Why Sustainable
The first step of auto shop business fundamentals is asking yourself, are you creating and building a sustainable business? A sustainable auto shop business is one that can operate without you being part of the day-to-day. This is a business that becomes manageable and sellable for any auto shop owner focused on business fundamentals.
A sustainable auto shop business is what many business owners hope for, but hope is not a strategy. Is their day to day activity focused on achieving their dream? Clients and auto shop owners have told me that selling their business is their retirement plan, yet most auto shop owners will tell you they’re busy wearing lots of hats. Too often what gets overlooked are the fundamentals of business.
Years ago, when I was in hairdressing school, one of the first things we learned about cutting hair was not to lose sight of your guide. It’s the first layer that you cut. It’s what will guide you through the rest of the haircut. Without the fundamentals operating and growing an auto repair shop is more difficult and time consuming just like getting lost in a haircut would be without a guide. This illustrates the importance of mastering auto shop owner business fundamentals.
What a sustainable auto shop business needs to focus on are the 5 Pillars of Business.
Marketing
Do you know who your ideal customer is or are you marketing to everyone? When you are speaking to everyone, no one believes you’re speaking to them. Selling is more difficult because you don’t connect with or understand your customers problems. Do not fear creating an ideal customer and marketing to them. Understanding your market is a key part of auto shop owner business fundamentals.
Sales
It takes relationships to build the know, like and trust we all want before we buy. How do you build and nurture those relationships? Are you making the most of the opportunities available such as local groups and associations? Getting comfortable with sales is key to best serving your customers/clients.
Operations and Technology
These are your systems and processes for efficiency and consistency. Many auto shop owners need to get this information out of their heads and share it with their team. Is your team involved in brain-storming new ideas? Technology tools can help. There are so many resources available today to help a shop owner make the most of their time. Stop putting out fires and focus on growing your business.
People and Leadership
Do you value your team and customers? Are you open to new ideas and feedback? Is your auto shop business the one people want to work at? Your team’s skill set is a valuable resource. To attract, develop, and retain top talent, develop your leadership skills. Leading yourself vs leading others is a challenge for many owners. As your auto shop business goes through the 5 stages of business, you will need to develop leaders on your team.
Financials
Tracking the numbers in any auto shop business is important to its health and sustainability. You can adjust and make better decisions based on facts not guessing or guesstimate financials. If you’re tracking your numbers, you will know if you need to rethink areas of your business or services you provide. You’ll be able to make better decisions quickly.
Don’t Go It Alone
You don’t have to be doing all of this yourself. But you need to learn enough in each pillar to delegate or outsource to the right people or company. Trust and verify. Have checks and balances in place. We’ve all heard the horror stories of auto shop owners who were taken advantage of by people they trusted with their business. Don’t allow those stories or experiences to defend or confirm doing it all yourself. Instead of wishing business was easier, invest in becoming better and take the action needed to learn or revisit the fundamentals.
Start imagining what a healthy auto shop business looks like day to day. Consider what the core auto shop owner business fundamentals are needed to achieve that vision.
Profitable, Sustainable and Enjoyable!
- It understands its ideal customer and is attracting new customers
- It confidently sells the value and quality services provided to customers and the community
- It has the best systems and processes in place to for consistency and efficiency.
- It has a quality team who aligns company’s core values and is proud to work there.
- It tracks the financial health making better decisions for growth
Does this mean there aren’t challenges? Of course not. Life is full of challenges. Change is inevitable, so enjoy the ride. Keep up with training, industry trends and updates, personal and professional development. If the auto shop owner doesn’t grow, the business won’t either. An auto shop business will grow only to the level of leadership of the owner, and adhering to auto shop owner business fundamentals will set the stage for that growth.
Enjoying what you do each day makes all the difference. Gain control of your auto shop business instead of it controlling you. Being the owner means you are responsible for all of it. By making your auto shop business independent you can step away as you need or want to, knowing that you are developing your team. Read more about making your shop independent of you here.
A friend of mine recently said, “People who fear life, don’t enjoy life. If you worry all the time, there is no time for enjoyment.” I say “Control what you can, trust and verify the rest and enjoy life’s journey.”