Joe Marconi

Last Tuesday I attended a seminar on YouTube marketing. The speaker discussed how creating videos, with the right search engine optimization, can really help your ranking in Google. He gave examples and actually showed us that more and more listing that come up on Google searches have videos, which actually helped that company increase the chances of getting top listing. I thought it was a real interesting seminar. In terms of the new era of advertising and marketing, it’s a whole new ball game! We have created a few YouTube consumer videos, and in the process of making more. Is anyone else creating videos, and how has it helped? Or not?

I can fully appreciate the time table of all the different eras. Growing up in an automotive family, I remember way back to the late 50s. And my father often spoke of the cars pre WWII. Looking back thru the years, much as changed. It evolutionary, you really don't notice the subtle changes year by year, but when you think about a 1967 GTO, it's a whole different animal. First there was "Cro-Magnon Man" - now's there's "Chrome Era Man"..... love it....that's me too!

The Lincoln Principle Abraham Lincoln was one of our greatest presidents. He was a man of integrity, morals, conviction and ethics. He was also known to have a temper. During the Civil War he would demonstrate great anger and disappointment for people in his administration and with many military leaders. He would sit down at night regularly and compose letters condemning people for what they did. These letters were not pleasant to read. After a letter was complete, he would take it and put it in his desk draw to be mailed the next morning. At the end of the War, his draw was filed with these letters, not one of them ever mailed. I have learned that all too often the only times we address someone is when things go wrong. While we cannot ignore mistakes, we need a balance. In fact, it’s far better to catch people doing things right, and give praise. Also, in the heat of the moment when things go wrong, our judgment is clouded and we tend to lash out and say and do things we often regret afterwards. The person on receiving end more often will shut down too, and nothing will get accomplished. When things go wrong, pause, assess the situation. Hold your anger. Put it away, as Lincoln did. After you calm down, you will be in a much better frame of mind to deal with the issue.

Source: The Lincoln Principle

The future had little meaning to me my first few years in business. The only future I cared about back in the early 1980s was the end of each day. I was too entrenched in the day to day operations to be concerned or aware of anything else. My thinking today? The future is everything. I have been in the auto industry nearly 40 years, I can truly say that I am proud of the job we do as independent shop owners. We keep America rolling. We work tirelessly to serve and satisfy our customers. Oh, we complain at times, but in the end we get the job done. We are aftermarket shop owners; something to be proud of, a badge of honor. But, we cannot rest on our past accomplishments; we will need unity and commitment if we are to thrive in the future. As an industry we will be faced with many challenges. The world is quickly changing before our eyes. Electronics will continue to dominate all new automotive-related developments. Driverless cars, telematics, infotainment and collision avoidance systems are just the tip of the iceberg. But there are other challenges to contend with as well. We all know how the new car dealerships have changed their strategies. They want a bigger share of automotive repairs and maintenance. Dealerships still need and want to sell cars, but they realize that their market share for new car sales is much less now than it once was. They need to increase revenue from the sale of parts and service. They also know that future car sales are largely made in the service department, not in the sales department. Dealerships want to retain a customer in the service department from the time of the sale of the new car to past the warranty period. That will greatly increase the odds that the customer will buy another car from the same dealership. New car dealers will be a major competitor for the aftermarket repair shops. In many areas around the country, it’s already happening. Telematics is another issue. Malcolm Sissmore, telematics sales director for Delphi Products and Service Solutions, stated at a recent seminar that OnStar has a 70 percent close rate among new car owners. That means when OnStar contacts these customers for whatever reason, 70 percent go back to the dealership for that service. This is something we can no longer ignore. Luckily Delphi is working for the aftermarket and has developed a telematics solution for us. Compared to the 1970s, when I first broke into the business, today’s changing technology has reached light speed. It will take an intelligent work force and a lifetime commitment to continued training to keep pace. Continued investments in tools, equipment, information systems and training will become crucial. Those that do not make the commitment will not be around in the future. Independent shop owners throughout history have always found a way to adapt and change. Our ability to overcome any obstacle is a testament to our dedication to our customers, to our craft and to our industry. We will continue to face many obstacles and challenges. But if our past has proved anything, it has proven that we, the independent service facilities, will continue to dominate the automotive landscape. One of things we can all count on is the continued support from AutoShopOwner.com. ASO will continue to be the sounding board for shop owners. AutoShopOwner.com members are the cream of the crop. Just about any issue you are faced with in your shop can be found within the forums. Plus the willingness to help each other is nothing short of amazing. We may be competitors in some arenas, but ASO members are colleagues and friends. We all benefit when we collectively share and exchange ideas, opinions and knowledge. AutoShopOwner.com is committed to you, the shop owner. Not just for today, but well into the future. Our mission statement tag line says it all, “Networking today for a stronger tomorrow.” View full article

