Write Better Estimates
The estimate is the most important aspect of our business process. If an estimate is poorly written, it can wreak havoc on your shop and cost you a boatload of cash.
Sold: Have You Ever Wondered what Happens to Body Shop Owners who Sell their Businesses?
In the final installment of our series, former shop owner Tom Sellers recounts why not to use buried money as a down payment and why he sold his shop to the son of a former competitor.
Sold: Have You Ever Wondered What Happens to Shop Owners Who Sell Their Businesses?
Part four of a five-part series.
Managing Customer Expectations
Use this repair timeline to educate customers about the repair process
Insurer-Owned Shops: Anomaly or Trend
er relationships?”– Johnny Reyes, operations specialist, Pacific Collision Center, Inc., Placentia, Calif. Question answered by: Charlie Barone Among the greatest concerns of body shop owners in the United States is the possibility of a developing trend toward insurance company ownership of body shops. While the advancement of the Sterling/Allstate venture appears to be rapid in
Got Friction? Metal Department vs. Paint Department
One of the longest-running battles within a collision repair facility is the one between the metal department and paint department. And in some of the shops I’ve worked with throughout the world, it had escalated past a battle – it was more like a civil war going on between these two main production departments. Each
Head of the (Training) Class
As I-CAR’s new executive vice president and CEO, Tom McGee is responsible for developing all of the technical training programs and services. Big job? Absolutely. But it beats the heck out of bussing tables at Big Boy.
Image is Everything
You might perform top-quality repair work, but if your shop or employees look bad, smell bad or seem bad, your image is alienating potential customers and perpetuating negative stereotypes that the 20/20s and Datelines of this world so like to exploit.
Protecting the Consumer – and You
Whether it’s health care or the collision industry, the bills California Sen. Jackie Speier sponsors always have one thing in common: doing what’s best for the consumer. As luck would have it, what’s good for the consumer is often good for the repairer.
DRPs: Probing the Legalities
There’s a definite conflict of interest when the payer (insurer) controls the quality of repair work. In fact, without the independence of the professional repairer, some say there’s no difference between the DRP shop and the insurer – just a different organization with the same interest, adverse to the property owner. But that doesn’t make DRPs illegal – or does it?