Shop owners who are focused on serving their customers and operating efficiently are taking a little extra time to also get their financial house in order. They realize the value of the ABCs of a well-managed business: A for attorney, B for banker and C for CPA. These trusted advisers could help you focus on your customers and your business, while also ensuring you operate legally, effectively and profitably.
Now that we are coming into the holiday season, there are a number of things you can do to drive up productivity, sales, customer satisfaction and profits. Each one of the below tips worked wonders for me when I was still in the auto repair business, and they are still effective today for many of our coaching clients, so I know they can work for you as well.
A few years back, my service advisor was speaking to a customer about the condition of her tires. He explained in detail that the tires on her car were worn to the point that she needed to replace them and recommended that she do this before the winter. She believed my service advisor and was thrilled he took the time to educate her. But, he forgot one important part of the sales cycle; Asking for the sale.
Of all the retirement plans available to small business owners, the SIMPLE IRA plan (Savings Incentive Match PLan for Employees) is the easiest to set up and the least expensive to manage. These plans are intended to encourage small business employers to offer retirement coverage to their employees. SIMPLE IRA plans work well for small business owners who don’t want to spend a lot of time and pay high administration fees associated with more complex retirement plans.
“Sellability” is a powerful indicator of the value of your business, regardless of whether or not you have any intention or even interest in selling your business today. A high Sellability Score may confirm or surpass the value you have in mind. A lower Sellability Score may point directly to the underlying issues in your business which undermine its value.
Each and every interaction your salespeople have with potential customers on the phone is an opportunity to enhance customer relations, the image of your business and increase sales. So, be honest, are your salespeople properly equipped to optimize each and every phone interaction they have with potential customers?
While the fate of several business-related tax extenders such as R&D credits, bonus depreciation and Section 179 expensing that expired at the end of 2013 is uncertain, there are still a number of end of year tax strategies businesses can use to reduce their tax burden for 2014.
Just when I thought I was doing everything that I could to increase sales, I learned something very important: I very rarely sold struts or shocks. Basically, I really didn’t know when struts or shocks were bad until they completely failed. I’m finding that my clients, and most shop owners who I speak with, don’t know either.
In order to build a successful auto repair shop, there are a number of things you will have to do. You will need to have clearly defined goals, a plan, and you will need to surround yourself with successful people. You will need gifted techs and advisers, a great support staff, the help of marketing professionals and business coaches, and a great accountant as well. Unfortunately, most shop owners don’t understand how to find the really great accountants, they don’t know what to expect from them, and they don’t know how to utilize their services.
If you think you’re too busy running your shop to focus on branding, you might want to think again. Thanks to longer service intervals and better-built cars, your customers don’t have to visit you as often as they did in the past. They also have more choices when it comes to service – from specialty providers to dealerships to chains that seem to have shops on every corner.
It’s fun to imagine how much your business is worth. It’s not as much fun when you find out that for all the energy you poured into it, a business broker or potential buyer can’t see the value you can, or thinks your number is unrealistic.