Ratchet+Wrench - August 2022 by EndeavorBusinessMedia-VehicleRepairGroup

“ADVANCEPROFESSIONALISHANDSDOWNWHATGIVESOURSHOPTHECOMPETITIVEEDGE.” MARTIN WOODS Martin’s Tire & Service, Burton, MI TechNet Member Since 2019

08.22 / R+W / 47 Independent shops, like Martin’s Tire & Service, choose Advance Professional and TechNet for the competitive edge that drives results and helps them care for their customers. EXCLUSIVE ACCESS INDUSTRY-LEADINGTOSOLUTIONS ”Becoming a TechNet Member gave us the tools we needed to be taken more seriously by our clients.” ”We leverage CTI+WTI training to stay on top of new technology and increase our close rates.” Learn more at my.advancepro.com ON THE COVER: Martin Woods of Martin’s Tire & Service. Photographed by Douglas DiVietri. ”Now that Advance Professional partners with Tekmetric, the all-in-one integration lets us see parts info and order in real time, helping turn bays faster.”

TRAIN TECHS FASTER USING AN APP!PAGE9 HOW TO USE CSI TO ACCELERATEGROWTHPAGE41 Far-Flung & First-Rate Tony and Jennifer Ringham run a $1.2 million dollar a year import auto shop in rural Minnesota built on word-of-mouth referrals and industry relationships. RATCHETANDWRENCH.COM 08.22 STRATEGIES & INSPIRATION FOR AUTO CARE SUCCESS RURAL SHOPS READYPOISEDECONOMICALLYREMAINVIABLE,FORGROWTHANDFORTHEFUTURE PAGE 24 BACK WARRIORSROAD

In this business, downtime isn’t an option. Nobody knows that better than NAPA. That’s why we’ve built America’s largest network of parts and care, here to give you the support you need to keep your business firing on all cylinders. © 2022 National Automotive Parts Association LLC

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4 / R+W / 08.22 AUGUST 08.22 VOLUME 10 NUMBER 08

10 Missions Media,

JONES VIGUELINDSAYBYPHOTO

the publisher. Periodicals postage paid at St. Paul, MN, and additional mailing offices. POSTMASTERS

address changes to: Ratchet+Wrench, 571 Snelling Avenue North, St. Paul, MN 55104. ON THE COVER: TONY AND JENNIFER RINGHAM OF PRECISION IMPORTS IN MILACA, MINNESOTA 7 EDITOR’S LETTER The richness of rural America 9 BREAKDOWN An app that makes learning fast and fun for technicians 14 SPEED READ Right to Repair delayed; ACA asks members to step up 17 NUMBERS A Shop View-like look at the average shop in 2022 19 ADAPT How to stay current while moving ahead 20 SHOP VIEW Englewood,Autovisions Colorado 22 STRAIGHT TALK Start raising rates mindfully, not arbitrarily JOE MARCONI 30 PROFILE Autohaus Social opens its bay doors to the performing arts 36 LEADERSHIP Tracking your CSI is deeper than just knowing data 38 CASE STUDY Getting the most out of ridehailing services 41 FINANCE+OPERATIONS Is it time to outsource your HR tasks? 44 THE FIXER Look to Create Opportunity AARON STOKES FEATURE Small Town Impact Mike Mikulski started his shop nearly 20 ago with his father. Today he and his wife, Jennifer, operate the rural Con necticut shop. FAR-FLUNG24 & FANTASTIC Rural shops demonstrate the resiliency of the auto care industry BY

Avenue

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The store and gas station found ways to keep earning the community’s dol lar by providing VHS rentals and, by 1988, both housed lottery machines for the newly-established Virginia Lottery. One of the auto shops tapped into the audio market while the other had such a sterling reputation as a high-quality shop, it didn’t have to do anything beyond keeping up with automotive trends. My parents tapped into these lo cal resources as much as they could and when the needs weren’t available, like for extensive grocery shopping, we went into the neighboring town. I think it was like that for most families. We did what we could to keep our local businesses stimulated, and in return, they found ways to provide us goods and services we Asneeded.Hank Williams Jr. crooned, “Country folks can survive.” And so can the shop off the beaten path. In this issue, we feature two rural shops—Precision Imports in Milaca, Minnesota, and Mike’s Auto Service in Haddam, Connecticut. They spoke at length to Ratchet+Wrench about what it’s like to be a rural shop in America and how they navigated COVID and the subsequent supply chain fallout post-pandemic. We also discussed bonding with small-town customers, curb appeal, technology, and what the electric future holds for shops outside of urban influence. Also on the topic of influence, col umnist Aaron Stokes (p. 66) discusses why shop owners need to turn their at tention to attracting top-flight employees looking for a career change from falter ing industries during these challenging times. He also makes a strong case for making sure shops create growth and advancement opportunities for existing employees to prevent them from seeking better pay and positions elsewhere. And of course, knowing who to hire when and for which position starts with understanding your metrics. In “Are You Leaving Money on the Table?” (p. 45), writer Nolan O’Hara takes a look at the customer service index and what it means for shops that track key metrics and what happens when oppor tunities get left on the table—or cus tomers are lost due to poor employee performance—when you fail to track yourFinally,data. columnist Joe Marconi tackles the factors shop owners need to consider when choosing to raise rates (p. 27) and why making the decision based on the actions of other shops, external economic factors, or emotions aren’t the best approaches. Today, my hometown still looks pret ty much the same. As for those busi nesses I grew up around, the only thing that was able to close them—time. No one can beat the clock. But, while you’re here, stay viable, serve your community, and make hay while the sun shines.

CHRIS JONES, CHRISTOPHERJ@ENDEAVORB2B.COMEDITOR

The Economics of Small Towns

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EDITOR'S LETTER

7 / R+W / 08.22

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SENIOR MARKETING STRATEGIST (REGIONAL ACCOUNTS) Melody 651.846.9468Todd / mtodd@10missions.com MARKETING STRATEGIST (REGIONAL ACCOUNTS) Josh 651.846.9488Imhof / jimhof@10missions.com CLIENT SERVICE SPECIALIST Jen 651.846.9465George / jgeorge@10missions.com CUSTOMER SUCCESS REPRESENTATIVE (REGIONAL ACCOUNTS) Autumn 651.846.9460Morey / amorey@10missions.com 10 MISSIONS MEDIA GENERAL AND PRODUCTION Mariah Straub BOOKKEEPER AND CLIENT SERVICE SPECIALIST Meghann Moore EVENT PRODUCER Kate Fahlen DEVELOPMENT ASSOCIATE Meghan Horan SENIOR DIGITAL MEDIA STRATEGIST Tiffany Fowler ADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANT Karley Betzler EDITORIAL ADVISORY BOARD Ryan Hillebrand, Urb’s Garage; John Miller, Fifth Gear Automotive; Rob Choisser, Choisser Import Auto Services; Doug Grills, AutoStream Car Care Center; Lucas Underwood, L&N Performance Auto Repair; Bruce Howes, Atlantic Motorcar Center HOW TO REACH US 10 MISSIONS MEDIA 571 Snelling Avenue North, St. Paul, MN 55104 tel 651.224.6207 fax 651.224.6212 web 10missions.com

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COMMUNITY

I grew up in rural Virginia. As a kid, our unincorporated community had an elementary school, a convenience store, a gas station, a pizza parlor, a trash dump, and two auto repair shops. For all 19 years of my life there, none of those businesses went under.

EDITORIAL CONTENT DIRECTOR Matt Hudson EDITOR Chris Jones SENIOR DIGITAL EDITOR Noah Brown CONTRIBUTING WRITERS Joe Marconi, Aaron Stokes, Tess Owings, Ryan McCanna, and Nolan O’Hara

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If the popularity of language-learning apps indicates future success for mobile learning on the go, Today’s Class may be on to something.

A Classroom in Your Pocket How 10

“The idea is that each day, somebody can be learning something new; somebody can be learning something in which they need help with .... So, from a shop owner’s perspective, you probably have a sense of what areas your A techs or B techs or service advisors need to be trained on, given the type of work that you have been doing. The minutes per day in Today’s Class can educate your technicians sacrificing their time

without

The company, which has been around for 20 years and under the guidance of Dave Boyes, president, and Ron Shanas, a 40-year auto industry veteran, began like most educational programs: through in structor-led training. By 2019, Today’s class released its digital product and took aim at helping train auto technicians while providing technical education to secondary schools, career centers, and technical colleges.

Headquartered in Birmingham, Alabama, Today’s Class focuses on building on a similar foundation as apps such as Duolingo and Khan Academy by providing short-form educational lessons that can be completed while you’re brewing a pot of coffee.

