Joe Marconi

6 Tips to Reducing Comebacks Comebacks kill. There’s no denying it. While we can never eliminate all comebacks, we can work to reduce them. The more you reduce comebacks, the more money you put to your bottom line. I want to share with you six tips that I use in my shop. First, include all workflow errors as comebacks. It’s not just the cars that return with comebacks that can kill you. It’s any workflow error that causes loss of time, which means loss of income. Include any miscommunication between the tech and service advisor, any part that arrives defective and you need to wait for another one, and any other error that disrupts the normal flow of production. Any disruption in your work flow will reduce efficiency, decrease productivity, which will result in loss of revenue. You also need to look at time wasted between jobs. I have found that most experienced techs can beat book time in most cases. But, what happens between jobs is a whole different story. Smoke breaks, tool trucks, coffee trucks, waiting for the next job, are just some of the time-wasters between jobs. I am not telling you to hold a whip over your staff, but once labor time is wasted you can never get it back, so pay attention to it. Second, create a written work flow process, with a quality control system. Make sure all jobs and vehicles are reviewed before the customer is called for car delivery. To improve efficiency and consistency in your shop requires clearly define processes that everyone follows. Make sure everyone is trained and let them know that everyone will be accountable to follow policies and procedures. Third, create a system of tracking for all comebacks and errors in workflow. Identify what type of error occurred. Was it a part error, tech error, communications issue or a training problem? This tracking system must identity the source of the error or person. In other words, track individual techs, part supplies, service advisors, etc. Look for trends. If you find that all exhaust system problems are from a particular part company, you can take action and solve the issue by not buying exhaust parts from that supplier. Fourth, calculate your comeback rate. If you are having 10 out of every 100 cars return, your comeback rate is 10%. You will increase your bottom line for every percentage point, or part of a percentage point, you shave off your comeback rate. Don’t forget to separate the comeback rate by tech, part supplier, service advisor, etc. Fifth, hold meetings with key people and review all comebacks and errors. Create an action plan with each comeback or error. Determine ways to reduce or eliminate the comeback. For example, we had tech that struggled with balancing tires on certain wheels. Many of his cars came back with a wheel shimmy. Because of our tracking system, we were able to identify the tech, and after reviewing the invoices, realized that all his comebacks were with tires that needed stick-on weights. After proper training, the problem was solved. And sixth, collectively get everyone involved in solving work flow problems and comebacks. Ask everyone for ways to reduce comebacks, improve production and consistency. Rely on the people around you. This will keep you from looking like a uncaring watchdog. More importability, your people will respond better when they are engaged in helping you and the shop improve.

The things we encounter. It takes all kinds of people and they all show up at someone's service counter eventually. Great article!

There's a lesson for all of us!

I wrote this story a few years ago. I am posting it again and may post it next year again. It's about my childhood and some of the memories with my father. I hope you enjoy it and Happy Father's Day! Joe Marconi Men of Steel - A Father's Day tribute to the auto industry Some of my fondest memories as a boy growing up in the 1960’s were the Saturday afternoons I spent with my father at Babe’s Body Shop in the Bronx. Babe and my father were old army buddies who served together in World War II. They grew up in the same neighborhood and remained friends their entire lives. I never knew his real name or his last name, everyone just called him Babe. As my father and Babe would talk about the old days and the War, I would wander off and watch the men in the shop perform their magic. I can still remember as if it were yesterday. I watched in amazement as these men, with a cigarette dangling from their lip, took a wrecked car and pounded it back into shape. In those days, you didn’t just replace a fender or quarter panel, you straightened it and you fixed it. These guys had the strength of Hercules and the skill of a Michelangelo. I remember on one particular day, my father noticed how fascinated I was watching the guys in the shop. He knelt down beside me, pointed to the guys and said, “I call these guys, "Men of Steel." These are tough guys that work hard each and every day. They can take a crumpled-up fender and with hammer in hand, work it back into shape just the way it looked when it rolled off the assembly line; and all by eye." Before we left to go home, my father and I walked around the side of the body shop and pulled two sodas out of the Coke Cooler. Then we would sat down on a bench seat taken from of an old Desoto to finish our Cokes. Could an eight year old ask for a better summer Saturday afternoon? For many of us, childhood memories have served to create pathways to our careers. The auto repair industry is filled with shop owners and mechanics that draw upon past memories to shape their lives. The auto repair industry may have changed a bit, but we still perform magic every day. We are a dedicated breed and should be proud of what we, as a group, have accomplished. My passion for this business was born watching those “men of steel” back in the 60’s. I knew from a young age what I wanted to do in my life. I feel lucky that way. I often wonder how many people go to work every day hating their jobs. I am a mechanic and a shop owner. It’s the life I chose and it’s the life you chose. We all have a special bond. It’s the reason AutoShopOwner.com was created. Through the use of words, comments and stories we express who we are. We share, learn and become better at what we do. The glue that has bonded us together is our past. That same glue will help secure our future. My father encouraged me to open my own shop and we shared some great times before his passing in 1986. You see, he was also one of those, “Men of Steel”. I’m not one to live in the past, but I would give just about anything to have one more summer Saturday afternoon, sitting on that bench seat behind Babe’s Body Shop sharing a coke with my Dad.

