-By Kristopher Hampton for AutoSuccess Magazine. When we’ve been in the automotive business for a long period of time, it can be hard to relate to what our guests are experiencing. But when I go into automotive service facilities as a customer, I often end up with some extremely valuable insight. Recently I took my […]

-by Sally Whitesell for AutoSuccess Service Magazine. You know from Part 1 that women are crucial to your business. So are you making women a top priority? If you meet the expectations of women you will exceed the expectations of everyone. Please keep this in mind as we focus on the importance of your waiting room and […]

Joe: Sally Whitesell has spent over two decades providing service advisor training in service departments across the country. Her professional training products have been utilized at dealerships by individuals, service teams, managers and at the corporate level.  She is the founder and CEO of sw Service Solutions, and also a contributor to CBT news. We […]

-by Sally Whitesell for AutoSuccess Magazine. These days you cannot walk into a supermarket or fast food restaurant without getting asked to fill out a survey. “You might even win a prize!” However, most of us do not take the time to fill out surveys unless we have had a bad experience or someone has […]

Joe: Sally Whitesell is the CEO and founder of sw Service Solutions and Fixed Ops University. She has provided service advisor training in hundreds of drives across the country for more than 23 years at an individual and corporate level. She is also a contributor to CBT News, and we welcome her, and now Sally, […]

-by Sally Whitesell for Fixed Ops Magazine. I recently spoke at a conference in Orlando. After my presentation, I noticed a workshop on the schedule: “How to recruit and keep your technicians.” I ran down the hall to a room packed like sardines. The conference-goers were anxious to attend because someone was finally going to […]

-by Sally Whitesell for AutoSuccess Service Magazine. Why should we focus on women? The facts may shock you! There has been a lot written about the importance of catering to your female clientele. Unfortunately many dealerships don’t completely understand why this is so crucial to current, and more importantly, future business. I’m a woman who […]

Joe: It’s a pleasure to have on once again to CBT News, Sally Whitesell. She’s the founder and CEO of sw Service Solutions, and a recent speaker at the Women in Automotive Conference. Sally, we appreciate you taking the time. We know you are busy, you’re always on the road training, so thank you so […]

-By Kristopher Hampton for AutoSuccess Magazine. One of the biggest complaints in our industry is “No one ever called me.” Most service managers hear this at least once a day. After you have established that a call was actually made, you may hear, “I never listen to my voicemails anymore so I didn’t get your […]

-By Sally Whitesell for Fixed Ops Magazine. Which do you have on your staff? Every department has its standouts and its under-achievers, but have you ever considered what makes them so different? Both work in the same environment, with the same guests, and the same pay plan; but their productions levels and customer satisfaction scores […]

Joe: It’s a pleasure to welcome to CBT news for the first time, Sally Whitesell, founder and CEO of SW Service Solutions. Sally, thank you for taking time with us today. Sally: Well thank you for having me, it’s a pleasure. Joe: So let’s get right to it Sally. We are always hearing about how […]

-by Sally Whitesell. Most dealerships are used to focusing most of their time and attention on their sales team and profits from the front end. Unfortunately the profits made on each sale is dwindling and new car sales are down. Lost revenue on your front end makes everyone want to tighten their belts. The question […]

-by Sally Whitesell for Fixed Ops Magazine. Have you ever put a price tag on each of your service advisor’s chairs? Well, you should! It’s probably worth much more than you realize. This chair has the potential to be the most valuable seat in your dealership. Just think about it. The person in this chair […]

-by Sally Whitesell. Emotions play a big part in most women’s purchasing decisions. Yes, I said it! It doesn’t mean we are less informed. It means we use a combination of facts and feelings to make buying decisions. In case you don’t believe me – gentlemen, when was the last time you spent an entire […]

-by Kristopher Hampton. Did you know it would take a car salesman 22 cars sales a month to match the monthly gross sales of one average service advisor? These numbers may shock you! Have you ever considered how many of your clients an advisor works with each day? According to NADA, most advisors write up an […]

-by Kristopher Hampton. “Playoffs? We can barely make it to practice!” Pretty much any coach has made this statement during a losing streak, but imagine you and your favorite team getting ready for a new season. You pull out your favorite jersey and call your friends while the chicken wings are frying because you are […]

-by Sally Whitesell. Today’s customer will scrutinize every aspect of their customer service experience in your store. We don’t just make buying decisions based on necessity; we buy things that make us feel and look good. We buy things our friends have had a good experience with or that have high ratings and reviews. We […]

-by Sally Whitesell for AutoSuccess Magazine. Terminating someone is never pleasant and not to be taken lightly. As a former service manager I only had to fire one service advisor -and I did not make that decision lightly. However, in most cases it is the employee’s choice to get fired. What do I mean? Certainly […]

-by Sally Whitesell for Fixed Ops Magazine. The biggest topic in our industry right now is Customer Retention. How do we get people who walked in our door to keep coming back and become loyal long-term clients? There are many reasons our customers defect: poor customer service, frequent employee turnover or even poor communication with […]

-by Sally Whitesell Who on our team is the best, and how do we get the rest of our group to reach their level? This is a question you may have heard or even asked when planning training events or making business projections. While this is a good place to start, you have to take […]

-by Sally Whitesell Have you stopped and considered how much money people are spending on their cars outside of the dealership? What if we could capture even a fraction of that number? There’s a race going on between manufacturers to create the lowest maintenance vehicles. While this is great for customers, it’s not so great […]

-by Sally Whitesell Customer service surveys are becoming more difficult to get our customers to fill out, and therefore, more difficult for us to receive. Let’s face it; we’re all over-surveyed these days. We’re usually not interested in wasting our time unless we are extremely irritated or extremely impressed. In an effort to increase the […]

-by Sally Whitesell for AutoSuccess Online The moment a woman enters your facility, she is looking for signals. Signals you may not even realize you are sending. What is your demeanor? What are your intentions? Do you take her seriously? Why should we care about what signals we’re sending to women in our store? Because […]

-by Sally Whitesell for AutoSuccess Magazine The glaring mistakes of a well-intentioned sales team. I was excited about buying a nice new car, but like many of your clients, I was dreading the process. As a service advisor trainer who specializes in teaching the differences between selling to women vs. men, I’m in car dealerships […]