08.22 / R+W / 9 GETTY JUMP START TRENDSPEOPLEIDEASNEWS

BY CHRIS JONES

The app, available for Apple and Android, also has a web-based interface. It aims to help automotive technicians increase their efficiency in a timeframe that suits their schedule and keeps them engaged every day. Once inside the app, that artificial intelligence picks up on what the user knows, what the user doesn’t know, and areas where the user’s confidence in particular subjects needs to improve. Shop owners can also recommend modules where they see weaknesses in their employees.

08.22 / R+W / 11

“It kept them engaged without, you know, the, ‘No, I didn’t take that class be cause I didn’t have four hours last night; the kids are crying’ you know what I mean? That kind of story,” he says. Not only do technicians learn in small, digestible chunks, but as Shanas points out, this method of short, focused learning al lows for a maximum retention rate.

“The impact is substantial. Think of it as drip irrigation that’s very efficiently absorbed by the plants that are receiv ing it as opposed to turning on a garden hose. While some of it is received and nourishes the plants, a lot of it runs off or evaporates in his waste, right? So, we know for a fact that it’s highly efficient and highly effective in driving not only knowledge from a current competency perspective but also the retention of that knowledge,” says Shanas, also mention

CLASSTODAY’SCOURTESTY

This daily learning format, as Boyes and Shanas discovered, was the breakthrough that shop owners needed to crack the code in providing a method of ongoing training for their technicians and service advisors without monopolizing their personal time with lengthy online training. For a shop owner such as Tom Sumwalt of Tom’s Auto Center in McFarland, Wisconsin, this app was a golden opportunity to give his tech nicians an easy avenue to continue their education while shaking off the learning gap caused by COVID. Through the app, his technicians were able to train on their own time right from their phones, which created a convenient solution.

“What made me excited to come and check it out was the idea that I’ve been struggling, especially during COVID, because my technicians were not interest ed in Zoom classes or, you know, [train ing] through a computer. They were really struggling with sitting at home for four hours, and then getting the technical in formation that way,” says Sumwalt, who discovered Today’s Class while thumbing through an industry magazine.

JUMP START / BREAKDOWN system can combine those things—your fo cus areas with what you know, and what you don’t—to make sure that it’s pushing you training that’s relevant for you,” says Boyes.

08.22 / R+W / 13 ing that technicians must meet a certain score in each module to progress. This was what intrigued Sumwalt. Once he chose to move forward with the platform, Boyes and Shanas trained him extensively over the course of nine months on using the app. Within the platform, Sumwalt is able to add incentives for educational performance— he’s offered giveaways, raffles, auctions for tools or equipment, and a signed Green Bay Packers jersey—to track his tech’s progress, actively compete against other shops’ scores for prizes, and more. Sumwalt says these benefits, along with the onboarding process, were integral to the successful buy-in of the app within his shop. “Dave and Ron would meet with me through Zoom meetings every week, and they had goals for that meeting and they had it clearly outlined and defined. So, they’d say, ‘Okay, this meeting, we’re going to talk about how you do this part of the onboard ing.’ And then I get off the phone, and I do it. That week would work out really well, and the next week, they’d [say], ‘Okay, now we’ve got that data in the system, we’re go ing to use it to figure out how to talk to this tech and see you what they need help with and this tech about this and, you know, it progressed every week,” Sumwalt says.

For Tom’s Auto Shop, where the technicians are all under 35 years old, Sumwalt thought a digital approach would be best for his team to learn. And he was right. His team not only has taken to the idea, but they compare notes with one another to add another level to the learning experience.

“I have four ASE master-certified techs on staff; they’re all very smart, very intelli gent. I found that what this really helped with was a lot of that gap knowledge, some of the fundamental kinds of things … That’s how it’s helped them quite a bit,” says Sumwalt. “I mean, I could not have—from that day reading that article—thought that it would have changed my whole shop culture. Ev erybody loves it. They sit at the break room table, they talk about it. They talked about the questions. They talked about their scores. They interact with each other through it. I mean, they love it. It’s great.”

when you

it.

JUMP START / BREAKDOWN CLASSTODAY’SCOURTESTY

whereAutoratchetandwrench.comcarenewsyouneedit, want

As another delay impedes progress in the Right to Repair battle, the Automo tive Care Alliance is asking its mem bers to step up their support of the pro posed legislation, ‘Right to Equitable and Professional Auto Industry Repair (REPAIR) Act’ (H.R. 6570), which puts the power of automotive repair choice into the hands of the consumer and allow independent repair shops access to pertinent tools and data to help these“ACAcustomers.looksforward to working together with all the partners and be involved in a grassroots effort to gain support for HR 6570 The Right to Eq uitable and Professional Auto Industry Repair Act. The opportunity to work together with the Auto Care Associa tion as well as other associations that already support HR6570 with a united effort will enhance our grassroots posi tions,” said Ross Colket, Mid-Atlantic Auto Care Alliance president and ACA Legislative Committee member, in the pressThoserelease.supporting Right to Repair and the efforts of the Auto Care Alli

JUMP START / SPEED READ AutoVitals Partners With Transformers Institute AutoVitals has announced a partner ship with Transformers Institute According to a press release, the two are working together to bring more resources to and increase productivity for repair shops of all sizes.

Auto Care Alliance Asks Members, Industry to Step Up Right to Repair Support

14 / R+W / 08.22 processes making things easier on the front end,” said Frank Scandura of AutoVitals and Transformers in the pressBothrelease.AutoVitals and Transform ers work to help shops increase car counts, profitability, ARO, and more. “Partnering with Transformers Institute will help provide shops of all sizes the training essentials they need in order to be a top shop in the industry. This is a ‘best-in-class training meets best-in-class solutions’ partnership, and we’re thrilled to be working with them to help shops in their journey to reach their financial goals,” Chris Evans, director of busi ness development and partnerships, said in the press release.

AutoVitals is a SaaS solutions provider for maintenance and repair shops alike. Transformers Institute is an educational Transformersorganization.provideslive and video training, consulting and coaching programs, M&A assistance, marketing services, and financial services to the greater auto repair industry. “When I implemented a digital pro cess and started to measure inspection rates, the number of inspections sent, and the number of pictures taken, we started to see a major increase in ARO (From $450 to $1250) and an increase in customer engagement. And with AutoVitals’ workflow management, we’ve been able to streamline a lot of

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Additionally, some cities have begun electrifying public transit. Honolulu, Hawaii, has 17 fully electric buses on its service routes and plans to transi tion to a 100 percent electric bus fleet by 2035.Charlotte, North Carolina, is piloting a program that allows the city to test

ance are asked to write a letter to their congressional representative showing their support of the legislation, as well as starting conversations with their customers about Right to Repair.

Cities Climate Challenge as a way to boost infrastructure and innovation regarding electric vehicles. Bloomberg Cities reported on some of the steps that several of these communities are taking in regard to EV readiness. Twenty-five cities have received support from the Bloomberg

08.22 / R+W / 15

“With the ever-advancing technology and the need for repair information, this is the time to get legislation passed.

JOIN NOW! Unlock your full potential with the only social network 100% dedicated to working and future technicians. Use TechForce to connect with other techs, host events, access resources for your future, and more. JOINTECHFORCE.ORG Education&TrainingCompetitions&GamesCareers Scholarships&

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08.22 / R+W / 17 The Average Shop Insight into the average mechanical repair shop JUMP START / NUMBERS Based on the andshopsingemployees,with2,000-4,999squaredentsmajorityannualandbetweenMidwestrepairindependenttypetheIndustryRatchet+Wrench2022Survey,mostcommonofshopisangeneralshopinthethatdoes$1million$2.5millioninrevenue.Theofresponreportedshopfootageintherangeastaffof3-6includthemselves.Thehave5-6bays3-4lifts.GETTY Shop Type Independent: 84% MSO: Franchise:11% 4% Dealers: 1% Shop Specialty Hybrid repair: 32% EV repair: 13% Diesel repair: 28% Transmission repair: 24% Domestic repair: 78% Import repair: 77% Annual Revenue: Under $250,000: $250,000-$499,999:8% 12% $500,000-$749,999: 12% $750,000-$999,999: 15% $1,000,000-$2,500,000: Over $2,500,00: 11% Unknown: 4% Shop Size Under 2,000: 8% 2,000–4,999: 42% Number of Employees 11 or more: 17% Number of Bays 3–4: 24% more than 5% jump from last year

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Stay on top of emerging tech and deal with the issues of today “The unfortunate part is that many manufacturers do a real ly good job, and they’re very cooperative, and then you’ve got a few that just are outliers that just don’t,” Seyfer says. “Those are the ones that all the others pay for, in effect. So, I think it’ll continue to be an issue. It needs to be an issue because we’ve still got 70 percent of the repairs or more … being done by independent repairers.” It’s not getting any easier, either. In Massachusetts, for example, a decision on a legal challenge to its voter-approved Right to Repair law has been delayed for almost a year. The most recent delay marks the sixth time a result has been pushed back, and the judge hoped to have a consensus final ized no later than July 2.

