February_2022 - 8

This is the year you
raise your labor rate
It's 2022. Stop charging less than you're worth.
By Amanda Silliker, Editor
asilliker@endeavorb2b.com
T
he work of automotive
technicians is highly
skilled and sought after.
As we are all painfully aware,
there is a technician shortage
and one way to solve this is to
keep these bright, hard-working
minds in our industry. Any
good HR professional will tell
you that pay is not everything,
but when we are paying significantly
less than other industries,
our talented folks are sure
to be lured away or never even
consider our industry to begin
with. How do we pay them what
they deserve? We increase our
labor rates and pass that cost
along to the consumer.
I know this can be a scary thought, but
it's time to move past just thinking about
it and rip off the Band-Aid. I think Maylan
Newton said it best when he was speaking
at AAPEX: " They're paying $30-, $40-,
$50-, $100-thousand for a car, and we are
still offering $19 oil changes. That just
baffles me, " he said. " We need to get out
of the idea that we are the bottom feeders
of our industry and start charging what
we're worth. "
Pete Rudloff, a member of the PTEN
advisory board, pointed out that now is the
time to raise labor rates since the automotive
repair industry is in boom times.
" I don't care if they are already the
most expensive in their area, it's a really
booming time for auto repair right now
which makes it an ideal time to thin out
the shop's client base of clients that are
price sensitive, " he said. " Higher labor
rates will do this; the shop will net more
profit even if they work on fewer cars. "
Sure, your customers might be able
to find a similar service slightly cheaper
down the street, but they are unlikely to
leave if you consistently provide quality
work on their vehicle and excellent customer
service. Rick White, president of
180Biz, said service advisors are key to
ensuring stand-out customer service.
They need to understand their role in
the shop's success, be well-trained, build
relationships with your customers, and be
passionate about delighting the customer
every day.
" Recently, I was listening to an advisor
saying, 'I can email this document over
to you.' That seems fine but what if the
advisor said, 'It would be my pleasure to
get this over to you,'? White said. " These
little things make such a difference in the
perception of how we do business. "
One tip from Eric Moore, a technician
in Columbus, Ohio, and also a
member of the PTEN advisory board, is
to be over the top with communicating
to your customer. Get as many contact
options as possible (text, email, phone
call, social media messaging apps etc.)
and communicate with the customer in
their preferred manner.
Now, go take a hard look at your labor
rate, refer to your service information
subscriptions for guidance, and don't feel
bad for a second about increasing your
prices - you deserve it and your employees
do too.
PTEN EDITORIAL
ADVISORY BOARD
TECHNICIANS
ERIC MOORE,
DeMary Trucks, Columbus, OH
LOU FORT,
K.A.R.S. Inc., Huntingburg, IN
SHOP OWNERS
KIM AUERNHEIMER,
Cool Springs Automotive, Brentwood, TN
TANNER BRANDT,
Autodiag Clinic, Welford, SC
PHIL FOURNIER,
Phil's Auto Clinic, Hemet, CA
JD GOAD,
Goad's Body Shop, Lexington, VA
EDWIN HAZZARD,
Southeast Mobile Tech, Goose Creek, SC
PETE RUDLOFF,
Pete's Garage Inc., Newark, DE
MICHELLE TANSEY,
Dubclinic, Santa Clara, CA
EQUIPMENT MANUFACTURERS
CHAD SCHLEY,
FACEBOOK
facebook.com/
ptenmagazine
LINKEDIN
linkedin.com/company/
professional-equipment-tool-news
INSTAGRAM
@ptenmagazine
YOUTUBE
PTEN (Professional Tool &
Equipment News)
Schley Products/SP Tools
JIM O'HARA,
Clore Automotive
8 PTEN FEBRUARY 2022 VehicleServicePros.com
http://www.facebook.com/ptenmagazine http://www.linkedin.com/company/professional-equipment-tool-news http://www.instagram.com/ptenmagazine http://www.VehicleServicePros.com
February_2022

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