays, too many work bays inside of too little space, poor work space layout, poor access to equipment - all of these impact your time management. Very often, we choose to work with familiar struggle rather than endure change and make it right. So, what are the psychological working conditions in the business? Is that environment stressed with problems?

Insufficient time available for the service advisor to properly write the estimates: This may or may not be an “understaffed” problem. Sometimes, adjusting the work responsibility will free up more time for better estimate preparation. There is a certain percentage of service advisors, however, that start fires when none are currently burning to help substantiate their participation at work (putting out fires is work) as they avoid the “dreaded estimate write up.”

The service advisor lacks adequate time to properly present the estimate to the customer: Proper presentation must include a description of goals and strategies for repairing the vehicle to show value for the money you’ll be asking the customer to spend. Just because the service advisor finds time to close the sale does not mean that a “good sale” has been closed. Making a sale simply confirms that a transaction will take place; making a good sale rewards both business and customer by satisfying all expectations.

Lack of adequate car count: Correcting this problem needs to include reviewing the success rate of your advertising and contact strategies; the ratios in curiosity calls versus calls converted to appointments, and the ratios of appointments honored versus “no shows.” Tracking these will help decide if low car count can be due to poor phone skills or poor advertising; maybe both are culprit.

Too many cars (yes, it happens): Too many cars but low productivity can equal the service writer needing to qualify the customers better. Failing to thoroughly inspect every car for needed work is another contribution to low productivity. Consider this: you’ve spent a ton of money advertising to get the car in there; you’ve spent a healthy sum on training and continue to invest in motivation and knowledge for your employees to bring that customer in and make good sales; you plan your future according to prospects that are based on customers’ needs… why would you not take full advantage of reaping full benefit from the opportunity you have when the car finally comes in?