“Even if they’re the very best technicians, they are dead in the water,” says Seyfer. “If a piece of information that’s neces sary to initialize a computer or replace a component on the car, if that’s not available, you’re not finishing that repair until it is available. We’re seeing examples where that can take days. Sometimes if the automakers are not on point with it, it can take weeks and months.” Further complicating this phenomenon is the dialogue sur rounding the Right to Repair. This effort to allow customers to choose where they get repair work done while simultaneously having confidence that it will be done to standard regardless of where they go is undoubtedly important.

This begs the question as to why education in this industry is unable to keep up. Seyfer says, in part, some of this is due to outdated information, or the fact that technicians struggle to get relevant information at all. This struggle, in turn, boggs down the repair process.

It would be an understatement to say that this topic is com plex, but that is exactly why staying informed on it is one of the ways shops can most accurately understand the scope of the repair industry’s future. But it clearly impacts what’s happening right now, too.

The constant turmoil associated with this major decision in particular has a far reaching effect in the industry. The Right to Repair goes beyond repair shops, because automakers play a crucial role in allowing access to information.

When thinking about some of the most pressing issues at play in the automotive industry, many different topics come to mind. It doesn’t matter what you think of first. It could be ve hicle technology, labor shortages, supply chain disruptions, or something in between. The takeaway is the same: Everything is happening at once. As a result, not only has there been a lot of change, but that change has also happened quickly. As technol ogy innovates, as less people enter the trade, as supply gets backed up, and as labor rates fall behind, everything getsDonnycompounded.Seyfer,executive officer at the National Automotive Service Task Force, encourages shops to see the bigger pic ture by assessing, understanding, and staying informed about what’s going on and why. “I think the biggest issues we’ve got right now are in education. We are not keeping up with what’s coming out,” Seyfer says. “Even if classes are (developed) … a lot of times they’re not written in such a way that they are current, and I’m not blaming the instructors for that. Their problem is that oftentimes they don’t have all the information they need to build a class. So they’re making assumptions.”

Additionally, data is a massive component in all of this, contributing to much of the push and pull from automakers all the way down to the customer.

08.22 / R+W / 19 ADAPTAUTOMOTIVE.COM/FACEBOOKADAPTAUTOMOTIVE.COM TWITTER.COM/ADAPT_AUTO

Ultimately, the customer’s opinion is of huge concern to everyone involved because that is what truly affects every component of this industry. Plus, at the end of the day, the customer perspective is one that we can all understand.

“Automakers don’t completely understand what it is they’re responsible for doing,” Seyfer says. “They also have got, as far as they’re concerned, an extinction-level situation going on if certain information is required from that, because they’re ex pecting to make all their profits off of vehicle information, that data. How do we use it? Who do we sell it to?”

JUMP START / ADAPT

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Keeping Up and Keeping Informed

“In the meantime, cars get wrecked and collision shops have to deal with those cars, potentially the day that they’re sold,” Seyfer says. “How do we do that If we don’t have these things in place? Some automakers are holding information because they can and because they don’t know what’s going to be required, so they’re sitting on it.”

From the perspective of an independent repair shop owner, the Right to Repair would allow access to up-to-date, accurate repair information on vehicles from the automakers them selves, and it would also grant an opportunity to allow more customers into their shop.

“I will always be and always have been of the opinion that whatever comes out of my car, that’s my information.” Seyfer says. BY HANNA BUBSER AND NOAH BROWN

JUMP START / SHOP VIEW Autovisions Englewood,

Plug ‘N Play With electrification a hot topic within the industry, Bryant, an ASEcertificied technician in hybrids and electric vehicles, has begun adding necessary equipment to service electric vehicles.

“Because it’s a round building and everything was built as like pieces of pie, it’s kind of an odd shape. I have one door to enter the building that comes in on what would be the wide piece of the pie, and then straight in front of you is a scissor lift alignment rack with a two-post lift on each side of it. In one corner, I have a tire machine, and balancer, and then on the other walls is where I have the toolbox,” he says. “We’ve also got laptops in the shop, and I don’t think you can go 15 feet around here without running into a computer.”

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“I’ve already got a charging station here at the shop for electric vehicles. We do have OE equipment for reprogramming at least a couple of makes of vehicles, but we’re not going to do everything,” he says. “But as the SHOP STATS as the world changes, we have every intention of keeping up with it.” Initially, he wanted a charging station for public use, but the installation cost deterred him from making that investment. “I looked getting one outside that could be used by the public and that ended up not being realistic because of Colorado BY CHRIS JONES PHOTOS BY MELANIE WATSON

NathanOwner: $Annual65CarAverage2,800Shop2StaffColoradoEnglewood,Location:BryantSize:Size:squarefeetNumberofbays3MonthlyCount:Revenue:450,000

Autovisions occupies one-twelfth a dodecagonal building—that’s the geometric term for a 12-sided polygon. In simpler terms, the shop is pie-shaped. The building’s owner envisioned that his uniquey-designed building would serve as an import auto mall that housed 12 specialty shops. At least that was the plan. “It was an interesting idea; it failed completely.” says Nathan Bryant, owner of Autovisions, mentioning that he and the neighboring brewery are the building’s sole tenants.

While it may be hard imagine operating an auto repair shop from a wedgeshaped space, Bryant tactfully positions his shop to handle the workflow.

A Piece of the Pie

HAVE SHOP?OUTSTANDINGAN Send a few photos and a brief description to comratchetandwrench.submissions@ and we might feature it here.

08.22 / R+W / 21 the cost, of me leasing the building, and the shape of the parking lot. It would have ended up costing I think $20,000 or $30,000,” he says. Instead, he purchased one online for private use in the shop. The charging station cost the shop $1,000 and Bryant had an electrician install it, a process he says took 15 minutes. “I’ve got a charging station that’s inside my building that’s just for me to use when there’s a vehicle here. That was really simple to set up. I ended up ordering a station off of Amazon and then had an electrician install it,” Bryant says.

Factors to consider before changing how much you bill you customers Joe Marconi Joe Marconi has more than four decades of ex perience in the automotive re pair industry. He is the former owner of Osceola Garage in Baldwin Place, N.Y., a business development coach for Elite Worldwide, and co-founder of autoshopowner.com. Reach him at j.marconi@eliteworldwide.com

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Increasing prices is a hot topic these days among shop owners. The general feeling is that automotive repair shops have been undercharging what they’re worth for their services and repairs, making it difficult for shops to reinvest in their companies, maintain profitability, attract quality people, and pay their employees a decent wage. Surging inflation also factors into this discussion.

To complicate matters, many shop owners would like to increase their labor rates but feel that they can’t, claiming that an increase in their labor rate results in losing customers. So, the question is: Can auto repair shops simply raise their prices; is it really that easy? The answer is not as straightforward as some may think.

Some shop owners have done the math and set their prices according to what they determine is needed to earn a reasonable profit. However, these shop owners also know it takes more than just understanding their numbers. They identify and understand their ideal customer. They know that not everyone will become their customer, and they don’t worry about what other shops around them are charging. They price their services and repairs consistent with their business model.

JUST INCREASE YOUR PRICES. IS IT REALLY THAT EASY?

Joe Marconi not an arbitrary determination. Every shop owner must do their homework, crunch their numbers, and set their prices accordingly. Shop owners must also consider the value they bring to their customer base. They need to consider the services and repairs they perform, which align with their business model. This means you cannot be everything to everyone. Maintaining productivity and efficiency is also critical to ensuring profitability. Your prices tell the story of your brand. I like to see it tell the story of quality, value, efficiency, and excellence. Operating and owning a repair shop isn’t all about making a profit, but profit is needed for long-term success. Profit is required to provide for your family and allows you to pay wages that make your employees feel secure about providing for their families. Profit also enables you to reinvest in your company, which means you can continue to provide the best services and repairs for your customers. As I mentioned earlier, pricing your services and repairs is a balancing act between being competitive and profitable. Ultimately, the customer determines if your prices are reasonable. If your customers don’t see the value in your services and repairs, they’ll be reluctant to pay your prices, whether or not you feel those prices are justified. Another thing to consider is that labor rates and pricing differ by geographical area and business model. A shop that does highly technical work— specializing in Mercedes, Maserati, and Porsche—is different from a shop that performs basic service work on Asian and domestic vehicles. Different business models dictate different price structures.

