Last year, Waco, Texas-based Greg May Honda expanded its service operation in an effort to reduce customer wait times and accommodate a substantial increase in the dealer's service business. After a $500,000 expansion that added a new dedicated quick service building (along with new tablet computers for service advisors and restaurant-style buzzers for customers), the company saw a 9 percent increase in customer pay repair orders in three months along with a jump in customer satisfaction scores of 4 percentage points. In the first month, gross profit in service increased from $83,000 to $101,000.
What challenges did you have prior to the expansion?
We could not even get close to getting to all of the people that wanted quick service. We had a three to four day wait for larger jobs. People that wanted a 30-minute oil change had to wait an hour and a half. We only had 10 bays.
How did you determine the best way to expand?
The biggest miss we had was on quick service. If we could get taken care of, we could help the bulk of those customers. I added five bays in a separate building, and that became the quick service location. I have a team of three technicians just for those bays. Our customers have never been happier, because they can get in so quickly.
Was it a challenge to hire new technicians?
In addition to the quick service team, I added another B technician, and that freed up my A techs to do all of the larger jobs. They aren't bogged down with quick service.
Finding techs has never been more challenging. Even hiring an oil change guy, the market is really tough. We ended up making offers to some guys at other dealerships that were looking, and that's how we got most of our new guys.
Tell me about the restaurant buzzers you give to your customers.
That happened because we couldn't find a customer one day. Their car was done, and they were out on the lot. The customer came back later and said, "Hey, my car has been done for a half hour." We couldn't find him!
We called up a company that sells those buzzers, and they said they'd never put them in a car dealership before. The customers think it's pretty cool. It works anywhere on the lot, and they know when the car is done or if we need to talk to them. I've had nothing but positive comments. It also allows the service advisor to have the paperwork ready and at the cashier station once the customer gets back.
What is the biggest challenge you face in service?
Keeping good technicians. These oil change guys are hard to keep. They jump around a lot, so we're trying to do a good job of keeping the guys we have here. We also have to keep the service advisors focused on making sure we take care of everybody.
The business just continues to grow. We have to take care of everybody during the peak times, and not panic. We have the capacity; we just need to adjust to handle those peak times in the morning, at lunch, and in the evening. You see everyone go into panic mode. I just have to remind them, we'll be fine, we'll get to everybody. We just need to stay calm down and relax.
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