Joe Marconi

Would you go food shopping, pack all the food away and only eat half of it? Wouldn’t that be a waste of both time and money? Are you guilty of this? Not with food, but with part inventory? When parts sit on your shelf too long, you’re throwing money away. How do we control our inventory? How do we determine what and when to buy and how much?

Your policy and systems must be in written form. Everyone you employee must know what is expected of them. Dress code, job descriptions and procedures are just a few things that need to be clearly defined. What methods do you use to insure your people are all on the same page?

To compete today you need to use what technology has to offer. Calling all over town for prices and availability can slow down production. Do you homework. Find a supplier that offers online ordering of parts and you will increase your shop productivity. Systems like Mitchell Manager allows you to generate an estimate, log into your local parts supplier, check availability, order the parts, put the parts on the invoice and check your profit margin! If you have the ability to link to a parts supplier via the internet, I urge you to do so.

To attract quality people we need to offer a great compensation package. We need to consider; a reasonable salary, vacation time, sick time, retirement plan, health/medical benefits and an inviting work environment. The requirements of our business are very demanding. Tough complicated work, huge tool bills and long hours. It’s also a matter of respect. Aren’t we obligated to offer our people the benefits they deserve?

Terminating someone’s employment is never easy. Knowing when to fire someone, at times, is even harder. The next time you’re thinking of firing an employee, but just not sure, ask yourself these questions. One: If this person came to you and said he was leaving, how would you feel? If you feel happy, that person should be let go. If it would upset you, then more work is needed to salvage the relationship. Two: if this person were applying for a job today, would you hire him? If the answer is absolutely no, then it’s time to cut him loose.

What methods do use in determining when to pull the trigger?

Perhaps your most important tool…the telephone. But who is answering it? Are they trained and qualified? Would you assign just anyone to your alignment machine or tire machine or brake lathe? Absolutely not! You train the right people on your equipment to qualify them to operate it correctly. If they are not trained properly, profits suffer. How about your phone? Are the right people talking to your customers?

I believe that it’s not what we think that matters when it comes to customer service. We need to find out what is important to the customer and give it to them.

They say you have one chance to make a lasting impression. What does your company do to make that customer experience unique and want to return again?

They say you have one chance to make a lasting impression. What does your company do to make that customer experience unique and want to return again?

Scheduling for profit is an art. If you schedule too many jobs you run the risk of not being able to up sell and allow for emergencies. Book too little and your techs may be sweeping the floors by 3:00. What method do you use?

Do you track Average Repair Order Dollar Amount (ARO)? Shops with low car counts and high ticket amounts will have a high ARO, while shops with quick lanes for state inspections and oil changes will typically have a lower than average ARO. Does the size of the ticket matter to you or the gross profit dollars in your pocket? What are your thoughts?

The cost of doing business in NY is high. It seems as if the expenses are going up faster than our sales income. How do we keep pace with cost of living and still remain competitive? It's hard to decrease fixed expenses.

Has anyone purchased a new tool or equipment recently that’s a real winner?

It appears that this is a universal problem: where to find new techs. What’s happening to our industry? Why aren’t we attracting enough quality people to our industry? Is it pay? Is it work place environment? Is the job too difficult? Is it due to a generation of parents that told its children to go to college and get a “good” job?

I remember when I was in high school pumping gas was considered cool. But there aren’t many service stations left that pump gas these days. And I don’t think selling milk and potato chips at the local convenience store is as cool.

A company needs to understand how a tool or piece of equipment will return the cost of the tool and continue to earn profits. How are calculating your return on investment when considering the purchase of a new tool or equipment?

If you project negative feelings and run around screaming the sky is falling, your people will react to your pessimistic attitude and soon your entire shop will mimic your negativity. Shop Owners and managers are the leaders of the business and need to remain strong and positive. Do you find it hard to be positive or are you overwhelmed by the workday?

No one can argue that advertising is necessary, but how do we measure how effective advertising is? I have found that advertising to my existing customer through direct mail, newsletters, reminders and emails work great. However, when trying to reach out to new customers we often don’t hit the mark. What form of advertising works best? Different companies need to explore and track what works best for them.

I don’t think anyone would argue that the success of McDonald’s is not due to the delicious hamburgers and fries. So how can a business that sells fast food become such a worldwide giant? Their secret: systems, policies, consistency and convenience. I think we can all take lessons from the best franchise models.

The Internet is as important to your business as the telephone. We live in a world where communication is the key to your success. Web sites, email, online parts ordering, and online information access will all help to improve the efficiency of your business and its productivity.

Due to increase competition and our modern global economy we have seem prices on many parts fall (brake parts, steering, etc). Many shop owners see this as a way to compete and satisfy the consumer. But, working on a 50% margin with reduced prices can be putting less dollars in your pocket. If you can sell more services by reducing prices that’s one thing. To sell the same amount of work on less gross profit dollars may hurt your bottom line.

Many shop owners are stating that car counts are down. Is this the norm? Are we headed in a direction where there may be too many segments of the auto service industry wanting a share of the service and repair pie? In order to grow, a business needs opportunity. And opportunity starts with a healthy car count.

The market has changed. We need to realize that we need to be competitive in certain areas (such as basic services) and highly profitable in other areas (diagnostic testing and electrical). The consumer has choice today and is looking to save. Give your customers outstanding service and charge a fair price. Understand what you need to make in order to be profitable. Sell more of what is most profitable.

Many shop owners are stating that car counts are down. Is this the norm? Are we headed in a direction where there may be too many segments of the auto service industry wanting a share of the service and repair pie? In order to grow, a business needs opportunity. And opportunity starts with a healthy car count.