AutoFix AdvisorCast

Michael Doherty [00:00:00]:
This is the Autofix Advisor Cast, powered by WorldPac. Hey, service Advisor nation. Thank you for tuning in to another episode of the Autofix Advisor Cast with your host, Michael Dougherty. I think all of you would agree, especially in our position, we're not in a position to sell repairs. Rep. Right. That's, that's not our job. It's not what we're doing.

Michael Doherty [00:00:29]:
We're building and maintaining client relationships and part of that is not selling repairs. It's providing peace of mind for our clients and our co workers as well. But on the client side, I think there's still mistrust in the industry with clients and automotive shops. I believe that a lot of people are still just apprehensive about, you know, authorizing repairs that they really don't know about. And not to say that we're doing it incorrectly on the Service Advisor front because again, you know, we're, we're on the front lines. We're really engaged with what's going on in the business. A lot of us have training in the field and know particulars about certain components and can explain those to people. But I think sometimes in the explanation of what the vehicle may need or the particular service, it's a little overwhelming for people.

Michael Doherty [00:01:30]:
And, you know, if they don't understand it, then they're probably going to decline the work because it's just kind of maybe over their head or they're just not confident in their decision. Not saying you explain it to them in the wrong way. But again, you know, coming from the standpoint of, again, we're not selling repairs, we're providing and offering peace of mind for what their vehicle needs. So I think a great way to kind of break that down a little further is, you know, again, I just mentioned that it depends on what we're saying to the clients, how we're explaining what services are needed. And yeah, I'll be honest. I mean, you know, being, you know, having been a service advisor for so long and just coming back from the shop, looking at the client's vehicle, the technician, you know, I'm, I'm typing it up in a format that's technical jargon. I'm explaining it in a format that's technical jargon. And oftentimes, you know, I can kind of sense the person on the other end of that phone or that email, I.

Michael Doherty [00:02:30]:
E. The client may not understand all that. And sometimes I just have to. I'm not going to say dumb it down. It sounds bad. It's not dumb it down. It's make them understand it in a sense that, you know, that's manageable for them. Right.

Michael Doherty [00:02:43]:
But coming from the standpoint of not giving them, we'll call it cognitive overload, too much tech talk, which, you know, again, kind of confuses their minds and leads to, you know, truly a. I'll think about it, you know, I'll get back to you. Which translates to they're coming to get their vehicle and they're probably not going to do the service. Um, so again, oftentimes it's not price, it's the explanation. But, you know, I think it's, you know, partly by design and again, kind of mistrust for clients in our industry, and again, just that part of it. But, you know, the perception of, you know, that we're trying to sell them something or we're trying to upsell them something versus informing them. And again, just having that mindset of informing them a little bit better. But I think one thing that'll help do that, and this is going to work for shops that, you know, don't do DVIs as well, because I know on a DVI, typically there are color markers for severity of services that are recommended on people's vehicles.

Michael Doherty [00:03:52]:
But again, Whether you're doing DVIs or you're not doing DVIs, this translates kind of crosses over to both platforms. But once call it the, the traffic light method. And that's basically going to be, you know, we're talking about, you know, traffic light. We're talking about green, yellow and red. You know, kind of what does that look like to clients? Why is that important? Why should we really explain it that way? Well, because it comes across to them in a sense that they're going to understand. And again, you know, we're talking about recommending services, providing peace of mind for what their vehicle is going to need. So obviously for green, that's all good, right? No action needed. Mr.

Michael Doherty [00:04:35]:
Mrs. Jones, all these boxes here checked green. And again, if you're not operating in a DVI system, then Digital vehicle inspection system, then again, say that to them. You know, hey, if, if we're using a scorecard here, metaphorically, we're going to use a traffic light as a marker, as a visual marker, and we're going to use green, yellow and red. And in this case, green is good. No action needed. Right? They resonate with that. They can get behind that because when they're on the road, they're seeing a traffic light that registers with them.

Michael Doherty [00:05:09]:
Right. So again, just trying to come from the mindset of, of getting them on your mindset. So again, Mr. Mrs. Jones, your brakes right now, they're green. It's all good. No action needed. You know, we did check out your air filter and your cabin filter.

Michael Doherty [00:05:25]:
Those right now are yellow. You know, we're advising you that probably next service, those are going to be needed. So we'd like to come up with a plan of action, get you on the schedule for, you know, a couple months from now to get those taken care of. But, you know, and we did also, we checked, you know, your brakes and your front brakes are worn down to 2 millimeters of life left. Right now, your front brakes are. We'd be considered red on that traffic light. You know, it's pretty immediate. It needs attention.

Michael Doherty [00:05:56]:
That's kind of a safety concern. And there's, you know, there's a serious wear issue there. You know, I would definitely recommend, you know, doing the brake service at this visit because again, you know, on the traffic light spectrum, you know, that is. That is definitely a red. So again, you know, they're hearing you talk, but as you're talking, they're picturing the traffic light, right? In their mind, you know, they're seeing that green, yellow and red. And red is, you know, stop, you know, take action. Yellow. You know, I'll be honest.

Michael Doherty [00:06:29]:
I mean, sometimes when a traffic light is yellow, if there's nobody in front of me or behind me, I might, you know, hit the throttle, get some throttle credits and roll through. But again, you know, it's. It's explaining it to them in a sense that they're going to understand. And I really think that that traffic light system definitely makes a big difference. So again, you know, it's, you know, kind of. You're projecting kind of a road map to them, if you would, and, and that's something they can get behind, right? It's not a sales pitch. You know, again, you're. You're providing peace of mind.

