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Elite Worldwide Inc.

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Blog Entries posted by Elite Worldwide Inc.

  1. Elite Worldwide Inc.
    By Bob Cooper

    Far too many shop owners hire service advisors who they feel are good at what they do, and then prefer to “get out of their way and let them do their thing.” Unfortunately, that’s a mistake. Now I am not suggesting that you need to micromanage your advisors, or any of your employees. However, over the years I have employed many of the top advisors in America, and through our service advisor training courses I have had the opportunity to meet hundreds of the industry superstars, so I can tell you from first-hand experience that if you want to turn your advisors into superstars, then it’s no different from grooming world class racehorses. They unquestionably need proper care and attention. So here are some tips that you can use as a guide to help you turn your advisors into superstars.

    1. Make sure you have the right people on your team. When it comes to service advisors, as with all of your employees, you need to look for attitude, aptitude and ethics. If they are missing any of the three, you and your company are going to struggle. You also need to make sure that they have the natural talent to sell. Please don’t confuse talent with skill, which is a learned behavior. Talent is the natural ability to do things exceptionally well. The talents I look for in service advisors are the natural ability to engage people in a conversation, quick-wittedness, and a natural smile. Provide people who have these talents with the training and guidance they need to develop the necessary skills, and they can take you and your business right to the top.

    2. Set clear expectations. Obviously you need to have clearly defined monthly performance goals, but beyond that, you need to break those goals down into weekly and daily sales and car count goals. This way your service advisors will know exactly what they need to accomplish by the end of the day in order to view their performance as a success. As with managing any employee, you also need to have clearly defined minimum levels of acceptable performance in place, with deadlines.

    3. For advisors to excel, they need to work in an environment that has clearly defined inspection processes in place. These processes should include vehicle inspection procedures, and the documentation of all discoveries. Your advisors should also be required to accurately estimate all of the discovered services, and fully disclose all discoveries to your customers. Any failure in this regard will cost you in lost automotive repair sales, vehicle failures, and ultimately, in damage to the reputation of your business. This is why clearly defined inspection processes are an absolute must.

    4. Make sure that you are providing your advisors with the right tools. They need a robust repair shop management software program, feature-rich warranties that they can use as sales tools, point-of-sale items they can use to get your customers visually involved (such as fluid samples), and third party financing options. They also need techs that can produce, daily goal sheets to track their performance throughout the day, and digital voice recorders so they can critique their own sales presentations. In addition, they need to have quick-reference guides that list the benefits of your most common services. This way, your advisors can review the guide prior to presenting their recommendations to your customers. For example, under the “maintenance” heading you would list: protects the vehicle warranty, prevents costly breakdowns, maximizes fuel economy, maximizes the resale value of the vehicle, etc.

    5. Service advisors need to have their performances monitored and measured, and they need consistent feedback. At Elite we recommend that owners (or managers) perform a repair order review with their advisors at least once a week. The purpose of the review should be to analyze the declined sales, and have a dialogue about what could have been done differently to close the sales. As a manager, you should also use this time as an opportunity to reinforce your commitment to ethics and customer satisfaction.

    6. As is true of all professionals, advisors need ongoing training. In order to stay at the top of their game, they should be sharpening their skills with a sales course at least once a year.

    Most importantly, as a shop owner (or manager) you need to make a point of feeding the hearts of your service advisors. By catching them doing things right and providing them with the appropriate praise and recognition, you will be creating happier advisors who are more determined to help you and your company reach your goals.

    Since 1990, Bob Cooper has been the president of Elite (www.EliteWorldwide.com), a company that strives to help shop owners reach their goals and live happier lives, while elevating the industry at the same time. The company offers one-on-one coaching from the industry’s top shop owners, service advisor training, peer groups, along with sales, marketing and shop management courses.
  2. Elite Worldwide Inc.
    By Bob Cooper

    Not long ago it was easy to beat your competitors. All that you needed was more equipment, a healthy advertising budget and the ability to fix cars right the first time. Well, those days are long gone. Today, cars are being built better and require service less frequently, customers have more choices than ever before, and they are able to do a tremendous amount of research online before they even pick up the phone. Additionally, this industry is experiencing an extraordinary shortage of qualified technicians, and profit margins are being squeezed every day. To top it all off, the dealerships have their eye on one thing and one thing alone: Your customers. So the question is, during these challenging times, how can you stay ahead of your competitors?

    First and foremost, you will need to have clearly defined goals in place, and you’ll need to create a plan for reaching those goals. The right goals and an action plan will enable you to make far better business decisions, and improve productivity and profits.

    Secondly, your success will be predicated on the caliber of people that work with you. We can never forget that whenever someone buys a product, they will always remember the product, but when they buy a service, they will always remember the people that provided the service. How will the top shop owners find and hire the superstars in the coming years? In addition to having an apprentice program in place, they will create a recruiting plan that contains a well-designed compensation program, and they will market to the superstars in the same way they market to their retail customers.

    The top operators will also create marketing plans that target their ideal customers, and they will use the right media. The successful shop owners will be brand builders rather than price promoters, and they will invest at least 4-6% of their total sales into their marketing programs. They will recognize that the Y Gens and Millennials hold the key to their future, so will be investing a part of their marketing budget into campaigns specifically directed towards them.

    The successful shop owners in the coming years will constantly analyze every component of their customer process with their crew, and they’ll create policies and procedures that better ensure extraordinary service at every customer touch-point. They will also embrace the philosophy that keeping their superstars happy, motivated, well-trained and productive will depend on their employee management skills. They’ll realize that their brand is their people, so to further develop those skills they will invest in books and courses that are directed towards employee management.

    And lastly, the top shop owners in the coming years will not only know their numbers, but will know what needs to be done in order to reach each and every one of their performance goals.

    In conclusion, if you want to build a world-class shop you will need to have clearly defined goals with a written plan, and will need to know your numbers. You will also need to have a team of superstars, and a well-designed marketing plan that brings in your ideal customers. If you do these things, if you never forget the importance of the people that work with you, and if you live by the principle that you will never put money ahead of people, then you will not only stay well ahead of your competitors, but you will have a far more profitable, successful business in the coming years.

