Recruiting, training millennials vital for aftermarket sales and staffing needs

June 21, 2016
Millennial accessory buyers are running up average add-on tickets of $2,220 to individualize a vehicle to their liking, and this 18-to-34 age group now presents “the greatest opportunity for the accessory industry,” according to Foresight Research’s Accessories Immersion Report.

There are several compelling reasons for melding millennials into your workforce: Not only are a lot of experienced employees retiring – resulting in staffing shortages – but millennial-generation vehicle owners may be inclined to spend more money when interacting with properly trained peers behind the counter as they purchase increasing amounts of accessories.

Although dealerships are attracting a significant portion of these sales, the aftermarket is also positioned to benefit.

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Millennial accessory buyers are running up average add-on tickets of $2,220 to individualize a vehicle to their liking, and this 18-to-34 age group now presents “the greatest opportunity for the accessory industry,” according to Foresight Research’s Accessories Immersion Report.

“First, millennials are returning to new car purchasing in droves, so there are more of them,” explains Foresight President Chris Stommel. “Second, they install accessories at a 42 percent higher rate and spend 61 percent more on accessories than the average new auto purchaser.”

“One of the most important findings about accessories is the effect of dealerships attempts to sell-on accessory purchases during the new vehicle shopping process,” says Nancy Walter, the company’s vice president of business development. “There is a definite positive correlation between dealership sales efforts and accessory purchases and spending. So, while millennial interest in accessories is attributed to this group’s desire to personalize possessions and reflect individuality, another contributing factor may be that millennials are 50 percent more likely than boomers to report that dealerships actively sold them accessories.”

Light trucks represent the overall highest accessory installation rates and spending, with much of these sales taking place in the dealer’s showroom. Yet when compared to other segments, pickup buyers most often perceive dealerships at a disadvantage versus aftermarket sources – especially the Internet – on four key purchasing criteria; price, in-stock availability, quality and installation.

“We see this as a big opportunity for pickup brand dealers, and alternatively, an area to defend and nurture for retail and digital aftermarket accessory outlets,” Stommel says. “Additionally, while we would expect truck buyers to install trailering-related accessories at higher rates, they also install non-endemic segment accessories at higher rates, including tinted windows, custom bumpers and grills, and bug deflectors.”

All in all, according to Foresight’s findings, accessories represent a burgeoning opportunity for millennials to convey their individuality – and for accessory manufacturers and marketers to increase sales.

Attracting younger employees

Recruiting millennials into your company and getting them to remain on the payroll, whether it’s a retail operation, distributorship or shop would consequently seem to make good business sense from a customer-relations standpoint. And, perhaps more critically, to alleviate staffing shortages brought on by ever-increasing retirements as the most experienced employees leave the workforce.

Taking into account generational differences, both real and perceived, is widely viewed as being an important element of your strategy.

“The modern workplace is changing and both parties need to adapt to prosper,” says Roger HB Davies, CEO of McLuhan & Davies Communications, which has recently released a three-part “We Are Millennials” online educational offering that looks at the modern millennial employee. It analyzes the work ethics, goals and interests of this generation and explains how managers can make their young employees more motivated, productive and dedicated.

“From an employer’s viewpoint this series shows you how to retain a generation that’s always on the move. From the millennial’s viewpoint it teaches you how to stand out amongst your peers in the business world,” says Davies, citing company research showing that the millennial population approaches the workplace much differently than baby boomers and GenXers. Special emphasis is placed on workplace culture, short-term goals, instant feedback, communication skills and professional development.

“There are a lot of negative comments circulating about my generation claiming we’re spoiled, entitled, lazy and unmotivated,” says Ashley Denuzzo, the program’s producer at McLuhan & Davies. “That couldn't be farther from the truth. This series is meant to not only challenge the stereotypes of millennials, but also show companies that if they want their millennials to become standout leaders there has to be support coming from the top.”

“Regardless of what type of aftermarket business, the recruiting tactics are the same across the board,” according to Courtney Hammer, director of job and career development at the Auto Care Association. “However, students graduating from career and technical education institutions are a natural fit for the industry, as they have taken proactive steps to prepare themselves for many of the technical jobs that are available in a repair shop. Therefore, outreach to them could focus less on the virtues of the industry and more on what your company has to offer.

