My wife and I were having breakfast at a local chain restaurant. “William,” the waiter, was friendly, the service was timely, and the food was tasty. Towards the end of our visit, William handed me the bill and instructed me to go see “Two Star Mary” to settle up. When I arrived at the cashier counter,…
As a district manager, I hated when my regional manager would visit without notice. One day, I received a call from “Rick,” my regional manager. He said he was in town and wanted to visit shops with me! The bad news was that this was a complete surprise. The good news was that he allowed…
For most auto repair shop owners, the holiday season is challenging. Car count dwindles as customers prioritize shopping and feasting over maintenance and repair services. Travelers tend to be impatient and our service advisor becomes the bearer of bad news when the vehicle they want to drive several hundred miles to visit family is proven…
In 1991, a group of psychics joined forces to start The Psychic Friends Network. Singer Dionne Warwick was the host of this popular show that used infomercials to attract its customers. By 1994 the show had aired over 12,000 episodes and was generating $125 million per year! By 1998, the company had declared bankruptcy with…
I would count to ten and take deep breaths before my coaching calls with “Tom.” Tom is a shop owner who would agree to do certain things but never followed through. For example, he would consistently fail to conduct the daily repair order audits. When I asked what happened, his response was, “I didn’t have…