Business SENSE: YOUR SHOP MANAGEMENT SYSTEM: THE KEY TO PROFITABILITY
Author: Motor

While garnering new customers, retaining existing ones and achieving consistent vehicle visit frequency and increased dollars-per-repair order continue to be shops' major goals, many appear to be lagging significantly in the utilization of one of their most valuable tools-their shop management system.

Observations of our industry indicate that the majority of those who occupy the position of service advisor don't use their shop management system to its fullest because they lack fundamental training in many of the basics of the software.

When we deliver sales training to shop owners and their staff, we suggest that whomever is working in the position of service advisor be required to wear a headset and keyboard at least 50 words per minute. Wearing a headset allows them to have both hands free to work toward attaining the required keyboarding speed. These requirements also apply to owners, administrative staff and anyone else who supports the service advisor by writing up customers or working in the databases.

When our instructors share these requirements, the audience usually responds in two distinct ways: Those who wear a headset would not consider doing the job without one. Those who do not wear a headset cop an attitude about wearing one, and offer up all kinds of reasons why they shouldn't.