    Since 1990, Bob Cooper has been the president of Elite, a company that strives to help shop owners reach their goals and live happier lives, while elevating the industry at the same time. The company offers one-on-one coaching from the industry’s top shop owners, service advisor training, peer groups, along with sales, marketing and shop management courses. You can learn more about Elite by visiting www.EliteWorldwide.com

  3. Elite Worldwide Inc.
    By Bob Cooper

    As business owners, our best teachers will always be our employees and our customers. They understand many components of our businesses, and in most cases, they really do care about our success. Learning from our employees is relatively simple. All that we need to do is pay attention to their passing comments, and engage them during our employee meetings and reviews. What I would like to do with this article is provide you with a step-by-step guide that will help you do what every successful business owner does; learn from your customers.

    1. First and foremost, you need to set customer satisfaction goals, as well as minimum levels of acceptable performance. For example, your goal would be 100%, and the minimum level of acceptable performance would be set at 96%.

    2. Let your employees know how you will measure results. It’s your call, but I would encourage you to categorize any type of customer dissatisfaction as a failure, regardless of the cause. For example, if the customer says they felt the price of the repair was too high, it would be a failure because the advisor did not do an adequate job of building value in the service. Now I understand that there will be some occurrences (such as a part failure) where the employees would feel they should not be held accountable for the customer being dissatisfied. It’s those rare occurrences that cause us to set a minimum level of acceptable performance. In essence, by setting a minimum level of acceptable performance at 96%, those rare occurrences are taken into consideration.

    3. Implement a companywide reward program that is based on customer satisfaction scores, and make sure all of your employees are able to participate. This will help incentivize the team effort you need.

    4. Conclude who will be making your customer follow-up calls. Although there is tremendous relationship-building value in having your advisors follow up with their customers, the downside is that your customers may not be candid with them. Add to that, your advisors will have a conflict of interest if you are providing them with an economic incentive. I have found that the best person for making the calls is someone with the right personality, and who believes in you, your company and your people. When I was still operating shops I found that the perfect candidates were the customers that loved us, and that were looking to earn a few extra dollars a week.

    5. Conclude how you will compensate the person you hire, and where the calls will be made. Ideally you will pay your representative a flat hourly rate, ensuring that they will invest adequate time on each call. I also believe, when possible, the calls should be made from your shop. Not only will this allow your customers to see your phone number displayed on their caller ID, which adds to your professionalism, but if the customer has a question or concern, they can be transferred to your staff immediately.

    6. Conclude who you will call and when. At Elite we believe that all first-time customers, and all repair and/or warranty customers, should be called within 72 hours. Out of respect for their time, we do not endorse calling repeat customers who had simple maintenance services performed. Although these calls should never be perceived as “sales” calls, if a customer declined a major safety repair, we do encourage you to have your representative ask the customer if they have had the repair performed, to ensure their safety and well-being.

    7. Ask the right questions. I realize most dealerships, franchisees and independents ask a series of questions about the behavior of their staff, the quality of repair, promised-times, etc. At Elite we look at it differently. Our position is that you should say something as simple as, “I just wanted to follow up with you and ask; ‘How did we do?’” Our reasoning for this approach is really pretty simple. Rather than leading the customer with specific questions, it will allow you to learn what is important to your customer. If it is important enough to be at the top of their mind, then without question, it is exactly what you need to hear.

    8. Put the information to work. Share all your discoveries with your entire crew, and solicit their recommendations as to what can be done differently based on what you have learned from your customers. Not only will this allow you to build a more successful shop, but it will show your employees that you value their feedback as much as the feedback you receive from your customers.

    If you want to build a more profitable, successful business, there are two rules that will always be at the top of your list: Never put money ahead of people, and listen intently to your customers.

    Since 1990, Bob Cooper has been the president of Elite, a company that strives to help shop owners reach their goals and live happier lives, while having a positive impact on their employees, customers and communities. The company offers one-on-one coaching from the industry’s top shop owners, service advisor training, peer groups, along with sales, marketing and shop management courses. You can learn more about Elite by visiting www.EliteWorldwide.com.

  4. Elite Worldwide Inc.
    Superstar shop owner and Elite Business Development Coach Rudi Rudloff shares a tip on technician training that is not only remarkably effective, but cost-free for your auto repair business.
     
    For additional help building a more successful auto repair business, learn how you can team up with a superstar shop owner like Rudi through Elite Top Shop 360: Top Shop 360
  5. Elite Worldwide Inc.
    One of the most common questions our Elite coaches are asked is, “How do I find the superstar technicians and service advisors?” Interestingly, what most shop owners will do is wait until they need a tech or advisor before they start their search. Unfortunately, when they use this technique they inevitably end up hiring the best of whoever happens to be available at the time, rather than the best of the best. So if you are looking to hire the stars, my first recommendation is that you always need to be recruiting, and the best way of doing so is by ensuring that the superstar techs and advisors in your community are aware of your business, and that they understand that your shop is a really great place to work. 
    As I am sure you will agree, with rare exception the superstars are currently employed, and they are more than likely pleased with their jobs. So what you need to do in order to ultimately hire any of these stars is put first things first. You need to connect with them, because people go to work for people, not for businesses. So the million dollar question is: How do you connect with the stars? Well, it’s actually a lot easier than you might think. You need to do what your competitors would never dream of doing, and reach the stars through their family members, their friends and their industry associates. Here is how you can achieve this objective through the use of print media.
    Run display ads in your community newspapers with a theme communicating that your shop is the right place for people to have their cars serviced, because you employ truly remarkable people. Then in each one of these ads you should feature a different employee. Now before you jump to a conclusion that this won’t work for you, I ask that you keep an open mind.
    If your ad carries a nice close up or portrait shot of one of your employees, along with their name, their position and a few kind words about who they are, then I will make you a number of promises. First of all, far more people will look at your ad, because people are always attracted to images of people. Secondly, the curiosity of your readers will inevitably kick in, and they will start to wonder if the person in the photo is someone they know, especially if your shop is in a smaller community. Now that you have your readers’ attention, as well as their curiosity, there’s a good probability that they will start to feel more comfortable with your brand, because as I mentioned earlier, people do business with people, not with businesses. Additionally, imagine how powerful the influence will be over the readers who actually recognize your employee as a family member, friend or acquaintance.   
    Now here’s where the benefits of this approach become even more obvious. Not only will putting your employees in print be a really nice way to let them know just how proud of them you are, but just think about the message you are sending and the buzz that’s going to be created in your community. You are communicating that you have truly talented people working for you, and that you are the type of shop that will run an ad just to give your employees the acknowledgement they deserve.  The uniqueness of this message will have the tool truck drivers, the part suppliers, and the loved ones of the superstar advisors and techs talking about your ad, and you guessed it; they’re going to be talking about your shop as well.
    So if you want to hire the superstars, I am going to hope you never forget a couple of cardinal rules. Number one, you always need to be recruiting. Otherwise, you’re doomed to hire the best of whoever happens to be available at the time. Secondly, if you want to reach the stars, then I am going to hope you never forget that the easiest way to do it is through their family, friends and acquaintances. If you agree with me, then I have every reason to believe you will also agree that running print ads showcasing your employees will not only help you build your brand, but it will show the superstar techs and advisors in your community that you truly care about the people who work with you, and will get them thinking about your shop.
    Since 1990, Bob Cooper has been the president of Elite, a company that strives to help shop owners reach their goals and live happier lives, while elevating the industry at the same time. The company offers coaching and training from the industry’s top shop owners, service advisor training, peer groups, along with sales, marketing and shop management courses. You can learn more about Elite by visiting www.EliteWorldwide.com.
  6. Elite Worldwide Inc.
    Superstar shop owner and Elite Business Development Coach Greg Skolnik shares a tip on managing payroll and staying prepared in case of emergencies.
    For additional help building a more successful auto repair business, learn how you can team up with a superstar shop owner like Greg through Elite Top Shop 360: Top Shop 360
  7. Elite Worldwide Inc.
    Superstar shop owner and Elite Business Development Coach James Stephenson shares a tip on finding & hiring service advisors that has worked wonders for his award winning auto repair business.
     
