mspecperformance

Hey another question for the pros out there. We will be receive out new Wheel and Alignment equipment and it has been a service that we have previously not offered. Other than getting on your customer database and sending out a email notification, what are other ways that you have found successful in driving new business from Wheel and Alignment services?

Thanks Joe! There has been a dramatic difference in the way I approach the business starting when I got some training however I know I have a LONG way to go.

The uniform company is trying to break the contract, not us. I'm not sure what that means but if they take the uniforms back or I buy them outright I will most certainly have them provide paperwork stating our contract is null and void and that no further money is owed. Will do thank you.

The uniform company is trying to break the contract, not us. I'm not sure what that means but if they take the uniforms back or I buy them outright I will most certainly have them provide paperwork stating our contract is null and void and that no further money is owed. Will do thank you.

For what its worth I would have probably mentioned that, "Sir we very much appreciate your business as we do with all of my customers however we do not appreciate with being treated with disrespect. We take great pride in calling ourselves professional automotive technicians and and the trust endowed by our customers in their vehicles and safety. If there was any way we would have known there would be a problem with the wheel bearing we would have caught it during the first." Something along those lines. Some people are just unreasonable... what can you do. Glad it worked out so far.

Thanks, I will most likely give you a phone call tomorrow if thats ok.

Not sure if this would be the right place for this question but here goes. I recently got into a problem with my uniform service. I had a hell of a time choosing a uniform service as for whatever reason most of the reps from the larger companies in my area (Cintas) are complete A-holes. I finally got linked up with a company, they took about 2 months to get my uniforms to me (I believe 3-4 weeks was the turn around time). When our cleaning service finally began we have had a problem with pick ups. They would only be able to pick up at certain times which we weren't open. Most weeks we would get no pick ups. I only got the cleaned uniforms when the rep would come down himself about once a month or once every three weeks to pick up the check. Things came to a head early this week when the company sent someone down to "collect the uniforms because this wasn't working out." I was pretty annoyed with the way they handled things and I told them they would have to wait and see what I wanted to do. They basically gave me the option of buying the uniforms outright ($600 per set, I have 2 sets) or returning them. For one I have paid them without interruption every week even when we didn't receive a pick up or drop off. I am debating on whether to negotiate to buy the uniforms outright as I feel I have paid a portion of them already for services that were not completed. Do any of you guys buy your own uniforms instead of using a uniform service??

Hi guys, I just recently joined the forum however I have been on the site a few times over the last few months. Looks like a GREAT place with a lot of awesome information. A little background history on my shop and I. My partner and I started the business in our early twenties from my backyard working on BMWs and over the years grew it into a full service shop servicing BMW/Mercedes/Audi/Mini with an emphasis on the BMW side. I came into this business not knowing anything about the business side and pretty much made "shot in the dark" decisions on everything pertaining to this business. We struggled terribly for the first 3-4 years and got into a bit of debt running the business until I discovered service advisor and auto shop management classes which helped tremendously. We most recently moved into a larger location partially due to necessity. Our previous location where we were at for close to 5 years was terrible small and run down however had a very nice curb appeal location (approx 1000 sqft of shop space, additional 1500 sqft lot and about 300 sqft office). Due to some property issues that the landlord was dealing with I was forced to find a new location for my business. I was lucky enough to find a very nice building to rent at a very reasonable price for the sqft (overall 5,000 sqft shop with additional 1000 sqft front lot). The only draw back it is not the easiest location to find and the curb appeal is not as good as my last shop. Since being in the new shop we completely renovated 80% of the building with epoxy floors, new lights, customer lounge/waiting area, office, bathroom etc. We are also have on order our first alignment system/rack and tire equipment which was a service we didn't offer previously. We have a loyal customer base and the response has been great. I am hoping with providing more services, we can capture a bit more of the auto repair market in our area. Our main problem is however with the added space/overhead I am struggling to find good methods and drawing in new customers. I have been staying on top of our customer retention and feel that I have a decent footing on that end. I recently sent out a direct mailer through mudlick mail which has been a disappointment for me thus far. In any case, although sometimes the stress of the business has been intense, the last week or so browsing the forum has given me some perspective on my own situation after reading other shops stories/posts/problems/solutions. I am hoping my ship turns around soon, I guess I have to be a little patient and keep being proactive on the business end of things.

