Posts by Carm Capriotto, AAP

I’m asking you to step to the plate for Brakes for Breasts.

Tracy and I continue to support Brakes for Breasts, the incredible national campaign for a Breast Cancer Vaccine.

We were honored to be at the Cleveland Clinic for the 2022 Check Presentation (in April 2023) and privileged to see the clinic where the vaccine was formulated. The most exciting part of this initiative is that the vaccine is in clinical trials. For everyone who has participated since 2011, please know that your fundraising efforts are put to great use.

This aftermarket initiative needs your help. On a recent podcast, I’ve put out a challenge to grow to 500 shops in 2023. Imagine in the entire state of New York, only one shop is participating. There is huge room for improvement, and I need you to get involved. 

Many of us aftermarket professionals, including my family, have had some involvement with breast cancer, which is why this is such a great cause. October every year is Brakes for Breasts month.

Everything you need to know is at brakesforbreasts.com. You can find a resource center and the signup page. If you listened and learned from our podcasts in the last eight years, I am asking you to get involved. This is a worthy cause because of the effect breast cancer has on so many of us.

Please listen to the latest Brakes for Breasts episode HERE and or WATCH it here. My challenge is 500 participating shops among 250,000 in the country. That is only .2%. Let that sink in. Imagine if it was 2% of our industry; that would be 5,000 participating shops. Please go to the website HERE and register for this October. 

If you helped over the last 12 years, you should be proud that there are real clinical trials going on, and you’ll hear more about that in the podcast HERE.

Ask yourself, Why Not? I don’t believe you have a good answer to that question. So do. Please get involved and support the incredible grassroots effort to create a viable breast cancer vaccine for the world.

Please help us reach this personal goal.

As someone who works in the automotive industry, I’m sure you are very interested in learning more about how to improve the process of dispatching your customer’s repairs. In a recent podcast episode, several service professionals shared their experiences, insights, and strategies to make dispatch have a substantial impact in your shop. Here are the top five takeaways from the episode. Listening to the show will give you even more ideas and ways to improve. LISTEN HERE.   WATCH HERE.

• Communication.
  The guests emphasized the importance of constant communication between team members, including the technicians. They also stressed the need for clear communication with customers about job expectations and timelines.

• Teamwork.
  The panel compared running a shop to being on a sports team, where everyone must work together and be on the same page to succeed. They also discussed the importance of teaching and knowledge-sharing to ensure everyone is aligned with the company’s goals and values.

• Flexibility.
  The panel discussed the need to remain calm and adaptable in the face of unexpected events, such as an employee calling in sick, bigger problems than anticipated with the repair, and the proverbial challenge that a key leader getting hit by a bus. They also talked about the importance of constantly reevaluating and adjusting schedules and plans.

• Having policies and procedures in place.
  Panelists stressed the need for policies and procedures (SOPs) if the unexpected happens. These SOPs include who steps in, how we communicate to the customer, and what measures should be enacted that keep the client whole and the team together.

• The right mix of jobs.
  This can be crucial for a technician to have a productive day. The panel agreed that the service advisor plays a significant role in scheduling and dispatching. They also discussed the importance of overscheduling to compensate for the occasional curve ball.

A very passionate panel discussion that will fuel your thinking and motivate you and your team to review your dispatch practices. I highly recommend listening to this episode to excite your team to make your dispatch practices the best in your market and, ultimately, make your client experience the best ever. Customers may never know how hard you work your processes and systems to create a trusted relationship.

Thanks to, Nick Howard, GM at Reggie’s Motorworks, John Long, Co-Owner Shertz Auto Service, Steve Braun, Ulmer’s Auto Care, and Reggie Stewart, Reggie’s Motor Works, and Noble Auto Service, Dan Taylor, Transformers Institute

Making Dispatch Work

Listen HERE

Watch Video HERE

The Art and Science of Dispatch

Listen HERE

Watch Video HERE

A busy person lives in an “I’ll get to it” world. I may be guilty of this.🙂 Is it possible that we are also great procrastinators? Is it a way to avoid doing something?

Procrastination is a common human trait. We all have the need to procrastinate from time to time, and it can be because of fear, lack of motivation, or losing interest in the task at hand.

Psychologists say that procrastination is a coping mechanism for stress and anxiety, allowing us to escape what makes us feel anxious and uncomfortable.

But there comes a time when you look at your to-do list and goals for your family, business, and relationships, and you say, “I’ve done nothing to advance or improve them.” 

Is it time to implement some critical items on your goal or to-do list? I’ve talked with technician trainers that know the number one benefit of attending training is practicing what you learned. Should every tech that went to training give a 20-minute overview of the class they attended to their peers and explain how they will use what they learned? Don’t let this go unused.

What about your business margins, average repair order, labor rate, shop efficiency, productivity, and repair order audits? All these important measures needed to run a successful business float there until you pay attention to them. Yeah, I know ‘You’ll get to it.’

Every podcast we release, every webinar you attend, every networking meeting you participate in, and every conference you attend has the making of an improvement recipe. All you gotta do is ‘Get to it.’ 

Think about the training you’ve attended, the conferences and networking. Are you implementing the list of ‘ideas or must-dos because they were important to you when you wrote them? Get that yellow pad out and get it done.