No, not seen Tough One, not yet anyway.

I have learned that the better we manage our shops, the more successful we are. When I worked in the bays, under the hood or under a car, I was too deep in the trenches to see what was happening to my business. When I began to truly manage the shop and understand Automotive Management, things began to get better. It does not mean I am not involved, it means that in order to grow the business, my role as owner is different, unlike the techs or even service advisors. This is one of the reasons AutoShopOwer.com was founded, to offer an online Automotive Management Network that we all learn from, and share ideas and opinions. What experiences have you had that has helped you understand that managing your shop is crucial for your success?

So far we have not seen any changes, except for a slow integration of branded parts, no more CARQUEST brand on the box. Plus, the delivery trucks are plain white, not logos. That I really like! I do expect a complete re-branding of the stores in 2014. We have had many meetings with Advance people and local store owners. Everyone seems positive. It seems that Advance does not want to pattern themselves like AutoZone, but rather build their future along side the independent repair shops. This can be have a major impact on our future. All the Advance reps I have met so far have been extremely nice and willing to speak on a lot of delicate issues. All the repair shops in my area had a great relationship with BWP/CARQUEST and I want to make sure that culture continues with Advance Auto Parts. I will keep posting updates about Advance Auto Parts and CARQUEST as I get them.

Thank you Gary for those kind words. It takes great people around you to really have something great. I am blessed to have that. It is just like AutoShopOwner.com, the great people like yourself, who make great content, make this site the Number One Automotive Shop Management Network site on the planet.

Great article and nice to see a colleague sticking up for you, we need more of that in our industry. I think the world in a tailspin over this price issue. It seems that even though we are seeing some of the cheapest prices now than even before on a lot of parts, there are other items that put us out of the box. On top of that, the consumer is always looking for the best price. It wasn't always like that. Quality did mean something at one time. It cannot be all about price. The other day my wife went out looking for an iron. I told her, "find one NOT made in China." She decided on a Rowenta, made in Germany. I would have preferred USA, but Germany is better than China. The last China-made iron did not last. She said that the store had three models; two from Germany and one from China. The one from china looked exactly the same but was half the price of the German units. Half the price? To me this means it's half the quality too. Sorry for being long-winded, but this price thing struck a nerve. Again, great to see shop owners on the same page!

The Advance Auto Parts purchase of General Parts International/CARQUEST makes Advance one of the largest auto parts providers in North America. This deal allows Advance to have a larger penetration into the commercial market. The good news, according the Wall Street Journal, is that the commercial market is a larger and faster-growing than a fading Do-it-yourself market. No one really knows the total impact of this deal. But one thing is for sure, Advance Auto Parts sees a future opportunity in the professional market, which consists in big numbers; the independent repair shops.

Mike knows this customer very well.

I just read a news feed that says Advance Auto is set to purchase GPI/CARQUEST. This is big news. It looks like this will make Advance Auto Parts the dominant player in the auto parts business, supplying parts to the industry. As many of you may know, Advance purchased BWP/CARQUEST the first of this year, 2013, in my area of the country. From what I see, Advance is making an real effort to understand the independent repair shops and is eager to form an alliance with the shops. We all know they will not give up the retail trade, but this consolidation of two large groups will prove to be a powerful force. Below is a link to the article. http://stream.wsj.com/story/latest-headlines/SS-2-63399/SS-2-355355/

Agree!

Exactly, the customer sees value and understands the process. With no information, the customers sees no value. And as you said,selling the diag testing is a lot easier.

I know of a large shop in New York that has two people torque the wheels; the tech on the job and the foreman does it again. I guess this is a bigger problem than most of would have considered. And I do agree, this was not a problem years back, back then you had big heavy steel wheels and you just socked home the lug nuts with your air gun.

