Your Phone Skills Suck

Yes, we’re talking about phone skills again.

Coach Brent and Chris recently discussed a client who wanted to invest more money in marketing to generate five to eight additional cars per week. Before recommending a larger marketing budget, they listened to the shop’s phone calls.

There was some good news: the service advisors were asking callers to schedule appointments.

Unfortunately, almost everything that happened between the phone ringing and that final request was cringeworthy. The advisors were trying to close the sale without first building a relationship, understanding the customer, or communicating the shop’s value.

The solution wasn’t immediately buying more marketing. The shop first needed to do a better job with the opportunities it already had.

In this episode

• Why closing the sale begins when the phone rings
• How to build a relationship before asking for the appointment
• Why answering questions isn’t the phone call’s only purpose
• How shops unintentionally turn every call into a price comparison
• The importance of asking good questions and listening carefully
• How to explain diagnostic value without sounding defensive
• Why advisors should offer specific appointment options
• How phone skills translate into better in-person communication
• Why a higher average repair order can reduce the need for more cars
• How to review phone calls without turning the process into punishment
• Why role-playing should happen before advisors speak with real customers
• How weak phone skills waste otherwise effective marketing
• The real opportunity

If a shop needs only five to eight more vehicles per week, it may not need a dramatic increase in lead volume. It may need to “suck less” at converting the opportunities already coming in.

Better phone skills can also produce better conversations at the counter. When advisors listen carefully, ask better questions, explain value, and confidently present recommendations, average repair order could increase by $200 or more—depending on the shop’s current performance, inspections, pricing, customer base, and sales process.

At 50 repair orders per week, an additional $200 per ticket would represent $10,000 in weekly sales without adding more vehicles to the schedule.

This week’s challenge

Listen to five phone calls, including calls that resulted in appointments and calls that did not.

Evaluate whether the advisor:

• Sounded welcoming
• Got and used the customer’s name
• Asked relevant questions
• Acknowledged the customer’s situation
• Explained the shop’s process and value
• Guided the conversation confidently
• Asked for the appointment
• Offered a specific appointment time
• Confirmed the necessary details
• Choose one behavior to improve, practice it with the team, and listen again to measure the progress.

Shop Marketing Pros

Marketing can make the phone ring, but the shop still has to convert that opportunity.

Shop Marketing Pros helps take the guesswork out of marketing for independent auto repair shops by bringing professional experience and strategy to the process. When strong marketing is supported by a well-trained front counter, a shop has a better chance of turning attention into appointments and lasting customer relationships.

Autofix Auto Shop Coaching + ADP

If you love Autofix Auto Shop Coaching, check out our partnership with ADP payroll services.

Autofix Auto Shop Coaching + ADP — Fill out the form: https://forms.cloud.microsoft/r/QMmq5kch3m

The Weekly Blitz is brought to you by our friends over at Shop Marketing Pros. If you want to take your shop to the next level, you need great marketing. Shop Marketing Pros does top-tier marketing for top-tier shops.

Click here to learn more about Top Tier Marketing by Shop Marketing Pros and schedule a demo: https://shopmarketingpros.com/chris/

Check out their podcast here: https://autorepairmarketing.captivate.fm/

If you would like to join their private Facebook Group, go here: https://www.facebook.com/groups/autorepairmarketingmastermind

Connect with Chris:

AutoFix-Auto Shop Coaching

www.autoshopcoaching.com

www.aftermarketradionetwork.com

940-400-1008

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AutoFixAutoShopCoaching

YouTube: https://bit.ly/3ClX0ae

Email Chris: [email protected]

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