Joe Marconi

I was the second in line at 6:00am! I am listening to the radio all day.

AZ in our area still does the free scan. And, you are right, it kills the diag process when a customer walks thu the door with an O2 sensor from AZ and asks us, "How much to install it". Drives me nuts!

You know, I spoke to a few people and they said the same thing. I was never like that. I was brought up to choose who you think is the best choice, no matter what party. I fear we are drawing lines in the sand, don't you?

This is a reminder, tomorrow is Election Day, so let’s make sure we get out and vote. This is an important election and we need to let our elected officials know that the public cares about the state of the country. No matter what side of the isle you are from, voting shows we care about this great nation. "It is by their votes the people exercise their sovereignty." --Thomas Jefferson

Another great story, Gonzo! The way you tell these stories is truly a work of art. I worked at a Ford Dealer in the 70's as the used car mechanic. I can't tell you how many repair orders I got that stated: "Check Air Conditioner- Blows Hot", only to find that the used car (just sold) did not have A/C. What a scene when the sales person is explaining that to the customer.

There is not a doubt in my mind that we give way too much away. As an industry, we have never charged what we are truly worth. I don't think it will ever change. The motoring public does not know the difference between an $8.00 lube tech and a skilled technician. One of my issues is when a shop DOES try to charge the real price for a job and that shop is considered overpriced. But, that shop did the math and knows the true cost of doing business. We really need to change our mindset. We struggle too much as a group, and for the most part, too many shop owners are not being fairly compensated for the great job they do. And, as a result, they can't pay their techs what they are truly worth.

Selling diagnostic time has become harder and harder. You have part companies offering free check engine light scans, which the public thinks is a diagnosis, dealership lowering their prices on diag work to get customers through the door and now you even have independent shops waving the analysis fee if they get the work. The fact is that diagnostic work is becoming the trend for the future. No longer are we adjusting timing or carburetors. We need to have the equipment to test and analyze a complicated computer network and many times the fix is a program update. The diagnostic work and fix may take a few hours, and all of which the tech never got his hands dirty. Amazing times we live in. And to keep pace with technology, we need to invest in training, tools, equipment; online information sources and we need to hire top techs to perform this work. All of which cost MONEY. Some say, keep the diag charges low so you can get the gravy work. Gray work? Look at where this industry is going….more hi tech! If we concede on charging what we are worth we are giving up much needed dollars and jeopardizing our future. Now, with that off my chest I must admit that due to conditions that are out of our control, I have “adjusted” my diagnostic charges. In the past all diag charges started at $189.00 across the board, no exceptions. That was the past. Here is what we do now. I customer comes in for a check engine light with no obvious performance problems and wants to know how much it would be to check it out and repair. Well, we don’t even have a clue of what the problem is until we at least scan the code. So, we offer to scan the computer, obtain the code or codes, and explain what the code is and the tests necessary to determine the cause of the problem. We tell the customer upfront that only the scan is on us and you could be looking at anywhere from $89.00 to $189.00, depending on what the code is and how many codes are logged. We also tell the customer that only after the anyalysis is done can we give them a price on what the repair will cost. We started this approach Jan 2010 and so far it is working out great. In the past when we would tell a customer that the fee for the diag was $189 before we even looked at the car. The customer would object and we were losing diag jobs; mostly because the customer sees no value at that point. BUT, the customer sees a lot of value to have his car scanned first, at no charge, and then have the scan data explained to him. Do we stand of chance of people walking away after the scan is done? Yes. But so far we have been successful. This diag policy does not apply to driveability problems, no start problems, stalling problems, missfires problems, loss of power, ABS, Air Bag, intermittent problems,etc. For those issues we have base anaylsis charges and sell the diag up front before we start. My approach will no doubt raise some eyebrows with a few members as it has in the past, so let the discussions begin….

That is strange. I wonder if this is real?

If that does not give all of us hope that this is still the greatest country in world, nothing will!

I saw a demo of the Snap On Verdic and it looked pretty nice. The only problem with a demo is that the sales person is going to show you all the nice features to make it look impressive. I think you did the right thing by using it for a week and you bring up some valid issues. my concern is that the scanner debate is getting more confusing: should we go we OE? Or are there acceptable aftermarket scan tools that we do the job? Let's hope more people will get a chance to use it and we can get more opinions on it.

We have many glass companies in our area that come right to our shop and perform the glass replacement. It works out pretty good. We work with the insurance company on behalf of the customer and get a percentage of the job. We handle the paper work only. The only problems we have is the insurance companies and what they are willing to pay. But, as far as the job is concerned, I am happy with the work these sub contractirs do. We used to make more money a few years back, but the insurance companies have gotten tougher to deal with. If the customer does not want to go thru insurance it's a lot easier and more profitable.

If the Bush years was the cause for all this mess, then why are things worse now? And, why has there not been steps to get us headed in the right direction? At this point, I don't think putting blame on the past is the answer. If a ball team lost in the past with players from the past, how does that affect the team and how it plays now? I understand residual effects, but that only explains the issue to a certain point. I think there are vast amounts of people today that do not like the direction of where this administration is headed. I am one of those people. Spending boat loads of money is not the answer, and I really don't care if a democratic does or or republic does it, it's just wrong. Plus, moving toward bigger government is not the answer either.

The truth rings loud and clear...let's hope it reaches the right people. Take back American on election Day!

Remember and Use the Customer’s Name Dale Carnegie once said, “Nothing is sweeter to someone than the sound of their name”. Part of providing the very best in customer service is to remember the customer’s name. You also need to use the customer's name during your conversation with them, whether booking an appointment on the phone, at customer write-up or explaining a particular repair. For first time customers, this is vital. Once the customer tells you their name, make sure you say their name a few times during the conversation. This will help ease any tensions the customer may have meeting you for the first time and will help make a connection between you and the customer.

Hey Gonzo, Sum Guy was working up here in New York last week....I found him! Here's what happened: We suggested a transmission service on a customer's car last month, which she agreed to, no problem. She came in last Friday for a State inspection and LOF, and she said that she was talking to somone and this guy, who knows a lot about cars, told her that no car ever needs a transmission service. I said, "what, who told you that?"...she said, (Yep you guessed it)..."Sum Guy did". True story. Thanks Gonzo, your stories actually are like therapy. Keep them coming!!

AutoShopOwner.com Adds Body Shop Collision Forum After attending the NACE/CARS Convention, I realized that there are a lot of great auto body shop owners out there with issues and challenges that are somewhat unique but surely something that we can all share and learn from. So, we added a separate forum dedicated to the auto body shop owner. ASO welcomes auto body shop owners to its family of shop owners and I know, without a doubt, that this will add great value to AutoShopOwner.com. So spread the word and tell your friends and colleagues in the auto body collision business that ASO wants to be their “go to” business forums web site to express their ideas and opinions, learn about business issues and participate in discussions that are relevant to today’s automotive industry.

We have seen an increase recently in new car sales. A lot of those cars that my customers were hanging onto are long past the useful life. The problem is that there are many new car dealers giving 2 years or more of free maintenance. How can we compete with this? Do we need to be concerned? Think of all the other challenges we have these days. I know many of you might say that we lose a certain amount of customers for the first few years anyway when a customer buys a new car. But, I think now it’s different. The dealerships need the service work now more than ever. Plus the dealer is beginning to understand the sales cycle. If they do a great job in the service department, it greatly increases their odds of selling those customers new cars in the future. I would like to hear from other shop owners on what they think about free maintenance and how we can compete with this.