Be Extraordinary!

Running a successful business takes more than dollars and cents. There is so much more one should be thinking about. Things that can take a shop from average to extraordinary.

Repairers filled the room to hear one of the most extraordinary speakers on the circuit, Mike Anderson (Collision Advice), inspire and encourage them to take things to the next level. 

One of those extraordinary areas which a shop should be thinking about is building an extraordinary customer experience. 

“We need to be asking customers what is most important to them in order to deliver a personalized experience,” advised Anderson. If a car is on hold waiting for a part to come in and you have no update to give the customer, giving them a courtesy call with a “no-update update” can do wonders, as it lets them know they are being thought of and not forgotten. 

Having an online presence 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year shows customers that your business is available to them when they need you most. 

“Most accidents happen when your shop is closed,” stressed Anderson. “The first shop that gets back to them gets their business.”

One mistake many collision repairers may be making is having an aversion to technological advances, which only does a disservice to the industry.

“Too often, when CCC or Mitchell puts out new software, we complain about it. We need to quit that and embrace it. The one thing you can never get back is time. What can we do to give our people more time to write an active repair plan?”

Anderson also got repairers thinking about the environment in their shops. 

“Be extraordinary in building your culture. You want to be a place where people are proud to work for you, where they don’t just love their job; they love your team. Think about your team. Would they want to wear a jersey with your company name on it?”

Want more? Check out the September 2023 issue of Texas Automotive!