Lastly, if you fear you may lose customers by raising your prices, you’re not alone. However, what you charge may make the difference between success and financial failure. Understand your business model, then establish services and repairs that align with your model and the value you deliver to your customers. Remember that not everyone in your market will become your customer. After doing your homework, you’ll know your ideal customer, establish the services and repairs you’ll offer, and determine your required profit margins. If a price increase is required, then only you should make that final decision.

As a former shop owner for over 40 years, I feel as an industry we have not been charging enough for the work we do. However, I am not a fan of raising prices without examining the issues. All boats don’t necessarily rise with the tide. Some boats may capsize. Establishing prices is a delicate balance between profitability and remaining competitive in your market. Although many repair shops may fall under the same umbrella with regard to what they do, pricing is Columns STRAIGHT TALK

MARC MILO Milo’s Auto Center, Plainville, CT TechNet Member Since 1997 Follow Us @TechNetPros Learn more at technetprofessional.com/membership “I’M A TECHNET SHOP BECAUSE... LOCAL SHOPS, NATIONWIDE NETWORK TechNet is celebrating 25 years of providing shops access to exclusive business and marketing solutions, including motorist programs like Nationwide Warranty, Roadside Assistance and Road Hazard Tire Protection. it backs me up with a nationwide network. It gives me peace of mind that I can take care of my customers wherever they are, even when they travel. It helps keep my customers coming back year after year. TechNet Membership is one of the best decisions I ever made.” NAT IONWIDE WARR AN T Y ROADSIDE ASSISTANCE TIRE ROADPROTECTIONHAZARD 25 1YEARS9972022

Known for its wealth and regarded as one of the best places to live in Connecticut, Haddam, population 8,452, is also home to Mike’s Auto Service LLC. A second-generation mechanic, Mike Mikulski grew up a shop kid “with a wrench in his hand,” tagging alongside his father. The pair opened Mike’s Auto Service together in 2004.

Haddam, Connecticut, which rests on the Connecticut River, is an isolated but well-preserved town off the beaten path between Hartford—the state capi tal—and Long Island Sound, which runs along The Constitution State’s coast.

The shop, which sits on a little more than a half-acre, used to be a video store and could still be easily mistaken for such today if they existed. But that’s the Con necticut aesthetic. Even shops have to fit the cosmetic expectation of the uppermiddle-class communities they service.

When some people imagine rural shops, they envision mechanics who look like Cooter Davenport, the jovial grease monkey in a sleeveless work shirt, dirty blue jeans, and a worn trucker cap from the late ‘70s/early ‘80s television show “The Dukes of Hazzard.” While that aesthetic doesn’t match the Mi kulski’s, the friendly, good-natured spirit of the Ben Jones character does. “We’re trying to evolve with the times, but we are still maintaining that mom-andpop mentality. We have customers who come in, just to say, ‘Hi.’ They’re not com ing in to get their vehicle work done. They’ll stop in and bring us cookies. The old retired guys in town will stop by [to talk to Mike]. It has that old-school vibe, but with a mod ernized touch,” Mikulski says.

“My husband is a technician and we have another full-time technician. We have an apprentice from the apprentice ship program through the NAPA Auto Care Benefits. We’ve recently added a service advisor, and I do service writing as well,” Mikulski says.

Hometown Hospitable Mike and Jennifer Mikulski of Mike’s Auto Service LLC aim to grow and change with the industry while continuing to provide a personable small-town shop feel.

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“He grew up in it; immersed in it com pletely and has never had another career,” says Jennifer Mikulsi, who has co-owned the shop since 2017 with her husband fol lowing her father-in-law’s retirement.

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‘Old-School Vibe with a Modern Touch’

Neatly tucked to the left of the shop are its three bays where Mike, Jennifer, and their team work on cars from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Thursday.

ITKEEPIN’RURAL

How small-town shops off the beaten path are prospering by staying true to their markets

BY CHRIS JONES

08.22 / R+W / 25

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Big Fish, Small Pond Tony and Jennifer Ringham have benefitted from being a specialty shop in rural area. Precision Imports gets referrals from other shops who choose not to work on imports.

Learning to Shift Paradigms

Evolving times has a “new normal” connotation to it. For small shops like Mike’s Auto Service, changing times have the shop learning to handle the expecta tions of its most loyal customers and those of new customers.

Coming to Terms with Technology One of the lessons from the pandemic and the growth spurt was the need to improve the shop’s marketing efforts online. With customers hearing about their shop from surrounding areas, Mikulski realized it was time to take advantage of technology to grow the business.

“We adjusted our mindset from order ing parts on an as-needed basis. It caused us to shift to a more proactive approach, as much as possible, to ordering and sourcing parts ahead of planned appoint ments so we weren’t caught stranding a customer,” she says.

Best Foot Forward

On the other side of the coin, an influx of customers accustomed to commuting into the cities to work are beginning to show up with their vehicles.

It wasn’t long before she realized the industry was relatively pandemic proof. “I felt that so many people were rely ing on their vehicles just to take a drive that our business segment didn’t take as large of a hit as other business segments did. People wanted access to their cars. They wanted to be able to travel with their families in a contained environment,” Mikulski says, recalling the time as one of her business’s most profitable.

“In the minds of locals, we’re an avail able resource at all times, which is a bless ing and a curse. Everyone expects us to attend to their needs immediately. So, you have to learn to manage that level of ser vice when there are not many other repu table options close by. It’s very convenient for them to say, ‘Let’s stop by and see if Mike and Jen can help out with our prob lems today,’” Mikulski says.

The 4,000-square-footRinghams’ shop is every bit as pristine and premium as the vehicles they service, which is by design.

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“We panicked at first like anyone else would have with the unknown impact that it was going to have. We tapped into social media and word of mouth, adjusted our business a bit, and started servicing our customers by offering a pickup and deliv ery service for their vehicles so that no one would have to leave their home,” she says.

The couple scrambled to make adjustments to keep their business viable not knowing if or when people would have a need for auto repair during state wide restriction periods.

“We have new customers driving a lot of European, higher-end cars that make their way to us, and typically these people are commuters at work in Hartford. They’re having their Land Rover serviced at the dealership, and we’re finding more and more of that type of customer starting to leave the dealership environment and seek us out. I think they’re looking for that one-on-one feeling of community that they’re not get ting from these dealerships,” she says.

She says supply chain issues have af fected the shop most, causing her to change how the shop orders parts from vendors due to the unpredictability of shipment and arrival. The disruption within the sup ply chain meant something as common as brakes, which could be delivered within a half-hour from a parts supplier, could take two or more days to arrive, or force the shop to seek out alternative suppliers.

The reality that COVID could have a profound effect on the business jolted the Mikulskis.

MCGEEBREBYPHOTOS Keepin’ It Rural

Mikulsi, who handles the marketing, bookkeeping, service writing, and hu man resources, is now dipping her toe into shop management software, which has leveled the playing field making cus tomer service and marketing easier and more fluid for small shops. “Entering information is a click of a button. That’s allowing us to look at ways to fine-tune and improve our business, which is helping us get to the stage where we can start evolving with technology as we get ready for the future of automotive repair and what it will be in the next 10 to 15 years,” she says. Within that same timeline, as Mike’s Auto Service gets up to speed with tech nology and stays in step with the grow ing number of cars they’re servicing, they face another technological event hori zon—electrification. As we inch closer to what’s been called the electric future, affordability of EVs won’t be the issue for Haddam’s well-to-do residents—reluc tance will be. Residents’ attitudes about electric vehicles could buy the Mikulsi’s precious time to get up to speed. It’s a challenge they’re now up to solving.

“We’ve just recently created a web site for ourselves, and when I mean just, I’m talking [early spring 2022]. Social media was our primary. That’s our small town—Facebook groups and whatnot. That’s where I focused on. Now, I’m starting to evolve more into having our own website where I can have people start booking appoint ments. You know, automated,” she says, highlighting the limited resources of being a small shop as a factor in the shop’s previous lack of marketing.

“We’re located strategically between the Twin Cities and St. Cloud, which are bigger cities. I guess we’re kind of on a junction of two important arterial highways. There are a lot of your typical domestic repair shops in town— three or four of them—and we get along with all of them. But we were the only ones who did import cars. So, we get a ton of busi ness from all of the other shops that don’t want to mess with those,” Tony says. From its hobbyist beginning—Tony was selling real estate and flipping cars he pur chased on Craigslist in his garage—Preci sion Imports has kept its down-to-earth, home-like garage feeling. After opening in 2006 with a three-car garage, the Ringhams have since built an HGTV-worthy, five-bay, 4,000-square-foot shop that looks more tech industry than auto industry.

