Every shop location comes with its own unique quirks that can offer both challenges and opportunities. And for North Carolina based owner Jay Huh, it’s that his shop actually shares a physical wall with a competing repair shop. Despite being quite literally next door to a business providing similar services, Huh has been able to take hold of his shop, Carmedix, and skyrocket its success with TechNet.
He first joined the same network as his neighboring shop a few years back, but soon upgraded to TechNet in 2017 after experiencing the incredible support from the network’s team. Through the network, Huh is able to lean on other shops for support. For him, the best way to connect with other shops is through the TechNet Nation Facebook group, which has almost 3,000 members.
Huh also leans on Advance Professional’s training organization and digital services to help continue to grow and expand his flourishing shop.
“We are able to bring so much value to our shop and our customers because of these solutions,” he says.
TechNet Benefits
The TechNet Professional Automotive Service is a network of more than 15,000 repair shops across North America, and provides owners a plethora of benefits and advantages.
Because of the network, Huh is able to offer warranties and roadside assistance to his customers which strengthens customer relationships. In fact, if you drive by Carmedix, you will actually see a banner out front of the shop advertising the “Free Roadside Assistance”, something Huh’s previous network did not offer.
“We've had situations where a customer decided to use our services rather than their current, cheaper mechanic because of the roadside assistance service,” he explains. “Customers love having peace of mind–but what's more, is that we have peace of mind because of TechNet.”
Huh also advertises the nationwide and in-store warranties provided by TechNet to his customers as important reassurance. “
We install parts with confidence because we know that if a part were to fail, both the shop and the customer would be taken care of,” he says.
Carmedix even has a page on its website dedicated to explaining the TechNet features and benefits to potential and current customers.
Training for the Future
“More and more, as I am looking for and hiring top talent, I get asked if we provide ongoing training,” Huh says. “With CTI, I can confidently answer yes.”
When it comes to training, it hasn’t always been a priority for Huh and his team, resulting in many comebacks. He now takes advantage of virtual training through CTI and WTI. Huh says the instructor-led virtual classes are top notch and cover everything from Ford Ecoboost engines, to using lab scopes, to diagnosing hybrid systems, to EV, etc. There's a class for pretty much anything you're interested in. Huh also takes advantage of ASE test prep and CTIonline.com, which is great for technician and management roles alike.
Shop Operations and Customer Experience
Huh uses MotoVisuals as a way to clearly communicate with customers through animations, and even help to train new employees.
“I personally LOVE MotoVisuals. The animations are done very well and makes it crystal clear to the customer what is being replaced and why,” Huh says. He also utilizes MotoLogic as his shop’s main source to look up vehicle service information. Specs, TSBs, diagrams, diagnostics, and repair info is very well laid out all in one place with MotoLogic.
Advance Professional recently announced its partnership with additional technology solutions, all designed to help owners run their shops more efficiently and successfully. The partnership includes Tekmetric and Mechanic Advisor–both software services that Huh utilizes to grow his team and shop.
Tekmetric, a cloud-based shop management system, provides Huh a way to connect and build trust with customers through DVIs that can easily include both images and videos.
“Picture and video is THE answer to the problem of customers not trusting mechanic shops and Tekmetric did a phenomenal job making it very quick and easy to do.” The ease of building tickets, clean and professional customer interface, and accessible reporting keeps Huh praising the features of Tekmetric.
Lastly, Mechanic Advisor has become Huh’s CRM in the past year. The platform’s strong customer communication platform through text, email, and postcards are one of the main driving reasons his shop has had a successful year bringing in customers.
In fact, Huh says, “Mechanic Advisor is THE reason why we had a GREAT February. Also advisors love it because we have gotten lots of returning work–integrates really well with Tekmetric where it shows recommended repairs on their own personal page for their vehicle.”
All in all, everything mentioned here– TechNet, CTI, MotoLogic, MotoVisuals, Tekmetric, Mechanic Advisor–are all core tools in Huh’s business. “Without them our shop would look very different,” he says.
To find out more, visit my.advancepro.com and technetprofessional.com/members.
