The Busy Bays Podcast

If you are currently recruiting, or ever plan to recruit, techs, service advisors or office staff at your shop, you don't want to miss this podcast. We do a deep dive with Chris Lawson, founder of Technician Find, into all things recruiting for auto repair shops.  We asked Chris about job ads, how to expand your reach for candidates, the role that culture plays, and more. Listen now to hear Chris's enlightening insights and to increase your success in finding employees who will be a great fit for your shop! To learn more about Repair Shop Websites, please visit https://www.repairshopwebsites.com/. To learn more about Technician Find, please visit https://www.technicianfind.com/.

Have you lost a technician or two recently that left for more pay? Was it really the pay? When an employee brings up pay or leaves for pay it most often means, "you are going to have to pay me more money: To put up with this crappy work environment To work these hours with no flexibility To work with these people Gallup's study shows that engaged employees need a 31% pay increase to even consider taking a job somewhere else In this podcast we talk about the five best predictors of employee retention and a number of things that you can implement in your shop to help you engage your employees. For additional information see https://www.repairshopwebsites.com/pay-probably-isnt-the-reason-you-are-losing-techs/.

Your auto repair shop should be on Instagram. In this podcast we share the data on consumer use and the changes that Instagram recently made to help local businesses get discovered. Then we detail three levels of Instagram involvement depending on your ability to dedicate time and resources. Level 1 doesn't require a lot and it's well worth the investment of time. Listen now to better understand why it's important to be on Instagram and how you can get the biggest bang for your buck by utilizing the platform. For more information, visit https://www.repairshopwebsites.com/instagram-is-now-a-necessity-for-auto-repair-shops/.

ABC - Architecture, (Back)Links and Content This episode covers the fundamentals of Search Engine Optimization for auto repair shops.  It includes things to look out for and actions you can take to help your website rise to the top of the organic search listings. In this episode we simplify these concepts to make them as straightforward as possible.  There are far too many marketing and SEO experts who try to overcomplicate these concepts to justify the exorbitant fees they charge small businesses. We take the opposite approach. For additional content created to help auto repair shops, please visit our blog at https://www.repairshopwebsites.com/resource-center/repair-shop-advice/.

Apple recently announced the release of Apple Business Connect.  Apple Business Connect is similar to the Google Business Profile,  and would be found on Apple Maps...but it doesn't stop there.  In the announcement, Apple said it would also be used in messages, Siri and other apps. What does Apple Business Connect include?  What is the potential audience?  Are there any early results? We'll cover all of that and more aspects of how Apple Business Connect can be leveraged by auto repair shops.  Listen now!

How many consumers read reviews? How many reviews do they want to see before they’ll consider your shop? What do they do after reading reviews? How likely are consumers to leave a review after being asked to by a local business? How do they prefer to be asked? Why do they write reviews for local businesses? Learn the answers to all those questions and more with this deep dive into the recent survey of 1,300 consumers. If you’ve been hesitant to ask happy customers for reviews this should give you a new perspective!

There are several benefits to texting with your customers and potential customers: Many people use texting as their primary communication method. Including a text box on your website helps potential customers easily reach you. A text conversation can help build a long term relationship while a chat is just a session. In this episode we dive deep into the advantages of texting with Leadferno Co-Founder and CEO Aaron Weiche. Aaron also speaks to some of the concerns that small business owners have about texting with their customers and how Leadferno has been built to handle those concerns. Listen now to learn about the benefits of texting and how you can leverage it to bring in more customers and increase customer satisfaction.

Whether you are in need now, or want to put a plan in place in case you need to bring in new business during a slowdown or dry spell, the following ideas can help. The ideas are mostly low cost, with the cost really going into the time for somebody to execute on them. A key to getting customers in the door quickly is to diversify the ways that you are trying to connect with the vehicle owners in your community.

You are probably always thinking about how your shop looks inside and out because you know that impacts your reputation. But what other things exist with your logo on them? How do you ensure your logo is not associated with aggressive, dangerous driving or unruly behavior? Every interaction with a consumer is a chance to win their business or lose it for life. In this episode we cover some of the danger areas you may not be thinking of when it comes to managing your reputation.

We dove into insurance with Brian, asking him: When you talk to Auto Repair shops, what do you often find they don't realize about the insurance they should be carrying? What are some key factors that insurance companies look favorably upon when deciding to provide the best rates for a repair shop? Should a shop turn every claim into their insurance company? To hear his answers to those questions and more, listen now!

What do you need more at your shop right now, customers or technicians? We talk to many clients and shop owners who tell us their #1 need is more techs. If they are our clients, we tell them let's make that clear on your website! Why are you spending your time, money and precious marketing real estate trying to attract new customers instead of new employees? In this episode we highlight five ways to leverage the marketing you might typically use to help you attract new customers to instead help you attract new employees.

We partnered with WrenchWay to ask technicians what aspects of a job are most important to them. We’ve got the results and we talk to WrenchWay co-founder and President Jay Goninen about them on the podcast. We also ask Jay what he’s hearing from the techs he’s talking to. You don’t want to miss this one – listen now!

A recent survey shows that elements of reviews were four of the top five factors for how consumers choose local service providers. What were those four factors and how should auto repair shops approach asking for reviews to give themselves the best chance to be found? Listen to the episode to find out more!

Google recently made a change in their search engine results pages that could exponentially increase the importance of actively managing your Google Business Profile (formerly known as Google My Business). It’s likely to significantly reward auto repair shops who put the time into optimizing the profile and thoroughly punish those who don’t. Martin and Bekah dive into what they know about the up-and-coming Google Business Profile and how to best utilize it as an auto repair shop owner.

The customer experience plays a huge role in determining whether a first-time auto repair shop customer is going to return or not. We’ve got six tips to help you turn brand new customers into life-long customers.

Martin and Bekah talk about the 5 marketing to-dos for your auto repair shop that you should start focusing on right now - before 2022. Take a listen!

It’s all about fact vs. fiction on this episode of The Busy Bays Podcast. Martin and Bekah dive into five of the biggest digital marketing myths that we hear repair shop owners and managers talking about on a daily basis.

Google reviews are often the differentiator between you and the shop down the street. Your customers rely on reading reviews to make their decision. In this episode, Martin and Bekah cover how to ask and what to ask for in your automotive shop's online reviews.

When we hear auto repair shop owners tell us “My website isn’t working,” it’s usually because of one of these common SEO (search engine optimization) mistakes. Listen to this podcast to learn how to avoid these mistakes, and what to do if you’ve already made them.

Are you looking for more profitable jobs related to certain makes and models or a specific type of work? By equipping your online presence to pull in jobs you're looking for, you'll avoid being slammed in your shop with busy work. In this episode, Martin and Bekah spend time talking about how to target your auto repair shop's marketing for the jobs you want to focus on.