Summer Travel Time - not this year?

Of course the price of gas is on everyone's thoughts and conversations this spring. Every day the cost of a barrel of oil goes up $1, $2, $3, or more. Crazy, crazy, crazy.

So what are people going to do this summer? Heading to the beach or going camping? Nearly 60% of Americans are cutting back their vacation plans because of gas prices, according to a survey by Discover Financial Services. This is not all bad news for the independent automotive repair service center. Instead of driving to Florida or North Carolina for vacation, Ohioans might just drive to Cedar Point for a 3 day weekend. That's a difference of 600-800 miles! Expect more of your customers to stick within a 200 mile radius for summer fun this year. Maybe they'll do a little less driving overall, but it is a different type of driving. And that vehicle will still need to be maintained.

In addition to fulfilling your customer's maintenance needs, now is a great time to help them find additional ways to save money when traveling. Develop a "vacation tips" newsletter to hand out when your customer picks up their vehicle.

Here's some websites you can use to help develop your newsletter:
AAA has a website that can calculate exactly how much you'll spend on gas. Just enter the destination and car model into the calculator at AAA. It's pretty cool. I just entered the information for my sedan and my husband's Windstar. If we drive the car on our planned vacation, it will cost us about $214. If we drive the van, it will cost us $251. Guess what? We'll be driving the van. But we'll have a cooler packed with sandwiches, snacks, and soft drinks - the 3 "s"s of family travel!

To help customers find inexpensive gas along the way, direct them to gasbuddy.com. Some GPS systems can help find cheap gas as well.

Other ways they can save while on vacation include - packing a cooler with drinks and snacks for while they're on the road. Sure beats paying $1.79 for a Pepsi at the Sunoco. Go out for lunch instead of dinner. Use coupons for special events and attractions. If staying in a city for a while, buy a book of passes for attractions or coupons for restaurants and hotels. Plan to visit museums on their free or reduced price day.

Be sure to include tips for getting better gas mileage in your newsletter. Some of these tips can lead to additional business for you. Simple things like proper tire inflation and a steady speed can improve mpg by several points.

Now is the time to get closer to your customer, become a valued adviser on all things automotive as well as their best source for top quality service.

Simple Device May Help Save Gas?

from CINCINNATI -- A simple device may help drivers improve their gas mileage.

A vaccuum gauge lets motorists pay greater attention to their acceleration and braking, allowing them to reduce the amount of gas they use in stop-and-go driving, our local NewsChannel 5 partner OHio News Network reported.

The gauge was popular on vehicles in the 1960s but is rarely installed today, mechanic Tom O'Shea said. The gauge is mounted onto the dashboard. Viewing the gauge reminds drivers to accelerate and break slowly, since that keeps the needle as steady as possible.

O'Shea said that by preventing sharp stops and starts, drivers can improve their gas mileage by 7 to 10 percent.

The gauges can be purchased at most automobile supply stores and cost about $20. Installation of the gauge is easy, O'Shea said.

AAA says the statewide average for regular is now a record $3.90. That's up a penny from Thursday, 52 cents higher than a month ago and almost 70 cents more than at this time last year.

The average price for diesel in Ohio also has reached another new high, at about $4.46 a gallon

Random Recession Thoughts on Our Biz

These are just a few observations I made after discussing business conditions with several industry experts last month. These are the result of their in-depth discussions with more than 500 shop owners:

Are we in a Profitability Crisis? By "we" I mean, are independent repair shops in short-term and possibly long-term trouble? Well, let's look at the facts. Every year, it appears there are more and more shops just struggling to stay afloat. Most shops are in business 25 - 27 years. These shops might like to get bigger and more profitable and generate more business, but they struggle to stay alive. They are working harder and making less. Think about it - broken cars are disappearing. Vehicle reliability continues to grow, as everything lasts longer and works better.

Here are the challenges we see for the Independent Shop Owner:

Profitable maintenance work is going to the most aggressive marketers. Many shop owners are working on cars more and more, in an effort to control costs and profits. What is happening instead is they are not focusing on growing their business. Too many shops have little or no equity and operate on a hand-to-mouth basis. Speaking with a major supplier of diagnosis and repair information for the shop, they said the NUMBER ONE reason they lose customers is: That customer goes out of business.

Review the list below. Do any of these challenges apply to you?

