John Fabrega

I like the first one better also. I am obviously biased, but I also believe that the investment in either ad would be better leveraged by including 'Call or Text' in the call to action. @mspecperformance, Based on some research, I think it was created by: http://www.neadcorp.com/supermarket-advertising

We would love to work with the folks at Bolt On. I suspect that an integration would be relatively easy so Bolt On customers could choose between using their own TextBox enabled number or the number Bolt On provides. It generally takes some nudging from customers to get it going. I know that @mikerisich is pretty active around here so if it's something you are interested in, please comment here or PM him if you are friends.

Berate or belittle my staff? Become a former customer.

@sparkerauto, I recently posted a LONG introduction here that would put those landline numbers -that are probably recognized by your customers- to use. http://www.autoshopowner.com/topic/11427-introducing-textbox-text-enable-your-existing-shop-telephone-number Most smaller shops just text-enable their main shop telephone number. Larger shops text-enable a number for each Service Advisor. @Biff Tannon, Do you find that customers are ok with changing from the initial text conversation to a phone call when the complexity of the conversation lends itself to that? @Junior, Depending upon the capabilities of your software to export the schedule information, we may have some ways to overcome that challenge. Alternatively, we our text capabilities are pretty easy to integrate into most modern software. We'd be happy to work with your software provider.

Exciting news... I have been invited to speak at a Repair Shop 20 Group in Houston in February. (One of our customers/fans -Auto & Tire Super Service Center- presented TextBox as a 'best idea' a couple of months ago. Although he didn't win the $$s ='( about 1/2 the group requested trials and have signed up. Now the rest want to learn more)

(Warning and apologies for the long post) As you can see by my profile, I’m pretty new to AutoShopOwner.com but after browsing around quite a bit and communicating with @Alex and a couple of other leaders around here, I figured it would be worth the investment to become and Advertiser Member for the purpose of introducing our service and getting some feedback. It is not my intent to bombard with promotion but rather provide information about a capability that few realize is even possible. I’d like to start this introduction with a couple of statements. It is becoming increasingly difficult and frustrating to reach customers by phone since they often don’t answer the phone and often don’t check their voicemail. Most people text more than they talk these days. If you agree, I’d like to take this opportunity to introduce you to TextBox! TextBox was conceptualized back in 2012 from this video (See YourCarIsReady Video) Following are some of the capabilities we offer along with comparisons to other text messaging options we have encountered. Text Enable Your Existing Shop Telephone Number TextBox- Text-enables your existing shop telephone number. Your telephone number is part of your brand and part of your value. TextBox leverages the value of that number by opening up the text communications channel. People are probably already texting your number… they’re just not getting anywhere. Adding ‘Call or Text’ to your shop signage, website, Facebook page and any other marketing materials that include your telephone number will enhance those marketing efforts and provide more leads. Frequently, when you call somebody they text you back. Likewise, when you text somebody, they may call you back. Since TextBox uses your existing phone number. Both of those work! Others- Some use a shared 5 or 6 digit short codes. Some require you to introduce a completely new number that might not even be a local number. Some use email-to-text which requires you to find out what carrier the customer uses. If somebody calls the number you text them from, usually, the call goes nowhere. Not a very good customer experience. If you call a customer from your shop telephone number and they respond via text, the text goes nowhere. True Two-Way Texting TextBox- TextBox offers true two-way texting from the comfort of a full size keyboard and computer screen and keyboard anywhere you happen to be. You can name and tag contacts and review unlimited conversation history. Others- Many are one-way only. If a customer replies or initiates a text, the text fails and you never see it. Many don’t have an interface where you can review previous text messages in a conversational thread. With email-to-text, each message is a separate email message. It’s almost impossible to keep up with. Most Shop Management systems that have a text module are one-way only. Multiple Interfaces TextBox- The most used TextBox interface is through a small app that is installed on Windows computers and/or laptops. It automatically starts when the computer starts and pops up to alert you when new texts arrive. We also provide tablet and mobile apps that allow you to see and respond to TextBox messages wherever you happen to be. Others- Most require you to remember to open and log in to a web browser and remember to check the page to see if any texts have come in. Very few also have tablet or mobile interfaces. Cost TextBox- Most shops don’t need anything more than our $49/month small business plan. Larger shops with multiple service advisors with direct numbers can text-enable each additional number for only $29/month. There are no contracts or term commitments. We even offer a free trial and don’t even ask for billing information. Others- We have been surprised at some of the services that appear to do less but cost much more. Frequently Answered Questions: Will it mess up my phone service? NO. The voice and text networks are completely separate. Can multiple people use it? YES. And everything is automatically synchronized. How long does it take to get set up? Usually fully operational within a few hours. Are there any contracts or term commitments? NO. Service is month-to-month. For those who have taken the time to read all the way down this far, we’re making a special introductory offer hoping you will provide feedback here on the forum about your experience with the ease of getting started, the power and efficiency of TextBox and our outstanding customer service. The first 10 members here who PM me here or contact us directly and mention AutoShopOwner.com will receive: A completely no obligation trial from now to the end of March 2017. An automatic free month every year if they sign up for service after the trial. Of course, I’d be happy to answer any questions in this thread, via private message in this form, buy phone or… by text. John Fabrega Founder Line1 Communications & TextBox 850.205.1111 (Call or Text)

