Automated check-in, electronic vehicle inspection, tidy and trained technicians, organized workstations, waiting lobby, customer-friendly environment, automated services, and what not!
Can you imagine this is how auto workshops operate nowadays?
I’ll tell you why my interest has suddenly piqued into this workshop management.
I moved out of my hometown 8 years ago for studies and couldn’t visit home often or even for long breaks. But due to COVID-19, I’ve been able to spend the last four months at home and have been able to reconnect with my friends.
I’ve always had a not-so-good picture of how these workshops appear and function. But that’s until recently, when I had to take my car for a routine service. One of my friend’s father owns a car workshop nearby, so I thought of giving it a visit. I was surprised to see how greatly they’ve changed the business and evolved as truly professional car service providers.
My friend, Manas, showed me around the place and introduced me to the Workshop Management Software they had been using for some time now. The software came with many features that allowed the garage to administer every single process involved in the smooth functioning of the workshop, whether it is inventory, technicians, or customers.
Garage or Workshop Business is all about timely delivery and quality service, which collectively shifts customer’s satisfaction to customer’s delight. Garages are budging their focus towards making their customers feel more than satisfied. Digitization as a tool, has made it possible for such businesses to expand in incredible ways. It has proven to be an opportunity that promises the development and expansion of not just the workshop, but it also profits every stakeholder involved.
With the growing number of vehicle owners, the need for the state-of-the-art workshops is at an all-time high. Workshop management needs to provide quick and reliable service to ensure high customer satisfaction as well as retention. They need to be able to book customers’ requests promptly, have sufficient inventory of spare parts with top-notch technicians on hand. This definitely could be a challenge if the right support is not available.
Quick fact:
After expiration of warranty period, over 66% of people visit the Unauthorized Multi-Brand Workshops to get their vehicles serviced.
The average lifespan of a vehicle is about 10 years, out of which only initial two or three years are spent with the Authorized Workshops, rest of its services are handled by our local mechanics. This huge percentage of population directs to a large revenue generation opportunity for Unauthorized Multi-brand Service Centers. However, with traditional techniques, these businesses fail to see the aspects that can boost their productivity into multiple folds.
Initially, these small business owners tend to make ‘fulfillment of customer expectation’ their supreme motive. To create this value, the garage owners put in all efforts at disposal. But even when operating at full potential, they face many routine challenges and have failed to become competent enough to overcome those problems. Technician productivity, dropout customers, average turnaround time, most used brands, frequent services, etc., are a few areas that directly affect the revenue graph of the business.
Unauthorized Multi-brand Workshops are now partnering with management software providers to help boost their business. The Automotive Aftermarket is witnessing the digital players to help these workshops in progressing their business in an organized and intelligent approach. Software like RAMP, AutoFacets, ShopMonkey, etc., provide digital solutions with integrating the workshop processes in a 360° view, creating an entire digital ecosystem. With these digital solutions, the workshops can now handle operations seamlessly, such as connecting the customers to the workshop, creating intuitive job cards, preordering spare parts, electronic vehicle inspection, automated check-in processes, estimation of cost, workforce allocation, real-time check on the technicians, invoice generation, managing relations with the clients. These systems help the workshops with their routine activities like maintaining a log of inventory (in/out), insurance services, taxed billing, and many more.
Digitization of such aspects relieves the burden off the workshop owners/managers, offering them time and resources that can be utilized towards future developments. These solution provider companies take care of their clients by providing them a 24×7 customer assistance as well, making sure that these workshop owners are able to make the best out of their solutions.
In 2020, as we go ahead, growing digitization and advancement in technology acts like a ripple through the industry. People who adapt these changes sail through the ridges, acting on the benefits of these technological advancements during this Digital Revolution of the Automotive Industry.
Innovation & Automotive 