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    • Interesting point. Your business model relied on this strategy. For many long-established business, retention through delivering a great customer experience is also a solid strategy. For many business models, it's more cost effective to retain customers. However, every business needs an infusion of new customers too. 
    • I've said it before and I say it again, we use our Google PPC advertising radius to "throttle our business."  Normally, we would be listed at the top of a Google search within a 5-mile radius of the shop.  If it got slow, I would increase the size of the radius.  If we got slammed, I would even pause our Google PPC ads altogether.  If it got slow, I would increase the size of the radius.  The largest I've ever gone with our Google PPC program is a 100-mile radius. I know beyond a shadow of a doubt, the Google PPC program works for a transmission repair shop.  That's because, in our line of work, it is transactional-based.  How it would work for other automotive businesses, where it's usually relationship-based, I can't say for sure. If anybody wants to know that this works, make sure you get hooked up with a call-tracking company and use call tracking where you know, beyond a shadow of a doubt, it's either working or not working.  This is true with any type of advertising.  Each lead source has a different tracking number.  Otherwise, every phone call is just that, another phone call.  You have no way of knowing the source of that sales lead.  Without call-tracking being a part of any advertising campaign, advertising is just another bill you'd rather do without.
    • Sometimes perception turns into reality. I have seen this all too often, "Feb is always slow, there is nothing we can do." Just by thinking this, it become the reality. A key thing you did was to be proactive, not giving in to the mindset that Feb stinks. Great job! When I was in business, we had a plan starting in Sept to flood Jan, Feb and Mar with Service reminders, backed up with reminder phone calls. Again, be proactive, not sit on your hands!  
    • Good morning.  February was a record month.  The Service writer kept saying February stinks, had to eat his words.  March we are full for the day and after, but don't have the long term waiting appointments.  Still a good month.  We send out rebate letters in 3 mailings Feb, Mar and April.  That helps us ins the winter months easing into summer .  
    • Yes!  I would shut the business down for 4 days and take my entire crew for them to learn not only technical stuff but also learn about business.  It was a great time for everybody.  Most years the trade show would take place in Vegas, but one year it was in Orlando, Florida, and another time it was in Washington D.C. All in all, we had a good time.  Airfares I covered, I would also cover the hotel and the rental car. We would not cover a rental car in Vegas, I just sprang for the gas down there and back. Speaking of business, one of the best business experiences I've had the pleasure of attending was The Great Game of Business by Jack Stack.   The only training was how to read a P&L, and balance sheet, and forecast a budget.  Look them up online with the link below...  
    • That is a good topic starter.  I have been doing what some may think of as dynamic, or surge pricing, but I never did it regularly.  However, I see nothing against it. We (I) used dynamic pricing only to cull jobs I didn't want such as leaks, noises, vibrations, and jobs that were either high-risk or extra difficult.  Plain vanilla jobs would get our regular pricing matrix.  Speaking of matrix, there are quite a few SMS that have a pricing system built into their software.  That tells me more than a few shops are using dynamic pricing.  I always measured my pricing by the week, month, or quarterly.  The longer the time frame, the more accurate your measurements are. As an industry, everybody likes to talk about numbers, but few put their P&L out.  I'm going to break that pattern with a P&L of my own, attached below.  The bottom line is all that matters...   2011P&L (6).pdf
    • A few weeks back, I was at Vision in Kansas City. I spoke with many shop owners who were there with there entire staff. Others brought either all their technicians or their service advisors. The objective was to get three packed days of training.  Is this something you would consider?  What are the pros and the cons? 
    • This may be a sensitive discussion, but many companies, especially restaurant chains, are considering Dynamic Pricing - Charging hire prices for meals during busy times. Hotels and airlines have been doing this for years.  I am not a fan of this, but I am being naive? With rising costs, and rising cost of payroll, is this something the auto repair shops should consider? 
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