Very spot on and thorough suggestions above. I'm a BIG fan of the 'Retention Through Awesome Customers Service' marketing methods outlined above but you still need to keep adding since attrition will happen. I would like to add one tid-bit to enhance many of the suggestions given... Most marketing and advertising being done includes your shop telephone number and very well should. It's a big part of your brand and image and has significant value if you've done everything else right. One of the challenges these days though is that so many people would rather text than talk. They don't necessarily not want to talk, but often it is not allowed, inconvenient or impractical during the hours that most shops operate. So, I'd advise that you also incorporate text messaging as a way for prospective customers to reach out to you via the advertising methods you're contemplating (Facebook, Twitter, Craigslist, etc) and make it as easy and convenient as possible for potential customers to initiate that first engagement. With nurturing, that first contact might become a phone call or better yet an appointment where you can blow them away with great service. Of course, one of those customer service high points can be respecting their preference and time (and not wasting yours) by providing them with the option to communicate by call or text while service is being performed. There are a number of ways to become text-friendly from letting employees use their personal cell phones (definitely not recommended for many reasons) to buying a cell phone for the shop, to getting a GoogleVoice number, to shop management systems that have texting capabilities, and a myriad of on-line solutions. I'm clearly biased but of course I recommend a service like BusinessTextBox.com that leverages the value (mentioned above) of your existing shop telephone number.

@J.P. GLENN: Great points regarding dial-up credit card machines and EMV terminals. Your post reminded me that many older alarm systems still use dialup as well. I personally like the kind that use cellular because it avoids line cuts. A little more expensive though. Regarding Fax... Yes it's dying. A young lady who became a receptionist in our building didn't even know that a fax was. Ironically due to HIPAA stuff, medical providers are the biggest hold-outs for fax. We currently electronically process over 300,000 fax pages per month between medical providers just here locally. That too will go away but it is kind of amazing.

I agree with the points that VoIP services often include Fax capabilities and newer credit card machines can directly connect to the internet. However trying to plug a traditional fax machine or an older dial-up credit card machine into an ATA (Analog Telephone Adapter) to connect to VoIP will likely have poor results and waste a lot of time troubleshooting. Most shops that I have worked with have both. I also agree that VoIP is the way of the future. I use it myself. I was simply trying to point out that not all VoIP and not all VoIP services and service providers are equal -just like not all repair shops are equal. I don't provide VoIP services or have any financial relationships with any VoIP providers. Having been in telecommunications for the last 25+ years, I figured this would be a topic where I can lend some expertise and experience.

Good point. I forgot to mention that VoIP doesn't play well with analog telephony devices like fax machines, credit card modems, etc. I've also seen issues with DTMF (Touch tone) reliability at times.

Although this is an old thread, I thought I would join the conversation while getting my feet wet in this forum. I've had quite a bit of experience with phone systems and services over the years. One of the biggest things I've learned is that to a great extent, you get what you pay for. You 'can' find cheap or free services out there just like you can find cheap auto shops and brother's-in-law that might fix your car for free. It has always been my opinion that if a business depends to any degree on communicating with customers via phone they need to try to make it the best experience possible. Cell phones and to an extent VoIP have made us all more accepting of less than optimum call quality. Yes, many customers will call from cell phones, but adding another cell phone or sometimes VoIP on your end can make the overall call quality poorer than it could/should be. I'm not saying VoIP is bad. In fact we use VoIP in our offices. It 'can' be great but it can likewise be poor depending upon a number of factors: Quality of the internet connection. If your VoIP service has issues, it could likely be due to your internet provider -who doesn't care a lick about the quality of your phone service. In fact, it might sound pretty good most of the time. But sometimes the audio quality might be good although latency (delay) is high. It doesn't sound bad, but affects the rhythm of the conversation. You know how on some calls it seems like the other person is talking over you? That's often caused by that change in rhythm. Quality of your internal network. If the calls route over the same network as the regular internet traffic, you network needs to be QOS optimized for voice. (Gives the voice internet traffic priority over the regular internet traffic because the timing is more important. Distance from you to your VoIP provider. Your physical phones could be hundreds or thousands of miles away from your service providers switch. Even a call from across the street has to travel there and back. Not a big deal in speed of light internet sense, but it can be an issue if there are too many 'hops' along the way. Level of Support. Many VoIP providers come from the 'data' world (no disrespect intended) where there is simply a lower sense of urgency or acceptable level of availability. If my phone service is down, I want to talk with a human and not wait 24 to 48 hours to possibly hear back from an email or trouble ticket. The VoIP solution we use is the best scenario as far as I have found. It is provided by a local company with a local switch who also provides the internet service over which the VoIP service travels. No hops, no latency, humans that I can actually see, buying local, etc. (Note: They only provide service in Tallahassee but there are likely similar providers in most markets) It's really easy to become a VoIP provider and it's not very expensive to do so if willing to cobble systems together. Not all are equal by any means. If the price sounds too good to be true, it probably is. Oh, and to address one of the OP's original questions... The phone number you have had since 1961 is a valuable asset and part of your brand. The good news is that these days you can keep that number pretty much regardless of where you move the service to. The provider that you change to would provide you with a porting package that would allow your number to be transferred from your old carrier. (Just don't cancel anything with the losing carrier until the number has been moved to the winning carrier or you might never get it back) John