A Reservation, A Must You Say!

Making a Reservation for Your Client

We know what a reservation is. You must make a reservation for many restaurants you want to visit, especially at dinnertime. You want to secure your spot to have dinner. We love food and understand that nourishment is important for our health.

When we get a restaurant reservation, we don’t think of that as an appointment, do we? Like the proverbial Dentist appointment for teeth cleaning. It is not a reservation, but could be. It is just semantics. Yes, at the Dentist, you have a reservation for a ‘seat of one’ to have your teeth cleaned or dental work done.

Recently chatting with Shawn Gilfillan from Automotive Magic, Kenvil, NJ, he told me makes ‘reservations’ for his clients for maintenance and deferred work. I was still in thought for a moment and was impacted by the word ‘reservation.’ It is so simple. Why didn’t we all think of that? Instead of appointment, ‘reservation.’

For the many shop owners who are moving to setting future appointments for their clients’ vehicles, why wouldn’t we call it a reservation? It is semantics, I know, but doesn’t the word ‘reservation’ mean more than appointment? Appointments for the plumber, dentist, or doctor have negative connotations that there is pain involved. The kind that hits your wallet. 

But when we make a reservation at a restaurant, it will cost us money, no doubt, but it is a willing pain we agree to. It is nourishment, mostly delicious, an atmosphere, but a chance to get out and have a great experience (hopefully). Surveys have said that there is a lot of pain and unknown in automotive repair, so will the word reservation soften it?

So why shouldn’t automotive repair and maintenance be like going to a restaurant? 2024 and onward will be an important year to improve your client experience in every way. So why not start changing the term from appointment to reservation? So simple yet so profound.