    For additional help building a more successful auto repair business, learn more about Elite’s new affordable and convenient online peer groups for shop owners: Top Shop 360
  8. Elite Worldwide Inc.
    By Bob Cooper

    Every shop owner has a number of important responsibilities. First and foremost, they are responsible for setting the goals of the company and hiring the right people. They are also responsible for creating the plan, managing their employees and ensuring the success of the company. But there’s another major responsibility that every shop owner has, and that’s to bring ethics into every decision making process, and to let their moral compass guide them. This checklist is certainly not meant to be a complete list of all ethical considerations, but I feel this will give you a good starter-list to consider, and hopefully review with all of your employees.

    1. Setting Customer Expectations. We are the professionals in all cases, so at the very first point of contact we have an ethical responsibility to set clear expectations for each and every customer. These expectations need to address the services that will be performed, the benefits of those services, the time they will take, and the cost of those services.

    2. Performing Complete and Accurate Vehicle Inspections. In all cases, inspection services need to be clearly explained to the customer, and they need to be completed in professional manner that meets with industry standards. With the understanding that the customer’s safety is in our hands, beyond any operational reasons, we have an ethical responsibility to complete such services so we can better protect our customers. This means inspecting all the relative vehicle components, the customer’s hard copies of service receipts, and any vehicle history that is stored in our customer databases. All discoveries and recommendations need to then be documented in an easy-to-understand and legible manner for the customer to review.

    3. Disclosing all Discoveries. The customers that turn to us for services and repairs depend on our honesty. There is an unspoken expectation that we will disclose all of our discoveries at all times, and do so in a manner that allows our customers to feel comfortable, and under no pressure whatsoever to authorize any additional services.

    4. Selling Additional Services. As professionals, we need to ensure that each and every service recommendation is presented in a professional and customer-centric way that follows your company’s sales procedures. The sale should start by confirming the customer’s initial concerns, and then prioritizing the additional services in a way that builds customer confidence, and stimulates a conversation about the recommendations. In all cases we need to explain the benefits of the recommended services, and provide the customer with a copy of the estimate if they elect to not authorize the recommended services. As service providers, our moral compass should direct us to treat the customer as though they are family, and in doing so, we need to view the sales process as helping the customer make the right decision, rather than looking at the dollars and cents that are associated with the sale.

    5. The Morality of Pricing. As business owners we need to live by a number of rules when it comes to pricing our services, yet the most important rule states that we need to treat people the way they should be treated. At Elite we certainly understand that no two shops will ever be exactly alike, and there are many things that need to be considered when establishing your pricing, yet one thing we tell every single coaching client is that there is always a point where pricing moves beyond generating a reasonable profit, and to the point of greed. One of our mantras at Elite is, “Just because you can charge more, doesn’t mean you should charge more.” Simply put, you can never put money ahead of people.

    6. The Morality of Employee Equality. This is a subject in itself, so I will just give you one example of employee equality. Here at Elite we certainly understand that most shop owners have pay plans in place that they have developed, in many cases, over many years. This often leads to them having techs in their shops on different pay plans, and earning different incomes. Rather than taking this approach, you should have a pay plan in place that is transparent, and allows every tech to see what they can earn based on their ASE Certifications, their productivity, and the quality of their work. By taking this approach, every tech will be working off the same pay plan matrix, and your moral compass will tell you that you’re being fair to all.

    7. General Decision Making. As business owners we are constantly making decisions throughout the day, and while in most cases they are not too difficult to make, we inevitably run into those decisions that are a little tougher than others. In many cases, those difficult decisions involve two things; people and money. To ensure we make the right call when faced with these difficult decisions, all that we need to do is ask ourselves, “What’s the right thing to do?”, rather than, “What’s best for us?” For years here at Elite we have used my “Grandmother technique” whenever we are faced with these difficult decisions. We simply ask ourselves, “What would our grandmothers say?”, and by the time we are done with that exercise, we inevitably feel good about our decision because it was made based on ethics; not dollars and cents.

    8. Never Lose Faith in Ethics. By embracing the value of ethics, and consciously bringing them into your life, a number of things will inevitably occur. First of all, the superstars that you would like to have working with you, will want to work with you. Secondly, not only will you feel good about your decisions, but the people that work with you will feel good about them also. And finally, if you never put money ahead of people, if you consciously bring ethics into your decision making process, and if you never lose faith in your moral compass, you will be serving as a role model for all of the people that work with you, and you will be building a really great business based on principles that have withstood the test of time.