• Low or uncontrolled margins, due to a lack of focus on profitable business, or perhaps focusing on the wrong part of your business
• Getting out of the habit of selling scheduled or preventive maintenance - we call this "upselling". Are you doing it enough?
• Ineffective, mis-directed or non-existent marketing
• Poor customer follow-up
• Low customer visit frequency
• Inneffective access to customer/vehicle and their repair hisotry
• Multi-shop customers - these are the customers who go to a repair shop for repairs, but to their dealership for maintenance or a tire shop for tires. (this is your opportunity to get them to your shop with a Maintenance Schedule of your own, based on the manufacturer's guidelines)
• Bargain shopper customer
• Poor customer retention
• A future challenge - getting and keeping qualified professional technicians, service writers and counter people

Don't let this happen to you. Manage your business.

With the price of gas continuing to rise, vehicle owners are looking for ways to get better fuel economy and make their vehicles last longer. This is the right time for you to look for opportunities to increase your scheduled maintenance business. Work to make the "repair event" (a breakdown or loss) less of a factor in your shop. Maintenance work can be profitable. It should not be left to the car dealerships.

Understand that sometimes your opportunity for growth is coming from a highly competitive segment. Increasingly we are seeing dealers and the large chains marketing and promoting their services to YOUR customer. Quick lubes and tire chains, previously single-market type of outlets, are now looking to expand their business into mechanical service.

New technologies are being built on top of the old technologies that you are familiar with, leading to pyramid systems. Transmission and drivetrain, chassis (active damper system), restraint (dual state/dual threshold front airbags), comfort (air filtration), brakes and crash avoidance are just some of the areas in transition. Keep up with the changes.

In short, in order to be profitable and continue to grow you must find the tools that will help you improve your business and your performance. Then purchase them and put them to work. Join a professional network to learn best practices from your competitors and peers. Stay current with changing technologies. Make sure you and your staff have access to the latest vehicle information. You will be glad you did.

Ripley's Believe It or Not

I received this information from the people at AAIA, but I'm just not sure I believe everything I read. (Plus, there was a typo on it that I fixed.)

Of course, now that it's been posted to a blog, it must be true, right? I read it on the internet. Seriously, this research was conducted by Opinion Research Corporation, so I'm sure the information is correct. It just doesn't "feel" like all these changes are happening yet. What do you think? Are you seeing similar behavior changes in your market area?

Consumers Reach Tipping Point on Gas Prices Spike: Survey Reveals Dramatic Behavior Changes
BETHESDA, MD – Nov. 7, 2007 – With gas prices heading for $4 a gallon, consumers are making dramatic changes in driving and vehicle care behavior to save money, according to results of a new study by the Automotive Aftermarket Industry Association (AAIA).

Nearly six in 10 people surveyed claim their driving behavior has changed due to rising gas prices. One-third of motorists surveyed stated that they would make changes when the price of gasoline reached $3 a gallon, and another 32 percent would invoke driving behavior changes if prices reach $4 a gallon, according to the survey conducted by Opinion Research Corporation.

When asked how their driving behavior has changed because of rising gasoline costs, 90 percent said they are driving less and 75 percent revealed that they are better maintaining their vehicle. Other specific behavioral changes were carpooling more (31 percent), purchasing more fuel efficient vehicles (30 percent) and making greater use of public transportation (24 percent). Additionally, more than half of consumers claim they are capable of performing light maintenance and repair jobs themselves.

"The fact that motorists are more aware of how proper vehicle maintenance will improve fuel efficiency is great news for the automotive aftermarket," said Kathleen Schmatz, AAIA president and CEO. "Properly maintained and operating vehicles are not only more fuel efficient, they are safer and more environmentally friendly.

"And we are delighted to see that 54 percent of consumers consider themselves do-it-yourselfers with light maintenance and 12 percent feel they are capable of doing medium maintenance and repair jobs. This counters claims that the DIY market is dying."

Interviews were conducted online with 500 people, 21 years of age or older, who are responsible for the purchasing of fuel and the maintenance and repair of the vehicle they drive. The data was weighted according to gender, age and geographic region. The maximum error range is plus or minus four points at a 95 percent confidence level.

For more information on the survey, e-mail Rich White at rich.white@aftermarket.org or call 301-654-6664. For more information on tips and advice for simple vehicle maintenance and care to improve gas mileage, contact the Car Care Council at www.carcare.org.

About AAIA
AAIA is a Bethesda, Md.-based association whose more than 23,000 member and affiliates manufacture, distribute and sell motor vehicle parts, accessories, service, tool, equipment, materials and supplies. Through its membership, AAIA represents more than 100,000 repair shops, parts stores and distribution outlets.