Some good, mostly bad. When a customer walks in with an extended warranty, we all cringe. You need to inform the customer upfronnt that the warranty company most likely will not pay the entire amount of the repair, if they even authorize it. If you can you should read thru the policy before you even call. Most policies are "mechanical breakdown", which means they will cover a part like a ball joint, but not if it wears out, but only if it breaks. We also tell the customers that they are repsonsible for any remainding balance the warranty does not pay. We never accept what they want to pay us. Also, many warranty companies want to supply their own parts. Last month we had a warranty company that wanted to supply a used power steering rack. I they for real??? We ended up putting a reman unit in the car and the customer had to settle for what the company wanted to give them. If you handle it right, the customer will view the warranty company as the bad guy, and not you.

It all starts with the leader, the boss. And if you are not getting the results you want, start looking at yourself and the people you have working for you. You will find that the problem is a combination of both. This is one of those topics that will take more than one post to answer. First of all, for any business to truly be successful, the business must be built on system and procedures that allows the business to run without the owner. When you walk into any successful business, particularly a franchise, you don't ask for the owner. There are systems in place and the right trained people running the business. Absentee or having the business run on its own are two different things. I know many absentee owner businesses that are a half a step away from being bankrupted. Again, that business does not have the right people, or the right systems in place. Having the proper systems allows the owner NOT to be tied to all the operations of the business every single day of the week and every single hour of the day. If the business cannot run on its own to a point where you can’t take time off, that’s not healthy for you or your family life. The first step is clearly define all positions in your shop, including yours, the owner. Build an organization chart that has a chain of command that has a manager, service advisor, technicians, office people and support staff. Build a system of reporting and accountability that allows the owner to see the progress of the shop and to insure that everything that needs to be done is done. And I mean everything: Profit margins are met; cores and returns are taken care of, end of the booking out with all cash is accounted for, shop clean up, payroll, etc. This will take some time and a lot of work. Trust me, I have done this and it takes time and effort. But, the end result is that the owner will become more efficient and not wear all the hats of the business. This is a start, hope it helps. I also recommend reading the "E Myth", by Michael Gerber. It's a book that explains; Just because someone is a great mechanic or a great chef, does not mean they can run a business, the skills of running a business are vastly different.

First, welcome and good luck. I know the members of AutoShopOwner.com will help you along the way. The best advise I can give you at this point is to make sure your skills in business are sharp. The auto business today is not like it was when I started. The shops that understand business will be the most sucessful. I would venture into fleet work very carefully. Many shops do well with fleet accounts, but many are held hostage to them and if you loose major accounts, it could destroy you. Specializing can work too, just be sure you identify your taget customer and do everthing to attract this target group and take care of your key customers. I am sure they will be more dialouge to follow. Best of luck!

GM has announced it will offer free maintenance on all new cars sold. No doubt other car companies will follow. We need to watch this real close, we have discussed this before: How do you comptete with free? Here's a link to the article: http://dealer-communications.com/news/free-maintenance-offered-by-gm-on-2014-models/?utm_medium=Email&utm_source=ExactTarget&utm_campaign=Fixed+Ops+ENL+6-10-13

Workflow: It’s more than what happens in the bays Most of us, due to our mechanical background, have no issues with creating a workflow process that maximizes productivity and efficiency, once a job is sold. Where many of us fall short is involving the customer in that workflow process. Workflow involves more than what is managed through the shop, it’s also how the customer is managed through the entire sales process; from appointment scheduling, to write up, to up sell, to car delivery and the follow up after the sale. If any of the steps are not consistent with your delivery of world class service, the business will suffer with low productivity, low sales and poor retention rate. Each contact point with the customer is an opportunity to either make a positive experience or negative experience. The more positive impressions we make, the greater the emotional tie with the customer and the stronger the business. Remember, the customer is the most important element in your workflow process. Build a process that delivers world class customer service with the awareness that you are doing all you can to take care of the customer’s needs.