“I always joked that for most of my life I’ve worked in the dark, the cold, and on the floor,” Tony says. “I hate that even nice shops are dark and dirty, and I didn’t want to work like that. So, we decided in stead of doing white steel, which everyone does, we thought, Well, let’s do pine and silver steel instead. Then we did polished

“I would say we’re not prepared for it, but it’s definitely on our minds. We have several customers with Teslas and tons of hybrids. It’s something that can’t be ig nored,” Mikulski says. “We are forwardthinking … but I would consider us behind the curve a bit. But we’re going to have to make accommodations for it to service the clientele that requires it and to ensure a solid future for business long term.”

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‘We’re Kind of a Destination Shop’ Precision Imports by all appearances is an outlier. Not only is it an import auto repair shop in a tiny Minnesota town— Milaca has 2,894 residents—but it yields an annual revenue of over $1.2 million a year. And that’s not by accident.

Tony and Jennifer Ringham, who grew up in Milaca, have successfully used their familiarity, the shop’s rural location, and lack of competition to their benefit.

Keep ‘Em Movin’ The Mikulskis drum up substantial business from local residents who commute into New Haven for work. They take pride in keeping people on the road.

VIGUELINDSAYBYPHOTOS

As European automakers race towards becoming all-electric, Tony’s conviction is that his business will thrive no matter what the future holds. He’s a gearhead focused on staying in front of emerging technologies that affect the industry and making sure his technicians do too. The pair have both owned electric cars, have a Level 2 charger at the shop, and are com fortable working with whatever the cus tomer“Wedrives.want to innovate and be prepared for that. We’ve owned electric cars our selves—Teslas and BMW hybrids and electrics. If you watch the news, they say electric cars are coming and we’re going to wake up in a month and everything’s going to be electric. It’s going to be at least a de cade, possibly two before these even reach 50 percent market saturation. So, even if everybody went out and bought electric cars tomorrow, which of course isn’t going to happen, we’ve still got a very large customer base out there that still is driving conven tional gasoline or diesel cars,” he says.

MCGEEBREBYPHOTOS

Discipline Begets Discipline Until that day, Precision will focus on growth. Jennifer keeps her finger on the pulse of the shop’s goals and KPI on a weekly“Webasis.track our gross revenue. We track our car count every week. We track ARO. We also track our production hours and compare that to our technician’s clocked hours to get an efficiency rate. We track our labor cost and parts cost. And new customers, I look at our new customers every week,” Jennifer says. She says the shop has done little to advertise beyond its Facebook page and website, and tips her hat to the shop’s cus tomers who continually refer their friends and“Wecolleagues.don’tdo mailers; we don’t do cou pons; we don’t do newspaper ads. I pretty much do nothing on the advertising side except for the billboard that is in Princ eton we did that last year because we do see a fair number of cars on the highway that find us and say, ‘I didn’t even know you were here,” she says. But as she’s gotten deeper into the data and seen how much greater the shop can become over time, she’s eager to put on the marketing hat. “I know that this economy won’t last forever, right?” says Jennifer. “And I want to make sure to keep the car count up. We’ve been so lucky with cars constantly showing up that we really haven’t had to focus on marketing. So, that will be one of our next steps.”

Keepin’ It Rural

28 R+W / 08.22 white floors, which brightens it up a lot, and then lots of windows, solar tubes for sunlight, and air conditioning. Basically, it’s a house built for cars” It’s that attention to detail and honoring the customer’s perceptions of what a premi um European and Asian import shop should be that has import auto owners from St. Cloud and the Twin Cities heading to rural Milaca to get their cars repaired. The Ring hams data supports that claim. The shop has a 3:1 ratio on repeat to new customers and sees 1,560 cars annually. The couple credits automotive brand loyal customers—the “I only drive [insert foreign make here] cars of mouth, and industry relation ships to its success in a rural area. “I think one of the advantages that we have is that people who drive Ger man cars usually bought their car on purpose. They like their German cars. It’s not a daily necessity, like a Honda minivan,” says Jennifer. “I’ve been tracking for the last six weeks or so since we’ve been working with DRIVE, and 99 percent of the car referrals come from another shop who doesn’t want anything to do with a BMW or a Volk swagen. It’s a friend of a friend and even the bigger dealerships who will send us cars that come in on trade that they don’t want to fix.”

types–word

Built on Reputation Precision Imports has become somwehat of a destination shop for European car enthusiasts who want top-flight repairs at an expert-level shop.

Not Shocked by Electrification

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down with Nash Tehrani owner of Autohaus Social; George Staib founder of staibdance, an Atlantabased nonprofit contemporary dance company; and Sarah Hillmer, director of ImmerseATL, a training and mentorship program for contemporary dancers, to discuss their performance art collaboration: “R E V, Living somewhere between Zero and Sixty.”

ART

YEARS IN THE MAKING

LIGHTS. CAMERA. LIFTS. With bay doors for curtains and Ferraris for dance partners, unlikely players paired up for an innovative performance in Atlanta, Georgia. In a 10-minute video, dancers wowed audiences with their use of space—the bay of a luxury vehicle repair shop—and their impressive choreography.Buthowdid an auto repair shop come to serve as the backdrop for a creative danceRatchet+Wrenchperformance?sat

THE FINE

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An unlikely community partnership finds a luxury repair shop as the stage for an inventive dance performance

BY RYAN MCCANNA & CHRIS JONES PHOTOS BY FELIPE BARRAL

& IGNI PRODUCTIONS SOCIALAUTOHAUS $1.7Annual$1,100ARO:160CarAveragelounge1,000-square-footfootw/4,000ShopStaffAtlanta,Location:NashOwner:TehraniGeorgiaSize:7Size:squarefeeta1,000-square-loungeandaareaWeeklyCount:Revenue:million Profile SMITHMAXBYPHOTO

The Connector Nash Tehrani, owner of Autohaus Social, has a reputation for bringing ideas to the table and people together.

This partnership between dance studio and European auto repair shop began over a decade ago. Nash Tehrani served on the board of directors for staibdance. He had recently (AND PERFORMING) AUTOOFREPAIR

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PRODUCTIONSIGNI&BARRALFELIPEBYPHOTO

Gears & Grace Dancers duringhigh-performance911SpeedalongsideperformedTehrani’sYellowPorscheTurboandothercarstheshow.

“We decided instead of not doing it that we would just film it, and then people had the opportunity to pay to watch the full length like 10-, 15- minute program,” says Tehrani of the pivot from live performance to online streaming. They needed someone skilled in capturing a contemporary dance performance. Luckily, filmmaker Felipe Boral jumped into this multifaceted role. “We trusted Felipe and we filmed things we didn’t even know would happen,” Hillmer says. “Once we shot the footage it became something more than just what we’d rehearsed.”

(ABOVE)PRODUCTIONSIGNI&BARRALFELIPEAND(BELOW)SMITHMAXBYPHOTOS

Originally, “R E V” was supposed to have been designed by November 2019 and performed live in the Tehrani’s shop in the fall of 2020. That included choreography, costumes, writing, and recording an original score; rehearsals with dancers and directors; and rehearsals with cars and drivers all resulting in a multi-weekend performance schedule.

The year 2020, of course, had its own ideas.

32 / R+W / 08.22 purchased property in Atlanta and wanted to make connections in the community. It was Tehrani’s idea to bring together luxury vehicles and the performing arts.

LAYING THE GROUNDWORK

“I didn’t necessarily have a dance background,” Tehrani says. “But I was happy to be supporting them with ideas and contributions when I could.” “Nash has something very special,” Hillmer says. “He has a great respect for George’s company; he gets it. He has such a love for the performing arts. Nash proved that you can make [the auto] world vibe with the dance world.” And from the outside looking in, the appreciation of luxury vehicles and dance seem like they’d be worlds apart, but are more intertwined than imagined. “There’s a lot of overlap … the cars we work on are a more high end—Mercedes, BMW, Porsches—and a lot of those customers are also into the fine arts, like dance. So, it opened up [an avenue] to a cool merger of these beautiful dancers and these beautiful cars and how it all intertwined together. It’s just a really cool collaboration between us and them. It allowed them to do their performance in a setting you wouldn’t expect performers to be dancing at,” says Tehrani. With Tehrani’s help, Hillmer and Staib’s organizations, which often partner together to give young artists professional ties in the Atlanta arts community, will reached an entirely new audience as a result of the breadth of his network across Metro Atlanta. “We not car people,” Hillmer says, “There’s a lot of expertise in both communities, and I think we found a way to talk together in this film.”

“It was so important having someone at the helm who understood the process. Nash gave us the time and generosity to allow us true exploration,” Staib says.

