Point and Click for Parts
Buying crash parts online may save a lot of shops a lot of time. But as the Internet continues to grow and online parts dealers continue to pop up faster than long-lost cousins at a lottery winner’s mobile home, the question of whether or not the industry is ready remains. The technology seems to be there, but does that mean it’s a good idea?
What’s Up?
Your profits are…if you learn to upsell!
Blending 201 – The Next Course
Gone are the days of vinyl tops, so quarter panels and roofs must form a continuous panel to blend. This means the clear should be applied over the entire area (if you use the method explained in Blending 101). It also means there’s an area for debate and disagreement between insurers and repairers.
Repairers to the Rescue: Charitable BodyShop Owners
Collecting food for the hungry and building homes for the homeless may not seem heroic compared to pulling a child from a burning building, but they are heroic – especially to the people on the receiving end of your charitable acts
Caring for Your Refinishing Gear
Today’s consumer is savvier than ever, so you’ve got to deliver the perfect color match and a flawless finish. To do that, it’s critical that your spray gun and spraybooth perform as they were designed to.
Maintenance Musts: The Greatest Tools and Equipment in the World Won’t Help You Profits if You Don’t Properly Maintain Them
When you were little, Mom always said to take care of your toys. Now that you’re grown up, the same rules apply to your equipment. All the best tools in the world won’t help you increase workflow or profits if you don’t properly maintain them.
The ABCs on DRPs
Ever wonder just how many shops are on direct-repair programs (DRPs)? Based on BodyShop Business’ 2000 Industry Profile, 44.8 percent of respondents are. And of that 44.8 percent, 91.3 percent say they’re better off because of their DRP arrangements.
Don’t Shoot the Messenger! Ohio’s Jack Lundberg
Faced with the challenge of registering Ohio’s collision repair facilties, Jack Lundberg has been called a savior by some, the devil by others. Throw in a few death threats, and you know how Lundberg feels by 10 a.m.
Target Practice
Picture this: It’s late one evening when you finally finish the last of the day’s repair work. Realizing you skipped lunch to get some extra work done, you get the hankering for a big sandwich – loaded with corned beef and condiments. As you’re about to return the now empty jar of mustard to the lunchroom refrigerator, you hear a noise. A loud noise. A really, really loud noise.
The Florida Notice on A/M Parts: Bad or Good
When analyzing the whole aftermarket (A/M) crash parts issue, it reminds me of a story I tell in business seminars that goes like this: Two hikers are walking through the woods when they come across a baby bear cub. Both become intrigued because they’ve never been able to get so close to a bear before.
Don’t Assume. It Really Does Make an A** Out of U
I figured Mr. and Mrs. Gray knew the check was being sent to them, not me. Now they were mad because if I wouldn’t release their car, they’d have to cancel their vacation. This was when I realized I needed to change the way I communicated with customers.
Those Are the Brakes: In House or Out of House?
Since no two brakes jobs are the same, some shops choose to send brake repairs out of house to avoid an extra possible headache. Others choose to tackle the repairs themselves. What’s right for you depends on how much control you want to have over what often becomes a complicated repair.
