Shop Owner Staff

The national Bosch ICON advertising campaign features storm chaser Reed Timmer and his armored SUV, “Dominator” equipped with ICON blades to “clear the way,” as he tangles with tornados to gather data and gain insight on these destructive twisters.

Building loyal customer relationships works the same way as dating. Without phone calls, gifts, thank-you cards, or time together, there is no relationship. The best loyal customer relationships are built over time in what I call ‘relationship building sessions.’ These are times together with customer having fun, eating a meal, attending a ballgame, playing golf, or doing something enjoyable together. This is how you date your customer to build loyalty.

Four-time defending NASCAR Sprint Cup champion Jimmie Johnson and the MOOG chassis parts-equipped #48 Lowe’s Chevrolet recovered from an early accident to increase their 2010 Chase points lead with a third-place finish in Saturday’s Bank of America 500 at Charlotte (NC) Motor Speedway. Following the race, Johnson’s crew chief, Chad Knaus, was presented Federal-Mogul Corporation’s MOOG “Problem Solver of the Race” Award.

The Car Care Council is bringing back its popular Car Care Fair exhibit, showcasing the “Be Car Care Aware” consumer education campaign, at the 2010 Automotive Aftermarket Products Expo (AAPEX), Nov. 2-4, at the Sands Expo Center in Las Vegas, NV.

For Details Plus Collision Center in Indianola, IA, business is always booming during deer season. So this year, the shop is sweetening the pot for those clients whose vehicles have had unfortunate run-ins with one of Bambie’s relatives by passing out free turkeys.

United Fire & Casualty Co. is suing an Aldine, TX, auto repair shop after a truck it had insured was allegedly stolen from the shop. The insurance company claims that the repair shop failed to properly store and provide adequate security for the truck.

A search of a residential property in Mansfield, OH, by local law enforcement authorities turned up more than $100,000 in automotive repair equipment, shop tools and automobile parts. Authorities had received a tip that items on Craigslist matched the descriptions of items reported stolen at area automotive repair shops. The Shelby police chief said that fenced-in backyard also contained about 100 tires and rims.

Master Technician Jim Cramer of Summit City Car Care in Fort Wayne, IN, told a local reporter recently that at least 75 percent of the cars serviced at his repair shop have at least 100,000 miles on them. Are you seeing this same trend at your shop? Let us know.

The International Automotive Technicians’ Network (iATN) recently exceeded three million records in its Knowledge Base, a collection of automotive repair databases that contains real world technical information generated by iATN members.

A group of auto repair shop owners in the Tempe, AZ, area have created the Cars for Wounded Warriors program. The program is designed to help American military personnel and their families who have automobile-related needs and financial hardship due to death, injury, or physical or mental problems as a result of service in Iraq or Afghanistan.

Suzy Hopkins, owner of Jackson’s Body Shop in Clarksville, TN, believes that customers formulate an opinion about a business within the first eight seconds. Because of this, extra care has been taken to make the entryway and waiting room customer friendly. In addition, customers receive daily updates on the progress of their vehicle.

A new law in New York requires motorists convicted of driving while intoxicated to have breath alcohol ignition interlock devices installed on their vehicles. Buckley’s Automotive in Horseheads, NY, has already installed 10 interlock units since the law took effect.