Instead of live performances, they ultimately decided that filming “R E V” and selling tickets to the stream would be the best way to honor the crew’s vision and efforts, but the task would require the talents of a filmmaker, director of photography, film editor, post production supervisor, and sound designer.

REV’ved Up Dancers from staib dance were treated to an unusal stage when they performed at Autohaus Social.

Profile

As a result, Hillmer and Staib put the project on a pause—just long enough to pivot and leap in a parallel direction.

08.22 / R+W / 33 “LET ME “IT’SABOUTTHINKIT”REALLYMEANS,NOTINMYBUDGET” Your customers are asking for payment options. Are you listening? https://enrollment.easypayfinance.com/RWShopsJuly22 Promo Code: 38630 Enroll for FREE todaywith a 0% Merchant Fee! Loans made by Transportation Alliance Bank, Inc., dba TAB Bank. See exclusions at www.easypayfinance.com/privacy-policy. “LET ME “IT’SABOUTTHINKIT”REALLYMEANS,NOTINMYBUDGET” Your customers are asking for payment options. Are you ABOUTlistening?IT” https://enrollment.easypayfinance.com/RWShopsJuly22 Promo Code: 38630 Enroll for FREE today with a 0% Merchant Fee! Loans made by Transportation Alliance Bank, Inc., dba TAB Bank. See exclusions at www.easypayfinance.com/privacy-policy.

Waiters Welcome Tehrani’s three-level shop has a repair level and two lounge levels complete with refresh ments and gaming.

On filming day, there were two groups on-site: Tehrani oversaw the Vehicle Team and Hillmer and Staib led the Dance Team. Tehrani had a technician on-site to operate the lifts, volunteer drivers, car enthusiasts, and fellow entrepreneurs. Hillmer and Staib led the Dance Team, which included performers, production technicians, and Boral and his camera operators. They faced a few challenges with COVID-19 restrictions, which included limited time on set.

“The dancer was stellar,” Tehrani says, “She was so professional and didn’t even flinch when I revved the engine.”

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Autohaus connects with customers through its unique approach to social media. After all, not every auto repair shop has a creative director. That’s where Noosh Prljaca comes in. One of her biggest roles is helping Nash develop ideas for the shop and its programs.

“At the end of the day, we wanted to be respectful to the greatest concerns and implement as much as we could to keep everyone safe,” Tehrani says.

“I wanted to take the negative stigma away from the auto repair industry and build a facility that looks nothing like a shop,” Tehrani says. “Autohaus is sleek, modern. You don’t smell oil or grease when you walk in. The lifestyle portion of the shop is where we really shine— beautiful restrooms, high-end fixtures, and an art gallery for Atlanta-based artists. The shop is synonymous with professional and clean.”

CURTAIN Once someone sets foot in Autohaus Social, it’s obvious why staibdance and ImmerseATL chose to film there. The European auto service caters not only to their customers’ demand for quality, but also their lifestyle.

Ultimately, Hillmer and Staib say the experience was “equal parts exciting and nerve-wracking.”“Ifeelwegained an opportunity to look into something I never would have personally considered,” Staib says. “Phenomenal,” Hillmer summarizes. “It was a wonderful chance for emerging artists and professionals to bring incredibly, uniquely talented, top-notch individuals together for a specific project.”

SMITHMAXBYPHOTOS

Guests can enjoy the downstairs level with a full lounge and virtual gaming amenities with complementary beverages while technicians evaluate their vehicles on the middle level with tablet-based diagnostics (which customers can watch via a live feed). Furthermore, there is an upstairs level with another lounge area and a game room complete with ping pong table.

“It’s an obvious struggle to perform without being allowed ‘onstage,’” Hillmer says, “but on the day of filming, we created an open dialogue to make sure everyone felt safe; that they could voice if they needed a shift.”

PEAK PERFORMANCE

Customers’ vehicles have a chance to end up on their social media feed, which allows car enthusiasts to share the posts in their own circles. This way, the business gains traction online at a sustainable rate and Autohaus gains name recognition with their target audiences.

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Whenever the shop hosts an event, like its ground-breaking car show along the Atlanta Beltline, she helps organize and produce the event on a ground level and creates the marketing material.

“She’s super talented. She’s worked for a lot of big blue chip companies, so she’s kind of overkill for us, but she’s responsible for the branding, our Autohaus social logo, all the event promo graphics, anything you see visually, she’s responsible for when we have all these events. She comes up with all the creative stuff, the website ... it’s really her and 100 percent her. I give her the ideas, and she takes my ideas and turns them into cool stuff,” Tehrani Alongsidesays.staibdance and ImmerseATL, Prljaca shared the teaser trailers for “R E V” on the Autohaus social media, which gave the film another audience pool to tap into.

The final shot of the performance featured the lead dancer carefully turning, weaving, and exploring the space in front of Tehrani’s Speed Yellow Porsche 911 Turbo as it slowly creeps forward towards the camera.

“I think it’s a reflection of how we think of things on different terms,” Tehrani says. “We gain customer respect and meet a need in the local industry. This way I can enjoy my passion for luxury cars and know I’m helping the community.”

It all starts with the name. The first and most obvious reason to track CSI is to understand where your shop stands in providing a fullservice customer service experience.

36 / R+W / 08.22 GETTY TOOLBOX SMARTER.WORKMONEY.MAKE

The customer satisfaction index , or CSI, is a valuable tool shop owners can use to hear directly from customers, analyze feed back, and promote their shop’s top-notch work. However, a recent Ratchet+Wrench survey found that many shops still don’t trackTrackingCSI. CSI not only helps shops understand levels of customer satisfaction, but it provides insight into your shop, and maintaining a high CSI score is necessary to gain AAA approval. In addition, shops can use positive feedback as a promotional tool.

You Leaving Money on the Table?

can provide

WHY IT’S IMPORTANT

Gregg Rainville, the chief revenue officer at Mechanic Advisor, routinely works with shops and helps them track CSI and gain AAA approval. Rainville recently spoke with Ratchet+Wrench about the importance of tracking CSI and how a shop can get started.

tracking

All shop owners hope to provide a premier experience for their customers from the moment they walk through the door until they drive their car off the lot. But if you don’t inquire about their experience, you’ll never get a complete picture on how well your shop is doing on providing that full-serviceReviews,experience.feedback, and CSI scores are superb tools that provide key insight into your“Youshop.can really look into a business and know the quality of the business … by Are

Why CSI key

BY NOLAN O’HARA

insights into your shop and boost your bottom line over time

At Mechanic Advisor, Rainville says they have a process in which they collect customers’ emails and phone numbers when their tickets close, which allows them to follow up on their experiences at the shop. For AAA shops, Mechanic Advisor sends out CSI surveys the customers fill out, which goes into a report sent back to AAA. Depending on what the individual shop wants, Mechanic Advisor will ask for feedback for CSI anywhere from two days to five days after a customer’s visit. And there are many companies similar to Mechanic Advisor which will provide services for shops in order to track CSI.

RESULTS SPEAK

So, that’s the positive side of CSI, but what happens if you choose not to track it?

/ 37

GETTING STARTED While some shops track CSI in-house, the majority track it via a third party, which can be an easier transition, and it provides consistency in the questions asked to customers.

“If you don’t have any reviews or any type of customer feedback out there, you’re probably going to lose that potential new customer coming through your door,” RainvilleRainvillesays.explains that not only are reviews a good tool in which to drive business into your shop, it also gives the customer a voice through an open-ended question, which can be a better venue for honestAndfeedback.aplatform like Google, for example, can allow the shop owner to respond to said feedback, which is both personal and demonstrates to future customers how that shop treats their current customers.

Kathleen Jarosik, owner of Xpertech Auto Repair in Englewood, Florida, is a Gold NAPA AutoCare Center, and NAPA provides CSI surveys, which go into Xpertech Auto Repair’s CSI score. On a small scale, getting started tracking CSI can be as simple as using a consumer relationship management (CRM) provider such as Yelp, Google, or Facebook, and asking for reviews to begin gauging your customer experiences from there.

Again—it all starts with the name. The key metric in tracking customer satisfaction is justCSIthat—satisfaction.surveystypically range from “totally satisfied” to “totally dissatisfied.” For example, if a customer is asked how they felt about the repairs done on their vehicle, they can respond: totally satisfied, satisfied, neither satisfied or dissatisfied, dissatisfied, or totally“Anybodydissatisfied.notpaying attention to that metric probably should,” Jarosik says. “That’s like not looking at how much money you’re making.” The goal for shops, of course, is to be as close to “totally satisfied” as you can, which becomes increasing important for shops looking to gain and maintain AAA approval, where it’s necessary to have 95 percent satisfaction or better to gain that approval and remain a AAA shop. Rainville also can’t understand the importance of reviews. Again, the goal of course is to have mostly positive reviews, whether that’s on a scale of one to five or one to 10. But it’s also critical for the reviews to appear genuine. “I always like telling my shops, you know, you don’t want a 5.0,” Rainville explains. “No shop can be 100 percent perfect. If you are, there should be red flags.”

