If you love cars and you’re interested in how they work, you might be keen to start a servicing business — maybe you already have. It can be a lucrative career choice and one that’s always going to be needed (it’s highly unlikely people will stop buying cars, even if the way those cars work is changing), but one thing you’ll have to do if you want to be successful is ensure your customer come back to your garage — in that way, you’ll be able to rely (as far as possible when it comes to business anyway) on a regular income stream, plus you’ll probably get more business through word-of-mouth. With that in mind, here are 3 best ways to ensure you get repeat business in your garage; read on to find out more.
By Team Savant
Provide Outstanding Customer Service
People can be a little wary of mechanics, especially if they’re not familiar with a car’s engine or what might be wrong. That’s why you need to give them the very best customer service possible, beginning with a friendly greeting when customers walk through the door and moving on to essentially every single interaction they have with you or any of your team. In that way, your customers will feel a lot more relaxed and have more trust in you, and that’s crucial in a business like car servicing.
The best thing to do is train your team to be friendly and courteous, and always put the customer first. Make sure everything is explained simply so the customer gets the right idea about what’s happening to their vehicle, and be as honest and transparent as possible when it comes to issues and money. Learning as much as possible yourself so you can answer questions about whether it’s okay to idle a diesel engine, for example, is definitely going to help. Plus, if there’s nothing wrong with the car or it’s a quick and simple fix, tell them that too - and perhaps don’t charge them for coming if that’s the case. That will bring you more business in the future, so you’re not missing out.
Ensure Quality Workmanship
If there’s one thing that’s non-negotiable when it comes to running a garage, it’s the quality of the work you and your team do — it has to be high quality. That means you’ll need to employ mechanics who are up-to-date with the latest technology and who know how to repair vehicles properly, plus you should give them regular training (or send them elsewhere for training) to ensure their knowledge stays relevant.
As well as great workers, you’ll need all the right tools, and investment in this area is crucial. Make sure you’ve got the right tools for the job, from car lifts to diagnostic equipment, and not only will your team be happy and work harder (because they can, plus they’ll know you’re taking care of them), but your customers will be happy too because you’ll be doing excellent work.
Follow Up
One thing that a lot of business owners don’t do but that can bring in more business is to follow up with customers after the work has been done. It’s as easy as sending a text or an email to ask for feedback and to check that the customer is happy with the work you did — you don’t have to spend a lot of time doing this, and it can even be automated (although it’s a good idea to personalise the communication, as that’s going to make the customer happier).
By following up, you’ll put yourself in your customers’ minds more often, and they’ll remember you the next time they need to get their car serviced.