You Net Results owner and guide Brian Gillis talks about how to increase auto repair sales using the Oil Change Chain. Oil changes are the lifeblood of your auto repair shop. You could even say they are a crucial loss leader.
When you blow off an oil change request, you may be rejecting a potential lifetime customer. For example, they may only come in for an oil change today. The next visit may be just for an oil change, too. On the third or fourth link in the oil change chain, they may need a higher cost service, such as a 60k maintenance or a brake job.
Remember: Your Ticket Average does not pay the bills – total sales does! Don’t break the chain! Creating lifelong customers is a long game, so patience is key.
The Oil Change Chain – Setting The TableBrian opens up the clip discussing “real world language”. When we visit a foreign country, we want to know a little bit of the language in order to get around. In the automotive repair industry, a phrase we should all learn is “the oil change chain”. This phrase is such an important part of the language that makes up a repair shop’s “YES” culture.
What is the most requested service in an automotive shop? If you answered an “oil change”, you are correct. Everybody knows how important it is to regularly change your engine oil, so you don’t ruin your vehicle. Think back to the first time you met your most loyal customers. What need brought them into your shop? Again, it most likely was an oil change.
Some Service Advisors cringe at the thought of ringing up another oil change. Their ticket average is about to go in the tank. Well, that is short sighted thinking. As we mentioned earlier, your focus should not be on a short term ticket average. Rather, your total sales pay the bills.
In order to fully explain the Oil Change Chain concept, Brian produces an actual chain for a visual aid. Each link in this chain represents a job the customer has done. The first three links in this particular chain were mere oil changes. On the fourth visit, however, the customer needed a higher ticket service: a brake job. The next two links represented oil changes, but on the seventh visit, the customer needed a 60,000 mile service. Two more oil changes followed, then a water pump replacement.
What if you blew that customer off when they needed one of those oil changes? “We’re too busy today. What about tomorrow or another day?” If you don’t say yes to their small request and find a way to fit them in, guess what? They will find another shop that will, and then that shop will reap the benefits of future high ticket repairs. Leaving out one link in the chain in the form of an inexpensive oil change just cost your shop the benefits of the whole oil change chain.
Your independent automotive repair shop is lacking in direction. Maybe your business plan has stalled out. You are definitely not meeting your goals for growth. You need an experienced automotive industry coach who can help you. Then why not schedule a FREE business strategy session with You Net Results guide Brian Gillis? You’ve got absolutely nothing to lose, so sign up today!
You have heard the phrase “Buy Low, Sell High” in regards to United States stock market on Wall Street. How about in reference to your auto repair parts margin? Just how important is pricing auto parts in the automotive repair business?
Buy Parts at the Right Price So You Can Protect Your Shop’s Parts MarginWhen you buy a water pump for an auto repair job, for example, it may seem like it is a small expense. However, when you consistently forego the process of parts shopping, your parts margin can really get off balance.
When shopping, are you going with the cheapest part you can find online every time out? Those choices can come back to bite you as well! It literally pays off when you take the time in order to compare the parts available to you. In many instances, you may be able to a smaller price for the exact same part. Then you can mark them up for the repair job.
We are not suggesting that you price gouge your valued customers. When you take the time to look up parts, order them online, and inspect them upon receiving them, it is a job in itself. This is not to mention the cost of sending an employee out to O’Reilly or AutoZone in person for a rush job. Your time is worth money, and so is your employees’, so don’t sell yourself short! Parts margin may seem like a small piece of your overall financial picture, but it adds up quickly.
Your auto repair shop lacks direction. Maybe your business plan has stalled out, and you aren’t meeting your goals. You need an experienced automotive industry coach to help you. Then why not schedule a FREE business strategy session with You Net Results guide Brian Gillis? You’ve got nothing to lose, so sign up today!
This clip is from our Clear Counter Communications Zoom video series. You Net Results Guide Brian Gillis explains the important and underutilized concept of Payoff Gestures to YNR members. Your Automotive Service Advisors can use these subtle, yet powerful, techniques in order to help them increase their repair job sales. They also help your Service Writers to explain regular maintenance and needed repairs to your customers.
Your Service Advisors Need To Learn Payoff GesturesWhether your auto repair shop’s Service Advisors are on the phone with a client, or speaking with them face to face, their physical gestures can and will make a difference. Some examples of these payoff gestures can include standing up and sitting back down in their chairs while speaking. Using their hands and employing various facial expressions while talking with customers is also helpful. Small inflections can result in big results for your independent auto repair shop!
Each and every one of these payoff gestures can tell their very own unique story. Additionally, these methods will give different signals to each one your valued clients.
Some customers may respond better to certain payoff gestures than other ones. It is all in the process of getting to know them better. Guess what? That is also a key component in converting first time clients to loyal repeat customers!
Your independent auto repair shop is lacking in its overall direction. Maybe your shop’s business plan has stalled out. You definitely are not meeting your goals for growth. Face it, you are in need of an experienced, skilled automotive industry coach that can help you. Then why not schedule a FREE business strategy session with You Net Results Guide Brian Gillis? You have got nothing to lose, so sign up today!