Source: A Priceless Chicken Salad Sandwich

A Priceless Chicken Salad Sandwich One of our favorite customers came in the other day with a leak from the power steering. She recently moved two towns over, a distance of about 15 miles, but still comes to us faithfully for all the work on her car. She needed a power steering pressure hose. No one locally had the hose, and it would take about 4 hours to get one from the nearest warehouse. We offered to take her home, but she insisted that she would wait, saying that its just too far. Mike, one of my service advisors, asked me if we could buy her a sandwich for lunch. I told him, Absolutely. I walked into the waiting room while she was finishing up her sandwich and bottled water, and she looked at me and I could see a tear in eye. She said, "everyone here is just so nice, you guys are too much." You see, Mike didnt ask her if she wanted anything for lunch, he just went out and got it. It was chicken salad on a bagel. The look on her face was priceless. And I know we all do these things from time to time. The next time someone asks me why I think independent shops are successful; I will tell them its because of a chicken salad sandwich!

We have a strict dress code in my shop with regard to uniforms and grooming. We supplies uniforms that are cleaned by a service, and we also issue T shirts in the summer and sweat shirts in the winter, along with a jacket. The T shirts and sweat shirts are theirs to keep and we give them new ones each year. For years this has worked fine. Now, it seems that some of the younger techs lose their uniforms. They come in wearing their own shirts and jackets. And it is real annoying. We are now in the process of making everyone change at work and keeping all the uniforms in their lockers. We also issued a memo to all explaining company policy. We give them an inventory count and explain why this is important. Is this an industry issue? If so, how do you deal with this? I dont know how everyone feels about this, but I think it makes a difference, from the customers perspective, if everyone is in uniform and well-groomed.

That is a good point, and again I apologize for the confusion. Those that know me, know that I try to help, not confuse. Let's go over it again: A customer comes in with a check engine light and wants to know what it is and how much it will be. Before, we would say that the initial scan is $xx.xx. That would open up a lot of conversation, way too much, even before we got started on the job. And some first time customers would leave, and we would get nothing. Not so much for regular customers, I must admit. So, now, we say. We really need to obtain some information, before we even talk about prices and repairs. We then will access the codes and give a visual under hood inspection. A road test is only for customers that can't explain a noise or rattle, not for a check engine light. Once the code or codes are pulled we then speak to the customer and inform them what we now have a direction. We sell the appropriate tests. I am telling you, this has proven to eliminate 99% of the push back we get for diagnostic testing. How many times have we tried to get diag labor prior and danced around with the customer and found that the gas cap was loose? Or the customer replaced his own air filter on a Toyota and left the vacuum hose off. My strategy gives a little up front, and gets a lot in return. The initial scan never finds the problem, it only gives us a starting point to speak with the customer. We are extremely successful selling diag labor from this starting point. Now, now if customer comes in with a drive train noise and after a road test we find the wheel is falling off, well that is different. We will adjust any time, for something that obvious. I have to tell you, we went down this road on the forums a few years back on this very subject and it led to the same questions and confusion. I really don't know why and I wish I could explain myself better. To sum up, only give a little time in the beginning to get a direction, then sell the appropriate testing. The bigger issue I see is: Shops not charging at all, wrapping the diag into the repair or removing the diag charges if the customer agrees to the repair. It is for these reasons that I changed my strategy.

I think we can all agree that many motorists put off preventive maintenance, especially the last few years during the recession. But what about safety-related repairs? A recent study taken by ForeverCar.com (an extended warranty provider), found that people were more interested in repairs to their air conditioner, DVD players, GPS and sound systems. This is a little surprise to me. We do a fair amount of extended warranty, and found that if the customer thinks something is covered, they want to take advantage of the coverage, no matter what the repair is. I do agree that it is easier to sell air conditioner repairs on a hot day than tires or brakes. What are you seeing?

I really think I am not explaining myself correctly, I am sorry for that. We do sell diag testing and not giving anything away. But we do that after we have a direction. We are not giving up any money. In fact our diag fees are the highest around, more than the dealer. Our approach is different, that's all. We all have different ways at arriving at the same place.