“Demand for qualified technicians is extremely high. To stand out among the tough competition, it is critical to deploy effective recruitment tactics and market yourself appropriately to the next generation of automotive service employees,” she says.

“The millennial generation is extremely wired, and research shows that the majority of the millennials found their last job through a social media network. Digital recruiting is essential to getting you talent into your company and is absolutely worth your while,” says Hammer, who serves as the Auto Care Association’s liaison to YANG, the Young Auto Care Network Group that provides opportunities to network with industry peers, knowledge enhancement and improved leadership capabilities.

At May’s YANG Leadership Conference, “We had 52 in attendance and everyone walked away with new contacts and a broader perspective of the industry,” Hammer reports. Highlights included discussing the Next Step Scholarship program from YANG and the Automotive Warehouse Distributors Association (AWDA) that allows new-to-the-aftermarket recipients to experience the association, learn more about the industry and form friendships as they expand their network.

Regarding employer recruitment efforts, adds Hammer, “any millennial applicant will be looking for the following things at your company; if they do not find them there is a chance that they will not be interested in applying.”

  • Open communication and trust with their employer: They need to feel like their supervisors trust them to complete the work that they are assigned to do. Micromanaging is suffocating to them.
  • Opportunities for growth: Does your company offer opportunities for continuing education? Be sure to emphasize the way your employees grow and change, as many young applicants fear stagnation.
  • Flexibility and personal interactions: With the increasing digitalization in the workplace, many millennials look for opportunities to telework. They also look for a positive office culture.
  • Meaning: Millennials dread feeling like they are working toward nothing, or even worse, hurting society. Helping employees find meaning in their work also helps to increase retention rates.

Realistic expectations

“Because in most cases other industries have been much quicker to recognize the recruiting challenges with millennials, automotive-related industries have a lot of catching up to do,” observes analyst Brian Canning, a 30-year veteran of the auto repair industry.

“Perception of both automotive repair and of the parts industry is somewhat negative, but I think there are real opportunities out there with the right kind of effort. I think it needs to be a grassroots effort – engaging young would-be automotive service and parts professionals in high school and in ways that provide them with a clear career path with real expectations of a career, job growth and financial security,” he advises.

“There has to be a realistic opportunity and a career path for these young people, because if they don’t see it in the automotive parts and repair worlds they will move on to other industries where those opportunities are more obvious,” says Canning. “The automotive repair industry has been a bit slow on the uptake here, but there are signs of a growing effort out there, and this needs to increase and be more visible to millennials or the automotive world will be on the short end of the available manpower stick.”

Providing on-the-job mentors can be a key method for achieving success. “Throwing them to the lions will not work with millennials, and rather than fighting to survive they will move on to other industries,” Canning cautions.

Mentoring is best accomplished by assigning a more senior – and willing – employee to assist a new hire over a finite 12- to 24-month period, perhaps 18 months, along with providing the mentor with adequate compensation and/or bonuses tied to the mentored person’s success, according to Canning. Financial inducements serve to avoid resentments fostered by the mentor feeling that he or she is being pulled away from their regular work duties, commissions, etc., with this strategy resulting in a win-win for both of the staffers plus the business itself.

“Millennials are what we made them and they are less willing to buy into claims of a great career and career path without some strong proof that there is something behind the claims. They are less willing than previous generations to accept slow or non-existent advancement and are likely to move on if we can’t give them something to hold on to,” he says.

“We need to be much more willing to engage them early and show them the real opportunities represented by the automotive world. Those opportunities are out there, we just have not always been good at highlighting them. Getting to these young people early and committing to their future are important keys to attracting, hiring and retaining millennials,” says Canning.

“To a lot of us in the automotive world this is asking too much, but if survival is what is at stake I hope that most shop owners and service managers will see the importance of going about this in a different way than we did a generation ago,” he continues, “and do what needs to be done to get these young people in our doors. If we are not successful, there are any number of other industries that are happy to have them.”

An effective approach by ownership for addressing future staffing levels entails being a prominent presence in your community’s learning environments. “Start early, get involved with high school automotive programs and technical schools across many industries and get to know the students while being an advocate for the automotive industry,” Canning urges. “Sponsor career days and participate in training and education programs. Dealers do this routinely – the automotive aftermarket needs to get in on this effort. Be visible and available to young people looking for a career.”

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