I guess you need to take each case on its on merit. I can tell you that of all the people that I have rehired thru the years, none of them really worked out. The issues that made them leave, for some unknown reasons, will resurface again and become a problem. I am not saying it can not work, but in my case, it has not.

Great article, I nearly forgot about those hidden blowers motors. I cut many inner fenders in my time to gain access to the blower motor. I remember years back I was working late. I promised a customer his car back. I had to replace the power steering pump. I don't remember the car, but I do remember it was a front wheel drive, transverse, 4cyl. My wife stopped by to keep me company with the kids. As I reached back behind the engine against the firewall, I felt around for the bolts, went over to my tool box, grabbed a few wrenches, a few sockets and a bent hand Snap-On ratchet. I stuck my left hand down out of sight and began the process of removing the PS pump. With one hand doing the job, I began a conversation with my wife and was looking at her as I worked. After a few minutes she stopped and said, "How can you work, talk to me and never look at what you are doing?" I never really thought about, it really came natural to me, as it does to every mechanic. I told her that as a mechanic our hands are just as important as our eyes and that we rely on our hands to communicate to our brain. She shook her head in amazement. You brought back fond memories, thanks! Oh, and thanks for using the terminology: Mechanic.

I don't show prices in the waiting room, except for a bundled package, which is a promotion with value, not a discounted service. I also try not to make price a main focal point. Even showing prices of standard jobs, in my opinion, can send the wrong message. Promote who you are, not what you charge. Most of us are not discounters either, like Wall Mart or Sears. With companies like Sears, the discount price is the real price. When WE discount services or repairs, we reduce our profit margins. Every discount is paid for by someone, that someone is the shop owner. If discounts are used to increase car counts, you will always need to discount to maintain traffic to your shop. And, profit margins will always suffer. I feel that we should position what makes us different and the value and benefits of doing business with us. Once you go down the road of promoting discounts, it's like a drug. People look for the discounts and it will be hard to go back to regular pricing or raise prices. Focus on the quality of the service and repairs. Create packages that have value, rather than discounting services. Identify you prime customers and take of them, they will bring you the greatest return and bring others like them to you. Just my thoughts. This is a complicated issue, sorry to get long-winded.

I really appreciate your kind words. I guess the transformation from mechanic to businessman can seem out of sorts at times. You know as well as anyone, when you are in the trenches with the men, it's a lot different when you take a desk job back at HQ. Leadership takes on a different meaning. My roots are in the mechanics. I know that my path is different now and that I need to accept the challenges before me. I do want to make a difference and make this industry a profession we can all be proud of. Thanks for your support; when I have great people like you around me, I know we can all achieve great things.

That is a great question and can be an issue. When you take your top producer and put him in a role to oversee others, productivity can drop. It's like taking your top car sales person and making that person the sales manager. There is always the fear that car sales will drop. I moved my oldest master tech to the postion of foreman a number of years ago. I felt that although he is the best mechanic I have, he was not as fast as he used to be and why put him on all the toughest jobs like clutches, engines and transmissions? So, we created a plan what would have him improve the productivity of the other younger techs. It took a little time to work out the kinks to the workflow process, but it does work. We pay the foreman a salary with a bonus when the shop exceeds a certain gross profit dollar amount. And he is happy with that postion. One thing to be careful. Some techs use the foreman as a crutch, which may result in a younger tech not learning or going the extra mile on a problem. We now make the tech work thru a problem and created more workflow processes before he has the foreman go over and work his magic. Hope this helps.

This is an ongoing issue and appears to be getting worse. Years back I would put the word out for a mechanic and there would be a hand full of guys to pick from. Now, no so. Also, back then most of the mechanics we hired came from gas stations and repair shops, with no formal training. They started, like I did, as a kid working on the family car and friend's cars. With all the Tech schools, like UTI and Lincoln Tech graduating all the techincians today...where are all the techs? Plus, with all the new car dealers that closed down the past few years, you would think there would be a surplus. Again, not so. I use word of mouth, Craigs List, the local paper and speak to all part reps, tool truck guys, etc. I do think we need to do more. Add a page or two to our web site to constantly recruit and be constantly active looking for future techs. It's like looking for a good doctor, you don't want to scamble looking for a doctor when you are sick. Good luck! I am looking too, and no one so far...