THE FLIP SIDE

KEY METRICS

Xpertech Auto Repair recently won the 2022 AAA Gold Top Shop for North America in the small shop category and the national AAA Best in Auto Repair Silver 1-5 bay awards. That’s in large part because Jarosik isn’t one to shy away from her CSI feedback. The recent accolades haven’t stopped Jarosik from trying to improve herAbusiness.whileback, Jarosik had a customer review that bemoaned a lengthy wait time to get their car in. The customer said Xpertech Auto Repair shouldn’t take new clients because its booming business has the shop booking weeks ahead. That told Jarosik that her shop has become the one that’s “too busy.” She likened it to the restaurant tyou love, but you don’t ever want to go there because you know you’re in for an hourlong wait to get a table. So, for the last two years, Jarosik has been working on getting permits to add two more bays at Xpertech Auto Repair, all based on the insight from her“Ifcustomer.youdon’t ask the questions, you don’t know where your problems are,” she says.

TOOLBOX / LEADERSHIP

Gaining AAA approval is another significant reason as to why many shops will track CSI. In order to become a AAA shop, you need to have 95 percent satisfaction or better, meaning 95 percent of your feedback has to be satisfied or above.

An often-overlooked element to CSI is reviews, which are critical in driving business into your shop. Rainville says as the world has shifted more and more digital, having accessible reviews of your business online has become more and more important.

Well, for starters, you lose out on key insights into your business; how can you track kinks in your business model without trackingKeepingCSI?up on CSI can also be a quality control tool. If you have a bad front desk employee, you won’t know unless you have a venue in which to ask customers. Without tracking CSI in some way, shape, or form, you lose out on that customer input, that quality control tool and the added insight into your Withoutbusiness.tracking CSI, you can kiss AAA approval goodbye since it requires a metric of 95 percent satisfaction or better. Finally, you’re losing out on potential customers you couldn’t find or who were scared off by the lack of information from fellow customers online. “If you don’t have that positive feedback, like it’s not going to help your business,” Rainville says. “A lot of our shops, too, display their reviews, or put their best reviews on their website or on their Facebook page. That just helps improve customer confidence, and even your own existing base.”

“ANYBODY NOT PAYING ATTENTION TO (CSI) PROBABLY SHOULD. THAT’S LIKE NOT LOOKING AT HOW MUCH MONEY YOU’REXPERTECHKATHLEENMAKING.”JAROSIKOWNERAUTOREPAIR

08.22 R+W looking at CSI scores and feedback from customers and stuff like that,” Rainville says.

38 / R+W / 08.22 TOOLBOX / CASE STUDY GETTY Secrets to getting the service to work for you BY TESS OWINGS DOS AND DON’TS OF SERVICESRIDE-HAILING

“For us, I’d rather have that expense and know what it is and wash our hands of it,” Ortiz says of the decision to use ridehailing services instead of having a shuttle or loaner fleet.

If you offer it for free up to 10 miles, do that every time. Make sure everyone knows that’s the rule, and not a last minute situation where a service advisor is telling the customer they can’t have the ridehailing services for free because they live 15 miles away. Set the expectation from the Ortizstart. doesn’t have a limit for how far he’ll pay for ride-hailing. He says if a customer is willing to travel 45 minutes to come see him, he’s more than willing to pay for the ride to get them home.

“We ask the advisor to make a decision: Would you get in the car?” Ortiz says. If a customer has a bad experience during their ride home and calls the shop to complain, Ortiz says the staff is instructed to apologize and let the customer know they’ll pass that feedback to the ride-hailing service.

DON’T FORGET TO COVER ALL YOUR BASES.

DON’T BITE OFF MORE THAN YOU CAN CHEW. Make sure the decision to use ride-hailing services is feasible for your company. In the beginning, Ortiz says it was a lot to manage because he was using the regular Uber platform. Whoever ordered the Uber for the customer also had to monitor the vehicle’s location. This became problematic when the phone would ring or another customer would need help. Ortiz says the normal platform may work fine for a smaller operation, but he needed something that would help take some of the responsibility off of his staff. Ortiz eventually found another service that allowed the customers to get the notification when their vehicle had arrived, freeing his staff to care for others instead of checking on a ride-hailing services vehicle’s status.

THE AFTERMATH In March of 2022, Ortiz says he spent roughly $6,000 on ride-hailing services. He averages between $5,000 and $6,000, which results in 250 to 275 rides. It’s a large expense, but he says it’s helped elevate the customer experience. Customers no longer have to wait their turn to get dropped off, like they did with the shuttle service.

THE SOLUTION Ortiz shares some of the dos and don’ts that have helped make the process easier and seamless for both his business and his customers.

08.22 / R+W / 39

DON’T FORGET TO RE-EVALUATE. What worked for Ortiz and his shop in 2016 doesn’t work for his shop in 2022. Businesses always need to be adapting, and the way that customers get home is no exception to that. Be willing to change and research new offerings. When Ortiz started offering ridehailing services, Lyft wasn’t as popular as it is today. Maybe Lyft is the best choice for your company. Or, maybe a new company has popped up that’s the perfect fit. Once you’ve found the platform you want to go with, stay on top of new offerings that they have. That’s what led Ortiz to try out different services over the years.

One of the biggest headaches Ortiz has with ride-hailing services is lost items. This is something he hasn’t found a solution for, but he does everything he can to make sure the customer doesn’t forget anything in the shop. His staff is trained to walk the customer to the vehicle and ask them if they have everything they came with, such as their phone and wallet. Doing this prevents the customer from thinking they left something at the shop, when really it’s in the vehicle of the ride they hailed, which results in more rides back and forth. If a customer has misplaced something in a vehicle and calls the shop, Ortiz says that there’s a section on Uber Central where you can make a claim for the item on behalf of the customer. Another tip is to put yourself in the customer’s shoes. Make sure they know the ride-hailing service is free, if it is.

Ortiz says his staff lets customers know that the ride is complementary, the bill is sent directly to the shop, and there’s no need for a tip. Now, you may choose to offer something else, but make it clear to the customer what is expected of them when they’re being dropped off so they don’t feel uncomfortable.

DO SET CLEAR GUIDELINES. Make sure everyone on your staff is on the same page when it comes to the rules for ride-hailing services. Is it offered to every customer? Is it complimentary? Is there a distance limit? Put that in place and make sure your staff understands. “If you’re going to have a rule in place for a customer service perk, be consistent,” Ortiz says.

THE TAKEAWAY Since they’ve worked out their kinks with ride-hailing from the beginning, it’s become very easy for the company. Now, he gets billed once per month for the service, and he doesn’t have to worry about storing, maintaining, and tracking a fleet of vehicles.

“WE ASK THE ADVISOR TO MAKE A DECISION: WOULD YOU GET IN THE GENERALJONATHANCAR?”ORTIZMANAGER&CO-OWNERFOREIGNAFFAIRSAUTO

Since 2016, Foreign Affairs Auto in West Palm Beach, Florida, has offered courtesy ridehailing services to its customers. Switching from a shuttle service to ride-hailing helped enhance the customer experience and keep the shop in line with being the “Nordstrom of Auto Repair,” says Jonathan Ortiz, general manager and Althoughco-owner.theshop offered ride-hailing servicess for six years, it continues to reevaluate and find the best option for both its business model and its customers. Over the years, Ortiz has switched providers to find the features that best suit his operation.

THE PROBLEM Whether you’re using loaners or a shuttle service, there are many considerations when making the switch to using ride-hailing services. Even if you currently use ridehailing, there are common pitfalls many shop owners can fall into.

DO REMEMBER THE RIDE HOME IS AN EXTENSION OF YOUR BUSINESS. Even though you’re not technically the person driving the customer home, it’s still a part of your customer’s experience with you. Make sure it’s a good one, or it will reflect poorly on you. For example, Ortiz says that his staff knows that if a vehicle comes that doesn’t look up-to-standard, they should cancel the ride and get the customer a new vehicle. That’s another reason that it’s important that the service advisor walks the customer out to the hailed vehicle.

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Simikian, who’s worked as a freelance HR consultant for the last couple years, knows that not every shop or business needs a full-time HR professional in-house, however, every business does still have HR needs.

GETTY Chuck Simikian grew up working in a car dealership. His father was a me chanic, so Simikian—the lead con sultant and president of Alliance HR Partners—has familiarity with the au tomotive industry and what shops need in human resources services.

