The Fastest Way to Build Trust With Your Customers

It takes twenty years to build a reputation and five minutes to ruin it. Warren Buffett 

"That's outrageous! It's just too much!" Said "Gary,"  the owner of a 2007 Toyota Camry in need of a power steering pump and fluid exchange.

I overheard this conversation as I was listening to the recording of "John," a service writer from Maryland, present the technician's findings. It was painfully obvious that this call was not going well!

How to Lose Your Good Customers Over Price

"There are no price objections; only value questions." Art Sobczak

"I'm losing business because of the pricing matrix!" This statement was made by a shop owner named Rich, during our weekly coaching call. Both his car count and average repair order (ARO) were down from the previous year.

He had two service writers named Steve and Chris. Even though they had the same invoice count, Steve held a 61% parts margin and a $400 ARO, while Chris hovered around 45% and $230.

I had Rich make the "where have you been" calls to determine why people weren't coming back. He spoke to ten customers; five from each writer.