Killer A/C Sales Tip I have posted this tip before, but it’s worth mentioning again. For those of us in the northern states, our A/C months are typically between late May and into September. But as we all know, it becomes increasingly more difficult to sell A/C work as we head into the summer months. So, here’s what I have done in the past and it works great. First, at write up and when scheduling an appointment, ask the customer if they have turned on the A/C yet and if they did, ask them if they feel if it’s working ok. Next, tell your customers that as part of the service today your techs will turn on the A/C just to see if it is functioning correctly. Make it part of your workflow process to include a quick A/C check. Create a little check list for the techs and have a quick meeting to review. It does not have to be elaborate, just something that is proactive and quick. What you don’t want is for the customer to turn on the air conditioner for the first time on their way to a wedding on Sunday afternoon to find out it’s not working, when it was just in your shop 3 days ago for a 60k service. You can also create a few promos. For example, and “A/C Performance Test and Inspection”, or an “A/C Performance Test and Service”, which would include and gauge check, check the cabin filter, inspect the belt, condenser and other components, etc. Be creative and price it right. The key is to be Proactive and Promote!

The 2013 Industry Profile is featured in the May Issue of BodyShop Business magazine. There is a lot of great information. The shop owner profile caught my attention. Sixty percent of body shop owners are between the ages of 50 and 64 and the average years in business is 31.6. This stat is very similar the mechanical shop owners. This indicates an aging group of shop owners. The survey did indicate that 86% of body shops are family owned, so many of these shops will someday be taken over by a family member. It will be interesting to see how this plays out in the next decade or so. For those nearing retirement age, what are your plans for your body shop? Who will take over? Will you sell?

When someone asks me how long have I been working on cars, I look down at my watch and answer, "Including today?" The looks I get are priceless!

Me too!

New York also has a free inspection program. I had it done last year and it was a real eye-opener. We had a lot of issues I was not even aware of. If I had a real OSHA inspection, boy it would have cost me dearly.

Don’t Be A “Me Too” Brand When someone says “Volvo”, we think safety. When we say “Starbucks”, we think coffee. These companies have done an amazing job at marketing. They own a concept or position in the mind of the consumer. It is nearly impossible for two companies to the same concept or position. Market leaders are often the first to bring to the market a concept or position. Being first is important. Other car companies have tried, including Mercedes, to brand safety in their marketing campaigns, yet only Volvo has succeeded in anchoring the concept of safety in the prospect’s mind. For shop owners, we need to study and understand our market, but be careful not to copy our competition, especially if the competition owns a concept or position in our market area. Copying what the competition does will result in you becoming what’s known as a “me too” brand, a copycat. And copycats are rarely considered credible. Find your niche, find what makes you different, find out what you do that others do not do. Only then will you stand out from the pack and become a market leader in your area of differentiation. I know we all service and repairs cars. That’s how we generate sales, but it’s not what defines us. Find what makes you different and you will build your pathway to success.

I thought I would really switch gears today and ask; What's your favorite BBQ. I have two Weber grills and I love summer time and BBQ. My Weber charcoal grill is my favorite. It's a lot more work and you have to wait for the charcoal to get to the right temperature, but for me you can't beat the flavor of charcoaled steaks, hot dogs and burgers. Later today I am trying for the first time those wood planks and will be cooking salmon.

ASE certification is a requirement in my shop, with the techs and with service advisors. We started holding study groups at lunch and after work to insure that techs and advisors were studying. I attended a few of these study groups and help to tutor the group. We just started this and the test scores were amazing. The interaction of the group makes a difference. The group also took practice tests and we reviewed the tests and the answers. Just thought I would pass this along.

I was wondering if any ASO member has experience with OSHA and what were the results. We have all heard horror stories about OSHA and violations. Also, what training and self-inspections are shops doing to prepare themselves in the event of an OSHA inspection?

I wonder how many other professionals get grilled and interrogated? When the plumber arrives at someone's house, I wonder how much interrogation goes on? I do think that it is somewhat a personality trait of some people to doubt and question. My concern is that it happens way too much with us due to the image we have.