    Since 1990, Bob Cooper has been the president of Elite (www.EliteWorldwide.com), a company that strives to help shop owners reach their goals and live happier lives, while elevating the industry at the same time. The company offers one-on-one coaching from the industry’s top shop owners, service advisor training, peer groups, along with sales, marketing and shop management courses. You can contact Bob at [email protected], or at 800-204-3548.

  9. Elite Worldwide Inc.
    In this quick video tip superstar shop owner and Elite Business Development Coach Ron Haugen reveals a profit center that very few shop owners are taking advantage of.
     
    For additional help building a more successful shop, learn how you can work 1-on-1 with a top shop owner like Ron through Elite Top Shop 360.
  10. Elite Worldwide Inc.
    By Bob Cooper
    Over the years I have met hundreds, if not thousands, of shop owners who are suffering from burnout. They either tell me they have it, or it clearly shows in their behavior. Ironically, dealing with burnout is no different than fixing cars, in that in order to accurately solve the problem, we have to first identify the cause.
    So, let’s start by taking a good look at the cause of burnout.  The reason most shop owners have burnout is because they spend most of their day doing a job that’s not necessarily aligned with who they are.  Look at it like this: technicians and service advisors spend most of their day working in what I call “the moment”. They spend the majority of their time dealing with customers and vehicles that came in that very same day. To put it another way, they’re solving current problems.
    On the other hand, managers spend most of their time reviewing the past. They look at past productivity, past trends, past results, etc. By the way, this is all good, because we need sharp people who have a good understanding of past performance, and we need people who can quickly and professionally solve the problems that are at hand.
    Yet the job of business owners is to spend most of their time in the future; not in the past, and not in the moment at hand. Unlike managers, techs and service advisors; business owners are responsible for setting the company goals, developing the plans, hiring the stars, etc. Interestingly, when most shop owners first start their journeys in the world of business, they actually do spend the majority of their time where they need to: thinking about the future. They’re busy securing their locations, getting their signage, putting their marketing plans in place, etc. Yet when their businesses become relatively established, and they’ve reached their initial growth goals, they then find themselves spending most of their time managing their businesses rather than building their businesses. To put it another way, they start off as entrepreneurs, and end up doing something they never imagined they would be doing: working as managers, and spending most of their time reviewing the past rather than building their businesses.
    If this sounds all too familiar to you, then here’s the guaranteed cure for you: simply put, you need to reevaluate the goals of your company. If you look to the future and set some worthy long-term and mid-term growth goals for your company, not only will those goals get you excited, but they will give you a better sense of purpose. Add to that, your day-to-day decisions will be that much easier to make, and your new-found goals will put that spark back in you that will be seen by all of your employees.
    Clearly one of the roles of every business owner is to lead by example, and what better example can you set than by having clearly defined goals that will benefit you, your employees, your customers and your community.  I’ve shared these conclusions and this recommendation with thousands of people over the years, and I can tell you without hesitation that the people who have taken this advice to heart have seen their burnout literally disappear overnight, and in many cases, their businesses have grown well beyond their wildest dreams.
    In closing, I’d like to say this: if you are suffering from burnout, and if for whatever reason you decide to pass on this recommendation, then it may be time for you to pick up the phone and call your local business broker. Otherwise, as time goes on you’re going to struggle in business. True entrepreneurs like you all have one thing in common: they have what it takes to build really great companies, but as strictly managers for any length of time, well, with all due respect, they usually struggle at best. On that, you have my promise.
    Since 1990, Bob Cooper has been the president of Elite, a company that strives to help shop owners reach their goals and live happier lives, while elevating the industry at the same time. The company offers coaching and training from the industry’s top shop owners, service advisor training, peer groups, along with sales, marketing and shop management courses. You can learn more about Elite by visiting www.EliteWorldwide.com.
  11. Elite Worldwide Inc.
    When car counts aren’t what they need to be, most shop owners will pump more money into their auto repair marketing efforts. But before you invest one more dime in your marketing campaigns, you should first make sure that you’re doing a good job of converting your current leads into customers. At Elite, we’ve discovered that the number of phone leads lost by most shops is staggering. They’re lost by not having enough staff available to properly handle the calls, by having poorly trained receptionists or service advisors, by having service advisors who are content with either their workload or their income, etc.  Needless to say, putting more money into your marketing is not going to fix these problems.
    The solution is simple.  Make sure you have clearly defined car count goals, and hold your advisors accountable for reaching them. You should ensure they keep a simple log that shows why they feel they lost each lead. The log options should include: The caller didn’t have the vehicle, they didn’t have the time to bring the vehicle in, they were price shopping, and they were not the decision maker. At the end of the day, discuss these lost leads with your staff, and decide on the appropriate course of action.
    Lastly, don’t overlook the value of having a couple of friends call in as mystery shoppers, and recording their conversations. So before you spend one more dime on marketing, let’s make sure you’re not losing those priceless leads that you already have.
    Since 1990, Bob Cooper has been the president of Elite (www.EliteWorldwide.com), a company that strives to help shop owners reach their goals and live happier lives, while elevating the industry at the same time. The company offers one-on-one coaching from the industry’s top shop owners, service advisor training, peer groups, along with sales, marketing and shop management courses. 
  12. Elite Worldwide Inc.
    By Bob Cooper
    When car counts aren’t what they need to be, most shop owners will pump more money into their marketing efforts. But before you invest one more dime in your marketing campaigns, you should first make sure that you’re doing a good job of converting your current leads into customers. At Elite, we’ve discovered that the number of phone leads lost by most shops is staggering. They’re lost by not having enough staff available to properly handle the calls, by having poorly trained receptionists or service advisors, by having service advisors who are content with either their workload or their income, etc.  Needless to say, putting more money into your auto repair marketing is not going to fix these problems.
    The solution is simple.  Make sure you have clearly defined car count goals, and hold your advisors accountable for reaching them. You should ensure they keep a simple log that shows why they feel they lost each lead. The log options should include: The caller didn’t have the vehicle, they didn’t have the time to bring the vehicle in, they were price shopping, and they were not the decision maker. At the end of the day, discuss these lost leads with your staff, and decide on the appropriate course of action.
    Lastly, don’t overlook the value of having a couple of friends call in as mystery shoppers, and recording their conversations. So before you spend one more dime on auto repair marketing, let’s make sure you’re not losing those priceless leads that you already have.
    Since 1990, Bob Cooper has been the president of Elite, a company that strives to help shop owners reach their goals and live happier lives, while elevating the industry at the same time. The company offers coaching and training from the industry’s top shop owners, service advisor training, peer groups, along with sales, marketing and shop management courses. You learn more about Elite by visiting www.EliteWorldwide.com
  13. Elite Worldwide Inc.
    By Bob Cooper