Sounds like you have a really great business there! I have a very similar shop to yours and I hope that we can bounce ideas off each other in the years to come!

I definitely understand what you are saying. I am just very surprised to see how ridiculously low my response has been (2 calls, 2 walk ins, 1 appt) since November 12th. Everyone other than 1 walk in (potentially) and the 1 appt have been quality customers. I really have no problem sending out more flyers however I was hoping to get something of around atleast 10 responses from the mailers. So far its been pretty bleak. I was advised by the mudlick rep that i SHOULD have gotten some response even though I sent out heading into the holiday season. At this point over a month into the mailer I have received .1% response out of 5000 mailers which is rather discouraging. Where did you get the mailing lists?

I got my first appointment yesterday. Lets see where this goes !

Its amazing how these people remember how to breathe....

Ok thanks Dan that gives me some hope haha. Dan, how many mailers did you send out before seeing a response? Was it 1 mailer in 3 months? Did you send them monthly? Quarterly? I have heard of Diminishing returns after a year or so however the few people who i have spoke to said they got a very good initial response. So far for me, nada. I am thinking of doing another mailer in February/March which would make it around 3 months since my first mailer. I just hope business stays up so my marketing budget will have something in it by then!

Russ, Thanks for your reply! I worked with my Mudlick rep on what was offered with my mailer. Through his recommendations we went with a 49.95 synthetic oil change offer as well as money off offers (example $25 off $100 or more service). As far as I can tell I have only received 3 calls from the mailer since it was sent out on November 12. One was from a more or less senile old lady who called up 3 times asking the same questions pretty much forgetting she ever contacted us. Another was from a guy who was outraged that our oil change offer was only up to 5 qts. The last was a gentleman who stopped by the shop and guaranteed to be back after the holidays (who knows). So far we have only done one mailing. I can't help but think that the storm with the damage it brought and also a gas shortage not seen in NY area since the 70's had something major to do with the amount of response. Hi Joe. I originally went with Mudlick because i heard some good things about their service and they target higher income individuals/households. I spoke to my rep on exactly what my business was about and we together formulated what he saw that worked for his previous clients whom have a similar business model as mine (less car count, higher ARO). I simply can't afford to send out Direct Mailers every month. I could possibly stretch it out quarterly intervals. It is just disheartening that I didn't get even one response that generated any money. -Adam

Hey guys just wanted to get some opinions. My shop is located in Queens, NY. There are a ton of people in and around my shop as well as lot of competition. We are a relatively new shop (6-7 years old) and just moved into our new location in the summer. It was a nice upgrade from our very old and run down and Very small shop. Now we have approx 5,000sqft with a lot of new equipment, renovated office, lounge area, epoxy floors, etc. We mainly specialize in BMW work however I have been trying to open the doors to other German car makes. Although our new space is great, it is not in the most desirable location in terms of curb appeal. I sent out a direct mailer with Mudlick Mail to about 5000 homes. The mailer was sent out at around November 12. I have yet to really get much of a response from the mailer and I am rather disappointed. There are a number of factors that might have been attributed to the low response such as the mega storm that hit over here and also going into the holiday season. My main goal is really to drive new business to the shop. I have been on a on going campaign to stay in touch with our old customers however with the new space and new bills, I see the need to increase my customer database. Has anyone had any experience with direct mailers in the NYC or highly dense metro areas? I am reluctant to try again due to the costs of sending out mailers but I was thinking of maybe giving it another shot toward the spring time. Thoughts?