A short conversational clip from the Service Driver Revolution series (host Chris Collins) discussing strategies auto service centers can use to increase winter sales. Speakers contrast defeatist vs. opportunity mindsets, suggest concrete tactics (winter packages, tire checks, snow brushes, interior detailing, events/contests), and emphasize planning and perspective as keys to higher winter revenue.
What season are we in right now?
Going into winter.
Okay, so if we're going into winter.
Somebody'S view of that would tell you whether they're going to have high sales or not.
That's right.
So what would be something that somebody with low sales would say in reference to winter?
We're going to slow down. Traffic is going to be non existent.
Okay. On the opposite side of that, what would somebody say to that? Same thing that's going to have high sales.
This actually just happened to me today. My buddy Adam, who runs a. He's a fixed ops director down in Naples, Florida, he said, oh, yeah, we prepare every winter starting in September and October because we're going to get busy. Like I add on a shift is.
What he said was great.
But it was the same question. What are you going to do for winter?
Yeah. Now let's say you're not in Florida and your RO account goes down. That person might say, well, we have more time to spend on each customer. Our inspections would get better.
Yes. Your number, your numbers could be flat if you want, or you're gonna have.
An event to drive traffic. You're gonna be doing something, but you're not reactionary. You see it as opportunity, and you're looking at it as, how do I create the opportunity versus how do I react to my perception of what it is?
Right.
And so the secret to higher sales is what is your perspective on the opportunity? Do you even see the opportunity like whenever there's these strings, like so say, for example, in Illinois.
When it gets cold, you got all kinds of things that happen to motorized vehicles.
Yeah. The slide off is my favorite.
Batteries, all the systems popping, like all kinds of stuff happen. Right. And is that opportunity to.
Tons.
Yeah. But a lot of people see it as, oh, traffic's down, whatever. Whatever it is. Right. So you have to train your mind to see the opportunity.
Exactly.
And you have to believe it. It can't be. It can't just be fluff.
Yeah, there's a. There's a. There's a saying that you're preparing and there's a physical preparing, I believe, is the huge difference between the doers and the non doers. Yeah, the doers and the complainers.
And so the secret to higher sales this winter is your perspective. How much have you planned? How do you see it? Are you finding the opportunity or are you letting it slip by? Because you're never going to get this winter back. And the more extreme the weather gets, the more emotional people get, the more opportunity there is.
Yeah. The More the better, right? Oh, what do you call a broke Santa Claus?
What?
Saint Nichol. Less.
That's pretty good.
Thank you.
That's the secret to higher sales.
I just wrote down a few easy things to focus on during the winter. If you're in those busy areas or the cold areas, I think the easiest thing to do is tire checks because you know those lights are gonna come on. Any kind of a winter package. Wipers, snow brush. Saturday.
What's that?
Where they come in for service. They get a free. Free snow brush. You know how cheap those things are to buy a case of those. But everybody needs a snow brush.
That's the brush with the ice scraper.
Yeah. Those are great.
I have one of those and I live in California.
That's how I always know I'm in Illinois, is when I get into the rental car and there's an ice scraper on the dash. They're usually really, really good about that. You could host a hot cocoa contest.
Yeah.
Any sort of event, right?
Yep. So I definitely had events. And then I also think it's a great time. I don't know what you think about this, but for up north, it's an awesome time to sell interior details because the outside, you know, it's going to be crappy. But you can make the inside look really, really nice on a car because it goes through some. It goes through some heck during the use. So I think it's a great time to do interior details.
And then if I was a. If I was a service manager, I would also hold, like, contests for trips for my people, like a sales contest to get a trip in February.
So if you have a really good December or January, they get to go to Acapulco for three days.
Send them to Dallas, Fort Worth.
Yeah.
With creatine.
Yeah. What do they call those visits when you go to prison and you can have conjugal. You get a conjugal visit to DFW airport.
So funny.
But I don't know. Those are just things that I was thinking of to make the bad good. It's definitely whatever you think it is is how it's going to go.
Yeah.
It's funny. You've been. You've been playing around with that in your head as perception. Because my perception is usually different than your perception.
Yeah.
Thanks so much for watching this clip of Service Driver Revolution. We're uploading new stuff every day, so make sure you subscribe and click the bell icon so you don't miss out. If you have a question you'd like us to answer on the show. Call 8333 Ask SDR and we'll answer your question on the show. That's 8333 Ask SDR. For special deals on our books and training, head over to offers.chriscollinsinc.com that's offers.chriscollinsInc.com I'm Chris Collins and I'll see you in the next video.