    With vehicles being built better than ever before, and with service intervals continually being extended, you are going to see your customers less often. This means that your service advisors have to be razor sharp when that phone rings. Although there is no silver bullet that will allow you to bring in every first-time caller, there are a number of things you can do to get more appointments. In this article, I would like to share some of the best practices we teach in our service advisor training that will bring immediate results.

    In order for your customers to buy from you, three things need to occur: They have to like you, they have to trust you, and they have to view you as a credible expert. So when your phone rings, the first thing your advisors need to sell is themselves; not the service or repair. The best way of accomplishing this goal is with a professional, courteous and upbeat greeting, such as, “Thank you for calling Elite Auto Care, this is Bob. How can I help you this morning?” Starting out by immediately thanking the customer shows appreciation, volunteering the name of your company helps assure your callers that they’ve called the right number, and providing a first name is the first step in building personal relationships with your callers. By asking how they can help, your advisors are asking a question that will allow them to control the conversation. By being upbeat and using the right tonality, their likeability goes up, and the customer’s anxiety goes down.

    The second thing your advisors will need to do is slow the conversation down so the callers don’t feel rushed. Your advisors will have to become good detectives by asking a number of questions, because when your customers are responding to the questions, it will take their focus off the price, and will help them begin feeling more comfortable with your advisors at the same time.

    When it comes to asking for the appointment, one of the best tips I can share with you is this: With rare exception, your advisors need to offer every caller a choice of appointment times, and whenever possible, one of those options should be to bring the vehicle in now. For example, “I can squeeze you in now, or would 2:15 be better for you?” When it comes to auto repair, customers love finality, which is why providing the “now” option is a powerful sales tool.

    Now here’s the absolute best-kept secret for dealing with the tough first-time callers. Every one of your advisors needs to be aware that many “price shoppers” are asking for price just to start the conversation, and beyond that, with rare exception, callers don’t know the questions they should be asking. This is why in all of our service advisor training classes we encourage the students to write down a list of the questions they think an educated caller would ask. Once they have their list completed, and committed to memory, then it’s easy for them to say something like: “Well Larry, I know price is important to you, and it should be, but if you call five different shops today, you’ll more than likely get at least five different prices. Some of the other questions you might want to ask are how long they’ve been in business, whether or not they have certified technicians and a drug-free workplace program, and you might want to have them walk you through the diagnostic processes as well. You might want to also ask them if they always explore all of the options that are available to customers when it comes to any recommended repairs, what kind of warranties they provide, and if those warranties are in writing.” Ladies and gentlemen, I’ve closed hundreds, if not thousands, of tough first-time “price shoppers” using this technique, so I know it will work for you.

    If you’re still not quite sold, then consider this: If you take my recommendations, when those price shoppers start calling other shops, you know as well as I do, they’ll more than likely ask some of the questions your advisors suggested to them. Not only will your competitors be caught off guard and struggle with the answers, but in each case, the callers will be thinking of your advisors. This is when your customers will not only realize how well your advisors handled the call, but they’ll trust your advisors, and you bet; they’ll now view them as credible experts as well.

    Since 1990, Bob Cooper has been the president of Elite, a company that strives to help shop owners reach their goals and live happier lives, while elevating the industry at the same time. The company offers one-on-one coaching from the industry’s top shop owners, service advisor training, peer groups, along with sales, marketing and shop management courses. You can learn more about Elite by visiting www.EliteWorldwide.com
  15. Elite Worldwide Inc.
    Elite Business Development Coach and superstar shop owner Darrin Barney shares an easy-to-apply tip that will help you show your employees how much you care about them, and build morale in your shop:
    Darrin Barney is an industry leading shop owner, and also one of the industry's top marketing experts who heads up Elite's Rapid Results Car Counts Package. Visit our Rapid Results page to learn how you can work one-on-one to generate immediate traffic, improve your phone conversions, effectively monitor and measure your results, and generate more repeat and referral business: https://www.eliteworldwide.com/most-effective-way-to-increase-car-counts.html
  16. Elite Worldwide Inc.
    By Bob Cooper

    Henry Ford once said, “Coming together is a beginning. Keeping together is progress. Working together is success.” Clearly one of the keys to success in building an auto repair shop is having your entire staff working together as a team. The question is, how do you create an environment that fosters team spirit? Here are six easy steps that will not only help you create team spirit, but will help you build a more profitable, successful auto repair business at the same time.

    Step #1. Know your responsibilities. Team spirit will always start with you: the business owner. As an owner, it is your responsibility to set the goals of the company, to create the plan, to hire the superstars, to bring out the best in your people, and to ensure the success of the company. By having clearly defined goals for your company, it will not only keep you focused and motivated, but will help keep your entire team focused and motivated as well.

    Step #2. Define your mission. Please don’t confuse your mission with your goals. Your “goals” are your objectives, whereas your “mission” is the reason for your goals. Over the years I have discovered that when the people who work with me understand the mission of our company, they are far more committed to the goals. A Mission Statement for an auto repair shop may read something like this: “It is the mission of Elite Auto Service to provide extraordinary service to our customers, a safe and enjoyable workplace for our employees, and an ethical environment that creates opportunity for all.” Once you have defined your Mission Statement, you should share it with your entire team, post it in your customer waiting area, and incorporate it into the communications you have with your employees. If you haven’t drafted one yet, you may want to consider input from your entire team.

    Step #3. Hire the stars. Here at Elite we strongly believe that business owners need to hire for attitude, aptitude and ethics. As I am sure you will agree, you will have a hard time creating team spirit if you have employees who don’t truly enjoy what they are doing, and who are not 100% committed to customer satisfaction.

