The Federated Auto Parts membership has selected Standard Motor Products (SMP) as Outstanding Vendor of the Year for 2011. In addition to the Outstanding Vendor of the Year award, Federated also presented its Outstanding Supplier Support Awards to: ACDelco; Affinia; Dorman; Federal-Mogul; Hastings; and USA Industries.
It’s back and better than ever. The exclusive Federated Car Care promotion is gearing up for another great run in 2012. This annual dirt track driving experience will take place at the newly named Federated Auto Parts Raceway at I-55, located outside of St. Louis and owned and operated by the “King of Dirt” himself, Federated’s own Kenny Schrader.
Bosch’s 2012 advertising and promotional campaign for its premium performance DistancePlus oil filter line highlights the product’s unique characteristics that are designed to appeal to do-it-yourselfers (DIYers), the company says. The campaign involves extensive use of advertising in online and DIY-oriented print media, as well as promotional rebates to achieve a goal of 80 million impressions in the DIY market segment.
Bosch has redesigned its automotive aftermarket website with specific focus on improved visitor engagement and ease of use. Although it covers a wide range of product lines, special promotions, motorsports, Bosch Gear, a vehicle part finder, and a local parts store locator, the new website is designed to be more visually engaging and especially easy to navigate.
On April 19, longtime Federated member Motown Automotive held the grand opening and dedication of its new training center, the Elwood K. Sechrist Training Center. Named after Motown’s founder, the Sechrist Training Center is located at Motown’s corporate distribution center in Farmington Hills, MI.
The former manager of a Greenwich, CT, auto repair shop was recently sentenced to 18 months in federal prison for filing false tax returns. According to court documents, Eugene Ceriello had deposited about $707,400 in his bank account between 2004 to 2008 that he had embezzled from the repair shop. During that time period, he would regularly access the shop’s computer system to change the amount of money the shop was receiving from sales.
When your techs come to you and tell you they’re stumped, if you give them a recommendation, you’ll lose regardless of the outcome. If you solve the problem, you’ve sent a message to your techs that you’re more knowledgeable than they are, which is not going to build confidence in your employees. But then it gets worse; you’ve also taught them to come to you when they’re up against a wall. This is a lose-lose situation, in that if your recommendation doesn’t solve the problem, the tech will come back to you looking for your next recommendation because you now own the problem.
Over the years, I have had the opportunity to employ some of the best service advisors in the industry, and our company has trained thousands of industry superstars. So, I can tell you from first-hand experience, one of the best tools you can provide your service advisors with is a digital voice recorder.
The term “guerrilla marketing” is used to describe marketing methods that allow small businesses to compete with larger businesses, and they typically include grass roots marketing campaigns. Participating in Chamber of Commerce meetings and local events are a couple of examples. Although there are hundreds of methods, there’s one auto repair marketing goldmine that is overlooked by most auto repair shops and dealerships. It’s targeting what we here at Elite refer to as “communities within communities.”
We do a lot of coaching and training in the auto repair industry and have had the privilege of working with some really amazing people and businesses. Often, we will ask folks we are working with, “Why does a first time caller decide to bring their car into your shop?” Inevitably, we will get a chorus of voices saying, “Price!”