At big businesses, revenues are just now starting to come under pressure after a solid decade of growth. Because they are focused on quarterly earnings, their response is predictable; they’ll fire staff, reducing their service quality so they can boost profits. Of course, this will result in a flood of customer cancellations, but that will be someone else’s problem three or four quarters from now.
Small businesses, many of which have been pillars of the community for generations, know they can’t afford this mentality. Customer loyalty is what businesses need most during challenging financial times, and companies don’t earn it by treating their customers worse. In fact, spending more on customer service can boost profits handsomely at auto repair shops. Here are three blogs that highlight ways to do that:
Bad Customer Service is Like Setting Money on Fire
In any given year, over half of all people will back out of a purchase because of bad customer service. During most of these transactions, the business probably has no idea why they lost the customer. That’s because bad customer service isn’t generally an intentional decision – it’s an unconscious choice to prioritize your job over your customers. That’s a bad idea, because you can’t have one without the other!
Upcycle Your Auto Repair Shop’s Customers
It’s expensive to gain new customers. Whether you’re relying on postcards, online ads, or just the time and effort it takes to maintain a solid business rating online, marketing is a major expense for most shops.
That’s why it’s so important to make the most of the customers you already have! If you aren’t ‘upcycling’ your best customers by converting them into advocates for your shop, you’re missing out on most of the return on investment you could be earning from any marketing initiative.
You Want the Job, But What’s Your Body Language Saying?
Many customers’ first interaction with an auto repair shop is via phone, so unsurprisingly there are plenty of resources that explain phone etiquette. Not all customers call before visiting however, and even those that do present many opportunities for service sales beyond that first call. That’s why it’s important to know the basics of body language. You might be following a great script, but are you still coming off as disinterested, evasive, or untrustworthy because of some simple signals you don’t even know you’re conveying?
To learn how Repair Shop Websites can help your auto repair shop earn more business, call us at 866-665-1605 or email us at Team_RSW@RepairShopWebsites.com.