    Step #4. Have the right compensation programs in place. You need to have compensation programs that at least in part are based on overall shop productivity, otherwise everyone will focus on their own success rather than the common goals. You should also avoid having your employees compete against one another. Although some management companies encourage shop owners to do so (to the point of posting the billable hours of each tech), we feel otherwise. If you have your employees compete against one another, you’ll inevitably have one winner, and the rest will view themselves as losers. As you can imagine, after a few weeks you will notice an erosion of morale, and that your employees have little interest in helping one another. What you should do is have each employee compete against themselves by setting individual productivity goals that are based on their experience, their skill levels, and the opportunities that you provide to them. This way they can all be winners.

    Step #5. In order to create team spirit you need to provide consistent communication. At Elite we encourage all of our coaching clients to perform one-on-ones with each employee, where they can learn about their goals. We also encourage our clients to have regularly scheduled employee meetings where they discuss the goals of the company, the Mission Statement, and any positive comments from their customers that will support the Mission Statement and fuel team spirit.

    Step #6. As business owners, we need to feed the hearts of our employees. The more you catch your people doing things right and the more you give them positive reinforcement and praise, the happier they will be. Combine this with clearly defined goals, a well-defined Mission Statement that your employees can embrace, the right incentives, and consistent communication, and you will then have my promise: Not only will you be creating team spirit, but you will be building a more successful auto repair business.

    Since 1990, Bob Cooper has been the president of Elite (www.EliteWorldwide.com), a company that strives to help shop owners reach their goals and live happier lives, while elevating the industry at the same time. The company offers one-on-one coaching from the industry’s top shop owners, service advisor training, peer groups, along with sales, marketing and shop management courses.

  17. Elite Worldwide Inc.
    When you start to see a pattern in behavioral issues; such as a tech, manager or service advisor coming in late, here are the things you need to consider: 1) If you don't nip it in the bud it will get worse. 2) Employees need to be responsible for their own behavior. 3) Your employees need to know why you have specific policies in place. So the next time an employee starts to develop a pattern of bad behavior, such as coming in late, call them into a private environment and ask them why they were late. When they have given you their explanation, say something like this...

    “Mike, you've been late four times now this month, and let me tell you what my concerns are. First of all, if you're not here at 7:30am, the first thought that goes through my mind is that you or someone in your family might be sick or injured.  My second thought is that your car may have broken down, or you may have been in an accident, and I start to wonder if I should send Larry or Frank out to look for you. To complicate things even further, when you're not here on time, and I'm standing at the service counter, I don't know what to tell customers who ask me when their car's going to be ready. Additionally, I just can't find it in myself to expect everyone else here at Elite Auto Service to be here on time when you're not. Now I know old habits are hard to break, so the next time you're late, I'll ask you why, but it really isn't going to matter because that one's going to be on me. The second time you're late, again I'll ask you why, and that one's going to be on me as well. But if you're late a third time, for whatever reason, it's going to be a difficult day for me, because I'm going to have to give you your final paycheck.”

    “Mike, I think the world of you, and I would love to be able to work with you for the rest of my life. You're a star, and I don't want to see our relationship end, so please don't put me in a position where I have to let you go. Do we have an understanding?"

    Now here's why this approach is so effective. First of all, many employees will think, “Gee, what's a few minutes?" They'll tell themselves they often work through breaks, stay late, etc., so you can see how easy it is for them to think you're not only nitpicking, but you're being quite unfair. That's why it's critically important that you let them know it's not the couple of minutes that you're concerned about, but that you’re worried about their well-being, your customers and your other employees.