For many shops, outsourcing HR is often a better fit. But when does a shop know it’s time to bring someone in, and what do they need to look for in an HR consultant or company?

WHEN YOU KNOW While there are employee thresholds that can certainly help a shop owner decided when they need that extra help, there ultimately isn’t an exact science to bringing in an HR consultant.

08.22 / R+W / 41 TOOLBOX / FINANCE+OPERATIONS

Simikian says it comes down to the owner. “If [a] shop owner finds themselves spending more than maybe a couple hours a week on that type of stuff, more than what their core business is, then they will know when it’s time,” Simikian“There’ssays.not science with it as much as there’s art … The art is going to be a little less in your face until they realize, ‘Oh my gosh, I’m spending so much time, I don’t have time to be in business anymore,’” Simikian adds. don’t have to do it all alone

Here’s your guide to outsourcing HR.

BY NOLAN O’HARA

Your Guide to Outsourcing HR You

GETTING STARTED Maybe you’ve hit that 11- or 15employee threshold and are considering bringing in some outside human resources help. But what do you need to look for in an HR consultant?

OUTSIDE BENEFITS

Simikian also notes that when an employer reaches 15 employees, they’re required to write job descriptions— something that can be handled by an HRAnconsult.HR company can guide you through the entire hiring process, even handling all the paperwork associated with the onboarding process. And once hired, if an employee has questions about benefits, the HR consult can answer those as well.

It’s completely dependent on the services your business needs. If it’s just the basics your shop needs, you should be in pretty good shape to handle the responsibilites. But, if your shop is looking to outsource payroll or hiring, you’ll likely need more than just one person on retainer and costs will increase.

Once you’ve just hit the 15-employee threshold where Simikian recommends keeping someone on retainer, you may just need help navigating OSHA and EEOC regulations and help establishing your company’s handbook—its policies andSimikianprocedures.says this is relatively low cost, perhaps a couple hundred dollars each month, and there’s numerous HR companies that can provide that service.

One of the main benefits out outscoring HR is cost. It’s significantly cheaper than having someone in-house, and it makes a lot more sense for shops that wouldn’t need that many services. As Simikian notes, that might be a couple hundred dollars each month to keep an HR consultant on retainer, opposed to a full-time employee inhouse, which would include you providing an annual salary and benefits.

Ultimately, the best benefit of all for a shop owner is no longer having to worry about all that HR paperwork, compliance, and trainings.

In addition to compliance, payroll, and hiring, outsourced HR services can provide trainings, such as safety, sexual harassment, and risk management classes. Simikian notes that many states require sexual harassment training— something businesses might not be aware of.

42 / R+W / 08.22

The great thing about outsourcing is that you can cater the services to your business’ needs. You can keep costs pretty low if you’re only in need of the basics. So, if you’ve hit that 11- or 15-employee threshold and are looking for an HR consultant to help navigate OSHA and EEOC regulations, you can put someone on retainer for when you need them. But if you’re looking for more services, you can always outsource those,Whiletoo.it’s not particularly common, payroll is something that can be outsourced to an HR company.

“If you’re going to look at the benefit of just having an outsourced person— you’re only using them for when you need them for that specific task,” Simikian says. “They’re not sitting around twiddling their thumbs.” And working with an outsourced HR consultant can be so easy and simple. All you need to do is hop on a phone or Zoom call. Simikian is based in Orlando, Florida, but has clients in Chicago, Illinois, who keep him on a virtual retainer. As needs arise, Simikian can help hop online and help them. When he works with local establishments, Simikian stops by the business.

“It’s one thing to be a manager— you’re a shop owner, but you’re also a manager—it’s another thing to be a shop owner, manager, and now you’re the human resources personnel,” Simikian says. It’s time to get back to what you’re best at—running the shop, driving sales, and building a great reputation in the community.

“Don’t forget, you know, what is the shop owner best at? They’re best at running the shop,” Simikian says. “They’re best at customer service. They want to focus on sales, they want to focus that they’re doing a great job, so they get a great reputation in the community.”At20employees, an owner would have to deal with laws concerning age discrimination. By 50 employees, Simikian says, you’d need to have a full-time HR professional in-house.

Despite it not being an exact science, certain employee thresholds may end up tipping a shop owner’s hand, and they’re a beneficial indicator for when it’s time to consider bringing in some help. It starts at the 11- and 15-employee thresholds. Simikian explains that once a business hits 11 employee, Occupation Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) requirements for hazard prevention, fire prevention and emergency action plans kick in. At 15 employees, Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) laws kick in. By the time a company reaches 15 employees, Simikian says it’s probably time to keep an HR consultant on “Atretainer.15employees, you need to have your employee handbook. You need to have your policies and procedures,” Simikian says. Before that 15-employee threshold, Simikian says a shop owner can probably handle it, but it’s not an exact science because a shop owner could still be overwhelmed by HR dealings prior to that point. It could be helpful to have a consultant at the 11-employee threshold.

Most shop owners will handle payroll inhouse, but if a shop is growing or if an owner is feeling overwhelmed with other duties, the option to outsource payroll is Recruitingthere. can be a bear, and consulting with an HR company can ease that burden. They can post ads on job boards like Indeed or LinkedIn, send messages to potential interviewees and even handle the interview process itself.

THE RIGHT SERVICES

TOOLBOX / FINANCE+OPERATIONS GETTY

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CREATING A PATH TO EMPLOYEE SUCCESS

That leads me to this: I truly believe all of us need to ask ourselves what we’re doing to create more opportunities for our employees? Not just how do we get rich? How do we make our employees rich? How do we make our employees incredibly successful? It’s not just about the opportunity we see for ourselves. I need to also be looking at the opportunity I see for my whole shop and the team members who are depending on me to make really good, smart decisions. I think it can happen if we would view this differently. We have to see this as our responsibility. I’ve got to make sure that I’m thinking about how they can get a piece of it with me. It’s not about leaving them behind. And I think that’s the secret of why I’ve grown so much. I have not left my people behind … and we’ve done really well because of it.

CREATING A VISION FOR YOUR TEAM So, as an owner, if you don’t start thinking about opportunities for those around you, your employees will cause you to start thinking about it because they’ll leave you, and then you’ll go, “Oh crap, what am I going to do to start keeping people? I’ve got to get better at creating opportunity.” The market is going to create opportunities for us this summer. What are you going to do with that to create opportunities for those who are behind you, who trust you, who believe in you, and tell you they believe in the mission and the vision, and want to follow you? Are you going to give them the opportunity—the tools—to go along with you? Will we give them the vision? I don’t hire service advisors saying, “Hey, someday you could still be a service advisor.” I hire service advisors saying, “Someday, you might get to be a manager or a district manager.” Now they may not want to manage, or maybe they won’t be good at it, but it doesn’t mean I don’t talk about what it could look like. That’s how we need to think when we’re leading a team. When we’re employee focused, we’re thinking “What’s in it for them?”, not just “What’s in it for me?” A slight pivot in our thinking can create massive positive results.

CREATING A FRESH START FOR FRESH FACES

44 / R+W / 08.22

With a looming recession and a strong industry, now is the time to place your bets on your own people

ratchetandwrench.com/stokesaaron@shopfixacademy.com

CREATING OPPORTUNITY FOR ALL

Columns THE FIXER Aaron Stokes

Our industry is a great industry for people—a very steady industry—and it’s not going anywhere. It’s very rewarding, and I think employees are looking for something that they can connect with— something they can hitch their wagon to and know they’ve got a future. It’s not a really sexy industry. It’s not really popular. It’s not really cool to say you work in auto repair, but you can make a lot of money, help a lot of people, and have a bright future because typically most exployees are going to work for a small business, and so you move up way faster in a smaller company than you do a larger company.

Aaron Stokes grew his business, AutoFix, into a six-shop operation that is widely regarded as one of the top repair businesses in the country. He is also the founder of Shop Fix Academy.

You’ve probably already done a lot of revenue this summer and things have been rocking for you. August is going to be no different, and this September will be better than past Septembers. We’re going to have a lot of opportunities to grow our businesses and to take on more than we ever have before. I believe our industry is going to do really well, but there are other industries that are not. In those industries, employees are going to be looking for something new, and I think we’re going to have the opportunity to hire some amazing employees as a result. On top of that, we have employees in our shops right now who are looking for opportunities. They’re looking for ways they can move up and do more, and I believe we have what they’re looking for.

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Ratchet+Wrench - August 2022

Articles inside

LEADERSHIP

FINANCE+OPERATIONS

SHOP VIEW

CASE STUDY

STRAIGHT TALK

ADAPT

BREAKDOWN

SPEED READ