What Impression Does Your Shop Make?

by Rick White, President 180BIZ                                                            (Estimated Read Time 5 minutes)

Today I want to talk about impressions. I think impressions are super important. Let me explain why. I've been traveling a lot lately. You can tell a lot about a hotel by the impressions you get, and there are a few different impressions you can have.

Lowest of Low Impressions

• Lowest of Low Impressions. I've been in hotels where it was clear they didn't care. The hotel was outdated, it was an issue as far as things working and not working. There has been a time recently when I had to fix the toilet. These are things that make clear impressions that these people not only don't care about the business, but the people don't care either.

Mediocre Impressions

• Mediocre Impressions. But then I've been in hotels where the people are amazing, but the property has fallen apart. The property is not where it should be. Silly, stupid things that leave an impression like walking down the hallway to get to your room and have the carpet old and outdated or has some strange smell. It's an indicator that you don't care. I was at a hotel recently and something as silly as the thing that holds the toilet paper roll was loose and falling out of the wall. No one notices that the tub drain is clogged and fills up with water while in the shower. These things matter. They create impressions.  Now the people are amazing and they care. They are the nicest people in the world. But I'm telling you, they are not looking for growth, in my opinion. They're not trying to grow the property; they're not trying to make it better and to bring more people in. They're just getting what they can out of the business. That's what it feels like. Now, the good thing is the people at that hotel that work there, the management has done a great job so that they don't feel like that because I'm telling you, that's cancer in the business just waiting to happen.

Top Level Impressions

• Top Level Impressions. But then I've been at hotels, like the one I stayed at recently in St. Louis, and it was clear by every part of that hotel that they really cared. They cared about the environment, they cared about how they greeted you, and how they dealt with you. And that was everyone, including the cleaning staff. It was clear that that hotel wanted my business. It was clear that they cared enough to create an environment that was relaxing and warm and very helpful. That is huge.

What are the impressions of your shop?

Where are you at on that contingency? Are you actively aware of what both your team and your facility communicate? If you have a yard full of junk cars, tires hanging around, and stuff that looks junky, you're going to be in that second or third spot.

You will either be someone who is actively growing and caring about your business. Or you’ll be someone who is struggling. Your people are good, but your facility is showing signs of wear and tear and you're letting it go. Or you have situations where you're just getting by, and that might not be intentional. It might be just because you're so focused on all these other things that you are not taking care of the impressions that you're making.

So, this week step back a little bit. Take a good look at your shop and team.

• Are you full-on growth?
• Is everyone on your team aware?
• Do you have parking spots out front clearly marked, “Hey, drop your car off right here?”
•  Do you make it easy to get the car?
• Do you back it in so I can just drive off?
• What does the inside of your office look like?
• Is the floor lifting?
• Are there stains on the carpet or the floor?
• Are there chunks taken out of the chairs and you haven't done anything about it?

These are all things that make an impression. And if you want to be a shop that gets paid what you are worth your facility must show that you are worth what you're asking for. The team and the way they interact with your clients must show up in a way that makes it worth what you're asking for.

Is the impression that you are worth what you’re asking for?

That's the disconnect today. We have so many shops out there that aren't making enough money. They don't have the team that they need, and in that process, just getting to the end of the day without killing someone. And what happens? You end up in that third spot, the bottom rung where you're just getting by. You're just getting what you can out of the business. That's a problem. If that's the case, maybe you're burned out, maybe you've lost your way, maybe you need help. Maybe you feel like this is all there is.

It can be so much better.

I'm here to tell you that it is not that way. It can be so much better. You can make it so much better. But it starts with your mindset. You must be determined that it's going to be better. You must know what it's going to look like and then just start doing things that make it better.

When a hotel wants to improve, they don't shut the hotel down and make it better. They fix one area at a time. They fix one floor at a time, and they update it, make it better. So please step back and look at your facility.

And I'm going to ask you to do me a favor. Please share this video. I need your help. We want to get this message out. There are too many people in our industry struggling. Wouldn't it be nice if you were charging this price up here and this guy down here isn't charging enough because he doesn't see it? How cool would it be if he could start to get subjected to information like this and help him come up? Because now instead of competing on price, you're competing on services. You're competing on what you do and how you do it and how you show up, and that's a good way to go. So please share this video.

Also, join me in our next Shop Owner’s Round Table.  It’s the second Thursday of every month at 7:00 PM Eastern time. Check out my Pocket Business Genius webinar series you’ll find helpful webinars and webinar recordings there. It’ll be a game changer for a lot of shops. 

God bless. stay safe, have some fun, and go make some money.

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