    I have also discovered over the years that the keepers will typically apologize, and the behavioral issue goes away. The people who won't be with you very long will typically either ask you “What period of time are you talking about?" for the three strikes, (which tells us they already imagine they'll be late), or they'll make a point to show up each day just minutes before the time they're supposed to be at work.
    This Elite Three Strikes system takes away all of the excuses and makes the employee responsible for his or her own behavior. Just remember, when you make a promise, you have to keep it, so be ready to hand that employee their final paycheck if the behavior continues.
    Since 1990, Bob Cooper has been the president of Elite, a company that strives to help shop owners reach their goals and live happier lives, while elevating the industry at the same time. The company offers coaching and training from the industry’s top shop owners, service advisor training, peer groups, along with sales, marketing and shop management courses. You can learn more about Elite by visiting www.EliteWorldwide.com.
  18. Elite Worldwide Inc.
    By Bob Cooper
    As we all know, the use of illegal drugs has been around for many years. From the early part of the last century, all the way through the mid-seventies, the only illegal drug that was worthy of discussion among shop owners was marijuana. During those times, even cases of marijuana use were few and far between. It was during the early eighties when our nation (and our industry) began to see a number of other drugs emerge, which resulted in many shop owners deciding to implement drug-free workplace programs. I am proud to say that I was one of them, and our objective was quite simple: To protect our employees, and our customers, from the accidents that can be caused by the use of illegal drugs. Interestingly enough, all the top attorneys in America pretty much agreed that drug-free workplace programs would be a gray area, in that we had to protect the employee’s right to privacy, but also had to protect our staff and customers. This meant that we needed to be very careful about how we administered the plan. From that point on questions continued to arise regarding how and when to test, and what we were able to do if someone did test positive.
    Now here we are just a few decades later, and not only are there many more types of illegal drugs on the streets, but as you well know, in some states marijuana is legal. Add to that, many users are now abusing prescription drugs with the help of questionable doctors, and the use of illegal drugs is more socially acceptable than ever before. So the question is, what are you going to do in these changing times to effectively safeguard your employees and your customers? And what about your business?  As I am sure you’re aware, an employee’s drug use can lead to injuries and losses that will drive up your insurance rates, it can lead to absenteeism, poor performance, and even theft. If you’re unsure of what to do, then you’re reading the right article.
    Let’s start with some basic understandings. First of all, we need to recognize drug use as an illness long before we consider any laws that may be broken, or damage caused to our businesses. By taking this approach, I feel we can not only better understand those that use recreational drugs (both legal and illegal, as well as alcohol), but we can better understand how to deal with those that use drugs.
    Secondly, we need to understand that by hiring someone that uses illegal drugs, not only are we running the risks that are associated with employees that use illegal drugs, but we are also knowingly hiring someone with an illness, and that is knowingly breaking the law. This is one of the many reasons you should consider pre-employment testing.
    I also realize that laws will vary from state to state, and many states now view drug dependency (including alcohol) as an illness. This means that by employing a drug user, you may not only find yourself involved in a situation where you are unable to terminate the employee, but in some cases you may be responsible (in part) for their rehabilitation.
    As a shop owner you need to conclude what type of people you are looking to hire, and the kind of culture you are looking to create in your shop. I sense you would agree that abstinence from non-prescription drugs is not only a testimony to someone’s self-discipline, but it is a reflection of their values as well.
    Lastly, I would recommend speaking with an employment law attorney regarding the discrimination considerations when it comes to applicants that use legal, recreational drugs such as alcohol, and in some states, marijuana. You should also discuss a pre-employment drug testing program with them, as well as an ongoing drug-free workplace program that you can implement. 
    In closing, by implementing a drug-free workplace program in your shop you will not only be better safeguarding your employees and customers, but you will be sending a very powerful message to your community that you are principle-centered, and that you really do care about people.  Drug use may very well become more common than less common, so I would encourage you to do what your competitors aren’t doing, and take the next steps to solidify your shop’s drug-free culture.
    Since 1990, Bob Cooper has been the president of Elite, a company that strives to help shop owners reach their goals and live happier lives, while elevating the industry at the same time. The company offers coaching and training from the industry’s top shop owners, service advisor training, peer groups, along with sales, marketing and shop management courses. You can learn more about Elite by visiting www.EliteWorldwide.com.
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  19. Elite Worldwide Inc.
    By Bob Cooper
    Many years ago I read an article that featured an interview with Herb Kelleher, the co-founder of Southwest Airlines. In the article he stated that he and his mother (who was a Harvard graduate) would often debate who was more important: He argued that it was the employees of a company, and his mom argued that it was the customers. With all due respect, I would argue; why does it need to be one or the other? From my point of view, this debate is like having two children and being asked which one we love the most, because both your customers and your employees are equally important.  Since it is becoming increasingly difficult to find and hire the superstars, I would like to use this article to help you continue earning the trust of your employees, who at Elite we refer to as our internal customers.
    Putting first things first, as business owners we need to recognize that our internal customers are much like our external customers. In your case, your external customers come to you with transportation problems that you solve, and they then pay you with their hard-earned money.  Your internal customers come to you with needs as well. They have needs like being able to save enough money to buy a home, or having the funds available that they’ll need to educate their children. Simply put, you provide them with the right opportunities, and you help them fulfill those needs. In return, they pay you with their work efforts, and their contributions towards your success. 
    So the question is; what can you do to keep the stars you have, not just for a few years, but for the length of their working careers? Although there is no formula that will guarantee results, there are a number of things you can do to keep your stars as your stars.  
    First and most importantly, never forget this cardinal rule of managing people: We have to keep the hearts of our employees, because once we lose their hearts, their minds will follow. I actually coined this rule long ago, and have lived by it for decades.  Now here is how you can implement it…
    With every superstar who works with you, you need to look beyond the employee component of your relationship, and you need to consider them as a person, just like you. This means that you need to truly care about your employees as people, and the things that are important to them need to become important to you. Once they realize that you really do care about them and their families, as well as their goals, they will then care about you, and the goals of your company.  Secondly, you need to be a great listener, you need to pay close attention to their suggestions, and you need to always thank them for their input.
    I have also learned that you need to be a shoulder your employees can lean on. By being sympathetic to their personal struggles, you will find that if you have the right people, they will not take your sympathy for granted, but they will go to the ends of the earth for you.  You need to let them know that you recognize their talents and strengths, and you need to give them praise for jobs that are well done. Beyond that, you have to show them the humility that all employees look for. This means you will need to set your pride aside to let them know that they are much more gifted than you in many ways, you’ll need to be able to admit to your mistakes, and you’ll need to be able to give heartfelt apologies at the appropriate times. Lastly, if you plan on keeping their hearts, you will need to constantly share your vision of the future, and paint a clear path to their success in the coming years.
    Over the years I have discovered that people don’t leave companies. They never have, and they never will. People leave people, not companies. If you’d like to continue earning the trust and confidence of your employees, then I would encourage you to apply the principles that I have shared with you. If you do, then I will make you a promise: Beyond being a great role model for your employees, the morale of your employees will go up, your shop’s productivity will go up, and any employee turnover problems you have… will disappear.
    Since 1990, Bob Cooper has been the president of Elite, a company that strives to help shop owners reach their goals and live happier lives, while elevating the industry at the same time. The company offers coaching and training from the industry’s top shop owners, service advisor training, peer groups, along with sales, marketing and shop management courses. You learn more about Elite by visiting www.EliteWorldwide.com
  20. Elite Worldwide Inc.
    Superstar shop owner and Elite Business Development Coach Jim Butitta shares a critical employee management tip that will help shop owners build the culture needed to attract the top techs and service advisors: 
    Visit the Elite website to learn how you can team up with a superstar shop owner like Jim to reach your shop's goals: https://www.eliteworldwide.com/one-on-one-coaching.html
  21. Elite Worldwide Inc.
    I am sure you will agree that in our industry there are a number of unwritten rules that shop owners have followed for decades. They know that they have to hire gifted technicians, stay at the forefront of vehicle technology, and can never jeopardize their relationships with their customers; just to name a few. Unfortunately, there is another rule that far too many shop owners (and service advisors) have believed in for decades. It’s a rule that’s been passed down from one generation to the next; the one that says that whenever you have first-time customers in your shop, and you discover that their vehicles need a lot of work, you are better off holding back on some of the recommendations.

    The basis for this belief is that with first-time customers, too many recommendations will scare them off. These owners and advisors typically feel that they are better off just recommending the repairs or services that the customer brought the vehicle in for, building a relationship with the customer, and then discussing the other required services during the next visit. There is no question that these owners and advisors typically have good intentions. They believe in their hearts that since they are not trying to sell their customers something they don’t need, they’re not crossing any ethical lines. Unfortunately, that’s the furthest from the truth.

