Service Advisor Must-Have Qualities [THA 234]

Emily Sundstrom– Service Advisor, Valley Auto Electric, Covington, WA. Her career in the automotive field started about 13 years.   She was hired to “just” answer phones. It quickly turned into something for which she had a passion for.  She enjoys doing it every day. The passion comes from taking a stressful, unexpected situation and turning it into an experience that leaves the customer feeling confident, educated, empowered, and respected. She has acquired multiple certifications from ASE, ATI, Wa. State Emissions, Elite Master’s Program, and Ami.  

Aaron Woods– Extra Mile Auto Care, Stillwater, OK. Since opening X-tra Mile Auto Care in 2018, Aaron Woods has proven himself as a rising star in the automotive aftermarket service industry. His professional values of integrity, continuous improvement, help first, and maintaining “above the bar” service, contributes to X-tra Mile Auto Care becoming the highest regarded automotive repair service in Stillwater, Oklahoma.

Clint White has been passionately immersed in the Automotive Industry for over 25 years. He is a Service Advisor Coach & Shop Consultant with CWI and currently holds multiple ASE certifications. He began his career as a Technician at a local two bay shop in 1995 and over the course of the next two and a half decades honed his sales, technical, and management skills while living in Washington & S.E. Idaho. During his journey, he has never stopped learning and has been blessed to work for and with those who value education, training, and coaching. In everything he does, Clint is focused on people and excellence! Whether it be coaching & training Service Advisors to sell with passion & integrity or working directly with Shop Owners to improve team accountability and streamline process implementation, Clint’s passion is to elevate the Automotive Industry across the nation to ensure every customer consistently receives the highest level of service. Previous episodes HERE

Key Talking Points

  • Qualities- driven, goal-oriented, inner drive, help first mentality, ambitions in life “build own company within the company.” How would you treat your customers if this was your company? Building relationships and memorable experiences. Do customers remember their names? Sale is an end result of the transaction, focus on things leading up to the sale- establishing trust, presenting value in services, educating. Taking uncomfortable situations/panicked customers and reassure them so they let their guard down. Always want to grow. 
  • The Ideal Team Player by Patrick Lencioni- humble- the absence of ego, acknowledge weaknesses and address it, hungry- what are you doing to improve yourself? and smart- Shows empathy to others, demonstrates intuition when interacting with others
  • Power of Vulnerability book by Dr. Brene Brown – understanding the difference between sympathy and empathy 
  • 7 habits of Highly Effective People book by Stephen Covey- seek first to understand then to be understood 
  • Read the room- socially and interpersonal awareness
  • Listener qualities- hear and understand customers, giving solutions, empathy
  • Face to face relationships- body language, tone of voice, picking up key cues
  • Service advisors and technician relationship- ask questions, know what you’re selling and why, pressure regulator-bring it down to common knowledge, demonstrate the need for service- language customer understands, what will happen when left neglected  
  • DVI and service advisor- a new way to present information, builds value but doesn’t take human interaction away. Sell with confidence. It’s a tool, not the only tool. 
  • Holding onto service advisors too long- face of company and when the wrong person is in that seat it can be detrimental to the company. One unhappy customer can lose 10K in sales per year. Trust is the hardest to gain and the easiest to lose. Be proactive, not reactive to toxic situations. 
  • Finding service advisors and developing them- professional groups, customer service based sales industry, hospitality industry, restaurants 

 

  • A special thanks to Emily Sundstrom, Aaron Woods and Clint White for their contribution to the aftermarket.

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About the author, Carm Capriotto, AAP

Carm is the founder and host of the Remarkable Results Radio Podcast and the pioneer of automotive aftermarket podcasts. Carm calls on his years of experience in the aftermarket to bring engaging stories from his guests.

Listen to raw, unfiltered, honest, and sincere stories that include insights, trends, best practices, and expertise. Each interview brings an opportunity to learn one new thing through the stories of personal achievement. Many podcast guests tell their story of transformation from working in their business to working on it.

As host of over 1,000 episodes, Carm uses his enthusiasm and passion for the aftermarket especially the service sector to take his listeners on a journey showcasing successful service professionals’ paths to Remarkable Results. He also enjoys interviews with aftermarket industry thought leaders who bring their industry perspectives to his listener.

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