Car Count Daily
Hey everybody, it’s Ron Ipach and thank you very much for watching Car Count Daily. Now some people call me Captain Car Count because that’s what I do, I help pack your shop full of great, quality car count. Now on today’s episode we’re going to be talking all about that dreaded, and I do mean dreaded, price shopper. I hear it all the time, “Oh these price shoppers, all they’re looking for is the cheapest price. They call you, you answer the phone, and the first thing out of their mouth is, ‘How much is it for a set of brakes on my ’89 Accord?'” Immediately your mind tends to go to the fact that they’re looking for only the cheapest price, that price is their only concern and unless you give them by far the cheapest prices they’re going to get on the phone, you’re never going to see them.
And I’m going to tell you, in the overwhelming majority of times, that’s simply not true. The reason why they’re asking for price is because they don’t know anything else to ask. They think it’s an intelligent question. They have no idea that every car can be different. That’s your job to know that, not theirs. They think it’s an intelligent question, you think it is a really stupid question.
So I want to wipe that out of your mind and understand that when somebody calls you and asks for a price, it’s a huge opportunity that’s standing in front of you, not a waste of your time to be talking with this person. So a case in point, if my hot water heater went out in my home, I don’t know anything about hot water heaters. I don’t know what makes them tick, I don’t know what makes one better than another. I have no idea how much it should even cost. So I’m going to call around to a plumber and I guarantee you my first question’s going to be, “How much is it?” because I don’t know anything else to ask.
Now if he treated me the same way and think that I’m just looking for the cheapest price, he would blow me off and I’d never do business with him. Well that’s the same thing that’s happening when people call and ask for price. They don’t know that there’s a difference, they don’t know what to ask. It’s your job to now start asking them the proper questions. Do a dive into why they’re calling you, what makes them think that they need whatever it is they need and get them to come to your shop. Your number job when you answer that phone is to get the appointment, not judge simply because somebody asked you a question about price. Don’t judge until you’ve asked them questions, you’ve gotten them into the shop, and at that point that’s where you’re going to find out if price is the only concern that they have. I guarantee you if you do a good job, price is not the only concern for the majority of people that are calling.
So when that phone rings, think of it as a cash register going off because there’s opportunity. If they’ve got a broken car, that’s a great opportunity for you to get them to your shop and make money from them. Don’t repel them by blowing them off, invite them into the shop and show them what you can do for them.
That’s going to do it for today. I hope you enjoyed today’s episode and as always, please, scroll down below this video and leave me a comment. Let me know what you like and what you don’t like. Give me a suggestion on how I can improve or other subjects that I can cover in future episodes.
Excellent points, Ron! It always boggles my mind and I can’t understand why it’s so hard for people in our industry to understand that we are NOT order takers…we are professionals (or should be) and it is our job to help the customer get to the resolution they’re contacting us about. That requires that we Ask Lots of Good Questions, not just answer questions the customer asks us…they “Don’t Know What They Don’t Know”. It’s our job to take control of the conversation and lead the customer to a professional repair that brings them to the resolution that they are coming to us for help on.
Well said Jason!
Great advice. Our most important job is to educate consumers to empower them to make educated decisions that will give them the best service for maintenance of what’s for many a very substantial investment.
If they are asking about price, for many, many people today, bottom line has a huge affect on what they have left to spend on the necessities of life. If we bother to take the time to address their concerns, educate them about what they really need and the benefits of utilizing quality parts, that helps form a bond of trust…and your business relationship starts out on solid footing.
Beverly, I would contend that the reason most open with a question about price has less to do with having money left over to put food on the table, and more to do with 1) not knowing what to ask or 2) finding out what kind of dent the repair will make on their budget.