    When customers entrust you with their automobiles, they have a presumption of full disclosure and honesty. Rightfully or wrongfully, I am sure you will agree that your customers also have an expectation that every time their vehicles enter one of your service bays, your technicians will immediately pick up on everything that needs to be done. So do this…

    Have a shop meeting and pull up an extra chair. Tell your entire staff that the empty chair represents the spirit of your customer, and that everything that is discussed during the meeting should be able to be said in front of the customer without hesitation. Start the meeting by reinforcing your commitment to both ethics and customer service. You should then review your vehicle inspection process. I strongly recommend using well-constructed vehicle inspection forms, and taking advantage of a variety of those forms: A form for complete vehicle inspections, a safety inspection form, forms for the inspection of specific systems, etc. You should then let all of your employees know that every vehicle will be inspected in a manner that complies with your company policies, that all discoveries are to be documented, and that the inspecting technician is to sign the completed inspection form.

    Once the completed form is turned over to the advisor, all of the recommended repairs and services are to be estimated, and everything is to be fully disclosed to your customers. Not only is this the professional thing to do, but equally as important, it’s the ethical thing to do. Your customers have the right to know about everything that you have discovered, and they have the right to know how much the repairs and services will cost if authorized.

    I am sure you will agree; when it comes to ethics, there are no exceptions. Yet many shop owners and advisors will argue that if they have a vehicle that is worth $1,000, and they discover that it needs $5,000 worth of work, then there is no sense in putting together an estimate. At Elite, we adamantly disagree. The vehicles belong to your customers, it’s their money, and it’s their choice. Add to that, just because an advisor feels that a vehicle is not worth fixing, it doesn’t mean that the customer will feel the same way, as the vehicle may hold a special place in the customer’s heart.

    So mandate complete and professional vehicle inspections that meet with you policies, and insist on full disclosure to all of your customers. They may not buy everything that your advisor has recommended, but a few things are for certain: Your customers will know about everything that needs to be done, you’ll have detailed records, your sales and profits will go up, and you will be doing the right things for the right reasons. If you follow this advice, and if you never put money ahead of people, you can’t lose.

    Since 1990, Bob Cooper has been the president of Elite, a company that strives to help shop owners reach their goals and live happier lives, while having a positive impact on their employees, customers and communities. The company offers one-on-one coaching from the industry’s top shop owners, service advisor training, peer groups, along with sales, marketing and shop management courses. You can learn more about Elite by visiting www.EliteWorldwide.com.

  22. Elite Worldwide Inc.
    Superstar shop owner and Elite Business Development Coach Rudi Rudloff shares why giving back during the holiday season is a win for people in need, for your community and for your auto repair business.
     
    For additional help building a more successful auto repair business, learn how you can team up with a superstar shop owner like Ron through Elite Top Shop 360: Top Shop 360
  23. Elite Worldwide Inc.
    Do your customers ever tell your advisors that they're unable to being their vehicle in today? Top sales trainer Jen Monclus explains how to handle this common sales objection.
    For additional help generating higher sales and happier customers, learn more about Elite's industry acclaimed Masters Service Advisor Training Program: https://www.eliteworldwide.com/automotive-service-advisor-training.html
  24. Elite Worldwide Inc.
    Superstar shop owner and Elite Business Development Coach Nick Sallas shares a tip on how to handle upset customers in your shop, and turn them into satisfied ones!
     
    For additional help building a more successful auto repair business, learn how you can team up with a superstar shop owner like Nick through Elite Top Shop 360: Top Shop 360
  25. Elite Worldwide Inc.
    By Bob Cooper
    If you speak with most shop owners they’ll tell you that they think their shop is worth x amount of money. Ask them how they came up with that number, and they’ll tell you it’s based on what they heard another shop sold for, or it’s predicated on their annual sales. But if you really want to know what your shop is worth, first of all, forget everything you’ve heard about “goodwill” and the fact that you have thousands of names in your database. That’s icing on the cake, but it’s not something a buyer can take to the bank. And although there is some value associated with some franchise names, there are two things that are most important to a buyer: the “tangible assets” and the “income history.”
    Tangible assets are things like real estate, cash in the bank, secured receivables, inventory and equipment. To put it another way, these are the assets that buyers could turn into cash if they had to. When you’re establishing the value of your inventory and equipment, bear in mind that the actual appraised value may very well be far less than what you originally paid. So tangible assets are always number one.
    In regard to “income history”, we all know that past performance is no guarantee of future performance, yet the substantiated income history of a company is what buyers can use to forecast earnings. And don’t forget: The amount of money the “company” made does not include any income you’ve drawn out of the company as a salary. The company’s income is the amount remaining after all expenses, including your salary, have been considered.
    So imagine you’re looking to buy a shop, and let’s say the tangible assets are worth $400,000. In addition, let’s say the shop has a history of generating $100,000 in annual income after all expenses, and let’s say the owner has been drawing a salary of $80,000. So if you were to buy that shop, how much would you be willing to invest? Well, only you can answer that question, but I hope you take these 6 points into consideration:
    1. If you were to liquidate after you purchased, how much could you sell the assets for? I call this the “street value” of assets.
    2. How long has the company been in business, how long have the key employees been with the business, and what’s the probability that these key employees will stay on once you buy?
    3. What is the probability of the company continuing to earn the same $100,000 in annual profits, and for how long?
    4. In regard to the $80,000 salary the owner was taking, would you be willing to do what he or she does for the company for the same amount? Or will you be able to hire someone to do that job for the same or less?
    5. If you were to invest the same amount of money in any other business or investment vehicle, would you receive a better return?
    6. What are the terms of the purchase price? You may be better off to pay a higher price in return for a lower down payment, good financing rates and a non-compete.
    So, how do you establish the value of your business? Not by the icing (goodwill and number of names in your database), but by looking at it through the eyes of both a banker and a buyer.
    Since 1990, Bob Cooper has been the president of Elite, a company that strives to help shop owners reach their goals and live happier lives, while elevating the industry at the same time. The company offers coaching and training from the industry’s top shop owners, service advisor training, peer groups, along with sales, marketing and shop management courses. You learn more about Elite by visiting www.EliteWorldwide.com.

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