Michael Doherty [00:06:58]:
You're recommending actionable items that are going to be needed. So again, if you're using a DVI system, digital Digital Vehicle Inspection System, then you're probably going to have those markers already on there. But again, if you're not using a dvi, you can still say, hey, we're going to use the traffic light method to talk about these services on your vehicle today. And it's going to pique their interest and they're going to stay engaged because as you go down the list of items that they need or are recommended, again, you know, mention those colors, right? And, you know, start off with the good first, don't start with the red, don't start with the yellow. Let them know what is currently good with their vehicle. So starting off with positives is way more important than starting off with negatives or need to dos. So again, you know, treat it like the traffic light, green, right? Yellow and red and do it in that manner. But always, always, always start with positives.

Michael Doherty [00:07:59]:
And I've had a couple cars through the shop shops over the years that there is no green. And I say that truthfully. There's, every box is checked, everything needs to be done. It's a hot mess. But you know, again, there's still something that you can point out on that vehicle. There's gotta be. Even if it's not mechanical or electrical or suspension or whatever, but mentioning something positive about that vehicle before you start talking about what they're gonna need. Find something that's positive to talk about.

Michael Doherty [00:08:34]:
And again, you know, the traffic light method for the client, right? There's, there's not only the client but you. I mean there's a psychological benefit there, right? Again, you know, it's, it's, there's no hard sell. You're not approaching it like that and I hope you're not anyways. But again, the psychological part, right, Again, it's color coded. They can get behind it, it's easier to explain. And even if you're doing a dvi, right, Even if you send them a dvi, you know, you go over it with them again, you know, the yellow, the green, the red or green, yellow and red. Verbalize that to them. Again, we're going to treat this DVI like a traffic light, you know, so again, and then when they come in a second time and a third time, keep using that methodology, right? The traffic light method.

Michael Doherty [00:09:19]:
And I think that's going to work out really well. But again, you know, so green, hey, everything's in great shape, nothing to worry about. Yellow, you know, this isn't urgent, but you know, something that we want to monitor. Let's get you on the schedule for, you know, three months from now, four months from now, whatever it means. And then red, right? Red is going to equate to either it's unsafe or it's costly. If we wait and we recommend taking action today while the vehicle is here, if you want to leave it again, you know, build value in what you're offering. You know, if they, if they left the vehicle, if it, they thought it was going to be a one day service, you know, again, think about how can you help them how can you help move along their concern, which is not going to be at that point, you know, I need service on my vehicle, more service than I anticipated. It's going to be, how am I going to get to work tomorrow? How am I going to pick up my kids later today? How am I going to get to Johnny's baseball game? How am I going to get to, you know, Sarah's cheerleader, cheerleading event, whatever it is.

Michael Doherty [00:10:19]:
But point being, fix. Think about, you know, forward thinking. What's the bigger issue at hand? It's their transportation. It's. That's the issue. And if you've got something that you can, you know, accommodate them with right off the bat, you know, we can, We've got a loaner car that we can lend you. Again, think about that, because that's going to come up in the conversation. They're going to.

Michael Doherty [00:10:43]:
Don't wait for them to ask you, or I hate to say it's an objection, but, you know, I can't do any of this today because I need the car back. Right? So again, proactively, proactively, think of a plan of action, right? Say, think about it like if it was your mom's car, if it was your sister's car, and you know, they need the car, but you really know they need to do the work. Again, how would you phrase it to them to let them live their life and go on what they got to do logistically while you work on their car? So have a backup plan, you know, always have an extra car laying around to use if you got a loaner, if you need to rent them a car, again, right, it's. It's cost versus value. There's enough places locally that rent cars, you know, Uber or Turo Enterprise, rent a car, Hertz, whatever. You know, get linked up with one of those facilities and, you know, come up with a deal that they can hook you up with. And, you know, in a pinch, in an emergency, just, you know, is it worth spending $40 to $50 for a day for someone to have a rental to take care of their car for them and let them know that you're gonna, you got their back, you're gonna pay for their transportation. If they want to do the work, I think that's a win win, right? I mean, I think the work being done is going to outweigh the cost of the rental or the Turo, you know, car.

Michael Doherty [00:11:59]:
But at the same time, again, you're showing them, you're treating them as you're looking out for them. That's what it's all about, right? We're, we're, you know, you're building value in your business and what you're offering, so really important there. But again, just talking about the traffic light method and, you know, I guess ultimately, you know, the, the, the magic isn't in the colors, right? It's how you explain what those colors mean. So, again, just food for thought. Really appreciate y' all for tuning into another episode of the Autofix Advisor Cast and hope you're staying healthy. Service advisors hope you are carving out time for you yourself during the days, taking those little clarity breaks, you know, 10, 15 minutes here and there if you can, not including your lunch. Just, you know, put some music on, take a walk, go hide in a corner, whatever you got to do. But again, just enjoy what you do.

Michael Doherty [00:12:56]:
We appreciate you. I know it's not an easy position, but hey, you're doing it and you're getting great at it. And again, keep tuning in. We appreciate you listening and have a great day. All right, bye. Hey, thanks for listening to the Autofix Advisor Cast. If you're ready to take your shop to the next level, check out our sponsor, WorldPAC and the WorldPAC Training Institute. WTI.

Michael Doherty [00:13:23]:
Big thanks to them for their sponsorship. Follow the podcast on social media for more insights and subscribe so you never miss an episode. Oh, and tell your friends we want to help the industry grow and help advisors love their jobs again. See you on the next Autofix advisorcast.