Here’s a question you may not have considered before: when does your auto repair shop start building relationships with new customers?
You might assume that the relationship begins when they show up for their first service visit, but that’s not the case. Instead, the appointment scheduling process sets the tone for your connections with first-time clients. It pays to take this process seriously—and do whatever you can to improve it.
When your auto repair shop scheduling system runs smoothly, you’ll benefit from an improved customer experience, increased efficiency, and a higher maximum car count. And while enhancing this system is easier said than done, there are a few ways you can upgrade your scheduling workflow without too much of a headache. Read on for BayIQ’s tips for streamlining your auto repair shop’s scheduling system.
1. Go Digital with Specialized Software
There’s something to be said for manually tracking your upcoming appointments—and the “something” in question is that it’s an inconvenience. But writing down upcoming appointments by hand isn’t just inefficient. It also increases your risk of accidentally taking down the wrong information, potentially causing problems for your technicians and customers.
With that in mind, it’s in your best interest to use online scheduling software while keeping track of your shop’s schedule on any given day. That doesn’t mean you should rely on a generic online calendar from Google, Teams, or the like. Instead, invest in specialized software that can make your life easier with advanced, industry-specific features.
2. Allow Online Booking
For you and your techs, digital auto repair shop scheduling will almost certainly be more convenient than “manual” scheduling ever was. But the benefits don’t stop there—these programs can also make life simpler for your valued customers. One of the biggest perks offered by well-designed scheduling software is online booking.
As far as your customers are concerned, online scheduling is much easier than setting up appointments over the phone. You can also eliminate the risk of double-booking by only showing available slots when people are setting up their appointments. Plus, your staff won’t have to manually add appointments to your shop’s schedule, saving even more time.
3. Set Up Appointment Reminders
Of course, it doesn’t matter how sophisticated or feature-packed your scheduling software is if your customers don’t show up when they’re supposed to. Businesses across the service industry live in fear of no-shows, and that certainly includes auto repair shops. Fortunately, the best scheduling programs can mitigate this issue with appointment reminder features.
When researching online scheduling software, ensure your program of choice has reminder capabilities. If it does, your customers can receive email or text reminders when they have an appointment coming up. These reminders can be fully automated, meaning your team won’t have to do a thing to benefit from this feature. Best of all, your clients are extremely likely to engage with your reminders—text messages have an open rate of 98 percent.
4. Keep Track of Upcoming Maintenance
Even if your technicians are highly qualified professionals, there’s no denying that auto repair is a complicated business. Today’s vehicles need countless maintenance services to continue operating at their best. But keeping track of these services can be difficult for your customers and nearly impossible for your busy technicians.
Instead of manually monitoring each customer’s maintenance needs or leaving them to their own devices, look for scheduling software that comes with maintenance tracking capabilities. The best programs in this field will know when your clients need regular maintenance services such as tire rotation or oil changes. On top of that, they can even automatically prompt customers to schedule these services at your auto shop!
Scheduling Made Easy with BayIQ
Appointment scheduling is at the heart of most service businesses, including independent auto shops. It makes sense to take a closer look at your shop’s scheduling system and think about how you could improve it.
Do you still handle your business’ schedule by hand, or do you use a standard online calendar for this purpose? If that’s the case, it’s time to take the next step and find a program that fits your shop’s needs.
Whether you run a single auto repair shop or have multiple locations, BayIQ is the right auto shop scheduling program for your business. With our fully-featured scheduling software, you’ll be able to:
- Let customers set up appointments online
- Create follow-up appointments right away with POS integration
- Customize your times, bays, and services
- Send automated email and text reminders
- Issue follow-up emails after an appointment
- Take advantage of other BayIQ features, like loyalty rewards programs and online review solicitation
Are you ready to take your auto repair shop scheduling to the next level? Set up a demo with BayIQ today!
